A Letter To Myself

Recently someone posted a video on Facebook entitled "Dear 16-year-old Me" about melanoma (skin cancer) survivors sharing their stories. I've also read something similar in someone's blog about that person sharing her experiences through a letter. That got me thinking...what would I tell the teenager that I once was, now that I am 46 and have experienced more of life? 

Dear 16-year-old Me,

Hi! I am you, 30 years down the road. I'm writing you this letter because I think that there are some things you might be curious to know about how life will turn out for you. It's hard for you to imagine yourself at my age, but just to let you know, I haven't changed much except that my face is a little rounder and my boobs sag a little lower, haha. 

I still remember you envisioning the future, about having a career and a wonderful marriage with 2 kids. Don't worry too much about not having a boyfriend even though you see your friends pairing up and being all lovey-dovey. How do you know when the right guy comes along? When you go out with a guy and he doesn't try to impress you with how good he is or what possessions he has. When you can be yourself with him and he loves you for being you. When he cares for others. When he loves God and wants to please Him. And yes, this guy exists and you married him. He and his family love you to bits.

And yes, you will have 2 kids - a boy and a girl - just like you imagined you would. They have been a challenge to raise but I cannot imagine my life without them. The love and joy that they bring is just priceless. And nothing beats being a mom to teenage kids! By the way, your daughter looks like you and she dances ballet, like how you had wanted to but somehow didn't.

Oh yes, one thing I have a hard time getting rid of are the freckles on my cheeks. I wish you would not spend so much time in the sun although I understand that during that era the trend was having tanned skin. Sunblock is now my best friend. However, I must thank you for taking care of your skin with the proper skin care through the years and now people tell me that I look younger than my age. I must confess though, that the love for make up and cosmetics have carried on till this present day. Another thing, you don't need to wish for bigger eyes, your small eyes look fine with proper make up. The lack of height...just got to live with it.

My health is not too bad for a 46-year-old. I still love cakes and pastries, but I try not to give in to temptation - sometimes I succeed, other times I don't. The trend now is healthy eating.

Life will not be a bed of roses but I know you have that 'stubbornness' in you that you will never quit no matter what life throws at you. You have dreams of pursuing your studies overseas and there will come a time after you've completed your matriculation in college that you will see your friends one by one going overseas for their studies...but you will be left behind. Dad will tell you that his business is not doing well and there won't be enough money for you to study overseas. But don't despair, opportunities will open up in other areas and you will find tremendous joy and satisfaction in another career path.  Also, you would not have met your Prince Charming if you had gone overseas, so I am thankful now for the broken dreams back then.

An illness in the family will really test you and force you to grow up real quick. But don't worry, your faith in God will bring you through the difficult times when you have to bear heavy burdens on your young shoulders.
A drastic change to a smaller town later on will seem like an awful hindrance to all your plans, but this will be the time when you discover yourself minus all the trappings of material possessions and big-city life.

So, don't take things too seriously, enjoy the fun moments. Treasure your friends. Some of those girls in school and new friends you find at your future workplace will become lifelong pals. 

Embrace difficult circumstances as opportunities to grow as a person. Trust God and He will show you what He has purposed for you, and bring you from strength to strength. All that I am and have is truly by the grace of God, and for that I am grateful.

Love,
Your 46-year-old Self

Nick Vujicic In KL

I found out on Facebook that Nick Vujicic would be in KL for a few days, so hubby and I decided to bring our kids to attend his talk City Harvest Church at Sunway on the 31st of August.

The talk was scheduled at 2pm but when we reached there at 12.30pm the hall was already about 80% full. We queued for an hour and still couldn't get in. Thankfully, our church friend who had arrived earlier and had booked seats for us managed to convince the security personnel to let us jump the queue to enter the hall.

All the chairs were removed from the hall so that as many people as possible could be seated on the floor. Later I read that the final count was about 9,500 people when only 5,000 were expected to turn up!

The crowd that afternoon. There is a large
LED screen at the stage.

Seeing Nick in person made all the waiting and tight squeezing worth it. He's an excellent motivational speaker - he has this gift of making people laugh or cry with his words.

So thankful for the large screen because Nick
looked really tiny from where I was seated.

Nick Vujicic's message is one of hope. Born without arms or legs, he should be the one without much of a future yet God had plans for him beyond what he could even imagine, and now he travels the world spreading the message of hope and finding meaning in life. This really makes me grateful for what I have and I believe that, like Nick, everyone can live a life full of possibilities.

What My Mama Taught Me

Mother's Day was celebrated 2 days ago. Every year there would be articles in the newspapers about mothers and I notice that the  stories of how a mother single-handedly brings up her kids would always be highlighted while the stories of ordinary mothers would often be overlooked. 

So today I am going to write about an ordinary, unassuming lady who has had a great influence over my life and some of the important things that she taught me:

My Mother Taught Me Colour Coordination.

The earliest thing I can remember my mom teaching me is that colours must match and not clash.  When I was about 3 years old, I had a large selection of coloured ribbons for my hair and whenever we went out on a Sunday as a family, she would dress me and then ask me to choose a ribbon that would match my outfit. If the colour did not match I would have to keep trying until I selected one that did. I remember one time when I was older and I chose a pair of shoes that did not match my outfit, because I wanted comfort rather than style. Needless to say, she convinced me to wear the matching pair of shoes instead. Today, shopping for clothes is such a breeze for me because I can visualize what accessories will match the piece I'm buying or which top will match the pants/skirt that has caught me eye.


My Mother Taught Me To Always Look Presentable.

My mom takes very good care of her skin and till today she looks at least 10 years younger than her 76 years. She also always had make up on, more make up for the office and less make up at home because she believes in always looking presentable. She had this philospohy : "If you're the lady of the house then don't go around looking like the maid"! My mom allowed me to wear make up when I was 15, in fact she ordered me to by saying, "You look pale. Go put on some blusher before you go out!" I guess that was her way of saying that I had permission to use make up, as in those days parents had this funny habit of saying things indirectly unless they were scolding the child. Today I have my own collection of make up and face creams, and I see the wisdom in my mom teaching me about skin care. I teach my children about proper proper skin care when they reach puberty and have to deal with pimples and oily faces. As for make up, I tell my daughter that at 15, she looks good as she is.


My Mother Taught Me About Self-Worth.

The one important thing that my mother instilled in me is that I must always have a proper sense of self-respect. People will respect us when we respect ourselves. This has helped me in my choice of friends and eventually led me to a right choice of husband. She was always very particular about good manners, mine and my friends'. If I was going out with a boy, my mom would not allow him to just honk at the gate and expect me to come out. She would want the guy to come in and say 'Hello' to her before we went out together. I told my daughter that this is how it will be for her too :)


My Mother Taught Me About Staying Within Budget.

My parents ran a business together and my mom was blessed with the finer things in life for a good number of years. However, when the economic downturn came, she knew how to cut back on her spending by using things that were cheaper but not necessarily of less quality, as in household, skin care and  make up products. Instead of having tailor-made clothes she would buy them off the rack and we would eat out less often. Now that I have my own household to run, this lesson is deeply ingrained in me and I always watch the prices of goods that I buy, whether it is good value for money or just an indulgence that I can do without.


Of course, there are so many more things that my mom taught me. Like most mothers my mom is not perfect and there are some things that I should not learn from her, like forgetting where she parked her car when we went to the shopping mall, haha! But I know that she always wants the best for me and as a mom myself I can truly appreciate all that she has done for me.

Love you, mom.

Happy Mother's Day!

Birthday Celebrations

It has been a month of birthday celebrations. My daughter, SweetTeen, turned 15. Then my dad-in-law had a large-scale celebration for his 76th birthday - invited all his relatives and close friends. My mom also turned 76, and just a few days ago my son, CoolTeen, turned 19. I suppose I would have to give him another nickname next year when he's no longer a teenager.

Just a quick recap of the birthday cakes that we had this year....

SweetTeen loves stars,
so I made fondant stars for her chocolate cake

Dad-in-law's pandan layered cake. Can't take
any credit for this because I ordered it from a bakery.
Love the fresh cream chinese peaches - a symbol
for longevity

My mom's chocolate mousse cake, also bought
from a bakery. See the difference between professional
and amateur bakers? :)

CoolTeen's snare drum cake. It looks simple
but the fondant decorations
took me the whole afternoon to create.
Now I remember why I seldom make fondant cakes!

CoolTeen received a rather creative present from one of his friends who knew that he liked Milo...

The whole box with the logo on the cover
was homemade - a treasure chest of Milo bars
and 3-in-1 Milo powder!

A friend of mine posted this video on Facebook this morning and I was amazed at how much I could identify with it. This is Katrina Kenison reading from a chapter from the book 'The Gift Of An Ordinary Day'. It reminds me to appreciate my children every single day, for they are truly precious gifts.
Warning: tissues needed!

Money & Happiness?

I saw this on Facebook today and I think if everyone truly understands the correlation between money and happiness, this world would be a better place.
The video is a little long but worth your time watching it :)

A Little Kindness

I opened the YouTube page today and was not too surprised to find countless parodies of the recently very popular song "Oppa Gangnam Style'. Then I chanced upon a charming short video clip which is rather touching....


Posted by Aniboom

One of my favourite programs on Hypp TV, now that we've installed Unifi and discontinued our Astro subscription, is the American program called "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" which airs on Sundays at 1.15pm on Channel 140. 

Each episode features a family that has faced some sort of recent or ongoing hardship such as a natural disaster or a family member with a life-threatening illness, in need of new hope. The show's producers coordinate with a local construction contractor, which then coordinates with various companies in the building trades for a makeover of the family's home. This includes interior, exterior and landscaping, performed in seven days while the family is on vacation (paid for by the show's producers) and documented in the episode. If the house is beyond repair, they replace it entirely. (excerp taken from Wikipedia)

Our family watch this show together and it never fails to bring tears when we watch the expressions of surprise, joy and gratitude on the faces of the featured family when they see their new home for the very first time.

I suppose everyone could do with a little kindness in the world today. I like this quote by Mother Teresa:

“People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
 
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.

If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway. 

For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.” 

2 Decades Of Love

This is what appeared in my blog sidebar on 11th of July 2012. Yup, hubby and I have been married for 20 years, although it seems like only yesterday... 


I was 24 and hubby was 28 when we got married at the Glad Tidings church in PJ. I still remember that I could not sleep a wink the night before the wedding, running through all the plans in my mind and praying that everything would go well. 


I was supposed to have my make-up done at 8am but the make-up lady got lost and couldn't find my house even with the address and instructions given to her. That was the days when we did not have the convenience of mobile phones, so I was in quite a panic when she still didn't show up by 9am since hubby was due to arrive at 10am. Thankfully she came at slightly after 9am and was so skilled that I had my make-up and hair done in no time at all, and was all ready before the clock struck 10.


Hubby arrived on time and we had the customary cham cha which is offering a cup of tea to each of my parents, aunties and uncles before heading to church for the wedding ceremony.


The wedding ceremony in church was short and sweet, and we had a tea reception after that at the hall within the church premises.


We had 2 dinners, one on the wedding day hosted by hubby's parents and one on the next day hosted by my parents since both sets of parents had wanted to invited every single one of their friends and family, and Chinese restaurants in those days could not accommodate so many tables. It was a tiring affair - we shook so many hands of people offering their congratulations and we smiled so much for so many hours that our hands were stiff and our smiles were frozen on our faces long after the guests had gone home!


But we had fun.


And now, 20 years later with 2 kids...I must say that by the grace of God through good times and bad, we are still very much in love :)

Celebrated by having buffet lunch at Mosaic,
Mandarin Oriental Hotel KL

Golden Anniversary

Drawn by my nephew using the iPad

My parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on the 26th of May last week. They weren't too keen on a big celebration so my brother and I with our respective spouse and kids took them out to dinner for a simple celebration.


From young I have heard my mom tell the story of how my parents met. My father was studying at the University of Melbourne and my mother was also in Melbourne, training to be a nurse. They both play badminton well and that was how they met - at some inter-college games.

My mom could not stand the dreary Melbourne weather and decided to come home to Malaysia. At that time my dad had one more year of study before he graduated. After graduation, he came back to Malaysia and my parents got married. My dad took over a business owned by his father, selling lamps and electrical household appliances. My mom helped my dad at the shop and together they built up the business.

Flowers for mom and chocolates for dad :)

It has now been 50 years since they got married, and they still adore each other. I'm thankful that my parents are still healthy and look young for their age, and sometimes I wonder how hubby and I will be  when our 50th anniversary comes along - will we be wearing dentures and walking with the aid of a tongkat? 

Being Thankful

I check my email inbox everyday and once in a while I am pleasantly surprised by the funny jokes and inspirational stories that my friends send me.


I found this in my inbox one day and finding it very encouraging I thought I would share it here:

Be Thankful

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire. If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be thankful when you don't know something, for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times. During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations, because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for each new challenge, because it will build your strength and character.

Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you're tired and weary, because it means you've made a difference.

It's easy to be thankful for the good things. A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks. Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive. Find a way to be thankful for your troubles, and they can become your blessings.

Oh...there's also one thing which I am thankful for since I am a BIG fan of Angry Birds...something which I bought in Sungei Wang today while shopping with hubby and SweetTeen:

There is so much choice of phone casing for the iPhone
and nothing for the Samsung Galaxy Ace,
until I found this today (big grin)!

As much as I treasured my little Sony Ericsson Experia X10 mini, age is catching up and my eyes were straining to read the words on the tiny screen, so I had to part with it and get myself a phone with a bigger screen and bigger fonts...sigh!

Sara Frankl aka Gitzen Girl

I have been thinking for the past few days of what to write as a tribute to someone who, for the past year that I have been following her blog, has been such an inspiration and encouragement to me in my Christian faith. I stumbled upon her blog by chance when I was reading some articles at (in)courage, a page where women share their stories of faith to encourage one another.

This person, Sara Frankl a.k.a Gitzen Girl (see the big orange button in the sidebar on the right of my blog? That's the link to her blog), passed away on Saturday night after many years of living with a painful progressive degenerative illness. She had to give up a job that she loved, and because of very severe allergies she could not venture out from her home or even open a window, and those who visited her had to be in the pink of health because even the slightest germ or virus was life-threatening to Sara.


Being confined to her little apartment with just a cute little dog for company, she started a blog and reached out to many people around the world through her computer, allowing herself to be used by God to love, encourage and lift up others instead of wallowing in self-pity. Her motto was simple yet powerful:

She had this wonderful gift of words and a wisdom far beyond her years, and as she shared her life story through her blog, many times I felt as if God spoke to me through her. I'd like to share something that she wrote 2 months back:

Life is meant to be shared. The good, the bad and the ugly... which I think is really just the good and the beautiful to Him, you know. Things are hard for us, bad for us, ugly to us, but to Him it’s all just the pattern of life that brings us closer to Him. And there is beauty in that.
The good, the bad and the ugly... God can see ahead to the beauty that comes from the ugly. He's knows the beauty in the ugly pain that we can’t yet see. Our perspective shifts when we trust that He will bring beauty from our pain. That He will carry us as we carry our burdens.
And we can be Christ to each other as we help each other carry those burdens.

When Sara was too ill to update her blog, one of her friends did it on her behalf and that was when we were all informed about her passing. I read with a heavy heart, yet at the same time I was glad that Sara had gone home to heaven and is now able to dance and sing like she used to...free from pain. Hundreds of people came for the funeral. Thousands more couldn't because of distance. That shows how much her life has made a difference.

Thank you, Sara. Yes, I too will CHOOSE JOY.

Here's a newspaper article about her and if you would like, go to her blog and read through what she has written. I'm sure you too will be encouraged and blessed.

Yvonne Foong

A few years back I had read in the newspapers about Yvonne Foong, a young girl with Neurofibromatosis, an inherited disorder where multiple tumours grow in the brain and along the spine. She was 16 when diagnosed with this condition and instead of going into self pity she wrote a book entitled "I'm Not Sick, Just A bit Unwell".

A few days ago I was at the hair salon getting a hair perm and was flipping through a magazine when I came across an article about her, but that article was written in 2006, so I looked up the internet to see how she was doing. I found her blog and she has accomplished much in the last few years, all listed here. Currently she is a university student and upon graduation she aspires to become a psychologist and therapist providing support to children with hearing aids.

What inspired me to write about Yvonne is her optimism despite all that she has gone through - she has undergone 8 major surgeries from 2002 till 2009, she almost went blind and her hearing has been badly affected by the disease, yet she does not depend solely on charity but raises funds on her own for her very costly surgeries (between RM90,000 to RM200,000 each!) by selling custom-made t-shirts, and a few days ago she posted on her blog that she is going to sell mooncakes to pay for her trip to the US to take part in a 4-year clinical research program that studies the long-term development of Neurofibromatosis Type 2.

Have a look at her blog post entitled "Mooncakes For Health" and let's do our bit to help someone in need. I'll be placing my orders soon.

Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining

The other day while driving I saw this, and I just had to stop my car and snap a photo of it...

...sunbeams shining through dark clouds.








This is one of my all-time favourite scenes as it reminds me that something good can come out of a difficult situation.

As a little girl I have always been strangely fascinated by thunderstorms...I loved to watch lightning streak across the sky and would close my ears in anticipation of the loud thunder that would follow. I would stand at the window and watch the swaying trees in the pouring rain knowing that the storm would only last for a period of time, after which the raindrops would gradually stop pelting down and everything would be calm once more...and I was glad that all the trees and grass would have enough water to sustain them till the next downpour.

Now when it rains I just feel like curling up in bed under the blankets and taking a snooze...!

As I celebrated Easter last Sunday, I am reminded of what God has done out of love, and I am reassured that I never need to weather the storms of life alone because He keeps me safe.

It's Been 22 Years

Our church celebrated her 22nd anniversary yesterday with a colourful flag dance by the children and a short drama by the youths. It's been 22 years and I have been a part of this church from the very beginning, when I had just finished my studies. It has been my privilege to serve in the music department as well as put up stage presentations on special occasions like Easter, Mother's Day, Father's Day, our church anniversary and of course, Christmas.

Hubby faithfully helps me record all the presentations with his trusty videocam and I have quite a collection of them by now. It's such a joy to see ideas that play in my head become a reality on the stage. The few minutes before 'showtime' is always the nail-biting moments because things could always go wrong, but by the grace of God everything always falls into place...because all this is done for His honour and glory. God is good.

Simple Yet Touching

This video has been circling around through email and has been viewed over 2 million times on YouTube...it may take a while to download but it's worth the wait...I love how no words are spoken but the message gets across loud and clear...simple yet touching...

Tenacity

Tenacity...I first heard this word when I was a teenager many, many years ago in church. A leader in our church had preached on this subject during one of the Sunday Services.

tenacity = persistent determination, to stick with something even when the going gets tough, never giving up.

Today I read in the newspapers about a man in India who took 14 years using a hammer and chisel to carve a tunnel through a mountain...wow...

PATNA: An Indian villager used a hammer and chisel over the span of 14 years to carve a tunnel through a rocky mountain so that he could park his truck in front of his house.

‘I could not park my truck near my house since the mountain blocked my path,’ Ramchandra Das, 53, who lives in eastern Bihar state’s Gaya district, told Reuters.

Das said fear of thieves stealing his truck prompted him to work on the tunnel all by himself after authorities refused help.

‘I had to leave my truck miles away, so I decided to do something about it myself,’ Das said by telephone.

Local villagers, who had to trek for miles to get around the mountain are using the 14 feet wide tunnel to reach their farms, and praising Das for his work.

‘We rarely come across a man who can work so hard to achieve his goal,’ Prabhat Kumar Jha, a local government official said.

(source DAWN.COM)

This is a fine example of tenacity, a quality that I find lacking in many people today...including myself. Perhaps we have grown too accustomed to having modern appliances and machinery that help us save time and make life so much more comfortable that we miss having the sense of satisfaction that comes from perseverance and hard work.

I really do appreciate my washing machine, microwave oven, vacuum cleaner, electric mixer and everything else that help me in my housework...but the downside of it is that I notice I need to spend more time exercising to shed extra kilos that probably came from having all these appliances do the hard work for me...how ironic.

After reading the news article about the hammer-and-chisel-man, Ramchandra Das, some people commented that if he had used some kind of modern machinery he would have gotten the work done in a few weeks. But perhaps he didn't have the modern equipment needed? I would rather focus on his accomplishment. I think what he felt after completing the tunnel far outweighed all the blisters on his hands, all the sweat and frustration, all the ridicule of his neighbours...what I learn from this is that sometimes we just have to be determined and keep our eyes on our goals regardless of the obstacles and distractions that we face...Mr. Ramchandra Das, he has tenacity.

Little Kids On Stage

Our church celebrated her 21st anniversary on Sunday, and according to tradition, we always have a presentation on stage. When I first mentioned to hubby my plans to put the little children aged 2 - 5 from the Nursery Class on stage, he gave me that "Are you sure?" kind of look because it was less than a month away from the day of the church anniversary.

But after only 3 practices we were really glad that they were able to remember the actions and lyrics to the Sunday School song "Who Is The King Of The Jungle".

Watch and enjoy...really adorable.

I have a better quality version of this video but I just couldn't upload it to YouTube, so I had to downsize the file drastically :(

Dealing With Stress

Got this inspiring story from a friend through email a few days ago...


Stress

A lecturer when explaining stress management to an audience,
Raised a glass of water and asked
'How heavy is this glass of water?'

Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g.

The lecturer replied, 'The absolute weight doesn't matter.
It depends on how long you try to hold it.
If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem.
If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.
If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance.
In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.'

He continued, 'And that's the way it is with stress management.
If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later,
As the burden becomes increasingly heavy,
We won't be able to carry on. '

'As with the glass of water,
You have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again.
When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden.'

'So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down.
Don't carry it home.
You can pick it up tomorrow.
Whatever burdens you're carrying now,
Let them down for a moment if you can.

' So, my friend,
Put down anything that may be a burden to you right now.
Don't pick it up again until after you've rested a while.

Here are some great ways of dealing with the burdens of life:

* Accept that some days you're the pigeon, And some days you're the statue.

* Always keep your words soft and sweet, Just in case you have to eat them.

* Drive carefully.. It's not only cars that can be "Recalled" by their maker....

*If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

* If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, It was probably worth it.

* It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to be kind to others.

* Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, Because then you won't have a leg to stand on.

* Nobody cares if you can't dance well.. Just get up and dance.

* Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.

* The second mouse gets the cheese.

* When everything's coming your way, You're in the wrong lane.

* Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live..

* You may be only one person in the world, But you may also be the world to one person.

* Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once.

* We could learn a lot from crayons... Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names, and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box. (I like this one!)

*A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

I Judged A Book By Its Cover

When I was in Cameron Highlands, I had bought a few cactus plants to replace those that I had on my kitchen window sill which were dying (remember I mentioned that I have a black thumb?!). After choosing 6 little pots of different kinds of cactus, I left them on the payment counter while I went around the shop to look at other things.

By the time I returned to the counter the cashier had already wrapped up my plants with newspaper. There were two sets of plants, mine and someone else's and I recognised my plants because it was put together with the pot of rosemary that I had chosen as well.

When I reached home, I took out all the cactus from the newspaper wrapping to find that the cashier had mixed up my plants! 3 of them were the ones I chose, and the other 3 were not! These were from the same variety of cactus...which I thought were kind of ugly...one of them even had 2 extra parts extending from the main plant like 2 ears.

Well, I couldn't return them (unless hubby was willing to drive 4 hours back up to Camerons again!)...so I arranged them on a less conspicuous spot in my kitchen...like behind my water filter.


After a few days, the 2 ears turned into 2 flower buds and I was quite excited to see the flowers open a little during the daytime and closing again at night.


Every day the flowers would open a little more.


Now this cactus is the prettiest of all my cactus plants.

The thing that I once thought was ugly has become something beautiful, and each day I look forward to seeing the flowers bloom. This reminds me of how God can take our life, no matter how difficult our circumstances can be, and turn it into something beautiful, something good.

Like the old saying goes, "Don't judge a book by its cover"...

Motherhood...Greatest Job In the World

I just realised that I haven't been blogging for the whole week...because it's my kids' exam week and this year I made them sit down with me and study, or else they would rather just vegetate in front of the TV or chit-chat on the phone with friends. I suppose I can add that to my ever growing job description list - tuition teacher.

Whenever I mention that I am a stay at home mom, people tend to get the impression that I have such a good life just being with the kids and not having to work, but I think I am even more busy running the household than I was when I used to go to work.

I got this from a friend through email quite some time ago - a humorous way of looking at the job of a mom.

POSITION: Mother, Mom, Mama

JOB DESCRIPTION: Long term, team players needed, for challenging permanent work in an often chaotic environment. Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call.

Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities. Travel expenses not reimbursed.

Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES: The rest of your life. Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5.

Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly. Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 100km/h in three seconds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf.

Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers.

Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects.

Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks.

Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next.

Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices.

Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.

Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product. Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION: Virtually none. Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE: None required unfortunately. On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.

WAGES AND COMPENSATION: Get this! You pay them! Offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent.

When you die, you give them whatever is left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS: While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth and free hugs for life if you play your cards right.
How true, how true...

Recycling Myself

The question is not whether we will die, but how we will live - Joan Borysenko



My husband and I were at a shopping complex the other day and we came across an organ donor booth set up by the The National Transplant Resource Center (Pusat Sumber Transplan Nasional). Since I am now into recycling, I thought 'why not recycle my organs after I am gone'...after all, I wouldn't be needing them anymore.



So my hubby and I became organ donors. We filled up a form and were given an Organ Donor Card each, plus a little green ribbon pin. Next we had to tell our family members so that they are aware of our decision.



Be an organ donor...save a life!