For the first time, I look forward to moving house. Packing, moving and settling in at a new place is such a hassle. More so if you move every so often - almost every half a year - you felt it’s just a dread. But not this time. 

Reason is easy - it is such a nice place!

And after getting used to a place where you make it look nicer than it was earlier - no air flow, entertainment from all around you, old newspaper vendors ringing and singing their hearts out almost every hour daily early in the morning, rock music from across the window, scoldings from the other direction, fighting from yet another direction, walk out smelling like a sweaty and unwashed Indian, feel like you are being watched at all times, smell car exhust fumes, hear conversations below your unit, floors where we scrubbed until it is cleaner than when we move in - it is a bliss to be moving into a place where you feel comfortable from the first step into the house. 

Now, not only all these are history, we get peace and serenity with vast greenery to feast our eyes on. A song to the soul, a relaxing massage for the mind, a place you can come home to feeling rejuvenated. 

Now, the mess and the hassle of moving doesn’t seem like a big and dreadful task anymore. In fact, I want to get it over and done with as soon as possible to enjoy the new ‘home’!

A fellow blogger left me a message asking why have I not been blogging for a while. I was grateful for this blogger’s reminder. As what I’ve replied to this blogger, I had been jerked off the boat I was on heading towards my goals. And now I’ve climbed back onto the boat and in the process of steering the boat towards its rightful destiny.

No doubt, there was a lot of inertia to overcome and fights over priorities to settle. However, amongst all these, there are beautiful moments and lovely memories to keep. And lots of changes in just a few months.

Just to list some of them down:
1. I’ve moved to another place and will be moving again soon when 6 months is up. Leading a nomad’s life
2. I’ve changed department and learning lots of new things, picking up new skills as well as facing new challenges. So far, I’m still coping alright.
3. One of my beloved flew to somewhere far for further studies. Gonna miss her much…
4. Dreams of walking amidst clear blue sky with crystal clear lake nearby and lush greenery embracing the warm, lovely place are coming back again.
5. Another of my beloved is not longer separated by distance. But one came, another left…
6. One of my best friend also closed the distance gap.

And of course, the best of all… I’m BORN-FREE, bond-free ;p

Freedom is a very great feeling. When you are no longer bonded to anything and you feel as though you can do whatever you wish to, it is really AWESOME!

FREEDOM is definitely something I value very much. I can smell freedom, feel freedom and experience freedom!

Everything happens for a reason. How true. If not for an incident which had happened, I would not realise how I can be like a serene island, remaining calm and composed in the middle of a stormy turbulence. In a battle of emotional intelligence, the master of his or her own emotions is the king. And a king wins battles.

Are you a King who wins battles or are you a mongrel, who fights to see who can shout the loudest?

I am thankful that while I am struggling to brave through a rough patch in life, I have angels around me in various forms, giving me moral strength to carry on. I want the angels in my life to know, from the bottom of my heart, I really appreciate and love all of you!

Sometimes, there are things which are beyond money. Some people will be wondering why some squabbles arise. Most of the times, they stem from money. But if not handled properly, they will grow and will no longer be a simple money issue.

Most of the times, they are a matter of principle, a matter of trust. Once a trust has been betrayed, it will never be the same. Trust has to be earned, and is very fragile. Once broken, the trust will be lost forever.

A series of unfortunate events seemed to have agitated me for the past two weeks. I have to admit that I have been rather negative, emotionally and thinking-wise. However, what happened on Tuesday reminded me that God of Kindness is still smiling at me.

I was feeling ravenous and went for early dinner with my colleague. The food centre was quite deserted as it was not meal time yet. After ordering our food, I started recounting the series of events that has been plaguing me, which almost made me go berserk. When my food came, I gladly dug into the sumptuous food, heaving a sigh of relief when the hot tasty food warmed my tummy and calmed my nerves.

I must have been quite animated when I was telling my stories, until the waitress came a few times to check whether the meat is cooked according to our taste. Each time, I smiled at her and said it was good! I lost count of how many times she came over, but I am very sure that she came not less than four times!

During one of those ‘checks’, the same waitress asked if I would like anything extra. So I jokingly said I won’t mind more fries, even though my plate was overflowing with coleslaw. And she did came back with a plateful of fries, at no cost! I was truly taken aback. Hey, even though the cave I’m in is bleak, there’s still a flicker of light.

I was so grateful for her random act of kindness. For it really brightened up my day, a lot. I flashed her my best smile from my heart. For that, really changed the state I was in, into something more empowering.

That single little act, brought me back to an earlier event on the same day. I was then, in that negative state I was, feeling as though the world has turned its back on me. I took a cab to do something somewhere. I sacrificed my time, my effort and my money and all I get was a totally worthless trip. When I reached my destination on the return trip, I realised that I did not have enough cash to pay the cab driver, after paying for the earlier trip. And I was already late. Really late.

I need to go and withdraw money from the atm which is quite near though, but another passenger was already waiting outside for the cab. I was desperately looking around in my bag for some loose coins or dollar notes that I might have stashed somewhere for emergency but came to nought.

The passenger outside was feeling a bit impatient and opened my door. He asked, not enough cash? I nodded. He asked how much and I said two dollars. He briskly whipped out his wallet and took out a two-dollar note and gave it to me. I was dumbfounded. I took the note with embarrassment and gave it to the taxi driver. The taxi driver broke into a relieved smile.

I thanked the man profusely before and after I had alighted from the cab. I kept asking the man for his name and how to repay him. I’ll remember this kind act from a total stranger and intend to repay him.

And more surprisingly, on the same day, a phone call came to deliver good news. I was ecstatic! I was really, really grateful for everything that has been happening. With just a switch in state, a series of unfortunate events has turned into a series of altruism from strangers…

To the strangers that I’ve experienced kindness from, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I’ll make sure that I pass on this generous display of altruism

Amphibians, such as frogs, can survive in water and on land. They can adapt and live in both worlds, despite the  heaven and earth differences. Both worlds pose different kind of challenges and yet, these amphibians can survive equally well as those inhabitants of the respective habitats.

In life, we do have our version of habitats, such as the different types of workplaces, the different companies, the different environments, the different countries, the changing economy, the changing trends etc. You name it, we have it.

How do we become the amphibians of life? Can we become one and survive in the ever changing environment and circumstances? 

Recently, I was rather amused when this analogy came to my mind. Do you have the skills to become like an amphibian, where you can survive just as well, or maybe even better, in any kind of situation? When life throw you bricks of varying hardness and sizes, how do you overcome them? 

I would choose to think and believe that I have the skills, flexibility, versatility and adaptability of being an amphibian in life. That’s my definition of the survival of the fittest in today’s world. 

I woke up with a bad stomache today. Could have been the one-meal day I had yesterday. Could be the acid in the stomach flowing down to the uterus, causing more corrosion of the lining, which resulted in the contraction of the uterus muscle to discharge the blood.

It was terribly painful. Part and parcel of being a woman. I could almost feel the muscles contracting and it just couldn’t relax. Cold sweat broke all over me and I started feeling faint.

Hot drink. The saviour of the day. In 30 minutes, it was over. What a great relief. My housemate’s sister was there, to help me pour hot water into the cup. How grateful I was.

I popped her a question. What are the ways to stop the pain from coming?She looked deep in thought.

I offered eating well and never getting hungry as one of the ways. At least it worked for me.

Nah, I eat well, she said.

Then she offered being very busy and focusing attention on the important things to do as a possible way. Because as your attention is focused on something else such as work, happiness or laughter, anything other than the pain, hey presto! You would seem to have forgotten about the pain. As though, it is no longer existent.

A personal experience when I was much younger tells the same story too.

It was a school vacation trip to a beautiful holiday island, and I was the student organiser. And being the one in-charged, I had to take care of a lot of things and also to make sure everything went smoothly.

At the same time, it was due. Oh no.. I thought. I was really afraid it would affect me during such an important trip. But other more important things just kept coming and I had to divert my attention there.

It quietly came and went. And I was so surprised!

Throughout the whole duration, I was as busy as a bee, enjoying myself visiting places and at the same time taking charge of all my fellow students.

When I reflected on that event, I realised that, I had wanted that trip so badly. I had spent countless hours and effort in making it come true and I would not just let anything ruin it.

Even when nature threatened to spoil the fun, somehow, when you focus your attention on things that you really want, everything else that is negative would just dissipate into thin air.

Just imagine, how this universal law will affect our lives in the positive way. Think and experience it.

Serial addiction at work. Been on an emotional roller-coaster ride for the past few days, since I started watching the Hong Kong serial ‘The Ultimate Crime Fighter’ during the Hari Raya Haji and the Christmas holidays. 

The serial hooked me up from the the first episode and for the next three episodes, had me sitting gripping to my seats, eyes fixed on the television screen. The first few episodes are about a police officer being a spy in the gangster world, similar to the movie Infernal Affairs. Later on, the other elements of a great serial creeped in, such as relationships, career, friendship and family values.

What’s amazing about the main cast is that he could act all sorts of roles, projecting different identities very convincingly. From acting as a Thai national speaking with Thai accent, a spineless gigolo, a firm police officer, a romantic, a psychotic, a good guy and a bad guy, as well as displaying skills like ice-skating, blowing saxophone and humour. Amazing indeed. 

Not many good-looking actors in the serial though, and the one that can make it, is the bad guy.. sigh.. :p But the female casts are pretty though ;)Anyway, what I really want to write about is the lesson learnt from the serial.

There is a reason I do not usually watch serials, and when I watch, there is always something to learn.Just like in this serial, I would recommend it to anyone, because there are indeed a lot of good values and messages embedded in it.

I’m sure different people will gain something from different areas of the serial. To know what messages you will get, you will have to watch it yourself. Different people will get inspired with different scenes and situations projected in the serial. 

As for me, the main message I get from it is to cherish and appreciate whatever that we have right now. To realise it much later, would be too late. And how we live our lives all depends on what we think. If we think life is beautiful, life will be beautiful. If we think everyone is kind-hearted, everyone will be.

The reverse is also true. If we think others are out to get us, no matter what the person does, will also be bad, because in our eyes, we only see the negative things. But if we give others the benefit of the doubt, and look at it in an objective way, not everything is as bad as we thought. 

What we need, is just to look at it from a different angle, from a different perspective. Stand in another person’s shoe, think and feel like the person and you will understand what is going on in the person’s mind. 

Human being is such a weird creature. We usually take things for granted until we lose them. And by then, it is too late. What we can do, is to cherish whatever we have right now.Count our blessings and be grateful for all the little things in life.

Sometimes, in the hectic lives we live chasing after somethings, we neglected some little things that we thought we will always have. It could be something very simple, such as good health, eyesight, a pair of hands, a roof over the head, family, friends, a job and others that we might have overlook in our daily lives. 

Would you have realised that, the more you are grateful for what you have and for the good things others have done for you, you would get more of it? Have you ever given someone something and the person is very happy and grateful for it? How would you feel? Wouldn’t you want to give even more? Because you feel that everything that you have done, is really worth it?

Think about it. Since the new year 2008 is coming soon, take this time to reflect on our lives and be thankful for everything. With this, I would like to wish everyone, a very happy new year! :D Cheers~!   

As I got down from a bus one recent Saturday, this sudden thought zipped past my mind. I was feeling rather tired then and still, I had to walk to another place for another commitment after a long day.

As I was walking, I felt as though I was running a marathon. Just like how you would feel when you are running a marathon. You feel out of breath and tired but you know you have to persevere on to finish the marathon.

As I reflected on my life so far, I realised that I’ve been juggling too many things at the same time and at a certain point, some things started to turn downhill. I knew I had almost reached my breaking point and I had to prioritise. Time seemed to have been the biggest challenge so far. Maybe life is attempting to teach me a lesson and is throwing bigger bricks at me to make me learn.

This reminds me of the wheel of life. Is your wheel a round one and running smoothly? Or is it dented and out of shape?

Life is a marathon, not a sprint.

So live your life in a balanced way so that the smooth round wheel of life can bring you further and farther in life.

Just like this Chinese saying, “Rest is to enable you to go further”.

See what a five-year-old kid gave me last week

My housemate’s nephew came to visit recently during the school holidays and he was a refreshing addition to the house during his short stay. Though he had been with us for a short time, but he had left warm feelings in each and everyone of us in the house.

What had this little kid of five years old done, to touch us so deeply?

One fine day, he was as usual, running around the house, the living room to be exact, like a lively ball of energy. That morning, he ran into my room looking bored, so I gave him some rough papers, a pencil and a children’s story book about the enormous crocodile.

I asked him to look at the pictures and draw the pictures he like. So he sat down beside me and started drawing the crocodile. He managed to draw two crocodiles using the pencil I gave him, before her granny called him to get ready to go out. So the picture was just a skeleton of pencil marks.

The next day, again he ran into my room and surprised me with a coloured picture of the crocodile drawings he drew the day before! I was impressed! Because the coloured pictures are really nice!

Then he set to work to give the big crocodile a few more friends and baby crocodiles. When he was done, he said he is giving it to me. I was so touched!

Even more touching was when all of us came home after work that same day, we realised that actually each of us have a piece of his artwork!

He actually drew five pieces of different pictures on five pieces of paper and gave each of us one of his masterpiece! Oh, how sweet he is! He drew pictures of a motorbike from his t-shirt, two buses, somemore pictures from his t-shirt and some small icons on the rough paper.

A young kid with a big heart indeed, which warmed our hearts hardened by the realities of life.

If someone as young as Joshua could touch people’s lives, how about an adult many times his age? Should we start to feel ashamed of ourselves or take action and start touching people’s lives today and make a difference?

I didn’t get to bid farewell to him. If I see him again, I would want to give him a big hug and say thank you!