Its a mystery alright...

I am happy.

I have not much idea on how or why though. But I am tying my best to understand it.

All my life, I've been the type to know what is the right thing to do (guided by God of course) and I always chose that path of doing what is right though it be more difficult.

It would seem that by doing so, one would go through many challenges but at the end of the day would be able to sleep at night in peace and serenity.

But I did not get that for the many early years of my life.

Day in day out it was tests and challenges, sort of like testing my Faith. I often ask myself, if these acts of service I do (spreading the Word of love and joy, assisting youths to be spiritually empowered etc..) will bring joy to my heart, why is it that the tests always seem so much bigger than the joy of doing it?

I could not answer this question for years. But I did not do what was right for the reward but I did it because...there's nothing worse than not listening to your heart..and the heart always speaks what is right.

But as of late..I am starting to feel that joy...that simple heartfelt warmness when I am serving. To see the smile on young ones as they look to you with so much hope and almost no defilement of this modern world. Something within just melts.

I am also currently serving closely together with a number of young individuals who are on the same page as I am. It's great!

Nothing beats doing what you think is right...than doing it with others who also think so.

It's a mystery I tell you. This act of doing what is right.

I prescribe it to everyone. It is the greatest experience of soulful joy one can ever have.

I dare you to experience it.

ps. leave me a comment if you want to know my ongoing commitments to service

To inspire when your down

I was originally going to write a post full of conflict and very stress inducing to the reader.

Thankfully, I've gone above my lower natures and have chosen to to tell my dear readers, that the sweetness of life, is up to us and does not depend on the things which happen to us.

Here is a story I have come across in the course of my travels in life, enjoy.

There once lived a lady who lead a simple and complete life. She was blissfully married and had a job which was not too demanding. It was complete.

Till one day, her husband passed away due to an accident. Then, her life just started to crumble before her eyes. She was no longer complete.

She had been mourning for months and it had dawned on her that she needed to do something to cure her depression. So she chose to seek out an elderly lady whom was known for her good advice and answers about life.

As she seeked her out, the widow asked the elder how she could overcome her depression. The elder replied that she needed to go and find a certain bean and plant it in her house. The only condition is that that very bean had to come from a house which was purely happy and free from conflicts and problems. The widow agreed and started her quest.

The first house she visited was a huge and lavish mansion. As she stood at the gates, she thought to herself, "This place had to be a home to a very happy family." She entered and had a chat with the family. She soon found out that in spite of their family riches, their children were beginning to become nasty corporate people and the parents were very worried and clueless on what to do. The widow then shared her insight and her own experience to try and help the family. The family thanked her and ask her to come again.

Time for another house.

The second house, looked pretty simple and well to do and so the widow tried her luck yet again. This time the family in the house was actually facing a monetary problem due to bad luck in the family business and the future seemed very uncertain. The widow knew she did not have the anwers but comforted them in any way she could as that was the least she could do. The family thanked her for being so supportive and that said that she was God-sent. An angel.

Maybe third time's a charm?

The widow attempted a suburbian home. Simple life usually have little problems. As she made her acquaintances with the woman of the house, she could notice her sadness almost immediately. The widow had found out that this woman had also lost her husband not too long ago. Being able to relate entirely, she helped this woman to calm her worries and sorrows and just blessing her with a presence of hope.

The widow ended her quest and went back to the elder to seek more advice. She told the elder of the impossibility of finding such a bean for there is no such thing as a home free from troubles. The elder however avoided the question and asked about her journeys. The widow told it with such passion and fulfillment for being able to be of service. The elder then said that therein lies the cure to your depression. That by helping others with their troubles, the widow had soon forgotten her own.

It's a real mysterious thing this...act of helping others. It somehow just brings us joy.

Maybe our problems are not really about us going through a hard time but a hint to us that we have stopped being God-sent to others?

The jurisdiction above...

"The bounties of God are not bound by our limitations"

I got this quotation when I was attending a talk. I think it is brilliant.

To me, it attests to the awesome power of the Almighty and emphasizes that we mere mortals are on a whole different plane altogether. And I think sometimes if not most, we forget that.

It explains how humans can have inspirational stories and superhuman endeavours. It is sort of like our little peek to this jurisdiction above us.

I'd like to share with you a personal account on one of my tests and there is not much climax to it but bear with me here alright?

My STPM examination was the exam which would determine a big chunk of my life, my further studies. But not the main course of my life, let that be said. So you would figure that I would study extremely hard day and night and drop off all other commitments in order that I may ace this exam.

But I did the opposite.

Instead I became more and more involved in the service opportunities which were coming at me. Such opportunities would be to coordinate human resources in a social development programe in a largely formidable area..all big words..my point is, it was not community service such as 'gotong-royong' but these were serious responsibilities which required serious attention. And to top that off, I joined a group study with a bunch of friends and though some of my smarter friends told me not to because they viewed this bunch as a little less intelligent. I'm sorry but friendship bonds are not formed on academic studies as a base.

Sounds like a recipe for my disastrous future eh?

So let's just skip all the drama and jump to the end. I did considerably average for my exams but at this very moment I am in one of the creme faculties in the longest standing university in my country. And I now have even more chances to serve as a catalyst to development in a community. And last but most certainly not least, I have found the girl of my life whom I know has done so much good in my life that I now know I am a better person because God had granted me her.

It's a true story alright. Not such a bad ending eh?

My dear friends, I credit all of this to the Jurisdiction Above, lest ye underestimate it.

Good day!

May I know your weight please?

Well, this has been on my mind for some time now. Not the literal weight of course.

How does one weigh maturity? Is it on the job he has? The things he does in life? His age? His sex? His physique? Or merely his thinking?

I think we live in a world where we get distracted...vainly distracted. Especially in an Asian community where one is only an adult when he starts working, where before that, he is just an obedient child who does not know enough to go about this 'world'.

I have a question, does a teacher carry as much weight as a corporate financier in this world if not more? Who has more maturity or are both of them as mature because they both have careers? Now just bear with me a little here.

I serve as a facilitator to a youth program and I tell you its something that is on the rise. More and more young people who have not finish their educations are beginning to arise to help the even younger generation develope their capacities to serve the community.

Now tell me this, can an individual who is involved so very much in the education and development of the young be as mature, if not more, than the corporate officer who handles millions in a day?

Yeah sure, the corporate mogul gives many jobs and he is so well versed with the way the world works in cash flow and businesses which in most time literally keeps families alive. But let me advocate a little about what the teacher does, or what the youth who helps the younger ones do.

An individual who helps another in his or her education since young gives hope to the future, he slowly but determinedly forges the sword which will battle its way through a toughened world but if that sword is tough enough and great enough in numbers, then there will not be a need to use that sword. And that is when we know that the next generation is paving a new and more importantly, a bright future in times ahead.

So mayb this serving youth does not know how best to pay bills or cash flows around the market..but he gives a commitment to the world to make it a better place. Can an immature individual think that and certainly decide on it?

Please comment, I'd like to know how you percieve your weight in the world. =)

Just checking

This is not really a post.

I just added this hits counter on my right. I don't believe that my blog has got so many hits. And can I control the size of gadgets on blogspot blogs? Please someone comment to help me...

Here's to you

Okay okay, so I was quite bored at work today because dad took all his engineers with him for an offshore job and left me to take care of the errands and site visits..so when I'm not doing that, it's pretty mundane at work.

So I thought why not blog a little and this time I felt a gesture should go out to all my readers, few or many I really do not know.

You are a lamp which has illumined
many a soul to hopeful smiles,
and I say you must be examined,
for few can go those miles.

You are as the gentle breeze,
on a hot and humid monday,
simple and easy to miss
but takes away the blue'sy grey.

As far as I'm concerned,
you're great from our view,
so would you just stop and listen!
when I tell you to be that great you.

That was just a little something from me to you. Many of us have fallen into this bad habit of NOT lookin at the goodness in people. So why not do a good deed today and tell a friend how much you appreciate him or her? Don't just forward him one of those peachy and rosy mails sugar coated wit teddy bears. Give him a call, just out of the blue and tell him why he is so special to you and how great life is because he is in this world.

Would you not like it if someone gave you that call?

Lest ye forget...

I have a friend who blogs about people who inspire him, I read a few posts from there and I was like wow, I hope my blog sounds nearly as good as this.

But what hit me more is how out of all the people whom he writes about, he writes about how great they are and how great they can be. What? No juicy gossips at all about them?

I have had some experiences lately which has brought me to a rather sad theory and I am wishing so hard that it will not become a norm.

They say the future always lies with the young. And mostly the common train of thought behind it is because the young have more energy, more spirit and perhaps less commitments....

But I think it's because the young still have sight of a brighter future.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that all elderly people are to be blamed for. Try putting ourselves in their shoes, how can they trust a community which harbours killers and rapists or even corporate covetuous stakeholders? It really looks that the world we live in is not exactly the utopia that we have in our minds.

Okay, I am sorry to all my dear readers for bringing you into that glimpse of unhappiness. But sometimes we have to see the other end to appreciate this one. But my next question is,

How can we strive for a better world when in our minds we are perpetuating the old one?

And that is why I think the youths have it better, because the youths have not 'lived' long enough to fall into that 'acceptance' of this world being such a horrid place. The acceptance and even God forbid, the expectance of the grave imperfections of peoples around. Some may call it naive to believe in the nobility of others but I say if we do not start hoping and trusting and bringing out this noble side of men in men, are we ever going to make this world a better place?

Lest ye forget, my dear friends, each one on this good earth was given a chance to serve his fellow men and when you think your friend, your neighbour, your teacher or your children are incapable of rendering that service, you deprive them of that chance. Would you not think that is injustice? to let your fellow brother and sister NOT be able to do the right thing?

I am not saying each of us should let a shady character walk our daughters to school but I'm saying if we see virtues in an individual, let us focus on that and not his lack of it.

Let us not punish the good for their mishaps but let us magnify their innate perfections.