Buffet, Life

Life is like going into an international buffet restaurant with only one plate and one round to take everything you want.

There are so much yummy food around but the plate has limited space, just as how we have unlimited wants in life but limited time. You have to take the food you really like, just like you have to do the things that really matter, things that add meaning to your life and makes you happy.

Once you are done with your selection, you look into someone's plate and wish that you could have grab that tasty delicacy that was not on your plate. That act of comparison will make you envious and unhappy, because the comparison will never end. Some others will look into your plate and wish that they have something you have and they don't. Let's just be happy and thankful with we have on our own plates and don't compare with others.

Finally, there will be some who are unable to go into the restaurant and they will go hungry. However, there will be people who are big hearted enough to share some of what they have on their plate, to spread some joy and hope around, to fill stomachs and to warm hearts. Someday, the underprivileged and hungry or their children will be able to go into the restaurant to enjoy a good meal, all thanks to those who care to help them along.

To sum things up about Life with this analogy, do the things that are worth your time, don't compare with others and always be kind. You will find happiness and meaning when you do that.

Wishing all a great weekend ahead :)

Saying Thank You

Should we thank the person (e.g. cashier, waitor, salesgirl) serving us or should they thank us as customers who patronize their business? Me thinks it should be both ways.

As a person offering a service, we should put ourselves in the shoes of the customers and offer the best service we can, who wouldn't be comforted to receive good customer service? As a customer, let's have respect for all who serve us, we are no kings or queens, neither are they servants or of lower status. Everyone is working hard for a living but earning more or less does not determine if a person should be more respected or not.

It doesn't cost more to be kind but it can brighten someone's day with small gestures of appreciation. "Thank you" is not difficult to say and it will break the barriers among strangers, thank the cleaner who cleared your trays or vacumed your cubicle, thank the cashier who processed your payment, thank the waitor/ waitress who helped to top up your drink or served you food, thank the salesperson who offered you good advice on what to buy.

Make gratitude and appreciation part of your everyday habits. It will make your life so much happier :)smile emoticon

Look Forward and Dream

The past cannot be undone but the future is for waiting for us to create. There will be adventures ahead if we are willing to believe. If we were to fast forward 30 years, where our future becomes our past, what kind of memories do we want to create for ourselves? If we can imagine anything that would lead us to a meaningful and fulfilling life, we start creating now. Today will be the day (not tomorrow or some other day) we take the first baby step to create the future we want to see :)

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Let It Rain Initiative, 2 Years On

2 years ago, Singapore experienced a very dry spell with more than 2 months without rain. Trees, plants and grasses are browning everywhere. My friend, Shun Ling, came up with this brilliant idea of using reused water (from washing vege, fruits, rice) to water the trees and plants around us, to induce rain and prevent them from dying. We set up the "Let It Rain Singapore" FB group to encourage and rally more friends to join in this movement.

It is heartwarming to see so many friends, posting pictures of them (some with their children), watering trees, plants with reused water. The rain eventually came and all of us were so happy to see the efforts paid off. Till date, I still have many fond memories of what we do together.

We may face many more challenges in future, be it environmental, social or economical; but if we stay united, help one another and spread the love around, there is nothing Singaporeans cannot overcome. I have utmost faith in the Singapore Spirit and together we will make Singapore a better place to live in, cheers :)

Mirror, Life, Mist

When we look into the mirror and frown, what do we see? A frowning person. When we look into the mirror and smile, we see a person smiling back at us. The mirror is like Life, what you put inside is what you get out of it. If we can be positive and always learn to count our blessings, then Life will be an amazing journey filled with joy and pleasant surprises along the way. On the other hand, if we are always unhappy, bear grudges and filled ourselves with anger and resentment, then Life is definitely going to a journey filled with sufferings and pain.

Sometimes when you smile into the mirror and you don't see the person in the mirror smiling back, it is because the mirror is misty. Relax, be patient and keep the faith, the mist will clear and you will see the smiling person again. The mist is like the setbacks and challenges we face in Life. Don't let the mist take away your smile and make you the frowning person when the mist clears. Keeping smiling, for the mist will not last forever.

Wishing all a happy weekend ahead !

Happy International Women's Day

Today is International Women's Day and I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to all the wonderful ladies out there. It is not easy being a woman; Nature bestow you with the child bearing ability, society expects you be take care of the household, to sacrifice career ambition and to be physically attractive. I believe it does not matter if you have met the expectations because you are all gorgeous in your own unique ways.

To the ladies who have been insecure and wish you were prettier, thinner or having any of celebrities' features, be confident in yourself and be proud of what you have. Focus on your strength and let your inner beauty radiate from within, for a confident lady is the most attractive.

Another group of ladies who deserve our respect are those who have been through much more, the single mums and those who have battled life-threatening illness. On this special day, may I invite you to give a little encouragement to my dear friend, Teri, who is a cancer survivor, by helping her vote and win a glamour photoshoot. She is gorgeous because of her courage and strength, after the ordeal she went through. So are all the ladies who have been hurt and broken but still be brave to pick themselves up and move on stronger.

You can "like" her photo via this link (competition ends 11 March):

http://tinyurl.com/jpeestc

Thank you :)

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Monday Is Just Like Any Other Day

Monday is technically just like any other day of the week, the sun does not shine less brighter, the number of hours is the same as Sunday, it is still another day to rejoice of being alive.

Why is Monday less bearable is because we are giving ourselves many reasons to be unhappy and to dread Monday. If we can change our mindset that every day is a blessing and an opportunity to change for the better, to enrich someone's life, to make a difference in our community, to choose happiness, then it doesn't matter whether it's Monday or not.

Make every day count and don't forget to be awesome. Wishing all friends a fantastic week ahead, smile :)

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The Power of Change Is in Our Hands

I read an article yesterday about a writer explaining why he is leaving Singapore for good. He cited many reasons why Singapore, while being world-class in many areas, is not an ideal place to live in, e.g. the stressful education system, long working hours, etc. There were many comments and most of them were supportive of his decision.

I urge caution when we read articles like these because if we are swayed by what we read, that is when our unhappiness grows. If we keep the focus on what makes us unhappy, naturally we will get more negative and be unhappy. This unhappiness slowly evolve into anger and then hate. Eventually, we can't stand this place so much that we think we must leave, it's as though staying is threatening our survival.

I am not in any ways implying that Singapore is a perfect place to live in (which country is anyway?). There are many areas that I think we can improve. I think we should all come together and try to make things better. Leaving is like choosing the easy route, an avoidance behavior fuelled by a loss of faith.

When I saw that kindness is seemingly lacking in our society, people scolding one another on cyberspace and not being gracious enough on public transport, I could have just joined the crowd in condemning fellow Singaporeans, putting labels on all of us. However, I decided that I could do more as an ordinary citizen and that's why I started the kindness project. I have faith in fellow Singaporean and the Singapore Spirit and I was proven right by the overflow of kindness given by friends in Singapore.

If someone were to point out your flaws, see it as an opportunity to improve and be a better person. No one is perfect and there is always room for improvement. Similarly, don't let these articles and criticism be the launchpad of your unhappiness. If there is a problem, face it, solve it and enjoy the satisfaction. If every able-bodied citizen has this mindset of leaving, what is going to happen to those who can't leave, like our young, old and the vulnerable? The power of change lies in each and every one of us, let's help to make things better, for everyone in our community.

TGIF and happy weekend ahead !

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Plastic

Plastic is one of Man's best inventions; it does not rust, it is light, it is cheap, it can be mass produced, it is also very convenient to carry our items in them. However, plastic also cause one of the biggest damage to our environment. It is non-biodegradable and takes hundreds or thousands of years to break down. It poses threat to the wildlife and marine lives who mistake plastic as food.

We can all do our part to manage the use of plastic, using the 3R concept, "Reduce" the use of plastic as much as we can, "Reuse" the plastic bags to contain food waste or others and "Recycle" if we have accumulated too many plastic bags. There are recycling bins everywhere, in shopping centres and underneath every HDB blocks.

What we do today have an impact on the environment, if we dont preserve it, our children and future generations will bear the consequences. Every one of us can influence one another to make a difference through our actions. You don't have to be Leonardo Dicaprio to talk about climate change, every effort counts and creates a big impact when combined :)smile emoticon

Every Decision Is a Learning Experience

I have this habit of pouring used floor detergent solution on my doorstep, to reuse the water as well as to clean my carpet on the steps. The sun was glaring this morning so I thought it was a good opportunity to do so as the carpet would dry quickly. It turned out that decision was not really a good one as I felt "trapped" when it was wet everywhere and I couldn't reach my shoes without getting my socks wet.

Everyday we are making decisions, some decisions are bound to go against us because we don't have the ability to predict the future. However, every seemingly wrong decision leads to a learning experience and Life is a continuous learning journey. We learn as we make mistakes and we improve as we learn. The most unconstructive thing is to do is to regret and wish we could have done something different "if we had known earlier". We all know that is not possible, we cannot foresee or control future events, else the lottery companies will go bust :p Life is also interesting because this option is not available to us, there are mysteries and wonders ahead waiting for us to explore and how boring it would be if all of Life's events are already laid out on the table for you.

I always believe that everything happens for a reason, be it good or bad experience. With every decision comes a justification and it may just turn out fine in the end. For my case, the slightly wet socks may take an hour or so to dry but I am heading home later to a crispy dry carpet. Have the courage to continually make decisions and dont ever look back because you cant change the past, what you can do is to learn and make things better with your experience.