When everything comes to a close...

I don't know how or what it takes to make this photo, and I don't want to know.

I just want to keep staring at it. 

This photo pretty sums up my 2010. 

A year of transitions and topsy-turvy rides where I'm being taken to new heights and new lows coupled with grace and mercy.

It wasn't a bed of roses, neither was it a field of thorns for me, but it was a great learning experience.

"It's late, he thought, and I must be thankful for everything I have, and reconciled with everything that I have lost and not lost."

Jonathan Safran Foer; Everything is Illuminated.

21

The page is flipped, another chapter is awaiting to unfold itself.

It may sound cliche and all, but thats the truth.

Everyone of us has a story, be it good or bad. We have all read it.

Yet, there's bound to be a tinge of optimism in everyone of us to where the future will take us in our story.

Still, we never know. 

Because its the Author that is writing our story. In fact, He has already completed.

There were times where I felt like I am going through the motions.

There were times where I wondered if its worthwhile to give my best shot.

Yet, there were times I felt like I am learning new things, doing crazy stuff, and gaining new experiences.

Oxymoronic, doesn't it?

"It is the difficult and the unexpected, and maybe even the tragic that opens us up and frees us to see things in a new way." 

- Rob Bell

A Promise

All I heard was a loud bang.

And there was bright white light. I tried to open my eyes, but I realized they were already open. I looked around but it was just the whiteness everywhere. I put up my hands to look at them, but there weren't any. I could feel my hands moving, I tried to feel my feet, but I couldn't feel the ground, like I was floating. Before I could question myself, the whiteness started to fade, and a humanoid silhouette began to form in front of me. A man was right across me, and when I started to look around again, I noticed I was seated on a chair, felt like a soft chair, but the ones that made you sit up. That man was seated as well, and we were separated by a table, with tea cups on them. That man put out his hand and said, "I've been looking forward to our meeting, son. A pity I had to wait till you're dead."

I'm dead?

"That's right son, but only in the body. You're very much alive talking to me now."

How did I die? Who're you? I can't see your face. Where am I? Is this Heaven?

"Be still. And know."

Where am I?

He put out his hand to his right, and made a slow waving motion. The whiteness began to clear and there was the landscape of Singapore.

"Beautiful isn't it?"

I focused first onto my neighborhood, peaceful and quiet on a Sunday afternoon. Then I looked onto the city, bustling with life and activity, and then I realized...

Nothing's changed.

I'm dead, and the city... looks the same.

"As far as the world knows, you're no longer in it. But it keeps turning."

Yeah I guess... Certain things.

"Humble you?"

Well, I was gonna say really disappointing and also pissing me off, but yeah...

"Was hoping to have made an impact stronger than this?"

I can hope...

"Let me show you something."

He put out his hand again, and waved the same motion, and the landscape began to fade into one I cannot recognize. Everything looked ancient, there were carts and people were dressed in robes, it was mainly a brown landscape.

"This is where I used to live. Everything looked normal as well, people were going about their daily routine, the city is bustling with life as well."

"But this was the 2nd day after the Crucifixion."

I didn't how to react. This was a Savior, a miracle-working man, a teacher, who died for all of Mankind. And Mankind himself did not seem to have any form of mourning for him.

"Am I supposed to be provoked into thinking that they were ungrateful? That I expected some form of return and acknowledgment for the things that I've done?"

"There is no need to be recognized in everything that you've done or contributed to society. I didn't need that. I had a job to do, and amidst the trials and tribulations, the disappointments and frustrations, I did it."

But what kept you going? Why did you still come back on the third day when you know nothing's changed?

"Because I made a promise."

"A promise to love."

Without a fight

You have to fight your way through the day 


to get to the night.


Then after the night,


You have to fight your way through the day.

Beauty in the Breakdown

"This was never thankful and glorious to even begin with in the first place..."
These words were etched deeply into my heart. 


A man's got to do what a man's got to do. You will never hear a word of thanks or a pat on a shoulder. Yes, I may be yearning for it, but this is all part of the deal. 


I have to admit that I am physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually stretched. There are some days, I may wake up on the wrong side of the bed, but You will always make sure that I will sleep on the right side of the bed every night.


Well for now, I'll just look forward to my Rite of Passage.  

Iridescent

The surface may seem so calm, yet it is not until when you dive deep that you experience the wrath of the current.
This breaking point is like a ticking time bomb, it may be triggered at some point, and all hell will break loose.


Yes life for you has been less than kind.
You build up hope, but failures all you've known.
Remember all the sadness and frustration, and let it go.


We've all been sorry.
We've all been hurt.
But how we survive, is what makes us who we are.

Someone, somewhere

"And by midafternoon he was again overcome with desire to be somewhere else, someone else, someone else somewhere else."

- Jonathan Safran Foer, Everything Is Illuminated

Catch myself catching myself

"We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The tip is knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out."
Ray Bradbury


Its been 9 weeks, and I see how my life took another change. Throughout this time, I've seen how things went according to my way, and how Murphy's law moved in my life bringing along with hell and high water, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. There's so much more awaiting, and its just the beginning. 


Yes, it may sounds a little cliche that a new chapter awaits for me. But I'm sure nobody will want to be left out on the other side of the page, when the page is being flipped to a new chapter. 


My turn will come soon... 

"Courage is not the towering oak that sees storms come and go; it is the fragile blossom that opens in the snow.” 

- Alice M. Swaim

You do not give in or give out. 

H.O.P.E

"Dum spiro spero..."


"While I breath, I hope."

Surface to Air

Let me dive into the deep blue sea.
Let the waves rush through my body.
Let the current guide me.
Let me swim with the dolphins.
Let me blow bubbles to the surface.
Let me enjoy the deep and the stillness.


Till...


My lungs are full.
And when I push and kick,
Let me surface to air.


I want to wake up kicking and screaming.

A Beautiful Exchange

When only love could make a way,
You gave Your life in a beautiful exchange.
When only love could break these chains,
Your gave Your life in a beautiful exchange.


The call from the government is imminent.
As much as I dread it, I can't escape.
2 years maybe long. 
But I believe for a greater change.


I am glad that I took a step of faith and enrolled into SOT this year.
I have to say that it was one of the best moments of my life,
and one of the best decision I've ever made.
The experiences were unforgettable.
The lessons learnt were deeply cherished.
The friends made were really genuine, true and real.
Throughout this whole journey, 
it was adventurous,
it was emotional.
There were ups and downs.
But God never waste any experiences.
Now to another phase...


Have you ever wonder why must we serve?

YHWH

Within

Beneath the noise
Below the din
I hear Your voice
Its whispering
"I was a stranger
You took me in"

A Place

That's the only quiet, secure place 

in a noisy world,

the perfect getaway,

far from the buzz of the traffic. 

The Right Moment

I like to disappear in the parts I play. 

Life was always a matter of waiting for the right time to act.

Illuminati

I may stumble, I may fall, but I'll try.
To be myself, and nobody else.


Shine on, just shine on.
Close your eyes and they'll all be gone.

Not a Waste

I firmly believe this is not a wasted generation.
Neither will be the next, and the generations to come.

A media circus

He brought us laughter.
The media brought him tears.
He brought us entertainment.
The media used him as entertainment.


By now you should know who am I talking about, it's Jack Neo.


He's just a human like you and I.
Except that he's a celebrity, and that's why the big circus.
Maybe there's a guy you saw on the street that's making the same mistake as he did.
Just that the guy is well, another guy.
And his mistakes doesn't get magnified.


People do have expectations on celebrities, but cut him some slack.
He has owned up to it.
Let's hope he gets to see the silver lining.


Let him who is without sin cast the first stone. 

I do not have a title for this post

Sometimes messy is kind of beautiful, don't they?

To clear the air, I'm actually a tidy person.

And no, I'm not shameless to admit it.

Credits: www.theselby.com

The Only Exception

\m/       \m/

Dang!

Talk about marketing.

Kind of like 'in your face', doesn't it? Oh well.

Here's one last one...

Theatre Of Dreams

If John Henry Davies and Archibald Leitch were to see Old Trafford today on it's 100th anniversary, they would surely nod in aprroval. It was the foresight of club chairman Davies and the know how of 'Engineering Archie' that realised the construction of Old Trafford. The ground was given the nickname, the Theatre of Dreams by Sir Bobby Charlton. Over the years, many unforgettable matches and derbies have been played, and many great players from the era of Sir Matt Busby to the era of Sir Alex Ferguson have graced the Theatre of Dreams.


I will definitely visit Old Trafford when I have the earning power.

Old Trafford opened it's gates on 19th February 1910.

Manchester United's "Holy Trinity" of Sir Bobby Charlton, Denis Law and George Best.

Old Trafford on matchday at it's full capacity of 76,000 fans.

Pictures are taken from manutd.com

They're gon' take you places

These are the good ol' Chuck Taylors, because classic never dies. However, I doubt all these designs are being sold in Singapore.

On a side note...

I was surfing the web to check out the latest fashion happenings, and I came across this local label. Thought that the statement about fashion was very true: 

"What you wear speaks volume about who you are and what inspires you. Fashion is many things, it's not about models strutting their stuff, or the affluent carrying the 'it' bag. It's an expression of ideas, emotions and social lifestyle. For us, it's all about, real people."