*A mother poem I saw online*
Why are you crying, a young boy asked his Mom?
"Because I'm a woman," she told him.
"I don't understand," he said.
His Mom just hugged him and said, "And you never will, but that's O.K.".......
Later the little boy asked his father, "Why does Mom seem to cry for no reason?". "All women cry for no reason," was all his Dad could say......
The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry.
Finally he put in a call to God and when God got back to him, he asked "God, why do women cry so easily?"
GOD answered......
"When I made woman, I decided she had to be special. I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world, yet, made her arms gentle enough to give comfort...
I gave her the inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejection that many times will come even from her own children.
I gave her a tenacity that allows her to keep going and take care of her family and friends, even when everyone else gives up, through sickness and fatigue without complaining....
I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances. Even when her child has hurt her badly....
She has the very special power to make a child's boo-boo feel better and to quell a teenager's anxieties and fears....
I gave her strength to care for her husband, despite faults and I fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart....
I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly....
For all of this hard work, I also gave her a tear to shed. It is hers to use whenever needed and it is her only weakness....
When you see her cry, tell her how much you love her, and all she does for everyone, and even though she may still cry, you will have made her heart feel better.
(My mom & I in Australia last year)
Kermit: I thank God for my mother because she showed me what patience truly means. In my most difficult of days my mom loved me. In the earlier days when my dad was the sole breadwinner & money was tight & tempers are short my mother stood by my dad & chose to endure for the sake of the whole family. I wish I can be a better daughter sometimes. Try to send her small little smses, come home for dinner & spend more time with her. What about you? Let's celebrate our mothers :) Their goodness, love & patience & simply everything!
Passerby: "nice story, how did the son respond?"
A touching story I received from my fren
My mom only had one eye.. I hated her... She was such an embarrassment. She cooked for students & teachers to support the family. There was this one day during elementary school where my mom came to say hello to me. I was so embarrassed. How could she do this to me? I ignored her, threw her a hateful look and ran out.
The next day at school one of my classmates said, "Eeee, your mom only has one eye!" I wanted to bury myself. I also wanted my mom to just disappear. I confronted her that day and said, "If you're only gonna make me a laughing stock, why don't you just die?" My mom did not respond... I didn't even stop to think for a second about what I had said, because I was full of anger. I was oblivious to her feelings. I wanted out of that house, and have nothing to do with her. So I studied real hard, got a chance to go abroad to study.
Then, I got married. I bought a house of my own. I had kids of my own. I was happy with my life, my kids and the comforts.
Then one day, my mother came to visit me. She hadn't seen me in years and she didn't even meet her grandchildren. When she stood by the door, my children laughed at her, and I yelled at her for coming over uninvited. I screamed at her, "How dare you come to my house and scare my children! "GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!!" And to this, my mother quietly answered, "Oh, I'm so sorry, I may have gotten the wrong address." And she disappeared out of sight.
One day, a letter regarding a school reunion came to my house. So I lied to my wife that I was going on a business trip...
After the reunion, I went to the old shack just out of curiosity. My neighbors said that she died. I did not shed a single tear. They handed me a letter that she had wanted me to have.
"My dearest son, I think of you all the time. I'm sorry that I came to your house and scared your children. I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion. But I may not be able to even get out of bed to see you.
I'm sorry that I was a constant embarrassment to you when you were growing up. You see....... when you were very little, you got into an accident, and lost your eye. As a mother, I couldn't stand watching you having to grow up with one eye... So I gave you mine. I was so proud of my son who was seeing a whole new world for me, in my place, with that eye.
With all my love to you,
Your mother... 
Got this story from a fren of mine & thought it was really good & timely for me. May u be encouraged as well :)
So sorry fans! Been so caught up at work that didn't get to blog :P
Took this photo at a fren's place. It was meaningful because it reminded me of an incident that happened recently.
I had a misunderstanding with a good fren recently & she hasn't been picking up my calls & smses. I felt really really really sad. Sad that this misunderstanding happened, sad that things turned out this way, sad that we couldn't talk to sort things through.
But God reminded me through this picture that all hope is NOT lost. Maybe it's the beginning of something better. With that in mind I finally shook myself out of the whinny mode of despair. I choose to wait in faith. I believe things will eventually work out. Perhaps now we just need to give each other a bit of time & space to sort out our thoughts.
I hope this encourages you because it really did encourage me!
Why I should cook this:
Simply yummy & easy to prepare. To balance this high carbohydrate dish you can add more chicken & mushroom or even green peas. However don't over eat on this as glutinuous rice takes a longer time to be digested.
Reference from Digital Life Oct 22, 2007
There was something irresistible and liberating about the way she could just come home from school, throw her real identity out the window and take up whatever persona she liked online. With her cute nicknames, Amanda never fell short of online friends who enjoyed chatting with her. Her favourite friend, though, was 29-year-old 'bikerboy2000', who was always sweet, considerate and knew exactly what to say. Both exchanged personal information and she soon found out his real name (for this purpose, let's call him John).
John finally asked her out for lunch three days later and Amanda agreed, albeit reluctantly at first. Her first impression of him was that John was shy and boyish. But his constant praise of her beauty had Amanda hooked - she felt like a princess in his company.
On their second date, John said he liked her a lot and asked Amanda to be his girlfriend. She was elated and couldn't believe her luck. She was so smitten that when John invited her to his place on their third date, she hurried over brimming with anticipation.
That was when Amanda's luck ran out. John started to get physically close to her, and when she pulled away and asked what he was up to, John attacked her. Dazed and confused, realisation slowly sank in. Amanda had been raped.
Her grades plummeted as Amanda battled with feelings of worthlessness, shame as well as the fear of pregnancy and parental rejection. She withdrew from her friends and family until she one day, she couldn't hold it back no longer.
She told her close friends about the awful experience and received intensive counselling. She made a police report and identified John, who's currently being investigated.
Amanda soon learnt that she wasn't the first girl that John had raped. Despite feeling angry at her own stupidity, she also learnt a valuable lesson from her experience. She's now a more Internet savvy user and understands what to do to avoid becoming a victim.
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A boss wondered why one of his most valued employees had not phoned in sick one day. Having an urgent problem with one of the main computers, he dialed the employee's home phone number and was greeted with a child's whisper.
>>"Hello ? Is your daddy home?" he asked.
>>"Yes," whispered the small voice.
>>"May I talk to him?"
>>The child whispered, "No."
>>Surprised and wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, "Is your Mommy there?"
>>"Yes."
>>"May I talk to her?" Again the small voice whispered, "No."
>>Hoping there was somebody with whom he could leave a message, the boss asked, "Is anybody else there?"
>>"Yes," whispered the child, "a policeman."
>>Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee's home, the boss asked, "May I speak to the policeman?"
>>"No, he's busy , " whispered the child.
>>"Busy doing what?"
>>"Talking to Daddy and Mommy and the Fireman," came the whispered answer.
>>Growing more worried as he heard a loud noise in the background through the earpiece on the phone, the boss asked, "What is that noise?"
>>"A helicopter." answered the whispering voice.
>>"What is going on there?" demanded the boss, now truly apprehensive.
>>Again, whispering, the child answered, " The search team just landed a helicopter."
>>Alarmed, concerned and a little frustrated the boss asked, "What are they searching for?"
>>Still whispering, the young voice replied with a muffled giggle..."ME."
Kermit: Got this joke from Joanne. So funny!!! :P
When I hear someone comment that being a mother and homemaker is boring, I have a simple response: You’re right!
The truth is, almost any occupation – telephone operator, pathologist, lawyer or dentist – requires long hours of tedious activity. Few of us enjoy heart-thumping excitement every moment of our professional lives.
I once stayed in a hotel room next to the room of a famous cellist who was performing in a classical concert that evening.
I could hear him through the walls as he practiced for hours. He didn’t play beautiful symphonic renditions – he repeated scales and exercise, over and over. He began early in the morning and continued until it was time to go on stage.
As he stepped onto the stage that night, I’m sure many in the audience thought to themselves:” What a glamorous life he must lead!”
Some glamour! I happen to know how he had spent the entire day in his lonely hotel room with his cello.
I doubt that being a mother and homemaker is more boring than most other jobs. As for the importance of the assignment, I believe that no job can compete with the satisfaction of moulding & guiding a child.
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Kermit: Do you like what you're doing (E.g. working, attending CCAs, studying etc etc)? Yes/No/Not Really? If no/not really.... Do you then know why you're still doing what you're doing? WITH THE END IN MIND, things could sometimes be much clearer & makes more sense!
Studying - Teaching us to use our brains & equipping us with knowledge
Working - To earn a living & provide for our families & a kick start in our career life
CCAs - To train us in useful skills beyond mugging geeks!!
We find our true direction.
Kermit: Dun b afraid of the unknown or future to come. Am generally a very safe kind of person but is learning to slowly take steps out of my comfort zone. & it has been enriching & exciting thus far. The greatest barrier is sometimes in our mind :)
There once was a King who offered a prize to the artist who would paint the best picture of peace. Many artists tried. The King looked at all the pictures, but there were only two he really liked and he had to choose between them.
One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect mirror, for peaceful towering mountains were all around it. Overhead was a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. All who saw this picture thought that it was a perfect picture of peace.
The other picture had mountains too. But these were rugged and bare. Above was an angry sky from which rain fell and in which lightening played. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming waterfall. This did not look peaceful at all. But when the King looked, he saw behind the waterfall a tiny bush growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest... perfect peace.
Which picture do you think won the prize?
The King chose the second picture. Do you know why? "Because," explained the King, "peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace."
Isaiah 26:2-4You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You,Because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.
The Sunday Times, September 23rd 2007
One girl tells Nur Dianah Suhaimi how she was taken in when an online 'friend' turned on his charm offensive.
When I met Jetson , I was 15 and was looking for a boyfriend online. At school, almost all my female lassmates had boyfriends. I had never even been on a date. I never had a guy come up to me asking for my number. But on the Internet, things are different. Guys come up to me because they cannot judge my looks. That was how it started with Jetson. He was 25 when we met yet we connected so well. He didn't treat me like a kid the way my parents and teachers do. When I told him my age, he asked about school. He was concerned that I was failing half my subjects and advised me to work hard. I was touched. My parents rarely paid attention to my grades.They were more concerned about my elder sister who is a straight A student.
That first time, we chatted for five hours - from 10pm until 3am. He was smart, funny and kind. He gave me a cute pet name. Before we ended the chat, he said to me: 'I think you're a very interesting girl. You must be beautiful too. The boys in your school must be stupid not to be your boyfriend. 'I was flattered. Nobody had called me beautiful before. Then he asked me out.'I must see what you look like,' he said.
Two days later, on a Saturday afternoon, we met outside Orchard MRT station. I was a little disappointed when I saw him. He was short, skinny and had many pimples. He wore jeans with a white polo tee. But he was as nice to me as he was online. We had lunch at Burger King which he paid for. We then went window shopping and he held my hand. I felt happy and proud. Proud because a 25-year-old guy who was mature and nice was holding my hand. 
He was very gentlemanly. He kept asking if I felt tired and if I needed a drink.When I spoke, he'd put his face close to mine and listen intently. Before we parted at the train station, he gave me a long kiss on the lips. My heartwas beating so fast. It was my first kiss. We went out again the next week. Again, he kissed me.
On the third date, Jetson suggested we go to his flat in Bukit Batok. He lived with his parents but they were at work. (Kermit - this guy could be a bum living off his parents! No wonder so much free time!) At his place, he kissed me many times as we watched TV in the living room. There was heavy petting. After that date, Jetson asked me to be his girlfriend. I was already falling in love with him so I agreed. All our dates after that were spent at his flat. Without fail, there'd be heavy petting. I'd go to his place as often as three times a week, mostly after school becausethat was when his parents were not home.
Each time, Jetson would ask me for sex but I said no. I was afraid of getting pregnant. He'd get upset and tell me he was so close to his ex-girlfriend becausethey had sex. This would make me angry and jealous.
About two months later, I revisited the chatroom where I had met Jetson andfound out that he was still chatting. I became suspicious and decided to chat withhim using a different nickname.
I was shocked. He used the same tricks that he had earlier used on me. He gave me a pet name and said I was beautiful. He also asked me out. I realised that I had been used by this pervert. I called him on the phone and broke up with him. He didn't even explain himself; he just kept quiet.I never saw Jetson again. I also stopped chatting. I'm now 17 and still do not have a boyfriend but that's okay. I don't want to risk being used as a sex object again.
Just came back from Swiss & jumped straight into a work trip in Malaysia then right into my church camp in St John's island. In total I was away from home for about two weeks. Thankfully my mom was very understanding. Totally busy recently I would love to share more about my wonderful holiday otherwise.
Switzerland - Awesome land of natural beauty
Snowy alps - when u're that close to them, right there with them, woah! the feeling is indescribable. Want to go back again someday
Conquering the mountains! - That's the mountain we conquered. 2.5hrs to trek down. Some parts were so steep we feared for our lives if we missed our footsteps. Definitely memorable journey. At the foot of the mountain though we can't see any possible path from which we could have trekked down from but in our hearts we know there is a way that we came down. Different angle, different perception. I wonder if He's smiling. Looking up or peering down - the view's different.
Our emotional love language and the language of another person may be as different as Chinese from English. No matter how hard you try to express love in “English”, if your friend understands only “Chinese”, you will never understand how to love each other. There are basically five emotional love languages—five ways that people speak and understand emotional love.
Words of Affirmation: I feel especially loved when people express how grateful they are for me, and for the simple, everyday things I do. (Generally in words/writings)
Quality Time: I feel especially loved when a person gives me undivided attention and spends time alone with me
Receiving Gifts: I feel especially loved by someone who brings me gifts and other tangible expressions of love
Acts of Service: I feel especially loved when someone pitches in to help me with some work or running some errands
Physical Touch: I feel expecially loved when a person expresses feelings for me through physical contact
Communicating love isn’t as easy as feeling “in love,” because it’s quite a different thing. Falling in love is not an act of the will or a conscious choice. It’s effortless. Love is something you do for someone else, not something you do for yourself. When you choose to speak someone else's love language, whether or not it is natural for you, though you might not even like the language, but speaking it will clearly communicate love. Love is a choice.
Think about your family, close frens, special frens. What is their love language? Can you bless them today by speaking a love language that they understand best? :)
*Special thanks to http://www.fivelovelanguages.com/
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Remy the mouse & the late Auguste Gusteau, France’s greatest all-time culinary genius, is the author of Anyone Can Cook, the cookbook that inspired Remy to dream of becoming a chef.
• 4 soft soyabean curd squares (tofu)
• 1T soyabean oil
• 0.5T sesame oil
• 4 shallots, pounded
• 4 cloves garlic, pounded
• 1.25cum piece ginger, pounded
• 150g lean beef, minced
• 1T preserved soyabeans (taucheo),rinsed and pounded
• 4 spring onions, cut
• 2 tsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp ground Szechuan peppercorns
• 1T Chinese rice wine
• 1T tomato puree
• 2T tomato ketchup
• 2.5 tsp ground red chilli
• 1T dark soya sauce
• 0.5C (125ml) chicken stock
1. Dice the bean curd into 1.5cm cubes, place in a colander in the sink, and allow water to drain off for 30mins
2. Heat the oils in a wok over moderate heat; add the pounded shallots, garlic & ginger, & fry for 30secs. Then add the minced beef & fry until it loses its pink colour. Add the preserved soyabeans and spring onions and stir.
Arise warriors arise!
A four-year-old boy was finally put into time-out after battling with his mother. "Sit in that chair until the timer goes off," the mother said in frustration. The boy sat down, fearing greater punishment, but said, "Okay, Mommy. I'm sitting on the outside, but I'm standing up on the inside!"
Last weekend wasn't fantastic. Had a misunderstand that lead to much frustration & anguish. Half of me was battling to do the right thing, the other part of me offered nice little excuses & reasons not to. Put it simply I felt lousy & defeated. Yucky yucks feeling.
After a while of self pity & guilt I woke up one morning with this sudden thought that popped in my head. "You're a warrior. Warriors fight, warriors emerge victorious."
Woah woah woah. It's pretty amazing. As suddenly as it came I suddenly realized that though I was a warrior on the outside (My church's theme for 2007 is everyone of us are warriors of light) but really inside of me I wasn't one.
Well whimpy warrior no more. And my favourite female warrior is non other than Hua Mu Lan! Yeah! Arise warriors arise! 
"WinDz: Hey, haven't visited for a longggg time . Didn't know you were married ! xDDD"
I had a minor shock then burst into laughter when I saw the tag from an ex-student! (Hey there WinDz no offence eh to use your tag as a story! I'm inspired that's all! :P)
Eventually I'll be married WinDz but currently I'm not a Mrs yet!!! :) So who are these people calling me mummy. I'm not into adoption either. keke! I've to do a bit of history digging here. These are my extremely close bunch of church mates. So close that we're "related" literally.
My friend invited me to a Christian rally years ago and there was no looking back. From someone who disliked anything related to Christians previously somehow I became more open to going church. It must be a miracle. A good miracle at that! Started attending church with Penny & that girl wanted to join a cell group! OMG she actually called church to asked how to join one. Anyway being good frens that's how I got dragged into one. *But heys Penny dear, thanks!!
In church I've a spiritual family & belong to one. My spiritual "mother" Serene is a lovely mum! I've learnt so much from her. She'll always avail herself to listen when I'm troubled. Best of all, she believed in me even when I don't myself.
From a shy, suspicious, angry, uptight person. I'm glad to say I'm much happier, more confident, learning to trust & enjoy having some lame & fun now. Thanks be to God! Who loves us & has a wonderful plan for each of our lives.
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Saw this on Reader's Digest September 2007 edition "The Power of a Smile - by Anne Mullens" & thought that it's really good.
It's 7am, and Susan Jenks would love more sleep, but she can hear her 5-month-old son, Angus, rousing in the next room. "I'm hardly able to drag myself out of bed," says this mother, who, with both an infant and an older son aged two, is no stranger to fatigue. "But when I look into his cot, and he gives me a big smile, it fills me with joy - and then everything is fine." Such is the power of a simple smile.
Studies have found that if a parent responds to a baby's smile with an expressionless face, the infant gets upset. "This indicates how important the caregiver's smile is for the infant," Infants of depressed mothers also show fewer signs of happiness and smile less often than infants of non-depressed mothers.
Keltner notes that while some people are born with generally happier temperaments, which set them up for success, others can become happier by being taught how to cultivate a genuine smile.
"In the happiness literature," the greatest association with happiness is connection to others. Teaching smiling is important becuase it helps us connect.
Putting on a happy face not only helps us make friends, it translates into altered brain chemistry that makes us feel better.
A smile is a powerful part of our conversation capability. If you can't smile, you are very limited in your ability to pass on information and relate to other people. (Dr Ralph Manktelow)
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Tribute to Mr Chong who found this video i grabbed from his blog de. www.historymaker20736.blogspot.com . Check out his original post 一人一半，感情不散....
Dun ask me why I just love the music. Catchy and reminds me of the show (watched local production 881 with my colleagues). I didn't really laugh much with the flood of hokkien songs - probably due to language barrier. The ending was unpredictable for me. So touching! Sobs :~(
The storyline gets better and better as the show progresses. The small papaya, though she's like so gusty and loud but she has her tender side too towards her "sister".
One thing I got from the show was the sacrifical love of small papaya, the carry chicken guy & the auntie. Each of them gave up something because of their love & commitment to another. That act of sacrifice may not appear big in another person's eyes but from my point of view (as a viewer) I think it means a great great deal to the receiver.
(You know I must be really excited to be blogging at such a weird timing - Yes of course! I've just completed my scheduling for my Australia trip, hopefully can confirm the air tickets tomorrow. keke)
I'll be going for my holidays soon! Oh I'm so excited!!! Previously I've only travelled to the Asian countries like Thailand, India and China (oh yes China. Will be there again next year. Join my team in Chengdu to help the vagabond children!)
It was pretty interesting actually. A fren of mine asked if I would like to visit Switzerland with her. My immediate response was "NO"! I'm not someone who spurges on holidays to destress plus the fact that I'm planning for a long awaited family trip to Australia soon; money and annual leave are huge concerns. However almost immediately this other thought came into my mind (seriously the brain is really powerful; mine is! It's like in a split second so many things have flashed passed my brain monitor) "Oh Cynthia you ulu turtle, haven't seen much of the world ya". I paused for a moment. dotz dotz dotz. It's true. The last time I went for a real playing holiday was after my graduation to Redang Island with my friends. Well long story cut short -> I've been bubbling with excitement since then. Snowy mountains here I come!
Many good things have actually came out of this decision to go for the trip. Money/savigns became something that I started thinking about seriously. I can no longer be satisfed with my current savings. Rather I need to replenish them to a healthy level again. (Love for money is the root of all evil. True godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it.) Dun worry I'm not going crazy on a money finding spree. But I'm now on the lookout of finding some good skills or a personal forte. A good skill that I can leverage on wherever I go in future.
After a week of seeking. Ta-da! This is my first option! COOKING! I used to cook when I was younger. I stopped trying to cook for my family when I got really busy studying etc. Oily kitchen is a no no. So it's not just any cooking. Probably healthy cooking. Minus the frying and the whatever that will stink the kitchen and make the floor oily.
Okies. Enough said. Gotta pick up a cookbook soon. 
