Happy Thanksgiving!

Before I go on, I'm not American and not have really thought about Thanksgiving until my cousins moved to America and I moved to Hong Kong and started hanging out with Americans. Over time, I decided that Thanksgiving is one event that I'm going to start celebrating as a family. And no, I'm not an American wannabe or anything like that. I still don't celebrate Halloween or Independence Day. I chose to celebrate Thanksgiving because it's a good reminder to me that God has really provided lots for me. This includes materially and emotionally. And therefore it's serves as a good time to be thankful for the wonderful blessings that He has showered upon my family and me!

This Thanksgiving is extra special because I've got part of my family with me. Dad and mum along with Joanne and Jo Claire are visiting. It's nice to be with them. Dad went to Zhuhai this morning for work. It's a shame that we can't have dinner together. Been thinking of going to a nice restaurant for Thanksgiving but we're sure that the American restaurants will be full. Plus, mum's knee is still giving her problems and so we might just end up having dinner in one of the restaurants on the island. But who cares if we're eating turkey or not. Just along as we're together as a family, that's all that matters! And yes, love that JC is here too!!! Very thankful for that!

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all. Remember God's blessings and count them and be thankful!

7th Year

The 7th year of marriages is always associated with the 7th year itch. But to me, any year can be the the year of itch. This is especially in this day and age, a marriage is just a piece of paper. It's no longer regarded with the same sanctity as before. A divorce can happen just months after a marriage. At the back of the heads of some, if this marriage is not going to work out, fine, it's not a big deal, there's always another person out there for me.

I'm not putting anyone down but truth of the matter is that divorce rates are going higher and higher. But having said all that, a marriage is never easy. I know that for a fact. It is an ongoing process. And sure, there are days that I really feel like throwing in the towel and walking away from it. But it is the love that Babe has for me that makes me realise that a marriage is always hard work but it has it's rewards. There's always give and take and yes, I admit that there are times that I take more than I give and I'm learning everyday to be a better wife and person.

I'm not perfect and I admit it without hesitation and therefore I do not expect a perfect husband too. However, I'm glad that my husband accepts all my flaws and mostly without grumbling. I'm not a housekeeper. My housekeeping skills pretty much do not exist. I'm very good at making a mess at home and leaving a trail behind me. But he still loves me all the same. I'm not able to describe or even be able to write or articulate how much Babe loves me but all I can say is heaps and heaps more than I can ever imagine. And I'm always truly thankful for him.

We're entering into our next stage of life. It's an adventure that we're on. Babe's starting a new job soon and this job will take away from home heaps. It's not something that I'm totally looking forward to but it's something that I know will be better for our future and I'm supportive of whatever he does. It was a hard decision for him as I know that he hates being away from home but he wants to provide more for the family, not that we don't have enough but Babe, being Babe, loves me that he wants more for me. And that's one thing that I respect him for. He loves me as much or maybe even more than himself.

Babe, thanks for the past 7 awesome years! And yes, I'm looking forward to more awesome years ahead and growing old and walking into my sunset years hand in hand with you.

Part 1 of 7th Wedding Anniversary

Woke up this morning and Babe decided that we should go to Disney. And I thought, yea, why not. I like Disney. And then I realised that it's close to our wedding anniversary and what a great way to spend it at our favourite place on earth!

Had lots of fun. Ummm.....well, kinda. Made me kinda miss the Disneyland in California. But we're in Hong Kong and beggars can't be choosers right? Nevertheless, we had a great time. Love the light up and with the 3-D glasses that they gave us, we could see nice heart shapes of lights and heart shapes in the fireworks. How awesome! And thanks Babe for a great time!

Daring to Dream a Dream

Duane Ho is one of my favourite ex students. Well, I'm very selective about my favorite ex-students and he's one of them! I first taught him when he was probably in P5 or maybe earlier. I can't really remember, getting old, I guess. He came across as this really nice and talented boy at that time. I remember his mother inviting me to his church performance and boy was I blown away by his singing and acting.

We kept in touch even when he left the school, and when I moved to Sydney to do my masters and even now. We have built a relationship, him and his mum too. And might I add that she's one good cook and a great and nurturing mum too. I remember one summer when I was back, Duane and his mum invited me to their place for tea. Duane played the piano and sang for me. And I found out that he only picked up playing the piano recently.

Anyway, this summer when I was back, and I found out that he was in Spore Idol, I was totally rooting for him. He did tell me that he wanted to join Spore Idol and he went ahead and did it! He's young and he had the guts. And what made him special was that, he's not your typical idol. The skinny, handsome and stylish kind. Sorry, Duane, not putting you down or anything like that, but Duane is your average Sporean. The boy next door. The cute chubby boy whose not afraid to be himself. And he's not going to conform to the world's standard or rather Spore's standard of an idol. He's just him. Very him. Not caring what the world or Spore thinks. And I love him for that.

To me, Duane, you had the courage to dream a dream and not just sitting there and dream. You went ahead to make that dream come true. And so what if Spore didn't make you an idol. Who cares? Because in my point of view, you already became an inspiration to many people. And importantly, you became an inspiration to me. Dream a dream and really going out there to make that dream a reality!

People, enjoy Duane!

What Have You Done For Me?

Last week when I was at fellowship group at Park Island, there was this guy that shared his testimony and I was really touched by it.

He was sharing that he was on the plane flying from Taipei back to Hong Kong when halfway through the flight, the left engine blew up. And it was then, that his life flashed in front of him and then he heard God ask him, 'What have you done for me?'. Well, he wasn't a Christian yet and he continued with his story. Not going to talk about it as it is his story. But something struck me hard and deep.

I sat there thinking and came home pondering, yes, what have I done for Him? The reality of it, is that, I don't have the answers. I spend my life grumbling and complaining and when trials and tribulations come along, I get mad and ask and grumble at God and even shake my fists at Him. And I forget all the times that He has brought me through life and all the difficulties. But God has always a purpose for everything. And it was truly a great reminder, what have I done for Him?

If You're Not Happy Now, What Makes You So Sure That You'll Be Happy Later

On Wednesday, we went to listen to Nick speak. One thing he said that really struck me was this. He said that if you're not happy now, you're not going to be happy later. He gave the analogy of a child at 8 thinking that when he's 16, he'll be happy and then when he's 16, he thinks that when he gets to uni he'll be happy. When he gets to uni, he thinks when he starts working, he'll be happy. And so on. Well, it does seem that happiness does seem illusive then.

What he said is so true. If you're not happy, what makes you so sure that when you get more money, more food or more of whatever you want, it'll make you happy. Happiness comes from now, within and from Christ. That's my belief. I know this for a fact. I used to love to shop. And it's no secret with my family and friends. Whenever I'm a little upset or feeling down, I'll hit the stores. And after buying I'll be a little happier. But the stuff that I buy, can be sitting in the paper bags for like days, weeks or even months. And then, when my credit card bill comes, I feel even worse and the cycle continues.

Expensive lesson and it's over time that I realized that I don't need to buy anymore to make me happy. I need to be happy with myself and thus there wouldn't be a need to buy. Well, it's not that I don't buy anymore, I still. But they are no longer emotional purchases.

Hitting Mid Life

A couple days ago, I officially hit my mid life. Three scores and ten, that's an average person's life span and guess, I'm about halfway there. I know that I've must have mentioned that I'm not very good with aging and am still learning to age gracefully. And I am really appreciative of what life has given me so far.

I had friends over for dinner on Saturday and as I sat and looked around, I'm glad to have met these friends over the three years that I've been in Hong Kong. When I moved to Hong Kong, I hardly have any friends at all. But over time, God has led them one by one to me and over time, they have become family to me. Am truly thankful and appreciative of every single one of them.

When we first moved to HK, we didn't have Christian friends or a community of Christian friends to hang out together. But God is His wisdom brought a community to us. We had some of friends from the fellowship group at dinner too. I am truly blessed. There's nothing more that I can really ask of. God truly has seen me through the first half of my life and He has given me more than I can ever ask for. And I'm sure that He'll continue to see me through the rest of my life.