Forest Sanctuary

Found another little sanctuary while wandering in the midst of the urban forest. The place seemed so dream-like, it was almost surreal...

Nuggets of Gold

Another nugget of gold (pun intended :) ... A treasured gift brought all the way from the US, by another dear one who remembered my love for Hersheys chocolate.

So blessed...

God always brings the right people and forms of encouragement, to help us along when we most need them :)

Half Full or Half Empty

"Do you think the glass is half full, or half empty?"

In life, there may be at least 3 types of people :

1) Those who would ponder if the glass is half full.

2) Those who would ponder if the glass is half empty.

3) And those who would drink up the water immediately, without letting the question bother them. For them, thirst is the most immediate and pressing need. The question and its answer don't matter as much.

Literally, and figuratively.

Take education, for example.

Some people praise the merits of a country's educational system.
Some people wax lyrical about its faults.
And there are some who long just for the privillege of being able to go to school to study, nevermind its strengths or weaknesses. Philosophy isn't something they have the luxury to indulge in at the moment.

We can take far too many things for granted sometimes, the same for other examples as well. Do we continue to debate 'half-full or half-empty' in blithe ignorance of those who long even for a sip of water?

Louder Than Words

Over the past few months, I've often had to stay cooped up in my room, reading and writing in front of the computer for days on end. My family knew it could get quite depressing and frustrating at times, so they bought a little something to cheer me up (and to provide some sugar to keep me going :)


Japanese Mochi !!! :)

As well as biscuits for me to munch on while I think and write, heh.

The smallest tokens can say the biggest things... ♥

An Unexpected Visitor

A low-pitched humming filled my room, and an audible "Twack!" punctuated the silence.

I looked up from my work, and turned around to find myself face to face with... a HUGE 10+ cm long praying mantis! The fella had apparently flown in through my window, and landed on my bed. Talk about knowing how to make itself feel at home, heh :)

Immediately, I grabbed my camera and started snapping numerous photos of it, as it scrambled up the headboard and watched me from there. Absently wondering how to get it off my bed, I went to search for a container to catch it with. Several years ago, I had also caught a large stick insect by picking it up and holding it by its mid section (wanting to bring it home to rear as a pet, before realising that I didn't actually have anything large enough to keep it in. Silly me :) and released it in a park several streets away.

However, I couldn't catch the praying mantis in the same way, as they've been known to turn around and bite or claw. The fella didn't appear to be aggressive, but I didn't want to provoke it either... those pincer -like front legs looked quite sharp and formidable.

When I returned, it had flown from my bed to the adjacent wall, close to the ceiling. At least that solved one problem :) But it was now too high for me to reach. So, I went back to my desk, updated friends with more news of my 'unexpected visitor', and was inspired by them to nickname the fella 'Lucky' :) A search on Google revealed that 'Lucky' was a Giant Asian praying mantis (Hierodula membranacea), and judging from its size, a full-grown adult too.

Captivated, I continued watching from my desk for almost an hour, as it walked to and fro across the wall, grooming itself occasionally. And it turned to watch me too, staring intently with an inquisitive gaze, its expression reminding me almost of a curious dog at times.

However, at 4 am, I decided to finally remove 'Lucky' from the wall. It was late, but didn't want to risk hurting it or getting bitten if it decided to fly back onto the bed while I was asleep. So, I took a broom, gently coaxed 'Lucky' to climb on, carried it out the window, and let it scuttle onto the wall outside. And silently whispered, "Go forth and multiply," before it turned the corner and disappeared :)

In the past few months, quite a number of critters have entered my room, including the usual moths, beetles, bees, as well as lacewings, geckos (house lizards), and even a bird. But this was by far the most interesting 'guest', a beautiful and fascinating creature to watch. I guess it's one of the things about living near a nature reserve :) My windows are still open, hopefully he/she will come visit again some time :)


All things wise and wonderful,
All creatures great and small,
All things bright and beautiful,
The Lord God made them all.

The Grass Withers and The Flowers Fall

Had a short vacation with the family. A time to unwind and refresh. An escape to a place far from where I was, to clear my mind of the things that had been cluttering it here.

Spent more than a week without any internet access, nor mobile phones during that time as well. Remaining uncontactable, and contacting no one.

An unforgettable stop at Stonehenge left me standing there temporarily. Partially in awe, and partially in disbelief that I was staring at its remains. Peering into a different world... and wondering what had become of it.

A whole thriving civilization that was eventually wiped out, leaving no written traces of their history, of their lives, or why they had built such a structure.

"why?... Why?? " ... The commentary echoed in my ear.

No one knows. Even archaeologists can only make a guess.

An existence so ephemeral.

2 hours later that same day, we arrived in a different civilization... London, 2009. A place buzzing with people, cars, and life. Such contrast. But a scene just as evanescent.

Life is short. Live it.
Live it Fulfillingly.
Live it Fruitfully.
Live it Fully.
But remember why we live it...

For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For,
"All men are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;
the grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of the Lord stands forever."
And this is the word that was preached to you.
- 1 Peter 1 : 23 - 25

And not surprisingly, the travel-bug bit once more too. More deeply this time...

But for now, I need to concentrate on writing again, something that I need to finish first.

In the meantime, my heart is growing restless... and tugs at its tethers...
with a desire to discover more places and explore more faces...

Indulgence

Greta made a stopover in Singapore during her flight back to Adelaide on the weekend. Thus, a few of us met with her and caught up over lunch yesterday. We also shared a Muddy Mudpie from Coffee Club - superbly rich chocolate and coffee indulgence... mmm :)

The 5 C's of indulgence... Chocolate, Coffee, Cake, Conversation, Company :)

Good food, good friends... I'm going to miss her.

Wallflower

Everyone walked past the small and seemingly insignificant roadside plant. Not hidden from view, but somehow, still easily overlooked. Yet, a reminder of the beauty, creativity, intricacy, and design of each piece of His handiwork.

"He has made everything beautiful in its time.
He has also set eternity in the hearts of men;
yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."
- Ecclesiastes 3:11

Injecting Life

Not exactly the most aesthetic of pictures... :)

I had an injection with a dose of the influenza vaccine. Although it wasn't a vaccine against the H1N1 'Swine Flu' virus, the vaccine was supposed to dampen the severity if I did catch it, and would provide better immunity against other strains of influenza.

Thus, I finally went to visit 'Doc', an old friend, whom I hadn't seen for almost 7 years. After the injection, we chatted and caught up a bit, had a few good laughs, and talked about his collection of figurines. However, all too soon, we knew it was time for him to tend to other patients.

"It's been so many years... Well, hope to see you again." he said, with a smile on his face.

"Yeah," I said sincerely, missing our longer chats in the past, "but hopefully not in here, haha."

"Yes, that's right!" and both of us laughed, as I opened the door and stepped out of his clinic.

The injection site on my arm is still a little sore, but I guess the opportunity to catch up with an old friend made it worthwhile :)

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A Picture Paints a Thousand Words

Almost everyone knows the saying 'A picture paints a thousand words'.

Indeed, a picture or photograph can often portray so much more than a simple image.
Each picture tells a story in itself, displaying elements like the situation, background, and subject(s)... the context of what was captured.
More than that, it often (intentionally or not) encapsulates one's emotions, thoughts, perspectives, focus, interests... sometimes made obvious to the person viewing it, and at other times, made known only to the person who created it.

Behind every picture, there's a story, a reason why it was captured or created.

A friend once suggested starting a photo-blog. One photo a day. To capture and remind us of something that happened or struck us that day.

And perhaps I'll take up her suggestion. To chronicle my life and thoughts. To capture the memories of each little blessing that comes along each day. To remind me how each day is special and unique. To help me treasure things, and avoid taking them for granted.

A visual diary, of sorts.

Sounds idealistic? Perhaps :) Realistically, I probably won't update daily, but will try to do so at least once a week. After all, it doesn't take too long to upload one photo with a short caption, right? :)

We'll see :)

You can visit the Photo Journal at : "A Picture Paints a Thousand Words" :)
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Post-Hiatus

Just a brief update, while I take a short break from work, to put an end to what has become a 6-month long hiatus...

It's been half a year since I last updated, and (as expected :) much has happened during that time. One of the biggest changes has been the move from Adelaide back to Singapore. Even though there have also been a number of challenges along the way, God has been faithful throughout. A month after returning home, I've pretty much settled into life back here, while still fondly missing my friends over in Adelaide :) The process of writing and editing is still going, though, which has been quite a bit of a frustration. But life goes on as well. Celebrated the weddings for 2 pairs of old friends over the two long weekends (Easter, and Labour day), and looking forward to more to come :) Apart from that, life has pretty much consisted of meals, sleep, reading, writing, writing, writing... :) I'm also starting to suspect that my study chair is moulding to the shape of my body, because I've spent far too much time sitting in it at my desk.

Manda has also inspired several ideas for updating this blog, which have had to be shelved until after I finish. Till then, I'll try to update a little more often (at least more than once in 6 months, haha), and perhaps fill in some of the gaps from the past half a year.

On another note, we've had several really beautiful sunsets here over the past few days (like this one from yesterday). I'm thankful for the view from our place, where I could appreciate those brief moments, when the sky was streaked with a rich array of pinks, purples, and blues. A visual reminder of one of His masterpieces, whether it's miles away in Adelaide, or here in Singapore.



"Your word, O Lord, is eternal;
it stands firm in the heavens.
Your faithfulness continues through all generations;
you established the earth, and it endures."

- Psalm 119:89-90