Monday

It’s Monday and I’m in the office just to get all jobs done before sending them off to ‘somewhere’ later. I deal with numbers, and I investigate any discrepancies in ratios, percentage, and record. Forex is just another playground as I view it as a long-term investment; not a ‘get-rich-speedy-fast-scheme’. Economics is just a place for me to get new vision if any suprises might tick me to do SL or TP. The jargons may only be understood by those who are in the same wagon as saya. Blessed Monday.

Life as We Know It

Love is what binds us, respect is what unites us. To have love and respect for all life forms guarantees you an excellent quality of life because you will be walking around in sheer reverence to all you come across. There will never be a dull or uninspired moment.

In life we do things. Some we wish we had never done. Some we wish we could replay a million times in our heads. But they all make us who we are, and in the end they shape every detail about us. If we were to reverse any of them, we wouldn’t be the person we are. So, just live, make mistakes, have wonderful memories, but never ever second guess who you are, where you have been, and most importantly where it is you’re going.

We can never turn back the pages of time, though we may wish to relive a happy moment, or say goodbye just one last time. We never can because the sands of time continue to fall and we cannot turn the hourglass over.

Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that & living alone won’t either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You’ve to love & feel. It’s the reason you’re here on Earth. You’re here to risk your heart, to be swallowed up & when it happens that you’re broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree & listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could.

Fernanda Brum – Há Um Rio (There’s A River)

Há um rio

Fernanda Brum

Há um rio cujas águas,

Alegram a cidade de Deus, 

O santuário do altíssimo.

Onde o Rei está 

Assentado a destra do Pai 

Poderoso pra derramar 

Águas que saram 

Águas que lavam 

Águas que refrigeram 

Águas que quebram maldições 

Águas que moldam 

Águas que purificam 

Águas que santificam 

Água de paz

This one is translated from Portuguese into English. I’m not really sure if it’s accurately translated but the lyrics sounds a bit like this lah… Correct me if I mistakenly translated it as I used Google Translate bah. One of my favourite Christian song.

There’s a river

Fernanda Brum

There’s a river whose waters

Cheers the city of God

The sanctuary of the highest one

Where the King 

Is seated on the right of powerful Father 

For the spill of 

Waters that heal 

Waters that wash 

Waters that refrigerated 

Waters that break curses 

Waters that mold 

Waters that purify 

Waters that sanctify 

Water of peace

Identity in Christ

So, I was at retreat last weekend for my sorority, and I had such an amazing time bonding with my beautiful sisters. I was so blown away listening to such a Godly woman talk about what it means to have an identity in Christ, that I felt like I should share her message with you all:

The dictionary defines “identity” as the condition of being one’s self. As we experience the hardships and struggles of life; we are so desperate to know who we are that we start grasping on to things to save ourselves. There are so many adjectives that we describe ourselves as, but sometimes we forget to describe ourselves as “daughters and sons in Christ.” Why is that? How is it that we can easily rile off twenty adjectives that describes who we are, yet we forget that our only adjective should be that we are Christ’s sons and daughters?

How is that we label ourselves as:

• Accomplished
• Busy
• Hip
• Well-known
• Attractive
• Smart
• Girlfriend/Future wife/Wife-in-training/Wife (or Boyfriend/Future Husband/Husband-in-training/Husband) (<—I love the “wife-in-training” saying for some reason..)
• Daughter (or son)
• Camp counselor
• Girl (or Guy) with a plan
• Beautiful/ Handsome
• Dreamer
• Wealthy
• Super-Christian
• Loyal Friend
• Gifted

…but yet, when we were in high school, we absolutely despised being labeled as being preppy, geeky, nerdy, freaks, and jocks?

Whether you think that one, some, or all of these adjectives perfectly describes you, you have to realize that the day these adjectives work for us, is the day that you become prideful.

1 Corinthians 4:6-7 states: “Now, brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, ‘Do not go beyond what is written.’ Then you will not be puffed up in being a follower of one of us over against the other. For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?”

The theme behind 1 Corinthians 4:6-7 is that you shouldn’t be prideful. Pride is past it’s proper size and has been blown up into proportions.

When you’re prideful, you become empty, painful, busy and fragile. Pride lets us focus on something OTHER than God. Pride gives you a sense of “specialness.”

Are you prideful towards God? Prides makes for a busy life. If you compare pride to a pendulum, you’re either boasting about what you have or comparing what you don’t have to someone else. We tend to say “I’ value her (him) and I’m worse than her (or him).”

But see, the greatest thing of all is that we’re more wealthy when we don’t boast. These adjectives are temporary and they will strip through your fingers.

• Accomplished: there are always going to be people who are more accomplished than you. Other people’s accomplishments have a way of making you feel like you’re not measuring up (like if one of your friends gets accepted into Harvard Law School and you’re still finishing your Bachelor’s degree.)
• Busy: School and stress makes us busy worrying about things that don’t matter.
• Hip: Is it worth having expensive clothes and shoes to outshine others?
• Well-known: Being well-known isn’t the greatest thing in the world. Sometimes, having a few close friends instead of a lot of friends is a hundred times better. (:
• Attractive: There are always going to be people who are more attractive than you. Attractiveness is a the devil in a sense- it causes you to compare yourself with other people. Just be yourself.
• Smart:  Like accomplishments, some people may be smarter than you (Einstein, anyone?!) Sometimes not being as smart allows you to think through things more clearly.
• Girlfriend/Future wife/wife-in-training/Wife (or Boyfriend/Future Husband/Husband-in-training/Husband)): this adjective is a pet peeve of mine.  I feel like this is the adjective that people use to define themselves before they rattle off any other adjective. It may just be me, but using this adjective to define yourself means that you’re making yourself somebody else’s “property” in a sense. There’s nothing wrong with being somebody’s boyfriend/girlfriend/fiancee/husband/wife, but be yourself, and be who you are. You don’t need anyone else to define you.?
• Daughter/Son: Yes, we all are sons and daughters, but you know what’s so great? We are sons and daughters of Christ. I can’t think of a more humbling adjective than this.
• Camp Counselor: So, I know that being a camp counselor is a milestone for college kids. Personally, I’ve never been one. But then again, I’ve never really been a camp person. I feel like “camp counselor” is a popularity adjective- as in if you’ve never been a camp counselor, you’re just not “cool.” We should strive to be counselors to people everyday, not just during the summer season.
• Girl (or boy) with a plan: I’m completely guilty of this adjective. Growing up, I had this long list of things I wanted to do (and who I wanted to be). I was a very strong headed child- I wanted to go one college for all four years, go to medical school, get engaged at 24, get married a year after, and have lots (and lots!) of children. College has a way of telling you that your plan that you have for yourself never works. I’m going in a completely different way than I wanted to. I think at a certain point, you have to be content with the plan God has for you. Only God knows how you’re supposed to live your life. It’s terrifying trying to distinguish the plans that you have for yourself, and the plans that God has for you. Sometimes you just have to ask yourself, “Is this my will or is it God’s will?”
• Beautiful/Handsome: I’m a strong believer, that as a society, we’re extremely guilty of this. We use this as a place marker for who we think we are. We unconsciously compare ourselves to other people every day. The media is partly to blame for this phenomenon too. As women, we look at stick thin (and obviously unhealthy) models in Vogue and strive to be like them because we think that’s what attracts men. And men are obsessed with going to the gym to get bigger and stronger so they can look “manly.” We allow our comparisons to other people to affect our self-esteem- that maybe if we looked better, then we’ll be liked more. Maybe looking beautiful or handsome is a survival instinct that has been primed into us from the beginning of time. Or maybe it’s because society has made us so self-conscious that we can’t feel better about ourselves until we’ve “beaten” out other people by looking like Miss America or like a model on the cover of GQ magazine. It’s not a competition. You are beautiful and don’t let anyone tell you any differently.
• Dreamer: I feel like this ties into being a girl/guy with a plan. It’s not necessarily bad to be a dreamer, but are our dreams exactly what God wants? Are you dreaming to make yourself happy or are you dreaming for others as well? God knows you better than you know yourself.
• Wealthy: I’m sure that you’ve all heard the saying that “you can be rich and a be poor, and you can be poor and be rich.” You can be rich and desert everyone around you if money is a priority. And you can be poor and be rich in love because there are so many things that are important to you than money. Our character shines a lot more when we don’t let meaningless things control our life.
• Loyal Friend: Part of being a loyal friend is being open and sharing concerns, as well as celebrating the wins and being there to support the losses. But, in being a loyal friend to others, don’t lose yourself. Learn that sometimes, every friendship doesn’t go smoothly. Sometimes, you have to force yourself to stop caring when the other person doesn’t anymore. You deserve more than giving your life up for someone who doesn’t care.
• Gifted: I feel like “gifted” is such a bad word. We’re all good at different things. Some of us are better at school and getting good grades, and others are good at playing sports or an instrument. We’re all “gifted” at different things, but you shouldn’t let it define you.

Jesus gives us the right questions. God decided you were so valuable to him. YOU ARE WORTH IT.

“Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, ‘Who do the crowds say I am?’ They replied, ‘Some say, John the Baptist, others say Elijah; and still others, that one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life.’ ‘But what about you?’ he asked. ‘Who do you say I am?’ Peter answered, ‘God’s Messiah.’” ( Luke 9:18-20)

Source: Life is a Beautiful Struggle

Marriage Isn’t For You

“You don’t marry to make yourself happy, you marry to make someone else happy. More than that, your marriage isn’t for yourself, you’re marrying for a family. Not just for the in-laws and all of that nonsense, but for your future children. Who do you want to help you raise them? Who do you want to influence them? Marriage isn’t for you. It’s not about you. Marriage is about the person you married.”

Marriage Isn’t For You

Behind the Camera

Dayve Rampas' photostream on Flickr.

Left Without Turning Back

Life is pretty busy these days as I have to juggle between works, and studies. I'd like to thank all who have wished me on my birthday (and 'after' my birthday). Thank you for spending a few minutes (or seconds) to write a nice birthday message. I hope I've replied everyone, I really appreciate all the wishes, and even printed them out to put into my scrapbook.

It doesn't matter if the birthday wishes come from a total stranger, as long as it's sincerely wished. Friends are blessings from God, but those who are just mingling around to knock you down are lessons that not all people can be your friends, because some of them would come and teach you about life. Yet, being sincere and honest can sometimes misunderstood by some people. Being misused is another issue, yet, this taught us a very good lesson of who to trust, and who are worth to be ignored. This reminds me of the advices from my late grandpa (before he passed away), "Apa macam sekali orang lain kasi ketuk ko sampai jatuh, ko jalan terus saja." (Never looked back when people knocked you down.)

For people who have called me as one who have mental problem or crazy, I'd say 'Thank you' for addressing me like that. I'd like to quote an article (shall I post journals or research, too?) for people who love to address me (and the others, who knows?) as 'crazy'...

"...You could make a very long list of all the supposedly “crazy” business leaders who accomplished truly great things. That list would have to include people like Steve Jobs, Thomas Edison, Howard Hughes, Richard Branson, and Ted Turner. In the world of literature, that list would have people like Allen Ginsberg and Sylvia Plath and Vladimir Nabokov on it. In politics, your list of crazy people would have to include Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi..."

The 'wrecked' ship may shrink and pollute one part of the ocean, but that won't turn the whole ocean into a place that cannot be wondered and awed by others who still appreciate the mysteries of the ocean. And over time, the 'wrecked' ship may just stay down there, deep under the ocean, admired by a few, and a home for the others. The ocean, on the other hand, will still be awed, amazed, and feared for its beauty, and power to destroy.

Last but not least, never looked down on others... If you're the one who brought them up there. Why? Because you never know what you've taught them, and you never know what are their SWOT. LOL! Once again, thank you for all the birthday wishes, and I pray that God showers you with blessings and happiness. I got birthday wishes from Whatsapp, LINE, WeChat, Private Messages, Twitter, SMS, and calls. Last but not least, to the one that never fail to lend his shoulder, I love you so much, Mr W.

p.s: Wine and cheese get better with age. Yet, some people get better and others get wiser. Growing old is inevitable and one has to learn by themselves through their experiences.