A few days ago, I read from the Star online about a marriage ceremony held for the spirits of two lovers. It was a romance that started more than twenty years ago. The ill-fated Chinese could not seal their love in marriage then as they lost their lives in a car accident about twenty kilometres from Gua Musang two decades ago.
Their love for each other remained strong and it culminated in a marriage in the spirit world. The spirits were eager to have their parents give their blessings to the marriage and so, some five years ago, the boy's mother dreamt of their marriage.
However, like some people who do not believe in spirits, the mother did not do anything to indicate agreement with their marriage. It was only when the boy's mother fell ill and consulted a medium that the family was told of the wish of the couple to have a wedding ceremony to indicate the parents blessings to their matrimony.
When parents of both spirits came together to discuss wedding plans, the boy's mother also recovered from her sickness.
Actually this is not the first time, spirits of the dead have sent messages to ask that marriage ceremonies be held to bless their union in love. There have been such reports in newspapers.
Actually, I do not know what to make of this. Although I have encountered people such as my own father who could see spirits of the dead, I have yet to meet people who could give me a first person report of seeing married couples in the other dimension.
Until I have reliable information, I would have to let others think of this and perhaps tell us about anybody who has such knowledge.
However, the report is interesting as, if it is true, then, not only do we live on, relationships still remain and we are constantly in contact with the people we like. Imagine that! And it also bring forth so many other questions. Will there be divorces? How about children? And it can certainly bring new meaning to death.
Monday, November 02, 2009
Sunday, November 01, 2009
Manage your money to financial security.
Some people complained that they never had enough money despite the fact that they earn RM3,000/- a month. Yet, I see many who earn merely RM1,000/- living happily and having savings in the bank.
Some can have nine credit cards and yet are constantly in debt, owing the bank a great deal of money although they have not invested the money in a business. There are people who have only one credit card and it is more than sufficient.
The fact is we are all human beings with different life-styles and different expenditures. What kind of life-styles we have and the type of expenditures we choose depend upon us and our wisdom. Yes. Wisdom is all it takes to make the difference. The wonderful part is that it does not require any amount of great wisdom to know which lifestyle or expenditure suits us.
My 'sifus', my life's great teachers, Napolean Hill, Norman Vincent Peale and Dale Carnegie taught me money management during my teenage years. I was fortunate to discover these great people very early in life.
Since I was young I knew the importance of money. It gives us the ability to choose our food, to buy the necessities of life and to be independent. No longer do we need to stretch out our hands to have money to purchase things which we need. That is the beauty of having money.
However, unless money is well managed, it can also bring misery and death. I have personally seen and read of its effects on individuals, couples and families. I have seen and read of the good and the bad. (They will be the stories I hope to tell you in future posts.)
From Dale Carnegie, Napolean Hill and Norman Vincent Peale, I learned that savings is one of the most important factors in living a good life. Yes, we have to start saving at least ten percent of our pay each month if we wish to have a better, financially secured future.
At this point, someone could be protesting that the pay is so little that there can hardly be anything left to save. If everyone wish to have the excuse not to put aside some savings, that is the very good reason for everybody.
Yes, nobody has enough money, if he wants to spend every cent of his pay. There are so many ways to do it. Give me RM2,000/- a day and I will show you how that amount can be finished easily. All I need is to jet to one of the increasing number of casinos in another part of the world and very soon even that two thousand ringgit can leave me in debt.
Take some of the very poor people in our country. Some could be earning less than five hundred ringgit a month. Yet, they managed. Of course, they do not live in brick terrace houses. They stay in small wooden bangalows with no television perhaps. Yes, you read me right. A bungalow is a house that has only one storey; and that is the definition of my Cambridge Advanced Learners' Dictionary. Of course, they do not frequent restaurants or drive cars. That is their life-style. they spend on the barest necessities of life. Frankly, I do not know whether they save any money in the bank.
Now, if a family can manage, albeit somewhat shabbily, with just five hundred ringgit a month, certainly another family with seven hundred ringgit can manage after putting aside seventy ringgit in their bank account, leaving them with six hundred and thirty ringgit which is obviously more than five hundred ringgit. (The figure given here are examples and, of course, can change as times change.) If a family with a seven hundred ringgit pay can save seventy ringgit, why is it not possible for a family with a two thousand ringgit pay save two hundred a month?
I know that someone would point out that the life-style and expenditure would be different. And that is exactly how we should manage our money if we wish to look towards a better financially secured future. Thus, a family with a two thousand ringgit income should live a lifestyle with expenditure of one thousand eight hundred.
It is through savings that we improve our financial security and ensure that we are safe from debts. In the first place, we cannot be in debt if we plan our lives well. If we can live within our means after putting aside the savings, we are definitely secure and confident that this financial part of our life is well looked after.
Savings help our money to multiply. Each month we see the interest we get from our savings increase. Such interest is money earned through savings, without further work from us. And the more we save, the more interest we get to add to our savings.
With savings, we may one day have enough to invest when the opportunity arises. Without it, even when the opportunity stares into our eyes, we cannot do anything. It could be a good business investment where the profits are good. In such circumstances, it is true of the saying that 'money earns money'.
And those who appreciate the fact that savings is important for financial security, they would certainly not join the group of people who gamble away their money, get into debts, lose their future financial security and perhaps ......well, I leave you to think of the consequences of gambling.
As we can see, it is important that we learn to manage our money well early in life. I know what I am writing because I have walked my talk and proved to myself that my great teachers are right. Thanks to them, I am on the right track.
Some can have nine credit cards and yet are constantly in debt, owing the bank a great deal of money although they have not invested the money in a business. There are people who have only one credit card and it is more than sufficient.
The fact is we are all human beings with different life-styles and different expenditures. What kind of life-styles we have and the type of expenditures we choose depend upon us and our wisdom. Yes. Wisdom is all it takes to make the difference. The wonderful part is that it does not require any amount of great wisdom to know which lifestyle or expenditure suits us.
My 'sifus', my life's great teachers, Napolean Hill, Norman Vincent Peale and Dale Carnegie taught me money management during my teenage years. I was fortunate to discover these great people very early in life.
Since I was young I knew the importance of money. It gives us the ability to choose our food, to buy the necessities of life and to be independent. No longer do we need to stretch out our hands to have money to purchase things which we need. That is the beauty of having money.
However, unless money is well managed, it can also bring misery and death. I have personally seen and read of its effects on individuals, couples and families. I have seen and read of the good and the bad. (They will be the stories I hope to tell you in future posts.)
From Dale Carnegie, Napolean Hill and Norman Vincent Peale, I learned that savings is one of the most important factors in living a good life. Yes, we have to start saving at least ten percent of our pay each month if we wish to have a better, financially secured future.
At this point, someone could be protesting that the pay is so little that there can hardly be anything left to save. If everyone wish to have the excuse not to put aside some savings, that is the very good reason for everybody.
Yes, nobody has enough money, if he wants to spend every cent of his pay. There are so many ways to do it. Give me RM2,000/- a day and I will show you how that amount can be finished easily. All I need is to jet to one of the increasing number of casinos in another part of the world and very soon even that two thousand ringgit can leave me in debt.
Take some of the very poor people in our country. Some could be earning less than five hundred ringgit a month. Yet, they managed. Of course, they do not live in brick terrace houses. They stay in small wooden bangalows with no television perhaps. Yes, you read me right. A bungalow is a house that has only one storey; and that is the definition of my Cambridge Advanced Learners' Dictionary. Of course, they do not frequent restaurants or drive cars. That is their life-style. they spend on the barest necessities of life. Frankly, I do not know whether they save any money in the bank.
Now, if a family can manage, albeit somewhat shabbily, with just five hundred ringgit a month, certainly another family with seven hundred ringgit can manage after putting aside seventy ringgit in their bank account, leaving them with six hundred and thirty ringgit which is obviously more than five hundred ringgit. (The figure given here are examples and, of course, can change as times change.) If a family with a seven hundred ringgit pay can save seventy ringgit, why is it not possible for a family with a two thousand ringgit pay save two hundred a month?
I know that someone would point out that the life-style and expenditure would be different. And that is exactly how we should manage our money if we wish to look towards a better financially secured future. Thus, a family with a two thousand ringgit income should live a lifestyle with expenditure of one thousand eight hundred.
It is through savings that we improve our financial security and ensure that we are safe from debts. In the first place, we cannot be in debt if we plan our lives well. If we can live within our means after putting aside the savings, we are definitely secure and confident that this financial part of our life is well looked after.
Savings help our money to multiply. Each month we see the interest we get from our savings increase. Such interest is money earned through savings, without further work from us. And the more we save, the more interest we get to add to our savings.
With savings, we may one day have enough to invest when the opportunity arises. Without it, even when the opportunity stares into our eyes, we cannot do anything. It could be a good business investment where the profits are good. In such circumstances, it is true of the saying that 'money earns money'.
And those who appreciate the fact that savings is important for financial security, they would certainly not join the group of people who gamble away their money, get into debts, lose their future financial security and perhaps ......well, I leave you to think of the consequences of gambling.
As we can see, it is important that we learn to manage our money well early in life. I know what I am writing because I have walked my talk and proved to myself that my great teachers are right. Thanks to them, I am on the right track.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Stress and our attitude towards work.
Today, a lot of people seem to complain about the amount of work they are expected to do. And the pressure to perform their job extraordinarily well gets greater with the present economic situation with retrentment still a threat although part of the world is on the verge of recovery. The danger of a job lost is heightened with increasing prices of everyday necessities.
How do we overcome the pressure that we face at our workplace? The work load cannot be lessened. However, our mind can be adjusted. We can change our attitude towards work.
At this point, I hear a voice from one part of the world demand,"Ai Wei! How do you expect that to be done,ah? Talk is easy, lo, but when it comes to the real thing, I still have this huge pile of files to look into. Just change my attitude and the whole pile of work disappears aah?"
Okay. You're right. It's not easy. Nobody said it's easy, alright. Changing attitude takes some effort. And you're right too that the pile of work will not disappear. It's not magic. You see, it's science. It's how the mind works.
Yes, it is how our mind works. You have a choice in everything you want that mind of yours to behave, or I should say to think. If you prefer to worry, all the worrying thoughts will enter at your command. If you wish to take action, then the mind would start to plan and ideas would come in and if you think that same situation is just the right opportunity for you to show how good you are, your mind will think of ways to finish the job well and it will be happily looking forward to possible rewards. Have you ever experienced that? No?
Then, perhaps, I can bring in a simpler illustration. Let's say that you are a bachelor boy or girl and you get to know a girl or boy. What's in your mind? Beautiful/Handsome? Like him/her? Attracted? Your mind ticks 'Yes'. She/He asks for your help to take her big heavy bags to the airport for her/him. No problem, you would say. Big bags are not a problem. It would be good exercise. You are happy to be asked. It could mean that the person likes me. You would do it. Here's the chance. What a blessing from God!
Aah, what if you had ticked a 'No'. Sorry, lah. I have so much work to do. The time of your plane's departure is not convenient for me to take you there. All kinds of excuses. And if somehow you get persuaded to do it, you would not be happy with the situation, thinking of the huge number of heavy bags to carry. how exhausted you would be. It would be real tiring. That could also be really depressing, right? See, the situation is the same but the attitude is different.
So, let us see what kind of attitude we can put into our work. First of all, let us be positive. How lucky you are to have your job! Well, you are financially secure. There's money to pay the bills. Not enough? That has nothing to do with your job. It has everything to do with money mangement. (I will write on that in another posting.)
Work is to be done. So, we do it. Yes, we put in the work that is expected of us. That is what we are paid to do. If our mind understands that, and we set our mind to it, then there will be no dillydallying at work. If we do our work concientiously, as expected, there will be no pressure, only tiredness. Who does not get tired after a hard day's work? Tiredness at the end of the day is good as it will give us a good night's sleep. No insomnia unless we think of the work negatively. then, perhaps, we may think of kicking the employer the whole night instead of enjoying a good night's sleep.
And if we have worked hard, nobody can expect us to do more than that. So, whatever can not be completed has to be put aside for another day. If you have done your job well, the employer would understand. If the employer cannot understand that, then that employer's business will suffer when his workers run to another company. He and his company will not last.
Look at the banks. Business is always coming in but they have to put a stop to it at a certain time of the day so that the work can be completed. They understand that their workers can only do that much. And if the business is managed well, there is always another day to get more business.
Let us understand that pressure from work comes about when we feel or think that we have been given an unfair amount of work; we have been overloaded with too much work and expected to finish in too short a time. You do not agree, do you?
Okay, let's look at a hawker. The more work his customers give him, getting him to fry non-stop, demanding that they be served fast, the happier he is at the end of the day when he looks at the amount of cash he had gained. Is that overworked, pressured to perform faster hawker stressed or depressed with his workload? No! Far from it. He's delighted with his tiring work.
"Aaah! But that is physical work. It does not tax the mind."
Yeah? How about petition writers who work for themselves? If you see a good popular one with loads of work, ask him whether he is ever too stressed or depressed with his/her work. I do not believe such people would ever feel stressed or depressed with their work. For such people, the more work the happier; slightly stressed maybe, tiring too but happy. Certainly not overly stressed.
See, it's not the amount of work that overstresses a person. It is the thought that the workload is unfair, that too little time is given to complete it. It's the thinking that determines the attitude.
Sometimes, even when the workload is unfair, there is no overstress. Why? If you decide you love a particular type of work, that work becomes a pleasure. You may be tired by the load but your pleasure is not diminished.
Sometimes, it is pride in one's work, in one's achievement. A coach may be willing to work extra hours without extra pay in order to produce athletes with exceptional capabilities. A teacher may put in extra effort to achieve a yearly hundred percent passes for his subject. Why would these people walk the extra mile? It is love, pride and achievement that brings a lot of tiredness and fatique perhaps, but no depression or overstress.
Why do I emphasise on overstress? You see, some stress is good for us. There has to be some stress when we want to please someone, to achieve something better, to show that we are as good as others, if not better. Such types of stress brings us a positive feeling to help us perform well in whatever we wish to do.
It is only too much stress that we wish to avoid as such stress wreaks havoc on our mind and can cause our body to release too much hormones and toxins that can bring sickness to us.
How do we overcome the pressure that we face at our workplace? The work load cannot be lessened. However, our mind can be adjusted. We can change our attitude towards work.
At this point, I hear a voice from one part of the world demand,"Ai Wei! How do you expect that to be done,ah? Talk is easy, lo, but when it comes to the real thing, I still have this huge pile of files to look into. Just change my attitude and the whole pile of work disappears aah?"
Okay. You're right. It's not easy. Nobody said it's easy, alright. Changing attitude takes some effort. And you're right too that the pile of work will not disappear. It's not magic. You see, it's science. It's how the mind works.
Yes, it is how our mind works. You have a choice in everything you want that mind of yours to behave, or I should say to think. If you prefer to worry, all the worrying thoughts will enter at your command. If you wish to take action, then the mind would start to plan and ideas would come in and if you think that same situation is just the right opportunity for you to show how good you are, your mind will think of ways to finish the job well and it will be happily looking forward to possible rewards. Have you ever experienced that? No?
Then, perhaps, I can bring in a simpler illustration. Let's say that you are a bachelor boy or girl and you get to know a girl or boy. What's in your mind? Beautiful/Handsome? Like him/her? Attracted? Your mind ticks 'Yes'. She/He asks for your help to take her big heavy bags to the airport for her/him. No problem, you would say. Big bags are not a problem. It would be good exercise. You are happy to be asked. It could mean that the person likes me. You would do it. Here's the chance. What a blessing from God!
Aah, what if you had ticked a 'No'. Sorry, lah. I have so much work to do. The time of your plane's departure is not convenient for me to take you there. All kinds of excuses. And if somehow you get persuaded to do it, you would not be happy with the situation, thinking of the huge number of heavy bags to carry. how exhausted you would be. It would be real tiring. That could also be really depressing, right? See, the situation is the same but the attitude is different.
So, let us see what kind of attitude we can put into our work. First of all, let us be positive. How lucky you are to have your job! Well, you are financially secure. There's money to pay the bills. Not enough? That has nothing to do with your job. It has everything to do with money mangement. (I will write on that in another posting.)
Work is to be done. So, we do it. Yes, we put in the work that is expected of us. That is what we are paid to do. If our mind understands that, and we set our mind to it, then there will be no dillydallying at work. If we do our work concientiously, as expected, there will be no pressure, only tiredness. Who does not get tired after a hard day's work? Tiredness at the end of the day is good as it will give us a good night's sleep. No insomnia unless we think of the work negatively. then, perhaps, we may think of kicking the employer the whole night instead of enjoying a good night's sleep.
And if we have worked hard, nobody can expect us to do more than that. So, whatever can not be completed has to be put aside for another day. If you have done your job well, the employer would understand. If the employer cannot understand that, then that employer's business will suffer when his workers run to another company. He and his company will not last.
Look at the banks. Business is always coming in but they have to put a stop to it at a certain time of the day so that the work can be completed. They understand that their workers can only do that much. And if the business is managed well, there is always another day to get more business.
Let us understand that pressure from work comes about when we feel or think that we have been given an unfair amount of work; we have been overloaded with too much work and expected to finish in too short a time. You do not agree, do you?
Okay, let's look at a hawker. The more work his customers give him, getting him to fry non-stop, demanding that they be served fast, the happier he is at the end of the day when he looks at the amount of cash he had gained. Is that overworked, pressured to perform faster hawker stressed or depressed with his workload? No! Far from it. He's delighted with his tiring work.
"Aaah! But that is physical work. It does not tax the mind."
Yeah? How about petition writers who work for themselves? If you see a good popular one with loads of work, ask him whether he is ever too stressed or depressed with his/her work. I do not believe such people would ever feel stressed or depressed with their work. For such people, the more work the happier; slightly stressed maybe, tiring too but happy. Certainly not overly stressed.
See, it's not the amount of work that overstresses a person. It is the thought that the workload is unfair, that too little time is given to complete it. It's the thinking that determines the attitude.
Sometimes, even when the workload is unfair, there is no overstress. Why? If you decide you love a particular type of work, that work becomes a pleasure. You may be tired by the load but your pleasure is not diminished.
Sometimes, it is pride in one's work, in one's achievement. A coach may be willing to work extra hours without extra pay in order to produce athletes with exceptional capabilities. A teacher may put in extra effort to achieve a yearly hundred percent passes for his subject. Why would these people walk the extra mile? It is love, pride and achievement that brings a lot of tiredness and fatique perhaps, but no depression or overstress.
Why do I emphasise on overstress? You see, some stress is good for us. There has to be some stress when we want to please someone, to achieve something better, to show that we are as good as others, if not better. Such types of stress brings us a positive feeling to help us perform well in whatever we wish to do.
It is only too much stress that we wish to avoid as such stress wreaks havoc on our mind and can cause our body to release too much hormones and toxins that can bring sickness to us.
Strong legs and a healthy body into the future.
When it comes to exercise and strength building, my mind goes back to my teenage days when I was a member of the Penang Youth Club. It was there that I went from Dynamic Tension to weights for strength training.
In my earlier posts you have been told that my childhood weakened me with a number of sicknesses that left me a scrawny kid. Having known the pain and suffering of sickness, the terrible inability to perform due to weakness, I had determined to take action to overcome my situation.
In those days, there was this Mr. Universe. Charles Atlas, who sculpted his body his way with a method known as Dynamic Tension. Later, I discovered the Penang Youth Centre and its weight training.
I must say that weight-training is one of the best strength developing method I know of. Within two solid years of training, I was a changed person with muscles to show, strength to take part and be good at running long distances, gymnastics and rugby as well as other games. It definitely made a difference in my life. I was more confident too. with my ability to perform in more things, especially those which require strength. And My health is so good that i have not had to see a doctor for more than thirty years because of some sickness. The benefits remain with me to this day.
However, there was a weakness in me. Like a good number of weight-trainees, I concentrated more on my arms, chest, stomach and back. I did do leg exercises but that was with minimum effort put in.
As I grow older, I realise the importance of strong legs. Now I am sixty-three and if I hope to live many more years, I certainly would not like to spend those years sliding slowly one foot forward after another around. A worse scenario could find me laying in front of the television with it watching me most of the time. No! I would prefer to die rather than suffer such indignity. So, to live life to the full, I must look after my legs and make sure they are strong enough to carry me wherever I wish to go till death part me from my legs and body.
As we grow older, we still need a strong body, However, we would have to depend upon our legs even more to still go places, climb things, have a good balance with steady legs and jump for joy or over anything in our path. And I believe we can always remain as agile and strong if we continue with our regular exercise and strength training.
Sometimes weakness from age is all in the mind. I remember someone telling me not to run so fast at the age of forty-five. Then, at the age of fifty, someone told me to walk slowly. Now at sixty-three, I have not slowed down at all although, every now and then, there is someone who would, with great concern, tell me to not run as I might fall. Why should I fall? It is all in the mind of these people that everything must slow down with age. Well, i have not and I will not slow down. As for myself, I have made up my mind to run, jump and vault till the day I just cannot do them. Then, and only then, will I walk briskly around.
In fact, I do more strengthening exercises for my legs than ever before and I am pleased with my health. My friends and I are fortunate to have a hill to trek and run up and down each morning. Thank God for he is certainly looking after our needs. What more can anyone ask for?
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Walk your pain away.
This morning, at the Sungai Pasir hill, I met a lady masseur who told me about a client of hers. This client of hers came not for a massage but to tell her that he no longer needed a massage as he did not suffer from his usual pains and aches. He told her that he had taken up horse-riding. But then, that was a really expensive way to overcome pain as it cost a lot of money to maintain a horse.
Yes, horse-riding can be an expensive way to exercise. But then, we have so many types of exercises we can do to overcome pain. Brisk walking is one of them.
Before I go further, I wish to stress on the word 'brisk'. According to my dictionary, brisk means 'quick, energetic and active'. It must not be a stroll. THAT IS NOT EXERCISE! To be brisk, we should be able to sweat and feel our beloved heart beat fast; as fast as when a voluptious nude or a virile hunk appears in front of you. (Sorry, ladies. I do not really know how your heart would go under the circumstances. See, there is still so much to learn, so much to find out.)
Taking a simple one hour brisk walk merely costs you a pair of walking shoes. Almost anyone with some kind of problems on their mind or a heavy head or headache can find relief from such a brisk walk. According to researchers, endorphins, some kind of natural pain-killer from your own body will be released from the brain after more than half an hours brisk walking. See, it not only relaxes your body, improve your circulation, strenghten your legs, improve your lung capacity and raise your body's immunity; it drives out pain. How wonderful brisk walking is!
Of course, if you can more than walk, do even more. At the hill, I walk up the steep slopes and when there is a level stretch and I am alone, I run. I believe that is good for me. Anyway, I have not had a headache for so many years that I do not know since when. Furthermore, I treat my run as a stress test. Well, that is what the doctors get you to do on a treadmill; run at a certain speed until you feel unable to go on after just a short while. It implies that you are so short of breathe without sufficient oxygenated blood reaching the heart due to a clogged vein. Well, as I can run at a fair speed for more than fifteen minutes, I know I can pass the stress test and my blood vessels are clear.
However, I wish to caution those who have been couch-potatoes for some time. Whenever we start some kind of exercise, we have to go from slow to medium and then to fast. Increase the speed, distance or time gradually and you will learn to enjoy your health. It is best that we have a friend who is just as enthusistic at the start. Later, when you already know the benefits and the joy of exercise, you can go it alone.
At the beginning, sometimes, enthusiasm have to be curbed a little. I have known people who decided to start running for their health, to find a few days' aches and pain from too excessive a start a deterrent to further health improvement.
Go slow initially. A slow walk just to enjoy the outdoors, the early morning or late evening breeze at a suitable unpolluted place. Gradually, increase the speed of the walk. After a few weeks or a month, when your legs are much stronger, you can do a walk gradually breaking into a short slow run. After that, you are the best judge of your own body. Just do what you like best and be aware of the improved feeling in your own body.
Love your body enough to have it at its best and it will love you by bringing so much benefits to you. Care for every part of it with sufficient nutrients, rest, sleep, cleanliness, oxygen and exercise to ensure that it is in tip-top condition always.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Giuliano Stroe: Unbelievable Super Strength and Agility.
In the internet, search for Giuliano Stroe and you can see him in action in a good number of websites as well as on You-Tube.
Giuliano Stroe, from Romania, is not just any five year old neighbourhood kid. No kidding. I do not know whether we can ever see a kid like him, ever.
For one thing, at the fantastic age of five, he had entered the Guiness Book of World Records after appearing on an Italian TV show doing some incredible hand-walking skills with a weight between his legs. His feat was the fastest ever ten metre handwalk.
He is not just too young for his feats! He is not just a body-builder with a muscle bound body. He is one well-trained gymnast too!
To show his gymnastics skills, he did the 'Crouching Tiger' wall flip, back flip-flak on a kitchen table, back somersault and stunts on a high bar.
He does weight-lifting too. However, from the way he jerks the weights upwards, they are obvously too heavy for him.
According to the father, Iulian Stroe, aged thirty-three, this fantastic little guy has been going to the gym with his father 'since he was born'.Then, at the age of two, he had been training in that gym in Italy. Imagine that! How could that little two year old be interested in weights and gymnastics then? It is just beyond me!
As a guy who had taken up weight-lifting and gymnastics during my younger days, I still remember the aches of the muscles after each weight-lifting session. To me, weight-lifting is not just an exercise; it is a discipline to go back there every alternate day for another day of sweat and ache. But then, as a teenager, I had the advantage of motivation; I was motivated by the need to improve my strength and health. Thus, I am puzzled how this two year old could be similarly motivated or inspired. Was it the father or the environment of the gym?
No matter how we look at it, this little boy certainly has shown great strength, endurance and discipline.
According to the father, there is no danger of harm to his son as he himself had been training all his life.
Hwoever, I beg to differ. Although the father had been training all his life, when did he start his training? If he had started as a teenager, he would have his skeletal structure already fairly well developed. There would not be the problem of tight well-developed muscles impeding the growth of the bones.
I have noticed at national level gymnastics competition where I can remember at least one sure prize-winning well-developed muscle-bound gymnast who won top prize all the way from Under-12 year level to Under 18 year level. Through the years we watched him sweep prize after prize. Right or wrong, one opinion all coaches were unanimous about: He was a little too short. And we believed the muscles bound his skeletal structure too much.
Of course, all I can offer is based on observation and opinions. Perhaps, some expert on growth and development of the human body could tell us what is correct.
For the sake of that fantastic little boy, I hope to be proved wrong. I wish him all the best.
Giuliano Stroe, from Romania, is not just any five year old neighbourhood kid. No kidding. I do not know whether we can ever see a kid like him, ever.
For one thing, at the fantastic age of five, he had entered the Guiness Book of World Records after appearing on an Italian TV show doing some incredible hand-walking skills with a weight between his legs. His feat was the fastest ever ten metre handwalk.
He is not just too young for his feats! He is not just a body-builder with a muscle bound body. He is one well-trained gymnast too!
To show his gymnastics skills, he did the 'Crouching Tiger' wall flip, back flip-flak on a kitchen table, back somersault and stunts on a high bar.
He does weight-lifting too. However, from the way he jerks the weights upwards, they are obvously too heavy for him.
According to the father, Iulian Stroe, aged thirty-three, this fantastic little guy has been going to the gym with his father 'since he was born'.Then, at the age of two, he had been training in that gym in Italy. Imagine that! How could that little two year old be interested in weights and gymnastics then? It is just beyond me!
As a guy who had taken up weight-lifting and gymnastics during my younger days, I still remember the aches of the muscles after each weight-lifting session. To me, weight-lifting is not just an exercise; it is a discipline to go back there every alternate day for another day of sweat and ache. But then, as a teenager, I had the advantage of motivation; I was motivated by the need to improve my strength and health. Thus, I am puzzled how this two year old could be similarly motivated or inspired. Was it the father or the environment of the gym?
No matter how we look at it, this little boy certainly has shown great strength, endurance and discipline.
According to the father, there is no danger of harm to his son as he himself had been training all his life.
Hwoever, I beg to differ. Although the father had been training all his life, when did he start his training? If he had started as a teenager, he would have his skeletal structure already fairly well developed. There would not be the problem of tight well-developed muscles impeding the growth of the bones.
I have noticed at national level gymnastics competition where I can remember at least one sure prize-winning well-developed muscle-bound gymnast who won top prize all the way from Under-12 year level to Under 18 year level. Through the years we watched him sweep prize after prize. Right or wrong, one opinion all coaches were unanimous about: He was a little too short. And we believed the muscles bound his skeletal structure too much.
Of course, all I can offer is based on observation and opinions. Perhaps, some expert on growth and development of the human body could tell us what is correct.
For the sake of that fantastic little boy, I hope to be proved wrong. I wish him all the best.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
An open mind is the way to universal truth.
Many people find it difficult to accept the knowledge that are not similar to theirs. This is especially true where religion is concerned.
Yet, if we were to allow ourselves to open up to the teachings of every religion in this world, there is actually no conflict of knowledge. That is a fact because all teachings are based on truth. The only difference is the road the followers follow, be it through one who found enlightenment, the various deities or God.
Buddhism teaches us wisdom and our nature, our thoughts and action towards responsible fulfillment and self improvement. Buddha never professed to be God.
The way I look at Buddha's teaching, it is that the life we have is the present. Live it right and well, and the next step must follow. The next step is the future. There is no need to think about it. Just as what is being baked will turn out to be a delicious cake in the few minutes in the future if we concentrate on putting in the right ingredients and kneading the dough well at the present moment.
Taoism is the belief in a universal life force. Thus every follower tries to harmonise himself/herself with the forces of nature. In Taoism, the deities are manifestations of this universal force. Taoism has a strong belief in spirits, some of them good while others are bad. Thus, to achieve harmony, there is the need to turn to the good deities for guidance to a good life as well as appease the bad spirits to avoid unnecessary conflict or problems from them.
That sounds very much like the society we live in. Sometimes we have to pay corrupt officials to avoid problems from them. For example, to obtain a citizenship, some people cannot get theirs approved despite the number of years they have tried and their proficiency in the national language language while people who know how to appease such officials get their approvals very quickly. Help also comes faster if you know the way to get things done, such as knowing the right people in authority.
Hinduism has no founder and it consist of many different religious groups that has evolved many, many years ago. This is the case because there are many deities in Hinduism, perhaps more than can be found in Taoism. Like Taoism, Hinduism has its belief in what is called eternal truth which is similar to Taoism's universal life force. The deities give their worshippers guidance through life with actions of the said deities.
For example, there was the victory of good over evil as celebrated in deepavali. According to Hinduism, the deities reincarnate from time to time to vanquish the forces of evil and bring order back into the world, just as Jesus said he would return from time to time to help the humans God created.
The two religions that are clear-cut about One God is Christianity and Islam. Actually, as far as my knowledge and understanding is concerned, both religions have the same origin. There is merely that little difference that Jesus was the son of God in Christianity while Jesus was believed to be the first while Muhammad is the last of the prophets in Islam. If we go into the teachings of both these religions, they teach us wisdom and our nature, rightful thoughts and actions towards responsible fulfillment and self improvement besides belief in One God.
It is unfortunate that the only two religions that teach us of the same One God have a number of its followers finding fault with each other, sometimes even derogatory towards each other's God, breathing venom on the other's God as though that other God is a different God.
The religions are good but some of the people in them think they are even holier than God. Therein lies the problem of this world. When Man craze for power and prestige, they even use God to serve their purpose.
Once I told a friend,"People who kill others in the name of God, are those who do not truly believe in God." Why? Firstly, do these people believe that God is all powerful. With such power, if God wants someone dead, there is no need for bloodshed; the person would just not wake up from his sleep and that's that." Then, what about God being compassionate. Since God is compassionate, should not there be a strong feeling of sympathy and sadness for the suffering or bad luck of others and a desire to help them to turn good if it is believed that there are bad. So, by taking God's will into their hands, are these people thinking that God should not be compassionate? Are they saying they are wiser than God?
To these people, I will say, "Trust me. There is no one greater, better or wiser than God."
It is time humans open up their minds and let religious truths of whatever religion they belong to find space in their minds.
Yet, if we were to allow ourselves to open up to the teachings of every religion in this world, there is actually no conflict of knowledge. That is a fact because all teachings are based on truth. The only difference is the road the followers follow, be it through one who found enlightenment, the various deities or God.
Buddhism teaches us wisdom and our nature, our thoughts and action towards responsible fulfillment and self improvement. Buddha never professed to be God.
The way I look at Buddha's teaching, it is that the life we have is the present. Live it right and well, and the next step must follow. The next step is the future. There is no need to think about it. Just as what is being baked will turn out to be a delicious cake in the few minutes in the future if we concentrate on putting in the right ingredients and kneading the dough well at the present moment.
Taoism is the belief in a universal life force. Thus every follower tries to harmonise himself/herself with the forces of nature. In Taoism, the deities are manifestations of this universal force. Taoism has a strong belief in spirits, some of them good while others are bad. Thus, to achieve harmony, there is the need to turn to the good deities for guidance to a good life as well as appease the bad spirits to avoid unnecessary conflict or problems from them.
That sounds very much like the society we live in. Sometimes we have to pay corrupt officials to avoid problems from them. For example, to obtain a citizenship, some people cannot get theirs approved despite the number of years they have tried and their proficiency in the national language language while people who know how to appease such officials get their approvals very quickly. Help also comes faster if you know the way to get things done, such as knowing the right people in authority.
Hinduism has no founder and it consist of many different religious groups that has evolved many, many years ago. This is the case because there are many deities in Hinduism, perhaps more than can be found in Taoism. Like Taoism, Hinduism has its belief in what is called eternal truth which is similar to Taoism's universal life force. The deities give their worshippers guidance through life with actions of the said deities.
For example, there was the victory of good over evil as celebrated in deepavali. According to Hinduism, the deities reincarnate from time to time to vanquish the forces of evil and bring order back into the world, just as Jesus said he would return from time to time to help the humans God created.
The two religions that are clear-cut about One God is Christianity and Islam. Actually, as far as my knowledge and understanding is concerned, both religions have the same origin. There is merely that little difference that Jesus was the son of God in Christianity while Jesus was believed to be the first while Muhammad is the last of the prophets in Islam. If we go into the teachings of both these religions, they teach us wisdom and our nature, rightful thoughts and actions towards responsible fulfillment and self improvement besides belief in One God.
It is unfortunate that the only two religions that teach us of the same One God have a number of its followers finding fault with each other, sometimes even derogatory towards each other's God, breathing venom on the other's God as though that other God is a different God.
The religions are good but some of the people in them think they are even holier than God. Therein lies the problem of this world. When Man craze for power and prestige, they even use God to serve their purpose.
Once I told a friend,"People who kill others in the name of God, are those who do not truly believe in God." Why? Firstly, do these people believe that God is all powerful. With such power, if God wants someone dead, there is no need for bloodshed; the person would just not wake up from his sleep and that's that." Then, what about God being compassionate. Since God is compassionate, should not there be a strong feeling of sympathy and sadness for the suffering or bad luck of others and a desire to help them to turn good if it is believed that there are bad. So, by taking God's will into their hands, are these people thinking that God should not be compassionate? Are they saying they are wiser than God?
To these people, I will say, "Trust me. There is no one greater, better or wiser than God."
It is time humans open up their minds and let religious truths of whatever religion they belong to find space in their minds.
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