Life Is A Struggle

I think it was last Thursday. After our lesson ended at 6 p.m., the usual bunch of us ( Mok, Kai Ming, Bernard and I ) went to take our dinner near the Bazaar of Section 6. It was going to be a holiday on Friday so we were not in a rush to go anywhere. After dinner, we stayed back and chatted for a while ( as if we had a choice since it was raining like nobody's business at that particular time -.- ). Then, Bernard said he wanted to go Seven-Eleven to stock up some necessities, so, off we went. On the way, we saw a cute abandoned kitten.

The kitten was in a sorry state. Shivering in the cold, it curled up in fright whenever we tried to approach it. It's probably a mere few months old. The parents were nowhere in sight. Feeling sorry for the deplorable state the kitten was in, we bought a pack of cat food and went on a feeding spree !

Bernard feeding the little kitten ( He's obviously the expert here )

The hungry kitten nibbling on the cat food

Mok and Ming looking on as though it's some mildly interesting television show =)

Since there were still some leftovers, we decided to walk around the block and feed whatever cats we saw. We gave pregnant cats and baby kittens more helpings. It's not that we are not fair, we DO believe in equality to all, just that some are more equal than others. Hehehe..

Bernard ( again ) feeding a pregnant cat

We left the packet with a terrified kitten which was too scared to come out from its hideout

On the way back, we were all feeling a bit sad for all these abandoned kittens. Based on experience, i don't think these kittens will survive for long. The only consolation we got from this experience was knowing that perhaps we'd helped these poor kittens stay alive to fight in another day.

Bernard remarked on the way back, "Life is a Suffering."

I gotta say, i couldn't have agree more.

After i went back to my room, while i was thinking about that phrase "Life is a suffering", as if to counter that thought, an excerpt from Desiderata ( a plaque with inspirational quotes given to me by Mr Arthur ) floated up from my mind,

"Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle to yourself. You are a child of universe, no lesser that the trees and the star; you have a right to be here. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace with your soul. with all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. And above all, strive to be happy."

You're a child of universe, a child of God; you have a right to be here

Went to play badminton with my close friends yesterday at the bowling centre.

Sing Siong, Lawrence and I

I would liken life to a badminton match. I am no expert in badminton, but one fundamentals i think all players would agree with me is, if you started off big and played like there's no tomorrow in the starting game, you're inviting trouble. After the first few rounds, you would be sapped of your energy and you would be too exhausted to keep up with your opponents. In short, you're just inviting your opponents to beat the crap out of you. Experienced players would probably started off easy as if everything is a breeze.

My friend used to advise me ( because i suck in badminton ), "It's not about the energy you have; it's not about your stamina. It's just about using the right techniques and you can play badminton almost effortlessly. The problem why you grow tired easily is because you presented yourself too strong at the start. Don't struggle too much, just relax and take things easy."

It never was about your strength, but about your technique, and attitude

I read an article about this off the Internet,

"Make today a breeze, not a battle. Never fight. Nothing is worth fighting for. Wisdom never fights, it waits patiently, speaks positively, releases easily, sees benefit in everything and envisions a future of abundance knowing that all needs will be at the right moment, in the right way. If you think life is a struggle, you will always be struggling. If you think life is a breeze, your attitudes and actions will convey lightness and easiness. And that's what attracts everything you need and much more. Make today a breeze, not a struggle."

Life is a breeze, not a stuggle

I DON'T quite agree with that phrase, though it has some truth in it to a certain extent.

The way I see things, the way I see life, I see it as a struggle. And there's a great deal of reward I have gained coming to that understanding -- that existence is a struggle. In my opinion, i think struggle is the father of all things. It is not by the principles of humanity that man lives or is able to preserve himself above the animal world ( even animal struggles for food and security ), but solely by means of the most brutal struggle.

For better or for the worse, our future will be determined in large part by our dreams and by the struggle to make them real. Need and struggle is what aspire us to excel in life. Without struggle, there would be no progress at all in life.

Struggle is what keeps us going and excel in life

There are things in life that is worth the struggle, like love and friendship. Opportunity follows struggle. It follows effort. It follows hard work. It doesn't come before that.

I like what Friedrich Nietzche said about struggles in life,

"Sometimes, struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were to go through our life without any obstacles, we would be crippled. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Give every opportunity a good chance of battle, leave no rooms for regrets."

Welcoming obstacles and struggles in life doesn't mean you'll live through every single one of them. It doesn't mean we'll be a victor over it at the end of the day over every single predicament. There will be defeats. There will be struggling in life. No one can avoid them. But it's better to lose some of the battles in the struggles for our dreams than to be defeated without ever knowing what you're fighting for.

Sweet success becomes sweeter when long delayed and obtained after more struggles and defeats. Until you have been to the deepest of valleys, you'll never appreciate the beauty of the highest of mountains.

If you never tasted defeat, how would you know what is victory and success ?

In conclusion, life is just one big struggle. Strength does not come from winning. Struggles develop strengths. When we go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that's strength.

Whatever the struggle, continue the climb. It may be only one step to the summit.

Persistence and perseverance is the mother of success

It was because yesterday i dared to struggle, that today, i dared to win a glorious victory =)

P.S. I just realized why Bernard was very good when it comes to cats. He practically lived with them his whole life. For a full account, you can visit http://scribblealltheway.blogspot.com/2008_09_01_archive.html

The Parting of Ways

This is awesome. The Hari Raya Aidilfitri break is finally here after a much desired waiting ! I wish all my Malay friends Selamat Hari Raya Maaf Zahir Batin =)

Kinda forgotten the exact date, we 'AL10M13-ians' had decided to experience fasting like the Malays during their holy month and then 'buka puasa ( break fast ) together. I've gotta say, it was an awesome experience ! (Photos courtesy of Kai Ming)

Us posing with our dinner
I love Pak Ali's Lemon Chicken Rice !

Mokkie and Me

Coincidentally, the next day was Geraldine's Birthday, so in conjunction with that, we bought one Secret Recipe's New York Cheese Cake for her and sang her the Birthday song.

Happiness, happiness and more happiness !
Group photo of the Chinese 'AL10M13-ains'

The feeling of all of us spending time together as friends was simply something i would not trade for. Every day, when i feel lazy and tired to go to college, it is the thought of meeting with all my friends a.k.a. coursemates that keeps me up and going every morning. I would never, ever want to lose this kind of feeling. The feeling of knowing having a bunch of friends we can count on and love is simply too much a price to miss. And this of course, is a problem. It is, something i feared the most - letting go of love and friendship.

It is true that all things in life must part. Where there's a start, there's an end. What has a beginning, must also have an ending. It is, as we know, the circle of life. I am proud of having the chance of knowing great friends from my class. I am grateful to God for having the chance of being with all of them in the same class. But, one thing troubles my heart and never fails to disturb my thoughts, what happened then after 2 years ? What will happen to us ? That's the part i am most worried about.

'AL10M13-ians' as well as my roommates, the "A.L.U.K.ians"are all United Kingdom-bound students. That means after 2 years, we'll all fly to our respective university in United Kingdom to further our studies, which ultimately means, we'll be spread out all over the Kingdom. It's always probable that we would part, for life.

Spread out throughout the Kingdom, we may never meet, again

Call me emotional as you may, but i believe it is one of the topic worth spending time to think about and embrace ourselves for the ultimate. All farewells should be sudden, when forever, Else they make an eternity of moments, And clog the last sad sands of life with tears.

Let not our parting of ways be marred by tears

True friendship is like sound health, its true value is seldom appreciated until lost. I am glad to discover true friendship and its value right here, right now. Having discover the value of friendship, i hope i'll never be so much a fool as to take them for granted and not appreciating them fully to the best of my ability.

I hope i will never mistake Friendship as something to be taken for granted

I like what the Bible said about love (friendship) in Corinthians 1:13,

"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love."

Love is beautiful and wholesome. If we truly appreciate the beauty of friendship, instead of being worried about parting and ruining ourselves, i guess we should all learn to let the feeling of friendship wash through us so that we can truly experience the wonder of it. Though we all take different paths in life, but no matter where we go, we take a little of each other everywhere. Friends, a part of you has grown in me, and so you see, it's you and me together forever and never apart, maybe in a distance but never in heart.

When it hurts to look back, and you're scared to look ahead, you can look beside you and your friends will be there. Now i know how fortunate and lucky I am to have known someone who was so hard to say goodbye to. Never complain that your friends are not doing enough for you; they gave you the world when they gave you their love. In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.

Together forever, never apart; maybe at distance, but never at heart

To my friends, be it classmates or roommates, i just wish to say this,

"When I remember you, it means that i have carried something of who you are with me, that you have left some mark of who you are on who i am. It means that i can summon you back to my mind even though countless years and miles may stand between us. It means that even after you leave, i can still see your face and hear your voice and speak to you in my heart. For as long as i remember you, you am not entirely lost. When i'm feeling most ghost-like, it is our memories together that helps remind me that i actually exist. When i'm feeling sad, it's my consolation. When i'm feeling happy, it's part of why i feel that way, the part where i have the chance of knowing and that is all that i can ask for. Thank you for giving me the chance to experience friendship."

Thank you, all of you for the experience of knowing having someone to count on

There is no distance too far between friends, for friendship gives wings to the heart. Remember, the greatest gift is not found in a store nor under a tree, but in the hearts of true friends.

All things under the world has its own time for the Parting of Ways. But now is not the time for us to part, not yet anyway =)

Tears in Heaven

Oh it is great to be in INTEC, especially with my AL10M13 friends. Not that we college students are VERY free, but Mok, Ming and I ( as well as Peggy ) took up German Language as a supplement to our current studies. After 8 weeks of German lesson, our German lecturer, Frau Maria shocked us by asking each of us to present something in German Language, either individually, or as a group.

Our 'Deustchlehrerin'

Mok being camera-shy -.-

Mok Zi Hong, Kai Ming, the beautiful girls and I =)

When we say Death is unpredictable, we always imagine Death to be somewhere in the far distant future. It never occurs to us that death could drop by this moment, this very moment that has been filled to the brink. Saddening to say, Mok's grandma was called home to be with the Lord on Sunday. Shrouded behind a thick black veil, the tears of heaven fell that day. It was with heavy-laden hearts we bid him farewell as he went back to Pulau Pinang to attend the funeral. In German, he wrote an eulogy in loving dedication to the memory of his grandma.

Liebe Oma, Dear Grandma,

Du bist nicht da seit letzten Sonntag You were not here since last Sunday.
Ich warte. Ich bin allein I am here waiting, alone,
Wie Geht es dir im Himmel ? How are you in heaven ?
Weinst du ? Lachst Du ? Are you crying ? Are you laughing ?
Ich bin traurig I am sad
aber ich hoffe du bist glücklich but I hope you're happy there

Liebe Oma, Dear Grandma,
Du und Ich. Ich Und Du You and I, I and you
Wir sind immer Oma und Enkel We'll be forever, grandma and grandson
Ich Liebe Dich, Oma ! I love you, Grandma !

Dein Enkel, Your grandson,
Mok Zi Hong Mok Zi Hong

I was very moved after i read his poem which was written from the heart. Though simple as it may seem, the meaning behind the poem was filled with emotion and love, and that is simply beautiful. I know it had been very hard for Mok and time was cruel to him. From his sadness, we could feel the strong bong that had been carved between them. It was taxing and painful for us to see him like this. Only true men exhibits emotions. Never be ashamed of showing your emotions, because when you are ashamed of that, you're ashamed of telling the truth. Though it was tough and challenging for him to accept reality, Mok really put up a brave front in confronting the death of his grandma and for that, i am really proud to be one of his friend.

Letting go was hard, but he put up a brave front

There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are messengers of overwhelming grief...and unspeakable love.

Tears are messengers of unspeakable love

Death ends a life, never a relationship. Though the body has been laid to rest but the spiritual soul precedes and is kept alive in the hearts of those who love and care about her. Though i know not who she is, but judging by how upset Mok was, i am sure she must a great grandma that every grandson would be proud of. I'm sure that her love is forever etched and immortalized in his heart.

Some people come into our lives and leave as soon as they came; some stayed for a while and leave footprints in our hearts, but we are never, ever the same. The parting of ways are the sweetest and the most bitter of all incident, what's more to say of a family member. But i strongly believe, that no matter what happens, or what will happen, we part for the sake of meeting one another again in the distant future. Mourning is not the end of the relationship.
Our love for them does not have to die with them.

Some people come into our lives and leave as soon as they came; some stayed for a while and leave footprints in our hearts, but we are never, ever the same

Life is eternal, and love is immortal and death is only a horizon which is nothing, save the limit of our sight. We go from loving them in the presence to loving them in the absence. Death of loved ones leaves a heartache no one can heal, but love leaves a memory no one can steal.

Life is eternal, and love is immortal

Death is inevitable eventually in life. What starts, must end, someday. Love is stronger than death even though it can't stop death from happening, but no matter how hard death tries it can't separate people from love. It can't take away our memories either. In the end, life is stronger than death. The risk of love is loss, and the price of loss is grief - But the pain of grief is
only a shadow when compared with the pain of never risking love.

Life is not about how much others love us, but how much we dare to love others, even if it means letting go someday

Through the passing of his grandma, i believe he'll be grateful for having the chance for loving her and being loved in return. And one day, i hope the gratitude will conquer the loss, for him. But whatever happens, i just want him to understand that no matter the circumstances, Ming and I as well as many more others, will always be there for him, for the better or for the worse.

We'll always be there for you

That's what being friends are all about.