I have written on the importance of encouraging any kind of interest our children may have. My elder son, for example, has a lot of interests and all of them are encouraged by me at all times. He was interested in stamps and I took out my stamp collection to help him get started. Every opportunity my son, my wife and I had, we looked for stamps from all over. He had a wonderful time arranging them in stamp albums. From them he learned a lot from the various stamps from the many countries they came from.
He was also interested in coins and notes, collecting coins and notes whenever he found the chance and time to do so, putting the notes and coins in albums, appreciating not just the designs but also their rarity.
And today, in the news was an item about an exceedingly rare coin, the 1787 gold Brasher doubloon, which was sold for 7.4 million US dollars which was one of the highest prices ever paid for a gold coin. The identities of the buyer and seller were not disclosed. The company which brokered the deal was Blanchard and Co., a New Orleans-based coin and precious metals company.(Note: The Brasher doubloon is considered the first American-made gold coin denominated in dollars; the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia didn't begin striking coins until the 1790s.)
As it can be seen from the above, hobbies such as coin and stamp collecting can be as much an investment as antiques and paintings. They are worthwhile interests to cultivate as it takes those interested to a desire to know more which could lead to language learning and further reading. Life can never be boring when there are things to be interested in.
So, let us help our children develop more of such interests instead of insisting upon them to read and learn without the motivation to do so. Yes, it is the lack of motivation that leaves children without a purpose in learning, be it language or skill.
Showing posts with label learning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label learning. Show all posts
Monday, December 12, 2011
Sunday, October 30, 2011
What cost the lost of one's temper?
One morning, not too early by most standards as it was already nine-thirty, the children at a kindergarten were rudely scolded by a hoarse loud voice from the balcony of a house across the street.
The voice came from a tall man in his pyjamas, his hair unkempt, his face foaming at the mouth, saliva spitting forth as his mouth released its venom with unprintable words at the kindergarten children enjoying themselves in a game, their shrill laughter piercing the bright cool air.
The man at the balcony was obviously angry at being awakened by the children's voices. Yet, it was not too early for children to be at play. His scolding shocked the kindergarten teachers and a few parents who were around in the compound of the house used as the kindergarten.
The children were just as shocked at the tall devilish figure in the balcony. There was instant silence. None of the people present were able to rouse themselves out of the sudden interference into their activities.
And the man appeared to be satisfied to have quelled the cacophony of boisterous children. He turned and slowly retreated into his room. It took some time before the children resumed their play and laughter.
What was in the mind of the adults? They found it ridiculous that a matured man could not have the intelligence to understand that children at play are like that, with their noise accompanying their playful actions. They believed that man was too rude to the innocent children whose only 'wrong' was to be children. Furthermore, it was not as if it was six in the morning when one could expect some people to be still in bed.
Well, the man lost his temper and his good name in just a few minutes. Since then, the people in his neighbourhood do not bother much about him. He was ostracised by everyone who knew what had happened that morning. They avoided him and although he lived in a luxurious house, none treated him with respect. And whenever they meet anyone who knows not what had happened, they would gladly recount how he lost his temper and shouted such such harsh words at the lovely innocent children.
The poor man may not realise what he has lost that morning but it was to last him a lifetime. More than five years later, I happened to be one of their latest friends to whom the above incident was told. So, to be able to control one's temper is important.
The voice came from a tall man in his pyjamas, his hair unkempt, his face foaming at the mouth, saliva spitting forth as his mouth released its venom with unprintable words at the kindergarten children enjoying themselves in a game, their shrill laughter piercing the bright cool air.
The man at the balcony was obviously angry at being awakened by the children's voices. Yet, it was not too early for children to be at play. His scolding shocked the kindergarten teachers and a few parents who were around in the compound of the house used as the kindergarten.
The children were just as shocked at the tall devilish figure in the balcony. There was instant silence. None of the people present were able to rouse themselves out of the sudden interference into their activities.
And the man appeared to be satisfied to have quelled the cacophony of boisterous children. He turned and slowly retreated into his room. It took some time before the children resumed their play and laughter.
What was in the mind of the adults? They found it ridiculous that a matured man could not have the intelligence to understand that children at play are like that, with their noise accompanying their playful actions. They believed that man was too rude to the innocent children whose only 'wrong' was to be children. Furthermore, it was not as if it was six in the morning when one could expect some people to be still in bed.
Well, the man lost his temper and his good name in just a few minutes. Since then, the people in his neighbourhood do not bother much about him. He was ostracised by everyone who knew what had happened that morning. They avoided him and although he lived in a luxurious house, none treated him with respect. And whenever they meet anyone who knows not what had happened, they would gladly recount how he lost his temper and shouted such such harsh words at the lovely innocent children.
The poor man may not realise what he has lost that morning but it was to last him a lifetime. More than five years later, I happened to be one of their latest friends to whom the above incident was told. So, to be able to control one's temper is important.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Learning and our ego.
At the Semarak Hill this morning, I met this young man who asked me the meaning of the word 'g-o-n-e'. I told him the pronunciation and the meaning. 'Gone' just means no more, no more to be found or seen. Then, he says, "What about 'Let bygone be bygone?"
So, I told him that by adding the 'by' to the 'gone' the meaning has changed; that 'bygone' is what is past and the sentence means 'let the past be past' and therefore 'no need to bring it up again'. With that he nodded and smilingly told me he was trying to learn some English Language. In fact, that was the second time he asked me the meaning for an English word. Of course, it was my pleasure to help him. It is always heartening to see someone wish to improve himself and God must have sent him to give me the opportunity to help.
Do you know how daunting it is for a grown person to learn a new language. It is all the obstacles that our ego put up. There are all kinds of fears and all of them are imaginary. All the obstacles are imaginary. And even if there are some individuals who would dare to laugh at our mistakes, we ought to realise, the courage to learn is greater than the needless and valueless discouragement that are encountered. Furthermore, any mockery can never be an obstacle unless we allow it to become one. For this reason I respect all those who take up the desire to learn a language at that age. There is the indication of greatness in the act.
I know of a young lady, small in built but very energetic, who knew hardly any Mandarin or English after her schooldays. She only studied the Malay language in school. Today, this lady can speak good Mandarin, although there are still mistakes made every now and then which are sometimes corrected by her children. (Her children are studying in schools with Mandarin as the medium of instruction.) From my observation of her, she readily accepts the correction and sometimes even asks for a repetition of the phrase corrected. Her English was not as good although she could speak the language as if it were her mother tongue, rattling away whatever instructions she wishes to convey without much thought to the grammar or the correctness of the sentence. Of course, there were times her language could tickle those within hearing distance as the meaning brings forth all kinds of different unintentional messages. And the beauty of it is that she takes all these in her strides. It does not stop her from learning from her mistakes and practising the language. She improves.
As I see it, she is one lady who would not allow ego to be an obstacle to her advancement. Many less courageous people would have stopped and called it a day but not this pillar of strength. And this, despite her knowing that she does make mistakes. There was once when someone could not understand what she wanted and I was requested to explain to the other person what she wanted. And of course, when it came to formal letters, I have helped to correct her attempts. For me, it has always been a pleasure to be of help to such great people who can overcome their ego to reach their goals in life. Thank god, I was given the opportunity to help.
Actually, our ego can either take us to greater heights or leave us struggling to get up. It was my ego to be better that helped me to overcome my parents' financial position and the weakness of my younger days. Many have not dared to approach others for help partly because of their ego, partly fearing that others would see their weakness. But then, who does not have weakness? All of us do have, more or less. And unless we realise our weakness, how do we ever hope to overcome them and reach for our strengths? In fact I thank God for allowing me to know my weakness so that I could slowly but gradually work on them to emerge stronger in my later years. Today, I can say that I am what I am because of the efforts I put in in overcoming those weaknesses. But then, if I had denied being weak, I would not have strove to be better.
So, I told him that by adding the 'by' to the 'gone' the meaning has changed; that 'bygone' is what is past and the sentence means 'let the past be past' and therefore 'no need to bring it up again'. With that he nodded and smilingly told me he was trying to learn some English Language. In fact, that was the second time he asked me the meaning for an English word. Of course, it was my pleasure to help him. It is always heartening to see someone wish to improve himself and God must have sent him to give me the opportunity to help.
Do you know how daunting it is for a grown person to learn a new language. It is all the obstacles that our ego put up. There are all kinds of fears and all of them are imaginary. All the obstacles are imaginary. And even if there are some individuals who would dare to laugh at our mistakes, we ought to realise, the courage to learn is greater than the needless and valueless discouragement that are encountered. Furthermore, any mockery can never be an obstacle unless we allow it to become one. For this reason I respect all those who take up the desire to learn a language at that age. There is the indication of greatness in the act.
I know of a young lady, small in built but very energetic, who knew hardly any Mandarin or English after her schooldays. She only studied the Malay language in school. Today, this lady can speak good Mandarin, although there are still mistakes made every now and then which are sometimes corrected by her children. (Her children are studying in schools with Mandarin as the medium of instruction.) From my observation of her, she readily accepts the correction and sometimes even asks for a repetition of the phrase corrected. Her English was not as good although she could speak the language as if it were her mother tongue, rattling away whatever instructions she wishes to convey without much thought to the grammar or the correctness of the sentence. Of course, there were times her language could tickle those within hearing distance as the meaning brings forth all kinds of different unintentional messages. And the beauty of it is that she takes all these in her strides. It does not stop her from learning from her mistakes and practising the language. She improves.
As I see it, she is one lady who would not allow ego to be an obstacle to her advancement. Many less courageous people would have stopped and called it a day but not this pillar of strength. And this, despite her knowing that she does make mistakes. There was once when someone could not understand what she wanted and I was requested to explain to the other person what she wanted. And of course, when it came to formal letters, I have helped to correct her attempts. For me, it has always been a pleasure to be of help to such great people who can overcome their ego to reach their goals in life. Thank god, I was given the opportunity to help.
Actually, our ego can either take us to greater heights or leave us struggling to get up. It was my ego to be better that helped me to overcome my parents' financial position and the weakness of my younger days. Many have not dared to approach others for help partly because of their ego, partly fearing that others would see their weakness. But then, who does not have weakness? All of us do have, more or less. And unless we realise our weakness, how do we ever hope to overcome them and reach for our strengths? In fact I thank God for allowing me to know my weakness so that I could slowly but gradually work on them to emerge stronger in my later years. Today, I can say that I am what I am because of the efforts I put in in overcoming those weaknesses. But then, if I had denied being weak, I would not have strove to be better.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Why very young children learn fast.
Have you ever observed how children learn? I have and One of the things I noticed is their lack of self-consciousness that helps them to learn things so very fast.
Children are good are imitation; imitating the actions and sounds made by almost anything in their environment. And they are never afraid of who is watching and what others might think of them and their actions. Of course, this changes if adults were to spoil it for them by telling them, indirectly teaching them to be conscious of what others might think of them. Once that is drilled into them, they understand that others observe them and so they start observing the adults and find that that is true. Then adults would put the thought in their little minds that adults might laugh at them and their behaviours, might think them mad or .... and laugh at them. That puts them on guard and they stop learning in that spontaneous playful way.
Knowing that, adults ought to be careful with their comments and not put useless adult thinking into their innocent little minds. Then the adults can notice that that little mind can absorb a lot through repetitions of words, phrases, clauses and sentences without the consciousness that they could be making pronunciation and grammar mistakes. Through such repetitions and frequent listening to good speech, language is learned. Then, through the provision of good language on radio, television or conversation among people, the child will eventually correct his/her mistakes automatically. Of course, good language must be available much more often than poor language in order for the child to get his language right.
A child who is encouraged to sing and talk about things with words that had seeped into the brain gradually will learn faster than the child who is not given the opportunity listen to language and make use of whatever he could have acquired.
Thus, the opportunity to learn which must be made available by the parents and the chance to practice uttering the words to himself/herself and to others without being self conscious of whatever mistakes that are bound to be made in the process of learning are certainly necessary for learning.
This learning is also possible if adults can overcome their self-consciousness, something which is more difficult as there is always the fear of being laughed at for the mistakes made.
One of the ways adult can counter that fear is to talk to oneself in the privacy of the room. I learned my Bahasa Malaysia, Malaysia's National Language by starting with books from primary one. I would write down sentences with words I do not understand, find the meaning, repeat the words and sentences often in my room, even the bathroom, and talk to friends in the language using whatever I had learned. Initially there was a lot of laughter at my pronunciation but eventually the Language Institute people helped me be a winner by changing the way some words are pronounce with the 'Bakul' method; a method in which words are pronounced according to its spelling. Besides that I improved fast as I listened and use the language everyday. So opportunity to listen and practice is of utmost importance. And if self-consciousness is no impediment to practice, progress will be fast.
Children are good are imitation; imitating the actions and sounds made by almost anything in their environment. And they are never afraid of who is watching and what others might think of them and their actions. Of course, this changes if adults were to spoil it for them by telling them, indirectly teaching them to be conscious of what others might think of them. Once that is drilled into them, they understand that others observe them and so they start observing the adults and find that that is true. Then adults would put the thought in their little minds that adults might laugh at them and their behaviours, might think them mad or .... and laugh at them. That puts them on guard and they stop learning in that spontaneous playful way.
Knowing that, adults ought to be careful with their comments and not put useless adult thinking into their innocent little minds. Then the adults can notice that that little mind can absorb a lot through repetitions of words, phrases, clauses and sentences without the consciousness that they could be making pronunciation and grammar mistakes. Through such repetitions and frequent listening to good speech, language is learned. Then, through the provision of good language on radio, television or conversation among people, the child will eventually correct his/her mistakes automatically. Of course, good language must be available much more often than poor language in order for the child to get his language right.
A child who is encouraged to sing and talk about things with words that had seeped into the brain gradually will learn faster than the child who is not given the opportunity listen to language and make use of whatever he could have acquired.
Thus, the opportunity to learn which must be made available by the parents and the chance to practice uttering the words to himself/herself and to others without being self conscious of whatever mistakes that are bound to be made in the process of learning are certainly necessary for learning.
This learning is also possible if adults can overcome their self-consciousness, something which is more difficult as there is always the fear of being laughed at for the mistakes made.
One of the ways adult can counter that fear is to talk to oneself in the privacy of the room. I learned my Bahasa Malaysia, Malaysia's National Language by starting with books from primary one. I would write down sentences with words I do not understand, find the meaning, repeat the words and sentences often in my room, even the bathroom, and talk to friends in the language using whatever I had learned. Initially there was a lot of laughter at my pronunciation but eventually the Language Institute people helped me be a winner by changing the way some words are pronounce with the 'Bakul' method; a method in which words are pronounced according to its spelling. Besides that I improved fast as I listened and use the language everyday. So opportunity to listen and practice is of utmost importance. And if self-consciousness is no impediment to practice, progress will be fast.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Heel pain requires time to heal.
Some three years ago, I jumped down from a higher level to the ground below at the hill and suffered a pain in the heel as my foot came into contact with a sharp hard stone. From that day on I felt a pain in my heel each time I stepped on the ground or moved that foot forward in walking and running.
Since I know how to massage, I did what had to be done which was to warm up the area and massaged it. Each time I bathed I would immerse it into almost unbearable warm water for a few minutes until the foot was red before transferring it into cold water.
As the pain stubbornly refused to go away, I wore three pair of socks to continue my daily exercise at the hill. That, of course, meant I had to get a pair of shoes one size larger. The socks did cushion the heel from hard contact with the solid ground and gradually after about a year the pain went away. As the pain reduced I changed to wearing only two pairs of socks, finally ending that painful period with just a pair.
Of course, not all pain at the heels require such a long period to heal. There have been quite a number of careless moments when I had hurt my foot but they require only a day or two of massage to be fine again. It caused me to realise that certain inflammation takes longer to go off, probably because I did not rest the hurt but aggravate it further by continuing with my walks and runs at the hill.
That was a good weakness on my part as it kept me exercising, strengthening my will against the pain and giving me the good health I still enjoy. I believed we should never be deterred by a little pain as if I had rested and the rest period was a little too long, it could lead to procrastination and laziness in the effort to maintain fitness.
Thank God for that, and today I feel no pain, and am still actively keeping my body trim and in excellent shape. Looking back, it was the right move to carry on despite the pain for two painful years without the wonderful exercise at the hill could have started me downhill to poor health.
Since I know how to massage, I did what had to be done which was to warm up the area and massaged it. Each time I bathed I would immerse it into almost unbearable warm water for a few minutes until the foot was red before transferring it into cold water.
As the pain stubbornly refused to go away, I wore three pair of socks to continue my daily exercise at the hill. That, of course, meant I had to get a pair of shoes one size larger. The socks did cushion the heel from hard contact with the solid ground and gradually after about a year the pain went away. As the pain reduced I changed to wearing only two pairs of socks, finally ending that painful period with just a pair.
Of course, not all pain at the heels require such a long period to heal. There have been quite a number of careless moments when I had hurt my foot but they require only a day or two of massage to be fine again. It caused me to realise that certain inflammation takes longer to go off, probably because I did not rest the hurt but aggravate it further by continuing with my walks and runs at the hill.
That was a good weakness on my part as it kept me exercising, strengthening my will against the pain and giving me the good health I still enjoy. I believed we should never be deterred by a little pain as if I had rested and the rest period was a little too long, it could lead to procrastination and laziness in the effort to maintain fitness.
Thank God for that, and today I feel no pain, and am still actively keeping my body trim and in excellent shape. Looking back, it was the right move to carry on despite the pain for two painful years without the wonderful exercise at the hill could have started me downhill to poor health.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Preparation for any event is necessary.
Recently, I attended a talk by a lady too enthusiastic to become a speaker. It would have been well and good, had she prepared herself well for the occasion. Unfortunately, she was far from ready with too little knowledge to dispense to the people who attended her talk. Not only that, she even did not realise that some displayed words had no connection with her talk for the evening. There was certainly weaknesses in her preparation. I believe she has done herself and her future as a speaker on the particular topic more harm than good in her impatience to be known to the public.
To be a really good speaker, one must have sufficient interesting material to keep the audience appreciative of the knowledge divulged to them. Certainly, no ordinary common-sense knowledge would be of great interest to people. Such knowledge must be sufficient to bring about a change in either the thinking or the behaviour of those who attend the function.
Besides knowledge, there is stage personality; how an individual present himself or herself on stage. If it is a talk, is her voice attractive enough to catch the attention of the audience? Her movement and direction of vision are just as important. Does she look at the people to whom she is conveying whatever messages she intends? Does she have to look at pieces of paper to remember the points she expresses? Is she talking or reading to the people? The above points are important in holding the full attention of the people in attendance.
As my aim in this blog is more to share and inspire, I have waited for some time before I write this so that probably no one would know which person or talk I am referring to. Who the person is is of no importance. If she can learn from this and improve, one day she may turn into one of the better known speakers in our midst. That and our hope to be better people in any field are the most important aim.
To be a really good speaker, one must have sufficient interesting material to keep the audience appreciative of the knowledge divulged to them. Certainly, no ordinary common-sense knowledge would be of great interest to people. Such knowledge must be sufficient to bring about a change in either the thinking or the behaviour of those who attend the function.
Besides knowledge, there is stage personality; how an individual present himself or herself on stage. If it is a talk, is her voice attractive enough to catch the attention of the audience? Her movement and direction of vision are just as important. Does she look at the people to whom she is conveying whatever messages she intends? Does she have to look at pieces of paper to remember the points she expresses? Is she talking or reading to the people? The above points are important in holding the full attention of the people in attendance.
As my aim in this blog is more to share and inspire, I have waited for some time before I write this so that probably no one would know which person or talk I am referring to. Who the person is is of no importance. If she can learn from this and improve, one day she may turn into one of the better known speakers in our midst. That and our hope to be better people in any field are the most important aim.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Never argue with a thinking woman.
Here's something nice to read. It is entertaining and the English is good.
Never Argue with a Woman
One morning the husband returns after several hours of fishing and
decides to take a nap. Although not familiar with the lake, the wife
decides to take the boat out. She motors out a short distance,
anchors, and reads her book.
Along comes a Game Warden in his boat. He pulls up alongside the woman
and says, 'Good morning, Ma'am. What are you doing?'
'Reading a book,' she replies, (thinking, 'Isn't that obvious?')
'You're in a Restricted Fishing Area,' he informs her.
'I'm sorry, officer, but I'm not fishing. I'm reading'
'Yes, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start
at any moment. I'll have to take you in and write you up.'
'For reading a book,' she replies,
'You're in a Restricted Fishing Area,' he informs her again,
'I'm sorry, officer, but I'm not fishing. I'm reading'
'Yes, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start
at any moment. I'll have to take you in and write you up.'
'If you do that, I'll have to charge you with sexual assault,' says the woman.
'But I haven't even touched you,' says the game warden.
'That's true, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could
start at any moment.'
'Have a nice day ma'am,' and he left.
MORAL: Never argue with a woman who reads. It's likely she can also think.
Never Argue with a Woman
One morning the husband returns after several hours of fishing and
decides to take a nap. Although not familiar with the lake, the wife
decides to take the boat out. She motors out a short distance,
anchors, and reads her book.
Along comes a Game Warden in his boat. He pulls up alongside the woman
and says, 'Good morning, Ma'am. What are you doing?'
'Reading a book,' she replies, (thinking, 'Isn't that obvious?')
'You're in a Restricted Fishing Area,' he informs her.
'I'm sorry, officer, but I'm not fishing. I'm reading'
'Yes, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start
at any moment. I'll have to take you in and write you up.'
'For reading a book,' she replies,
'You're in a Restricted Fishing Area,' he informs her again,
'I'm sorry, officer, but I'm not fishing. I'm reading'
'Yes, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could start
at any moment. I'll have to take you in and write you up.'
'If you do that, I'll have to charge you with sexual assault,' says the woman.
'But I haven't even touched you,' says the game warden.
'That's true, but you have all the equipment. For all I know you could
start at any moment.'
'Have a nice day ma'am,' and he left.
MORAL: Never argue with a woman who reads. It's likely she can also think.
Sunday, January 09, 2011
Never give up on life.
"For the last few months, he has been telling me he cannot walk each time I wanted to take him to the park for some simple exercise," the wife of eighty year old man complained to me. "He has also stopped eating. I have to feed him and he cannot fall asleep."
I examined him and found his hands and legs cold. He was certainly weak and the poor wife was fearful that he was weakening and something tragic might happen. There was no injury to be found. He was not obese and from the shape of his body, he must have been a sportsman once upon a time.
That he was a sportsman was true. Lately, unfortunately, he had decided he had enough of eating, reading the newspapers, watching television and sleeping. Life has lost its meaning to the poor guy. He decided to take things easy and gradually his muscle tone declined and weakness as well as stiffness overcame him.
Without much movement or exercise, his body metabolism slowed its pace and the need for food was lost. And he did not drink much either. No water and the organs of elimination found it difficult to function. Eventually, circulation of blood became poorer and the lymphatic system found it difficult to rid the body of waste and the body could swell with liquids.
A massage was what he needed to stimulate the muscles and blood circulation. I encouraged him to drink more water. Since he could also be dehydrated and had very little energy, I encouraged the wife to give him an isotonic drink although he had diabetes and the drink did contain lots of sugar. So to dilute the sugar, I advised her to give him the drink diluted with some warm water.
Two days later I found the eighty year old man walking around, able to eat and sleep. Of course, everyone was happy with his condition. However, I told his wife that he must be encourage to live life as it is meant to be. He must move and be active. Walk around and do things that he enjoys. Go places and enjoy nature and its surroundings. Live!
Actually, it is the attitude of those who have grown older; they believe they have to slow down. What happens when old people slow down? They spend less energy, become obese, weaken easier through having to carry that extra load of body fat and soon rest most of the time. Then, metabolism slows , appetite disappears and with less sweat, the need to drink diminish even though the organs still need the water to function. As a result of so much fatigue, rest becomes more important that going out to enjoy life. Gradually and inevitably, everything slows down and even when a television programme is on, the programme is watching the supposed watcher.
So, never give up on life. Look forward to fun in life as we open our eyes to each wonderful day. There is still so much to learn and enjoy. Science is changing, the world is rejuvenating and life changes and certainly we would like to see what development will come our way.
I examined him and found his hands and legs cold. He was certainly weak and the poor wife was fearful that he was weakening and something tragic might happen. There was no injury to be found. He was not obese and from the shape of his body, he must have been a sportsman once upon a time.
That he was a sportsman was true. Lately, unfortunately, he had decided he had enough of eating, reading the newspapers, watching television and sleeping. Life has lost its meaning to the poor guy. He decided to take things easy and gradually his muscle tone declined and weakness as well as stiffness overcame him.
Without much movement or exercise, his body metabolism slowed its pace and the need for food was lost. And he did not drink much either. No water and the organs of elimination found it difficult to function. Eventually, circulation of blood became poorer and the lymphatic system found it difficult to rid the body of waste and the body could swell with liquids.
A massage was what he needed to stimulate the muscles and blood circulation. I encouraged him to drink more water. Since he could also be dehydrated and had very little energy, I encouraged the wife to give him an isotonic drink although he had diabetes and the drink did contain lots of sugar. So to dilute the sugar, I advised her to give him the drink diluted with some warm water.
Two days later I found the eighty year old man walking around, able to eat and sleep. Of course, everyone was happy with his condition. However, I told his wife that he must be encourage to live life as it is meant to be. He must move and be active. Walk around and do things that he enjoys. Go places and enjoy nature and its surroundings. Live!
Actually, it is the attitude of those who have grown older; they believe they have to slow down. What happens when old people slow down? They spend less energy, become obese, weaken easier through having to carry that extra load of body fat and soon rest most of the time. Then, metabolism slows , appetite disappears and with less sweat, the need to drink diminish even though the organs still need the water to function. As a result of so much fatigue, rest becomes more important that going out to enjoy life. Gradually and inevitably, everything slows down and even when a television programme is on, the programme is watching the supposed watcher.
So, never give up on life. Look forward to fun in life as we open our eyes to each wonderful day. There is still so much to learn and enjoy. Science is changing, the world is rejuvenating and life changes and certainly we would like to see what development will come our way.
Monday, January 03, 2011
Wisdom can be found in fools.
This story which I have found for you to read comes to me through an email, its source unknown to me. Nevertheless, there is much to be learned from this and thus, impatiently, I share it with you. There is so much wisdom in one so young who would not mind being made a fool of as he knows that those 'wise' ones are the real fools.
So, read on, my friends.
*******************************
There once lived a great mathematician in a village outside Ujjain. He was often called by the local king to advice on matters related to the economy.
His reputation had spread as far as Taxila in the North and Kanchi in the South. So it hurt him very much when the village headman told him, "You may be a great mathematician who advises the king on economic matters but your son does not know the value of gold or silver."
The mathematician called his son and asked, "What is more valuable - gold or silver?" "Gold," said the son. "That is correct. Why is it then that the village headman makes fun of you, claims you do not know the value of gold or silver? He teases me every day. He mocks me before other village elders as a father who neglects his son. This hurts me. I feel everyone in the village is laughing behind my back because you do not know what is more valuable, gold or silver. Explain this to me, son."
So the son of the mathematician told his father the reason why the village headman carried this impression. "Every day on my way to school, the village headman calls me to his house. There, in front of all village elders, he holds out a silver coin in one hand and a gold coin in other. He asks me to pick up the more valuable coin. I pick the silver coin. He laughs, the elders jeer, everyone makes fun of me. And then I go to school. This happens every day. That is why they tell you I do not know the value of gold or silver."
The father was confused. His son knew the value of gold and silver, and yet when asked to choose between a gold coin and silver coin always picked the silver coin. "Why don't you pick up the gold coin?" he asked. In response, the son took the father to his room and showed him a box. In the box were at least a hundred silver coins. Turning to his father, the mathematician's son said, "The day I pick up the gold coin the game will stop. They will stop having fun and I will stop making money."
Sometimes in life, we have to play the fool because our seniors and our peers, and sometimes even our juniors like it. That does not mean we lose in the game of life. It just means allowing others to win in one arena of the game, while we win in the other arena of the game. We have to choose which arena matters to us and which arenas do not.
THE CHOICE IS OURS...
So, read on, my friends.
*******************************
There once lived a great mathematician in a village outside Ujjain. He was often called by the local king to advice on matters related to the economy.
His reputation had spread as far as Taxila in the North and Kanchi in the South. So it hurt him very much when the village headman told him, "You may be a great mathematician who advises the king on economic matters but your son does not know the value of gold or silver."
The mathematician called his son and asked, "What is more valuable - gold or silver?" "Gold," said the son. "That is correct. Why is it then that the village headman makes fun of you, claims you do not know the value of gold or silver? He teases me every day. He mocks me before other village elders as a father who neglects his son. This hurts me. I feel everyone in the village is laughing behind my back because you do not know what is more valuable, gold or silver. Explain this to me, son."
So the son of the mathematician told his father the reason why the village headman carried this impression. "Every day on my way to school, the village headman calls me to his house. There, in front of all village elders, he holds out a silver coin in one hand and a gold coin in other. He asks me to pick up the more valuable coin. I pick the silver coin. He laughs, the elders jeer, everyone makes fun of me. And then I go to school. This happens every day. That is why they tell you I do not know the value of gold or silver."
The father was confused. His son knew the value of gold and silver, and yet when asked to choose between a gold coin and silver coin always picked the silver coin. "Why don't you pick up the gold coin?" he asked. In response, the son took the father to his room and showed him a box. In the box were at least a hundred silver coins. Turning to his father, the mathematician's son said, "The day I pick up the gold coin the game will stop. They will stop having fun and I will stop making money."
Sometimes in life, we have to play the fool because our seniors and our peers, and sometimes even our juniors like it. That does not mean we lose in the game of life. It just means allowing others to win in one arena of the game, while we win in the other arena of the game. We have to choose which arena matters to us and which arenas do not.
THE CHOICE IS OURS...
Friday, December 31, 2010
A need for help in disciplining our children, sometimes.
Sometimes we need others to help teach our children to follow rules and regulations, to understand on matters such as dangers in the home.
There was this child who was quite pampered by the parents and the grandparents; more so the grandparents. They loved him too much to discipline him. And his demands are always met. Instead of talking about the dangers of sockets, they tried to redirect the child's attention to other things. Fortunately for the child, he was never left alone to have the opportunity to test the possibilities of plugging his fingers into the sockets in the house. When the parents are not around, they have the maid to look after his safety. Of course the poor maid's job became increasingly difficult as the child grew bigger and more desirous of trying out even more things.
There was one stage when the child wanted to play with the remote controller for the sliding gate. He enjoyed opening the gate just wide enough for any person to just squeeze himself or herself out or in. Once I saw it happen and could foresee the danger it placed the person entering or exiting the place. I told the maid but she could do little as the child demanded loudly and with cries that he be allowed to play with the gate controller.
Again, fortunately nothing untoward happened. And it was time to send the child to the kindergarten for him to mix with other children. Here, the headmistress of the kindergarten was very firm and he was among the new attendees who were firmly told not to play with sockets and fans in the place. The rules were strictly enforced and the child, for the first time in his life, understood that instructions given had to be followed. He realised he was not the 'king' of the place and he could not get away with tantrums. He learned to obey, to share and to behave correctly.
Well, it looks like sometimes there is a need for some other person in authority to teach our children the right things. Perhaps, that is why although, we as parents are the first teachers, it is good to have trained teaches to help us with our children.
There was this child who was quite pampered by the parents and the grandparents; more so the grandparents. They loved him too much to discipline him. And his demands are always met. Instead of talking about the dangers of sockets, they tried to redirect the child's attention to other things. Fortunately for the child, he was never left alone to have the opportunity to test the possibilities of plugging his fingers into the sockets in the house. When the parents are not around, they have the maid to look after his safety. Of course the poor maid's job became increasingly difficult as the child grew bigger and more desirous of trying out even more things.
There was one stage when the child wanted to play with the remote controller for the sliding gate. He enjoyed opening the gate just wide enough for any person to just squeeze himself or herself out or in. Once I saw it happen and could foresee the danger it placed the person entering or exiting the place. I told the maid but she could do little as the child demanded loudly and with cries that he be allowed to play with the gate controller.
Again, fortunately nothing untoward happened. And it was time to send the child to the kindergarten for him to mix with other children. Here, the headmistress of the kindergarten was very firm and he was among the new attendees who were firmly told not to play with sockets and fans in the place. The rules were strictly enforced and the child, for the first time in his life, understood that instructions given had to be followed. He realised he was not the 'king' of the place and he could not get away with tantrums. He learned to obey, to share and to behave correctly.
Well, it looks like sometimes there is a need for some other person in authority to teach our children the right things. Perhaps, that is why although, we as parents are the first teachers, it is good to have trained teaches to help us with our children.
Monday, December 20, 2010
This also will pass.
Truth always prevails, no matter where it may be from. As a member of The Art of Living, I received this message from Guruji, its founder. As I found this message essential for the emotional welfare of all humans on earth, I sincerely hope that by sharing it with as many people as possible, the world can become an even better place for all of us.
Well, please read on and absorb the wisdom:
Dearest All,
Jai Gurudev
A beautiful message and story from Guru Ji (Sri Sri Ravi Shankar of AOL)
Wish to share with you all……….
"THIS ALSO WILL PASS"
Once a king called upon all of his wise men and asked them,” Is there a mantra or suggestion which works in every situation, in every circumstances, in every place and every time; in every joy, every sorrow, every defeat and every victory? Is there an answer for this question? Something which can help me when none of you is available to advise me? Tell me is there any mantra?”
All the wise men were puzzled by the King’s question. They thought and thought. After a lengthy discussion, an old man suggested something which appealed to all of them. They went to the king and gave him something written on paper, with a condition that the king was not to see it, out of curiosity.
Only in extreme danger, when the King finds himself alone and there seems to be no way, only then he can see it. The King put the papers under his Diamond ring.
Some time later, the neighbors attacked the Kingdom. The King and his army fought bravely but lost the battle. The King had to flee on his horse. The enemies were following him, getting closer and closer. Suddenly the King found himself standing at the end of the road - that road was not going anywhere. Underneath there was a rocky valley thousand feet deep. If he jumped into it, he would be finished…and he could not return because it was a small road…the sound of enemy’s horses was approaching fast. The King became restless. There seemed to be no way.
Then suddenly, the King saw the Diamond in his ring shining in the sun, and he remembered the message hidden in the ring. He opened the diamond and read the message. The message was – “THIS ALSO WILL PASS”.
The King read it. Again, he read it. Suddenly something struck him - Yes! This also will pass. Only a few days ago, I was enjoying my kingdom. I was the mightiest of all the Kings. Yet today, the Kingdom and all my pleasures have gone! I am here trying to escape from enemies. Like those days of luxuries have gone, this day of danger too, will pass! A calmness came upon the King's face. He kept standing there. The place where he was standing was full of natural beauty. He had never known that such a beautiful place was also a part of his Kingdom.
The revelation of the message had a great effect on him. He relaxed and forgot about those following him. After a few minutes he realized that the noise of the horses and the enemy was receding. They had moved into some other part of the mountains near him.
The King was very brave. He re-organized his army and fought again. He defeated the enemy and regained his empire. When the King returned to his empire after victory, he was received with much fanfare. The whole capital rejoiced in the victory.
Everyone was in a festive mood. Flowers were being showered on the King from every house, from every corner. People were dancing and singing. For a moment the King said to himself, “I am one of the bravest and greatest king. It is not easy to defeat me. With all the reception and celebration he saw an ego emerging in him!
Suddenly the Diamond of his ring flashed in the sunlight and reminded the King of the message. He opened it and read it again - “THIS ALSO WILL PASS”.
The king became silent! His face went through a total change - from the egoist he moved to a state of utter humbleness. If this too is going to pass, it is not yours! The defeat was not yours! The victory is not yours! You are just a watcher! Everything passes by. We are witnesses of all this. We are the perceivers. Life comes and goes. Happiness comes and goes. Sorrow comes and goes.
Now as you have read this story, just sit silently and evaluate your own life. This too will pass. Think of the moments of joy and victory in your life. Think of the moment of sorrow and defeat. Are they permanent? They all come and pass away.
Life just passes away. There is nothing permanent in this world. Everything changes except the law of change. Think over it from your own perspective. You have seen all the changes. You have survived all setbacks, all defeats and all sorrows. All have passed away. The problems in the present, they too will pass away because nothing remains forever. Joy and sorrow are the two faces of the same coin. They both will pass away.
You are just a witness of change. Experience it, understand it, and enjoy the present moment - THIS ALSO WILL PASS !
May God bless you all
Well, please read on and absorb the wisdom:
Dearest All,
Jai Gurudev
A beautiful message and story from Guru Ji (Sri Sri Ravi Shankar of AOL)
Wish to share with you all……….
"THIS ALSO WILL PASS"
Once a king called upon all of his wise men and asked them,” Is there a mantra or suggestion which works in every situation, in every circumstances, in every place and every time; in every joy, every sorrow, every defeat and every victory? Is there an answer for this question? Something which can help me when none of you is available to advise me? Tell me is there any mantra?”
All the wise men were puzzled by the King’s question. They thought and thought. After a lengthy discussion, an old man suggested something which appealed to all of them. They went to the king and gave him something written on paper, with a condition that the king was not to see it, out of curiosity.
Only in extreme danger, when the King finds himself alone and there seems to be no way, only then he can see it. The King put the papers under his Diamond ring.
Some time later, the neighbors attacked the Kingdom. The King and his army fought bravely but lost the battle. The King had to flee on his horse. The enemies were following him, getting closer and closer. Suddenly the King found himself standing at the end of the road - that road was not going anywhere. Underneath there was a rocky valley thousand feet deep. If he jumped into it, he would be finished…and he could not return because it was a small road…the sound of enemy’s horses was approaching fast. The King became restless. There seemed to be no way.
Then suddenly, the King saw the Diamond in his ring shining in the sun, and he remembered the message hidden in the ring. He opened the diamond and read the message. The message was – “THIS ALSO WILL PASS”.
The King read it. Again, he read it. Suddenly something struck him - Yes! This also will pass. Only a few days ago, I was enjoying my kingdom. I was the mightiest of all the Kings. Yet today, the Kingdom and all my pleasures have gone! I am here trying to escape from enemies. Like those days of luxuries have gone, this day of danger too, will pass! A calmness came upon the King's face. He kept standing there. The place where he was standing was full of natural beauty. He had never known that such a beautiful place was also a part of his Kingdom.
The revelation of the message had a great effect on him. He relaxed and forgot about those following him. After a few minutes he realized that the noise of the horses and the enemy was receding. They had moved into some other part of the mountains near him.
The King was very brave. He re-organized his army and fought again. He defeated the enemy and regained his empire. When the King returned to his empire after victory, he was received with much fanfare. The whole capital rejoiced in the victory.
Everyone was in a festive mood. Flowers were being showered on the King from every house, from every corner. People were dancing and singing. For a moment the King said to himself, “I am one of the bravest and greatest king. It is not easy to defeat me. With all the reception and celebration he saw an ego emerging in him!
Suddenly the Diamond of his ring flashed in the sunlight and reminded the King of the message. He opened it and read it again - “THIS ALSO WILL PASS”.
The king became silent! His face went through a total change - from the egoist he moved to a state of utter humbleness. If this too is going to pass, it is not yours! The defeat was not yours! The victory is not yours! You are just a watcher! Everything passes by. We are witnesses of all this. We are the perceivers. Life comes and goes. Happiness comes and goes. Sorrow comes and goes.
Now as you have read this story, just sit silently and evaluate your own life. This too will pass. Think of the moments of joy and victory in your life. Think of the moment of sorrow and defeat. Are they permanent? They all come and pass away.
Life just passes away. There is nothing permanent in this world. Everything changes except the law of change. Think over it from your own perspective. You have seen all the changes. You have survived all setbacks, all defeats and all sorrows. All have passed away. The problems in the present, they too will pass away because nothing remains forever. Joy and sorrow are the two faces of the same coin. They both will pass away.
You are just a witness of change. Experience it, understand it, and enjoy the present moment - THIS ALSO WILL PASS !
May God bless you all
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Veterinarians' 2010 Convocation in Universiti Putra Malaysia.
A person's achievement in one of life's many successes depends upon his responsibility to go through the tough studying that is required to pass examinations to reach a particular goal in life. This is the story about Ong Jin Seng who has gone through the first part of his life striving for excellence in many things.
In today's world, knowledge, be it from school, an institution or an expert is of utmost importance if one were to wish to become one of the best in his/her spere or niche in life. Knowledge through trial and error or experimentation is very slow although possible. So, the best option is to obtain it from somewhere. Of course, there are people who have succeeded in business through hard work and hardly any knowledge but this is where luck plays an important role. Depending upon luck to succeed is full if uncertainties. In fact most who depend upon just luck and hard work alone in business fail. Those with success stories based on luck and hard work are the exceptional cases.
After his standard six examination, he was selected to be one of the few non-Malays to enter a residential science school. Always among the top scholars, at the age of fifteen, he won the top prize in Malaysia in an English essay competition on a Japanese film conducted by the Japanese Government. For that, he got a one-week home-stay in Japan.
Throughout his life, his interest in nature has been consistent and so when he successfully for a veterinarian course in the university, he had his dream come true.
Even as he studied, he spent more time on his creatures than on the course, although that was not neglected at all. As a result of this great interest, he finally received his degree this year in October. Even before the convocation, he was already employed by the well-known Underwater World in Langkawi, Malaysia.
Despite the amount of work he does each day, he found his first job interesting and fun. Forever on the search for knowledge on animals, fish and other exotic creatures, I believe his work is more a hobby than a job; for each time I talk to him, it was always about his work with the penguins and fish. One of his pets at the Underwater World is his cute baby penguin. From what he has told me, life must be beautiful. I am happy for him.
Below are some of the pictures I took at the convocation.
Saturday, December 04, 2010
To be a better man/woman.
Folks, here is a story from an email which will bring tears to your eyes as it did mine for it is charged with such beautiful human emotions. Let us learn from the father and the members of both teams and understand that when opportunities arise for us to show our true human nature, we ought to respond accordingly as required by our instincts.
Well, you will definitely get more from the story than any number of words that I write. So, read on.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Two Choices
What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line, there isn't one.. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the same choice?
At a fund-raising dinner for a school that serves children with learning disabilities, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question:
'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does, is done with perfection.
Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do.
Where is the natural order of things in my son?'
The audience was stilled by the query.
The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, who was mentally and physically disabled comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child.'
Then he told the following story:
Shay and I had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' I knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but as a father I also understood that if my son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
I approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.'
Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. I watched with a small tear in my eye and warmth in my heart.. The boys saw my joy at my son being accepted.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three.
In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as I waved to him from the stands.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again.
Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.
At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game?
Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.
However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact.
The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed.
The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.
The game would now be over.
The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman.
Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.
Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out of reach of all team mates.
Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, 'Shay, run to first!
Run to first!'
Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base.
He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.
Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!'
Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the base.
B y the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball . the smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team.
He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head.
Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home.
All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
Shay, run to third!'
As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!'
Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team
'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world'.
Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making me so happy, and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
AND NOW A LITTLE FOOT NOTE TO THIS STORY:
We all send thousands of jokes through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending messages about life choices, people hesitate.
The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who sent you this believes that we all can make a difference.
We all have thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural order of things.'
So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people present us with a choice:
Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little bit colder in the process?
A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
May your day, be a Shay Day.
Well, you will definitely get more from the story than any number of words that I write. So, read on.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Two Choices
What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line, there isn't one.. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the same choice?
At a fund-raising dinner for a school that serves children with learning disabilities, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question:
'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does, is done with perfection.
Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do.
Where is the natural order of things in my son?'
The audience was stilled by the query.
The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, who was mentally and physically disabled comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child.'
Then he told the following story:
Shay and I had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' I knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but as a father I also understood that if my son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
I approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.'
Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. I watched with a small tear in my eye and warmth in my heart.. The boys saw my joy at my son being accepted.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three.
In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as I waved to him from the stands.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again.
Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.
At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game?
Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.
However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact.
The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed.
The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.
The game would now be over.
The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman.
Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.
Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out of reach of all team mates.
Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, 'Shay, run to first!
Run to first!'
Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base.
He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.
Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!'
Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the base.
B y the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball . the smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team.
He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head.
Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home.
All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
Shay, run to third!'
As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!'
Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team
'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world'.
Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making me so happy, and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
AND NOW A LITTLE FOOT NOTE TO THIS STORY:
We all send thousands of jokes through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending messages about life choices, people hesitate.
The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who sent you this believes that we all can make a difference.
We all have thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural order of things.'
So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people present us with a choice:
Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little bit colder in the process?
A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
May your day, be a Shay Day.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Children can be innocently destructive.
"Oh, no! Look at all the photographs on the floor! Who cut them into small little pieces?" the shout arose from one of the ladies in the house. Her dismay attracted all the other members of the house-hold. They watched in disbelief as the lady squatted and scooped up the cut pieces from the floor. Nearby was a pair of scissors.
"Look! this must be the scissors used to cut up these photos," she turned round to show the others the evidence of the crime.
When she held up the scissors, the elderly man nearby spoke up, "I think it's the work of Seow Lik." He had seen his little grand-daughter with the scissors cutting up what he had thought were pieces of unwanted papers. At that, they helplessly looked in the direction of the little girl's grandpa.
"Oh, my God! Why didn't you stop her? Look at all these spoiled photos. You should have kept an eye on her," one of them cried.
Well, this is a case where the old man did not realise that very young children in their enthusiasm of performing new skills would use practically anything at hand to enjoy. The little girl must have just learned how to use a pair of scissors and finding photographs available for cutting had done just that. To the educationists, it is creativity. So no parent should punish the little girl, for by doing so, there would be more harm than good done. Since it was over, the harm to the adults was completed but that did not mean that the child cannot benefit from the creativity. Anyway, it was not the child's fault.
Yes, definitely no fault of the child. The fault lies with the adults for not understanding their child. As children grow older, they are bound to be curious, active and bent on creativity. If we understand this, then we obviously will keep things not to be used by the children away or out of their reach. Then, those things will be safe.
Whether it will be a lesson or not to the adults again depends upon how the adults take it. If they think it the fault of their children, then the adults have learned no lesson, have no understanding of children and certainly would have faulted the children, perhaps scolded or worse, given them a caning.
Furthermore, parents ought to watch out for their children at this exploratory age as they could also put themselves into all kinds of danger. Parents are the ones who are supposed to be having the knowledge for bringing up the children safely and properly while children in their ignorance are expected to make some mistakes in their learning process.
Therefore we need knowledgeable parents who can guide their children through their early learning years to safer and greater development.
"Look! this must be the scissors used to cut up these photos," she turned round to show the others the evidence of the crime.
When she held up the scissors, the elderly man nearby spoke up, "I think it's the work of Seow Lik." He had seen his little grand-daughter with the scissors cutting up what he had thought were pieces of unwanted papers. At that, they helplessly looked in the direction of the little girl's grandpa.
"Oh, my God! Why didn't you stop her? Look at all these spoiled photos. You should have kept an eye on her," one of them cried.
Well, this is a case where the old man did not realise that very young children in their enthusiasm of performing new skills would use practically anything at hand to enjoy. The little girl must have just learned how to use a pair of scissors and finding photographs available for cutting had done just that. To the educationists, it is creativity. So no parent should punish the little girl, for by doing so, there would be more harm than good done. Since it was over, the harm to the adults was completed but that did not mean that the child cannot benefit from the creativity. Anyway, it was not the child's fault.
Yes, definitely no fault of the child. The fault lies with the adults for not understanding their child. As children grow older, they are bound to be curious, active and bent on creativity. If we understand this, then we obviously will keep things not to be used by the children away or out of their reach. Then, those things will be safe.
Whether it will be a lesson or not to the adults again depends upon how the adults take it. If they think it the fault of their children, then the adults have learned no lesson, have no understanding of children and certainly would have faulted the children, perhaps scolded or worse, given them a caning.
Furthermore, parents ought to watch out for their children at this exploratory age as they could also put themselves into all kinds of danger. Parents are the ones who are supposed to be having the knowledge for bringing up the children safely and properly while children in their ignorance are expected to make some mistakes in their learning process.
Therefore we need knowledgeable parents who can guide their children through their early learning years to safer and greater development.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Some people have a one-track mind.
They were always meeting each morning for their daily walks. They would exchange greetings and talked about a good number of things. As they got to know each other better, Ho was more confident about discussing more than general topics.
"Ismail, how can that politician say that non-Malays are not patriotic. Yes, there are very few non-Malays in the army but that does not mean the Chinese, the Indian and the others are not patriotic. Some of these UMNO politicians are too much," he commented to his friend, believing that his friend would sympathise with him and his community for being branded not patriotic.
"What do you know about that? Of course, if they are not willing to join the army, then they must be not patriotic. That was an UMNO politician you were criticising. He must have known the reason to make such a comment," Ismail shouted.
Our friend, Ho, got a shock at the rebuke he got when he was expecting some sympathetic views. And even if the guy did not agree with his statement, as a friend, he ought to try find out what and how Ho felt before explaining how that politician could have come to such a conclusion.
So, when he told Din and me about the incident, we told him that some people are like that. They do not wish to hear anything different from their own views, even when those views are coming from a friend. Or maybe Ho is still not considered a friend, merely one of those acquaintances of his whose thoughts and friendship are not worth considering.
At this point, I remember a Malay friend from Kota Kuala Muda who was sympathetic to the cause of poor non-Malays. You see, at one time I was poor. I used to ride a motorcycle to school. So when I got married and, after a number of years, was still without a child, this friend thought I dared not bring a child into this world yet because unlike a Malay child, it would be difficult to get scholarships and places in the public university. Unlike Ho's friend, this friend was close and we used to discussed many topics some others might find too sensitive. I remembered his very words: Don't worry, Ai Wei. By the time your children are big enough for school, things would change and your children would have just as much chance as any Malay children for educational progress. Though his words have not come true, it was his sincerity that touched me to such an extent that I will always remember there was such a Malay friend. May God bless him always. It is his influence and those of others like him that I find myself capable of mixing well with the Malays.
However, I am aware too that there are people who think differently; who thinks the world is for them and them alone. Some of them are racial in their thinking. Some of them think that they are the best, the only ones with God, the only ones entitled to this land and nothing can ever changed their ideas. As I understand that it is better to go round the wall instead of trying to climb over it or bang at it, that is what I always do. It saves us from a lot of frustration or anger and hurt. I just do not give them a chance to take away my happiness. If we think we can help them, then we try. However, if I think they have built a solid wall between them and me, I just go around them. They are happy and I am happy too.
We just tell ourselves; it takes all types to make a world. We do our best and let God do the rest.
"Ismail, how can that politician say that non-Malays are not patriotic. Yes, there are very few non-Malays in the army but that does not mean the Chinese, the Indian and the others are not patriotic. Some of these UMNO politicians are too much," he commented to his friend, believing that his friend would sympathise with him and his community for being branded not patriotic.
"What do you know about that? Of course, if they are not willing to join the army, then they must be not patriotic. That was an UMNO politician you were criticising. He must have known the reason to make such a comment," Ismail shouted.
Our friend, Ho, got a shock at the rebuke he got when he was expecting some sympathetic views. And even if the guy did not agree with his statement, as a friend, he ought to try find out what and how Ho felt before explaining how that politician could have come to such a conclusion.
So, when he told Din and me about the incident, we told him that some people are like that. They do not wish to hear anything different from their own views, even when those views are coming from a friend. Or maybe Ho is still not considered a friend, merely one of those acquaintances of his whose thoughts and friendship are not worth considering.
At this point, I remember a Malay friend from Kota Kuala Muda who was sympathetic to the cause of poor non-Malays. You see, at one time I was poor. I used to ride a motorcycle to school. So when I got married and, after a number of years, was still without a child, this friend thought I dared not bring a child into this world yet because unlike a Malay child, it would be difficult to get scholarships and places in the public university. Unlike Ho's friend, this friend was close and we used to discussed many topics some others might find too sensitive. I remembered his very words: Don't worry, Ai Wei. By the time your children are big enough for school, things would change and your children would have just as much chance as any Malay children for educational progress. Though his words have not come true, it was his sincerity that touched me to such an extent that I will always remember there was such a Malay friend. May God bless him always. It is his influence and those of others like him that I find myself capable of mixing well with the Malays.
However, I am aware too that there are people who think differently; who thinks the world is for them and them alone. Some of them are racial in their thinking. Some of them think that they are the best, the only ones with God, the only ones entitled to this land and nothing can ever changed their ideas. As I understand that it is better to go round the wall instead of trying to climb over it or bang at it, that is what I always do. It saves us from a lot of frustration or anger and hurt. I just do not give them a chance to take away my happiness. If we think we can help them, then we try. However, if I think they have built a solid wall between them and me, I just go around them. They are happy and I am happy too.
We just tell ourselves; it takes all types to make a world. We do our best and let God do the rest.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
What's uncommon becomes common when knowledge is acquired.
"Some time ago, I witnessed one of the most amazing aspects of nature."
I was all ears upon hearing that as what a man of seventy years can find fantastic must be something out of the ordinary.
"Do you know that it rained at that time?"
What was so astonishing about rain at his place? It is an almost everyday occurrence in a tropical country like mine. I was going to say farewell and move off when he continued,"It was raining so heavily at my house up to the gate and after that point there was no rain at all. The children opposite my house were playing. But then they too stopped and watched to witness the road forming a border between the rain on my side and dry air at their place. It was the first time in my life I have ever experienced such a sight. You would most probably not believe me but that was exactly what happened and those children were real lucky to see it at such a young age.
He told me that since that day, should anyone claim such and such a thing is possible he would never be the one to oppose or reject such ideas as things can happen; things beyond the human brain to comprehend.
Yes, I totally agreed with him as I myself have witnessed happenings that others believed not. Actually, we refuse to believe something because of our limited knowledge and understanding. However, with proper knowledge comes understanding. With understanding, we are no longer amazed by our experience. That is why we ought to listen to others and their experiences, some of which we may not have the opportunity to have. And if we have the chance to try out things or experience them, we should open ourselves to them. Unfortunately, some have one-track minds and refuse to open for new thoughts and understanding.
Take my friend for example. He had not understood how rain comes about. He knows not that water from the ground evaporates. The air containing very minute droplets of water is borne by the wind to form clouds. The clouds carry these water droplets up and to wherever the wind takes them. As more droplets gather, they knocked into each other and form bigger and heavier droplets. Sometimes water condenses out of the air into these droplets. When the droplets become heavy, they will fall as rain. So, if the heavy droplets are accumulated above a certain area, rain will fall in that area only. Outside that particular area there would be no rain. So, it's as simple as that. It's a common happening. Nothing magical about it.
However, it is good to have something fascinating happen in our lives. It lifts our soul and brings us a kind of joy and we realise the wonder of being alive to witness such a scene. It lifts life out of the ordinary and tells us life is still worth the living as there is still something not yet known.
That is why to be a little ignorant is not a bad thing as it gives us a sign that there are still so many surprise, so many joys and so much more we can learn and do with our lives.
I was all ears upon hearing that as what a man of seventy years can find fantastic must be something out of the ordinary.
"Do you know that it rained at that time?"
What was so astonishing about rain at his place? It is an almost everyday occurrence in a tropical country like mine. I was going to say farewell and move off when he continued,"It was raining so heavily at my house up to the gate and after that point there was no rain at all. The children opposite my house were playing. But then they too stopped and watched to witness the road forming a border between the rain on my side and dry air at their place. It was the first time in my life I have ever experienced such a sight. You would most probably not believe me but that was exactly what happened and those children were real lucky to see it at such a young age.
He told me that since that day, should anyone claim such and such a thing is possible he would never be the one to oppose or reject such ideas as things can happen; things beyond the human brain to comprehend.
Yes, I totally agreed with him as I myself have witnessed happenings that others believed not. Actually, we refuse to believe something because of our limited knowledge and understanding. However, with proper knowledge comes understanding. With understanding, we are no longer amazed by our experience. That is why we ought to listen to others and their experiences, some of which we may not have the opportunity to have. And if we have the chance to try out things or experience them, we should open ourselves to them. Unfortunately, some have one-track minds and refuse to open for new thoughts and understanding.
Take my friend for example. He had not understood how rain comes about. He knows not that water from the ground evaporates. The air containing very minute droplets of water is borne by the wind to form clouds. The clouds carry these water droplets up and to wherever the wind takes them. As more droplets gather, they knocked into each other and form bigger and heavier droplets. Sometimes water condenses out of the air into these droplets. When the droplets become heavy, they will fall as rain. So, if the heavy droplets are accumulated above a certain area, rain will fall in that area only. Outside that particular area there would be no rain. So, it's as simple as that. It's a common happening. Nothing magical about it.
However, it is good to have something fascinating happen in our lives. It lifts our soul and brings us a kind of joy and we realise the wonder of being alive to witness such a scene. It lifts life out of the ordinary and tells us life is still worth the living as there is still something not yet known.
That is why to be a little ignorant is not a bad thing as it gives us a sign that there are still so many surprise, so many joys and so much more we can learn and do with our lives.
Gambling is the worse habit!
Most of us are bound to become parents one day. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that we ensure our children never take up the gambling habit.
To be very sure my children never get addicted to gambling, they were never given the opportunity to gamble even on special occasions such as Chinese New Year. To me and my wife, it is an unnecessary activity.Of course, as the parents, to show a good example, neither of us ever gamble, buying lottery tickets only once in a blue moon.
Even buying lottery numbers, hoping to strike it rich can lead a person astray. In an earlier posting I have told about a relative, a Chinese Physician, who was already very rich with lots of money from the many clients who seek treatment from him. He had this idea of compiling all the numbers that appeared in the results of each lottery draw throughout the whole of ten years. With that he pointed out to me that certain numbers seem to appear regularly. And with that he planned on betting on that number to appear in a few months' time, with him placing a higher and higher amount on it so that when it did appear he would be a sure winner. Sad to say, he lost too much for him to ever return the sum he owed. One night his whole family disappeared into the night never to return.
Was it greed? Or was it the mind that thought it had a fool-proof idea of becoming rich the easy way? Was he too confidence in his mental capability? Whatever it is, he lost too much at a time when his career was going full swing.
When it comes to gambling, in order not to give the habit the chance to develop, we must ensure our children do not mix with the wrong company. Mixing with the wrong company can take our children to disaster. If it is a group of drug addicts, the child could be doing drugs soon, if it is loiters, it would be loss of education and advancement opportunities for the child; and if it is a group of gamblers, no doubt the child would turn to gambling.
Where would gambling lead a person? Well, newspapers very often carry stories of gamblers who borrow money to support their habit. The latest was a young man, one working in a bank, who developed an addiction to gambling. So you see, it does not matter what a person's job is, how intelligent he can be, he is just as susceptible to the thrill of gambling. Gambling caused the young man to lose all control of his senses, enough to have him get into a debt of RM70,000. Unable to return the loan he got from loan sharks, he did the miserable deed of exposing his own family to harm by providing those loan sharks a photocopy of his own mother's identity card so that they could go after her.
As a result of that action the loan sharks demanded money from the poor mother and when she could not return the money, the amount escalating with each day, the family was threatened with harm, paint splashed on the car and part of the house. Eventually they even tried to burn the house! Their lives were certainly at stake, all because of a gambling son.
As for the gambling, he became a fugitive from those loan sharks. To do that he had to leave a good job and disappear God knows where. Look at all the problems and the bleak future for this gambler. Like that relative of mine, this gambler would also have to disappear for good.
So, how much effort are we willing to put in to prevent such a destructive habit from ever surfacing? If you look at the above young man, he has lost everything that his parents had helped him to establish. As for the parents, they have lost a son, at least for the next foreseeable future.
“My son gave one of these loan sharks a photocopy of my identity card and asked them to recover the money from me,” said Lim’s mother Chong Shue Koon, 60.
She said her son had left her and her husband Lim Loi, 58, a note saying that he owed loan sharks RM170,000, and that he was leaving.
Lim Loi said his son, who works as a bank clerk in Kuala Lumpur, had developed an addiction to gambling last year.
To be very sure my children never get addicted to gambling, they were never given the opportunity to gamble even on special occasions such as Chinese New Year. To me and my wife, it is an unnecessary activity.Of course, as the parents, to show a good example, neither of us ever gamble, buying lottery tickets only once in a blue moon.
Even buying lottery numbers, hoping to strike it rich can lead a person astray. In an earlier posting I have told about a relative, a Chinese Physician, who was already very rich with lots of money from the many clients who seek treatment from him. He had this idea of compiling all the numbers that appeared in the results of each lottery draw throughout the whole of ten years. With that he pointed out to me that certain numbers seem to appear regularly. And with that he planned on betting on that number to appear in a few months' time, with him placing a higher and higher amount on it so that when it did appear he would be a sure winner. Sad to say, he lost too much for him to ever return the sum he owed. One night his whole family disappeared into the night never to return.
Was it greed? Or was it the mind that thought it had a fool-proof idea of becoming rich the easy way? Was he too confidence in his mental capability? Whatever it is, he lost too much at a time when his career was going full swing.
When it comes to gambling, in order not to give the habit the chance to develop, we must ensure our children do not mix with the wrong company. Mixing with the wrong company can take our children to disaster. If it is a group of drug addicts, the child could be doing drugs soon, if it is loiters, it would be loss of education and advancement opportunities for the child; and if it is a group of gamblers, no doubt the child would turn to gambling.
Where would gambling lead a person? Well, newspapers very often carry stories of gamblers who borrow money to support their habit. The latest was a young man, one working in a bank, who developed an addiction to gambling. So you see, it does not matter what a person's job is, how intelligent he can be, he is just as susceptible to the thrill of gambling. Gambling caused the young man to lose all control of his senses, enough to have him get into a debt of RM70,000. Unable to return the loan he got from loan sharks, he did the miserable deed of exposing his own family to harm by providing those loan sharks a photocopy of his own mother's identity card so that they could go after her.
As a result of that action the loan sharks demanded money from the poor mother and when she could not return the money, the amount escalating with each day, the family was threatened with harm, paint splashed on the car and part of the house. Eventually they even tried to burn the house! Their lives were certainly at stake, all because of a gambling son.
As for the gambling, he became a fugitive from those loan sharks. To do that he had to leave a good job and disappear God knows where. Look at all the problems and the bleak future for this gambler. Like that relative of mine, this gambler would also have to disappear for good.
So, how much effort are we willing to put in to prevent such a destructive habit from ever surfacing? If you look at the above young man, he has lost everything that his parents had helped him to establish. As for the parents, they have lost a son, at least for the next foreseeable future.
“My son gave one of these loan sharks a photocopy of my identity card and asked them to recover the money from me,” said Lim’s mother Chong Shue Koon, 60.
She said her son had left her and her husband Lim Loi, 58, a note saying that he owed loan sharks RM170,000, and that he was leaving.
Lim Loi said his son, who works as a bank clerk in Kuala Lumpur, had developed an addiction to gambling last year.
Saturday, November 06, 2010
Actions speaks louder than words.
It's in times of difficulty that we discover who our true friends are. There have been such times in my life and one of them happened more than ten years ago.
I once got to know a man and since he seemed to be always friendly, I treated him as one of my friends. We used to get together, exchanged news and jokes and sat down to drinks every now and then whenever fate put us together.
Then, one day, I lost my identity card which I had kept in a small plastic plastic bag together with some money. This is a tiny piece of plastic which I take everywhere together with my wallet. However, in the mornings, when I go up the hill for my daily exercise, I would take this plastic bag along so that should anything happen and the police were to ask for my identity, I would have the card to show them. As for the money, it comes in useful whenever there is need to buy some food or drinks. And I used a plastic bag as if it ever rains when I am up the hill, which does happen, my document and money would be dry even when I am drenched to the skin.
I believed that the plastic bag with my identity card must have dropped when I checked its contents just outside my gate. However, after its loss, I could not find it although I searched everywhere.
Then, the next day, two young men came to my gate and told me somebody has found my identity card and the person who found it wanted fifty ringgit. I agreed to it and told the two men to tell the person to give it back to me.
After about an hour,the person who turned up to return the identity card was the friend i mentioned at the beginning of this true story. According to him, the people who found it wanted fifty ringgit and they had asked this man to get it for them.
As it was so ridiculous that they would not dare to turn up to claim the money that I had agreed to but got another person to involved to claim the money, I was suspicious of this friend's non involvement in the monetary claim. An idea came to mind.
I told him I have changed my mind and would only give twenty ringgit as there were already more than fifty ringgit in the plastic bag and it was no longer there. I wanted to see his reaction to my decision. When I told him that he told me it would alright if I were to give thirty ringgit. From this I immediately saw through his involvement, for if he were to be only an intermediary, certainly he could not make his own decision to negotiate and accept anything already agreed to.
After I had taken my identity card, I waited for him to return, perhaps to convey the dissatisfaction of the people who had sent him but he did not come back. In fact, if he had returned, I would have been willing to give another twenty ringgit and that would have proved that he was not involved to getting financial gain for the return of my identity card. Not only that, to this day, he avoids me and I have had no chance to find out more about the incident.
Sometimes, it is only though incidents like this where money is involved that the true nature of a person is known.
I once got to know a man and since he seemed to be always friendly, I treated him as one of my friends. We used to get together, exchanged news and jokes and sat down to drinks every now and then whenever fate put us together.
Then, one day, I lost my identity card which I had kept in a small plastic plastic bag together with some money. This is a tiny piece of plastic which I take everywhere together with my wallet. However, in the mornings, when I go up the hill for my daily exercise, I would take this plastic bag along so that should anything happen and the police were to ask for my identity, I would have the card to show them. As for the money, it comes in useful whenever there is need to buy some food or drinks. And I used a plastic bag as if it ever rains when I am up the hill, which does happen, my document and money would be dry even when I am drenched to the skin.
I believed that the plastic bag with my identity card must have dropped when I checked its contents just outside my gate. However, after its loss, I could not find it although I searched everywhere.
Then, the next day, two young men came to my gate and told me somebody has found my identity card and the person who found it wanted fifty ringgit. I agreed to it and told the two men to tell the person to give it back to me.
After about an hour,the person who turned up to return the identity card was the friend i mentioned at the beginning of this true story. According to him, the people who found it wanted fifty ringgit and they had asked this man to get it for them.
As it was so ridiculous that they would not dare to turn up to claim the money that I had agreed to but got another person to involved to claim the money, I was suspicious of this friend's non involvement in the monetary claim. An idea came to mind.
I told him I have changed my mind and would only give twenty ringgit as there were already more than fifty ringgit in the plastic bag and it was no longer there. I wanted to see his reaction to my decision. When I told him that he told me it would alright if I were to give thirty ringgit. From this I immediately saw through his involvement, for if he were to be only an intermediary, certainly he could not make his own decision to negotiate and accept anything already agreed to.
After I had taken my identity card, I waited for him to return, perhaps to convey the dissatisfaction of the people who had sent him but he did not come back. In fact, if he had returned, I would have been willing to give another twenty ringgit and that would have proved that he was not involved to getting financial gain for the return of my identity card. Not only that, to this day, he avoids me and I have had no chance to find out more about the incident.
Sometimes, it is only though incidents like this where money is involved that the true nature of a person is known.
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Sometimes, a little knowledge is really dangerous.
When I was about the age of ten, my parents lived in a village in Caunter Hall. Today, the place is known as Jalan P. Ramlee after the famous singer, actor and director of Malay films. Well, although we lived in the same area, he must have been older than me for I did not have the opportunity to do hop, hop, hop, step and jump on those squares drawn in the shape of a cross on the group or play marbles with him. Otherwise, I could have appeared in his autobiography and became quite well known too. Sometimes, luck comes only with the right timing.
Anyway, P. Ramlee's attap house and my village were just a short distance away and I must admit that village life is quite interesting and enjoyable for little children; those like me, anyway. It was in this village that I experienced the pain and fear of being chased by bees.
It all started when one of my neighbours found some bees starting a hive in his kitchen cupboard. "Ahh! Here's the chance to have pure organic honey right at my doorstep," the elderly man thought. So, day after day, to get those bees to produce honey at a faster rate perhaps, he fed them white sugar.
Initially, when the hive was still small and the number of bees was not too many, the man had no problem from them. Eager for the honey, he supplied the bees with sugar without fair, every morning and evening. Gradually, the hive increased in size until the cupboard door could not be closed tightly. The population of those bees became larger and each time, the wife and the children had to go to the kitchen, they had to be cautious so as to not touch or obstruct the path of the flying bees. Inevitably, first the wife, then the children, got stung by those bees. The man himself was stung one day. The stinging from the bees became a daily affair. The wife and the children could not stand the attacks any longer and demanded that the man removed the hive.
Now, how do you remove a hive from a kitchen cupboard? Perhaps, put a big plastic bag over it and have it dislodged while it is inside the plastic. Unfortunately, that is just my idea as I sit writing about this as plastic bags were either not available then or the villagers and I were still ignorant of the use of plastic bags.
The man hit on the idea of killing them with hot boiling water. So he boiled a big kettle of water. It was just after an early dinner. In those days, the Chinese used to have dinner at about five o'clock. Perhaps they had it so early so that they could enjoy some supper just before bedtime. When the water was boiling, he took the kettle to the hive and poured hot water into the cupboard at a spot just above the hive. Some of the bees were killed and warm honey flowed down onto the ground. But his thoughts were far from the honey as he waved his hands above below and everywhere as he tried in vain to ward off the angry bees which attacked him. Unable to take the pain any longer he fled together with his wife and children who had also been attacked.
The bees flew amok and attacked any human in their sight. Soon, almost every villager was fleeing out of the village towards some tall grasses. I was among them and it was then that I discovered the advantage of being smaller than most of the people. I could hide deeper and further inside the grass. There, the bees could not reach me and I was safe. As for the others, including my parents, they had round angry red patches every where on their exposed skin.
After a while some kind soul got candles and joss-sticks for everyone. The smoke did help to keep the bees at bay and eventually darkness came to our rescue. For once, we were so appreciative of the darkness. We even forgot about the usual nasty mosquitoes. The cool evening air brought even greater relief as it cooled the hot stinging pain that almost every villager was suffering from. It was really a night to remember for those people and myself.
I know not whether the man who started the problem was ever scolded for the incident. However, I do realise we ought to gather sufficient knowledge to understand things thoroughly; know the cons just as well as the pros. Just as my elder son says,"Dad, when you study nutrition, don't just know the benefit of the food, know and understand too the possible undesirable side-effects it can bring." And there is a lot of truth in his words. And from the above true incident, I know a little knowledge without total understanding is sometimes really dangerous.
Anyway, P. Ramlee's attap house and my village were just a short distance away and I must admit that village life is quite interesting and enjoyable for little children; those like me, anyway. It was in this village that I experienced the pain and fear of being chased by bees.
It all started when one of my neighbours found some bees starting a hive in his kitchen cupboard. "Ahh! Here's the chance to have pure organic honey right at my doorstep," the elderly man thought. So, day after day, to get those bees to produce honey at a faster rate perhaps, he fed them white sugar.
Initially, when the hive was still small and the number of bees was not too many, the man had no problem from them. Eager for the honey, he supplied the bees with sugar without fair, every morning and evening. Gradually, the hive increased in size until the cupboard door could not be closed tightly. The population of those bees became larger and each time, the wife and the children had to go to the kitchen, they had to be cautious so as to not touch or obstruct the path of the flying bees. Inevitably, first the wife, then the children, got stung by those bees. The man himself was stung one day. The stinging from the bees became a daily affair. The wife and the children could not stand the attacks any longer and demanded that the man removed the hive.
Now, how do you remove a hive from a kitchen cupboard? Perhaps, put a big plastic bag over it and have it dislodged while it is inside the plastic. Unfortunately, that is just my idea as I sit writing about this as plastic bags were either not available then or the villagers and I were still ignorant of the use of plastic bags.
The man hit on the idea of killing them with hot boiling water. So he boiled a big kettle of water. It was just after an early dinner. In those days, the Chinese used to have dinner at about five o'clock. Perhaps they had it so early so that they could enjoy some supper just before bedtime. When the water was boiling, he took the kettle to the hive and poured hot water into the cupboard at a spot just above the hive. Some of the bees were killed and warm honey flowed down onto the ground. But his thoughts were far from the honey as he waved his hands above below and everywhere as he tried in vain to ward off the angry bees which attacked him. Unable to take the pain any longer he fled together with his wife and children who had also been attacked.
The bees flew amok and attacked any human in their sight. Soon, almost every villager was fleeing out of the village towards some tall grasses. I was among them and it was then that I discovered the advantage of being smaller than most of the people. I could hide deeper and further inside the grass. There, the bees could not reach me and I was safe. As for the others, including my parents, they had round angry red patches every where on their exposed skin.
After a while some kind soul got candles and joss-sticks for everyone. The smoke did help to keep the bees at bay and eventually darkness came to our rescue. For once, we were so appreciative of the darkness. We even forgot about the usual nasty mosquitoes. The cool evening air brought even greater relief as it cooled the hot stinging pain that almost every villager was suffering from. It was really a night to remember for those people and myself.
I know not whether the man who started the problem was ever scolded for the incident. However, I do realise we ought to gather sufficient knowledge to understand things thoroughly; know the cons just as well as the pros. Just as my elder son says,"Dad, when you study nutrition, don't just know the benefit of the food, know and understand too the possible undesirable side-effects it can bring." And there is a lot of truth in his words. And from the above true incident, I know a little knowledge without total understanding is sometimes really dangerous.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
We need to prove our capability.
On Monday night I was in Serdang, Selangor where over dinner at a barbecue and steamboat restaurant, I met this vivacious young lady who went overseas for further studies, got her degree and masters but stopped short of going for her PhD. Something in her told her it was not for her.
However, according to her, there was this friend of hers who went on to his PhD and succeeded in it. Well, this lady has landed herself an excellent job with a enviable income. As for the guy who has a PhD behind his name, he just could not get himself a job.
Without a suitable job overseas can be a panicky experience as the expenditure over there is terribly high. He had no alternative but to take on jobs like waiting at tables, dish-washing and just any thing that came along to survive. Eventually, with no change in his fortune, he returned to Malaysia. That did not bring any job along either. Today he is a jobless PhD.
In a place where most people know you, you just do not lower your dignity and take on any miserable job that comes along. Friends know you have a PhD. You do not want them to laugh at the sight of a PhD doing odd jobs waiting at tables. Of course, there is the pride, yours and the family's. Another weak point is that you know there are the parents whom you can turn to for a decent meal whenever you need one. And parents in Malaysia, unlike the European ones, (Forgive me if I am wrong and do tell me if I am, but that is the story I have heard about European parents.)are always quite generous to their children, even grown ones, especially when the parents are well-to-do. The ego must be safe-guarded at all cost. And that is the problem.
As it can be seen from this true life example, being over qualified can bring problems to the person possessing the qualification if that person think of it as a means to the best jobs around. No, qualifications is merely a permit to try for high posts but it may not necessarily turn out to be so. It is not a guarantee. The person concern must look for the opportunities to prove his worth. Having a qualification is one thing, being able to perform is another. And the higher the price a company has to pay the more cautious and careful they are in choosing the talents. Are they really getting what they pay for?
So, an individual with a high qualification must be willing to lower his/her expectation in order to enter or reach for a chance to prove his/her worth. Any big company will pay for someone who will bring in or put in more than what his/her talent is capable of. Either that or the company is too small to need such talent or will not be going anywhere very soon.
capable of.
However, according to her, there was this friend of hers who went on to his PhD and succeeded in it. Well, this lady has landed herself an excellent job with a enviable income. As for the guy who has a PhD behind his name, he just could not get himself a job.
Without a suitable job overseas can be a panicky experience as the expenditure over there is terribly high. He had no alternative but to take on jobs like waiting at tables, dish-washing and just any thing that came along to survive. Eventually, with no change in his fortune, he returned to Malaysia. That did not bring any job along either. Today he is a jobless PhD.
In a place where most people know you, you just do not lower your dignity and take on any miserable job that comes along. Friends know you have a PhD. You do not want them to laugh at the sight of a PhD doing odd jobs waiting at tables. Of course, there is the pride, yours and the family's. Another weak point is that you know there are the parents whom you can turn to for a decent meal whenever you need one. And parents in Malaysia, unlike the European ones, (Forgive me if I am wrong and do tell me if I am, but that is the story I have heard about European parents.)are always quite generous to their children, even grown ones, especially when the parents are well-to-do. The ego must be safe-guarded at all cost. And that is the problem.
As it can be seen from this true life example, being over qualified can bring problems to the person possessing the qualification if that person think of it as a means to the best jobs around. No, qualifications is merely a permit to try for high posts but it may not necessarily turn out to be so. It is not a guarantee. The person concern must look for the opportunities to prove his worth. Having a qualification is one thing, being able to perform is another. And the higher the price a company has to pay the more cautious and careful they are in choosing the talents. Are they really getting what they pay for?
So, an individual with a high qualification must be willing to lower his/her expectation in order to enter or reach for a chance to prove his/her worth. Any big company will pay for someone who will bring in or put in more than what his/her talent is capable of. Either that or the company is too small to need such talent or will not be going anywhere very soon.
capable of.
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