*grinZ*

Today I can finally go back to my pri sch to relief teach & today it's a P1 class=)

Everyone and everything in that class will somehow remind me of the times when I was in this same primary sch arnd 8 years ago=)

I am quite surprise that all these similar situations and places can still bring back much memories aft so many years=)

I thought it was so long ago that I should not have much strong memories from my primary sch as compared to my secondary sch and jc. I thought. Luckily it's not the case. =)

The "line up two by two" rule, little boy holding little girl's hand so innocently, children getting so excited over growing and watering their own green beans, children who will so willingly guide their friend who is slower in learning, children who will always ask you if they can help to clean the whiteboard even when they are not tall enough yet to reach the top, children holding to you so closely like they have known you for so long (even when they have just known me today).

Children... *grinZ*

They are so beautiful=)

They are indeed like a piece of white drawing block paper. Whether they will transform into a beautiful and colourful piece of artwork which everyone will appreciate, or whether they will transform into something that's not as beautiful and colourful which not everyone will appreciate, it all depends on the education they are receiving.

Sometimes I do wonder, from a relief teacher point of view, schools and teachers do put alot emphasis on academic results. The main objective seems to be more of "I have to finish teaching my syllabus before exam".

In doing so, sometimes we will ignore students who are slower and need more attention than other students. In order not to slow down the rest of the class, we may unknowingly sacrifice them.

Of course, that's from my point of view as a relief teacher. If I am a teacher with a given syllabus to complete, I will definitely feel very helpless. Should I or should I not?

It's definitely not easy being a teacher. Challenging.

Guess I will just remain as a relief teacher with not much pressure from the harsh reality of the educational system. Hope to input the children with as much education regarding character building as possible with what I have and what I can give. =)

Here's what they give to me, lots of smiles coupled with frustration and tests of patience from time to time also.

With some time left to spare (and also don't what to do with them), I asked them to draw the most beautiful thing that they can produce. Free-style. =)

They were so excited about it. =D I suddenly have the urge to draw and so I took crayons to design the name of their class. Wah, when was the last time I draw with crayons on drawing block paper, sitted on the now-so-tiny chair and table together with the students. =)

They are so sweet. Some want to draw and give it to me, there are also others who asked if he can bring it back home to show it to their daddy and mummy. Awww~~~ =)

Haha... Some even made me the main character in their drawings. They turn me into princess, and fairy=) Awww~~~ ThanksX2!!

But, as for the yellow round head figure, I am not so sure if it is depicting me. The title of his drawing is "Who is your teacher". Hmmm.... Is it form teacher or me? Still, it makes me smile, and laugh=D

Students always seem to have a not-so nice image of me. Hmmm....

One of my tuition student drew herself beautifully, but I just can't help to think that the woman (supposedly to be me) she drew looks kind of mean. Hmmmm....

Still, they are all beautiful=)

BusyX2~~~

Mon & Tue bz with FOC programme~~~

Finally found my own specify job scope in programme cell, tt is to take charge of programme logistics! Whee~~~

Was feeling bad for not being able to help much in the documenting of the programme stuffs as Samantha is really very efficient lah! Justin & Samantha are two workaholics loh, keep staring at their laptop screen, even when they are eating! Both exclaimed that their spectacles degree will increase by multiple folds lah!

Finally can help them lessen their workload by packing up our stuffs these few days, like auntie packing things into plastic bags and then into different boxes (-_-lll Suddenly feels so happy to find plastic bags and rubber bands around DE club room muahahaha..

Xu Wen & I even changed the arrangement in DE club room to accomodate the logistics & ad hoc members during the camp.



Being programme logistics i/c is not going to be easy and it is my first time dealing with logistics on such a scale, luckily I know from whom I can seek help, Gary & Chin Khiang whee~~~=D

May all things go smoothly for foc =) everyone been working really hard! do take great care and prove all the effort and time we put in during this holidays worthwhile=)

May this be a sharing AND learning experience for everyone involve in this camp=) Share what we know and learn what we don't know=) Take it easy everyone, we are all still learning=)

Finally~~ We met up!=D

Whee~~ 4 Faithers finally met up aft don't how long alrd hehX2=)

ThanksX2 Xiuhao for initiating to organize one! She is very bz lah & still think abt 4 faith awww~~ =D

Initially planned to go Mr Tan's hse bt last min we decided to go amk pizza hut to eat&chi chat thr=) And pohX2, via, zhen hui, derek, glenn & I cld have saved some $$ haha.. But it was an exciting experience w/o any harm done=) SoX3 sorry to Mr Tan for the last min changes! Too bad he cant join us at pizza hut, hope to meet up with him during our next gathering=)

Deciding on our post dinner activity was challenging.. We discussed, we called, we walked, we stopped, we discussed again, we called again, we walked again...... Till finally we split into 2grps, pohX2 & via went kbox while the rest went to play pool. Though we finally made a decision, we still have to split=( Hopefully next time we all can sing and then play pool tog hehX2=)

Glad tt all of them enjoyed playing pool, with Xiuhao & Jia'en being our instructor, guiding the newbies incl me, gerksin, qi ying, yi wen & dax hehX2.. Bt Jia'en relax lah, abit stern leh you hehX2... It was great fun watching the pros playing too.. Zhen Hui, Jia'en, Qian Wei, Peter, Qi Yao and Xiu Hao=) Watching Dax play was also quite entertaining muahahaha...

Finally, left Xiu Hao, Qian Wei, Peter, Zhen Hui, Edwin (came frm nowhere haha.. no lah he came to play with Zhen Hui too) and I staying at S11 eating supper & chit chatting=)

It was GREAT to see so many of you! The girls, PohX2, Via, Xiu Hao, Gerk Sin, Qi Ying, Yi Wen, Jia Wen! The guys, Derek, Zhen Hui, Glenn, Peter, Qi Yao, Erwin, Wei Guang, Qian Wei, Jia'en & Dax! ThankX3 for mking the effort to come for the gathering! You all made this so fun & enjoyable!

For those who cant make it esp those who disappoint us LAST MIN, hope to see you all during our next gathering=) As and when you miss 4 Faithers, just plan a day to meet up=) Guess we shld increase the frequency of our gatherings instead of just once a yr during CNY to get Mr Tan's hong baos and to see him of course hehX2=P

Cheers to 4 Faithers! =)

It's worth the wait=)

Ks was late.. again=(

Supposed to meet me at Orchard for dinner (which is also my lunch too=S) but he forgotten to tell his parents abt it and so he has to finish the dinner they bought for him.

HungryXinfinity! Shld have ate together with Dawn & Ernest at Clementi aft our chit chat session=S Their bak cho mee smells nice~~~ haha... And we purposely took some photos so that we have pictures to put on our blogs (the results of the blogging craze=P)

Went to Watson to shopX2 and ended up buying quite some stuffs, mainly in preparation for foc...

My peaceful shopping time is being disturbed by a weird uncle aka lao beiX2 who came to intro himself and talked to me abt "anything under the sun"=S *roll eyes* So scary lah.. Luckily he retreated as I just continued to shop indifferently (though I was very distracted by his presence beside me=S)

Blame ks for making me wait=S But have to calm down and exercise the art of forgiveness and patience. *breathe in breathe out deeply*

Anyway, I was also late for rag meeting in the afternn due to unforseen and irritating circumstances (shh~~ samantha, xue zhen & justin must help me maintain my image k? hehX2=P) Thanks to them for forgiving me=)

Finally~~~ Ks came and treated me to goodX2 niceX2 food to his very hungry lpp=D *yumX2 fullX2*

Ate BIGx2 plate of curry chicken cutlet rice at taka=)

Indulged in COOKIES MONSTER MUDPIE at NYDC *super duper heavenly nice!*

ThenX3~~~ Just next to NYDC, aft we finished eating, I saw Davidoff promotion booth in front of Heeren. My favorite perfume brand=)

AndX3 lgg bought the promotion package - davidoff game for female & male happy summer series- whee~~~~~ I have always wanted to buy but its way beyond my budget.

It's really worth it, $88 for the 2 perfumes with LOTS of freebies, for both female & male.

Luckily, lgg also looking for perfume hehX2.. must use together k? hehX2=D

still~~ thxX3 for the gifts! =D

It is definitely worth the wait... Both for him and for my perfume. *grinZ*

[just realized me & him didnt take any photos *sad* next wk must tk alotX2! hehX2]

Meditate on a Flower=)

Benefit: encourage imagination to expand

Flower: symbol of growth & achievement

• Picture a flower bud in your mind's eye


• Think about how the flower bud is formed [seed, seedling, nourishment by sn & rain]


• Think about what the flower bud is going to be [its potential]


• Imagine the bud slowly open and bcome full flower


• Relate the flower bud to sth i/s yourself that has been waiting to develop [loving compassion, strength to deal with difficult situation etc.]


• Gain strength frm your visualization & maximize your potential to grow

It will be best practised with the breathing techniques that I have mentioned in my previous blog entry=)

'Meditation' by Bill Anderton
Whee~~ Finished reading this book alrd... Learnt the different types of meditations which can be easily applied to our daily life. This is one of those that I like=) Hope it will be useful to you too!=)

Problems or not?

During Bodhi Big Walk last Sunday, I heard something that Mei Fei said that remains in my mind till now. She said that a problem without any solutions is actually NOT a problem, in this case we should just let go and not dwell on it any more. Wow. Sounds weird initially, but as I keep thinking about it, I begin to make some sense out of it.

Many times we are being troubled by our so-called problems. If Mei Fei's definition of problems applies here, we wouldn't be so troubled.

If our problems are indeed problems, just go ahead and solve it!

If our problems are not problems, what's the point of dwelling on them? It will not bring us anywhere, we will be just circling around our so-called problems. Pointless right?

I guess by knowing when to let go will we be able to free ourselves from the past and move on. No wonder Miss Choong always tells the 27th councillors to grow up and move on, no point sitting down there and crying over it.

To all my dear friends, no matter what problems you are facing, take some time to reflect about it, then make a choice that will lead us to somewhere=) By then, I will rejoice and celebrate for you!=D Jiayouz!

Remember, what friends can do is only supplementary, we can only show our support and share your problems, we are here to tell you that your problems are NOT the only things in your life, don't let it overwhelm you.

Most importantly, you have to walk out of it yourself, we will be outside the darkness waiting for you to enjoy the sunshine together. Jiayouz! =)

For those I love and

those who love me,

may this life be a blessing and

a source of happiness to all beings.

-Ven. K Sri Dhammananda

For a special fren=)

A different Sunday morning=D

It's Bodhi Big Walk 2007, an event organized by the Buddhist Library.

It was my 1st time participating in this event, both as a organizer and participants [coz my Buddhist Society President and I walked the route for THREE times in the rain!].

It was not so easy to be part of the organizing committee, I only managed to attend 1 out of their 3 meetings. ReallyX2 sorry and guilty for it! =S

My main task was to get 30 volunteers [together with NTU Buddhist Society] to guide the public on the right path of the walk, initially the response was unsatisfactory butX3 hehX2 we managed to gather a total of 20 plus people whee~~ =D

I was really touched by everyone's effort to volunteer and most importantly those who not just volunteered themselves but even went the extra mile to help me find more volunteers=D

So here am I to give thanks to everyone! =D

ThanksX2 all volunteers who made the effort to come down so early on a Sunday morning, hehX2 yes I requested them to meet at Bishan Park by 7am. Especially those who specially took cab from NUS down [Albert, Hidayat, Robby, Isen, Michael, Frisca, Yessy, Utari, Angita and Minh Danh=)], thanksX3! And also Tiong Han with his brother and SDE graduate friend [seniorX2!]=D

Not forgetting Mei Fei, Wei Zan and Hon Guang whom I met at Bishan bus interchange, it was great catching up with you all while waiting for umhmm you-know-who hehX2 and on the bus=)

Of course, not forgetting Kwek and Sea Ming, my BS president and vice-president=) ThanksX2 Sea Ming for attending the meetings alone and updating me=) N kwek, thanksX2 for guiding the volunteers to their respective postions too=) It was also great talking to you while we walked around the park 3 rounds=) At least the walk was worthwhile, got to talk about serious stuffs and some gossips hehX2=P

I am especially grateful to everyone because except for my MC members, most of the volunteers don't really know me as I am rather new in BS, yet you all volunteered and cooperated with me=) ThanksX2 for all your friendly-ness, really enjoy all of your presence, you all are a great and fun bunch of people=D Whee~~

Oh! ThanksX3 to Hidayat and Robby who were the camera men that day, keeping snapping photos and candid shots (thank ar=P). Really love the photos!

Though it rained quite abit throughout the walk, it didnt really dampen our spirits, I was so afraid you all would be complaining etc... Thanks for being so understanding=) Hope you all didnt catch a cold after that and hope you have had as much fun in the rain as I have=D

Whee~~ Finally~~~ Our president had sort of planned our well-deserved kbox session for his MC!! *happyX2* Hope it will not be postponed indefinitely again=P

Here's the works of our camera men=D

NUS BS & NTU BS formal photo=)

The supposed-to-be-artistic work by Hidayat=P

My new friends with the kindest souls=)

Kwek, my ever-so-comical president=P

Practising mindfulness

Just finished reading this book titled 'Beginning Mindfulness' written by a Buddhist teacher, Andrew Weiss. In it, he taught direct application of practice to daily life. It is not too intensive whereby you need to engage in long meditation retreats. Actually, mindfulness can be practiced practically during every moments of our life, if we are mindful enough to practice it diligently.=)

A tiny portion of what I have learnt about the basics.

Sitting Meditation (Formal practice)
Benefits:
Know more abt ourselves and improves concentration
What is it?
It is about waking up. It is NOT about escaping or day-dreaming.
Elements:
1. Good and stable posture with the back straight, chin slightly tucked in and hands in comfortable positions.
2. Stillness in sitting.
3. Just be aware of your breathing in and out, don't have to control it.
4. Silently say 'in' during inhalation, then 'one' when inhalation changes to exhalation, and then 'out' during exhalation. Count till 10 then countdown to 1 again.

Walking Meditation (Formal practice)
Basically, it is quite similar to sitting meditation except that we have to be aware of not only our breaths but also our legs and feets. How we walk actually shows what we are feeling at that point of time (happy, relaxed, angry, sad etc.)

Daily-Life Mindfulness (Informal practice)
Benefits
Helps us to stop, allowing our mind to rest in the present moment, hence achieve a new and more complete understanding of ourselves and the world.
What is it?
As mentioned in the book, it is described by a meditatio teacher as 'the slow settling of water in a pond. As the pond settles, the water becomes clearer and clearer. In the same way, as we become more mindful, and our mind comes to rest more steadily, our understanding and true presence become clearer and clearer.'
Elements
1. For newbies like me, I think practising the awareness of breath through consious breathing is the easier way to incorporate mindfulness in our daily life. Morever, the awareness of breath is also the foundation for sitting and walking meditations.
2. Every actions we do and see, every thoughts running through our minds, and every emotions we are experiencing are all perfect opportunities to practice mindfulness!
3. Aim to be an observer of our doings!

The rest of the book further elaborates on the the four foundations of mindfulness (namely body, feelings, thinkings and objects of mind) and how we can widen the heart through practicing loving kindness and compassion. If you are interested in finding out more, go grab this book, I am sure it will be spiritually beneficial to any reader=)

Hope you can try out abit of meditation and practice mindfulness in our daily life=) I am seeing the benefits of practicing already=D Though I wish I can do more formal meditations on top of practicing awareness of my breathing. Cheers to my 'training-in-progress' mind! =)

Currently reading another meditation book which is much more reader friendly=) It is very digestable and have lots of niceX2 picts=D Will post any interesting and useful stuffs about it after I finish reading it.

Discover the child in you!

Haha... The title sounds familiar to some right? Yeap! It is our theme for my Valentine's Day ad hoc=)

Was on my way to Sengkang for tuition and suddenly thought about the difference between us now and when we were young.

I guess most of us should have been through this when we were young. Or is it just me?

When we were young,

we thought it would be great to grow up and be mature, but now it feels different...

we thought it would be great to be given more freedom, but now if feels different...

we thought it would be great to be in love and be in a relationship, but now it feels different...

we though it would be great to be able to earn our OWN money so we can spend it freely, but now it feels different...

we thought it would be great to be able to celebrate our 21st birthday, but now it feels different...

we thought it would be so great to achieve excellent results and get into a local uni, but now it feels different...

we thought it would be even better to complete our studies and get out of schools, colleges and uni, but now it feels different...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We used to have very high expectations of what the future has for us, we kept dreaming and hoping that it will happen to us quickly.

More often than not, we dread about how slowly time passes in terms of how far away we are from the beautiful dreams we have created.

When our so called dreams are being realized, some how it does not feel as great as I thought it should be.

Up till some point, we will start to look back.

When we were young,

it was so great to play all day without having any worries...

it was so great to get my parents to buy the toys and dolls that I wanted...

it was so great to spend the whole day watching cartoons...

it was so great to play catching with my fellow classmates...

it was so great to play pranks on the guy who sat in front of me...

it was so great to make mistakes and learn from them so easily...
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Dwell not in the past, worry not in the future...

Enjoy and experience the PRESENT. =)

Life now may not be as beautiful and as perfect as how we want it to be.

Don't worry!

Guess we can still find some fun and joy through discovering the child in us=)

I just did that with Dawn, Deon, Koksiang and Ernest at Paragon's Toy'R'Us after we watched an excellentX3 Live It Up dance finals at Far East=D

Toy'R'Us is definitely a great place for a short break from our daily routines.

Get in touch with our true self.

Experience the simple joy.

We are not that different after all.

Cheers to the child in us! =)

JMG's first!

Finally~~~ our first neoprints!

After some hiccups here and there, we finally managed to take it! =D

We have our JMG gathering cum Jun Han's surprise birthday celebration at steamboat restaurant in Bugis=)

There's a lot of "first" thingy going on that day.

It was our first family photo taking day!

It was our first birthday celebration for Jun Han! Can see that he is really surprised (hopefully not actX2 de) and touched=) Next time please remember to make a wish with both hands clasped together BEFORE you blow your candles=P
[He blew once, relighted, made a wish and blew again!]

It was our first steamboat! Really seems like family reunion dinner=D

And Wai Kei was being said as amateur for taking neoprints and for almost every single things we talked about. We have much fun and laughters, thanks to him! =)

Thanks to Chin Khiang for helping us to buy Jun Han's present=) Good choice! He looks much vibrant in white colour=) [Have to remember to pay Chin Khiang!=P]

Thanks to Wei Juan for treating us Royce chocolates! The one that melts in your mouth *yumX2*

Thanks to Wai Kei to paying for the banana chocolate cake! [I was supposed to pay actually, but he was faster than me=P]

Cheers to our friendships! =) Really glad to be part of this gang=) You all always never fail to make my day=)

Adopt a Bean! =)

Ks and I just adopted a bean each=)
[The 3rd one really resembles him and the 2nd one do resembles me I guess=)]

Ate soya ice cream cone=)

The nutritional values of soya definitely make indulging in an ice-cream much less sinful and more beneficial to health=)

For now, we can even do a part in charity=)

Spend $3 to adopt this cute beanX2 and $1.50 will be donated to the Pathlight School which is the first autism-focused school in Singapore.

Let's practice compassion as much as we can. I believe each single actions and words do make a difference to other's life=)

Bring smiles to the children! =D

P.S. NoX3 I am not the ambassador for Mr. Bean. I only love their soya ice cream *yumX3* and not forgetting the usual pearly soya milk treat after chaos dance practices=D Kind of miss it.. The soya milk and the soya milk companions=)

Check out their website for more information=)
http://www.mrbean.com.sg/pathlight.asp

No need to judge

Inspired by The Daily Enlightenment's article (23rd June) "No Need To Judge"...

Indeed, I admit that I do mentally label people habitually and worst still, unknowingly.

First impressions do count, but is it the true, permanent impression of a person?

Nothing is permanent, everything and every moments will pass and be over. Be it good or bad moments, emotions or experiences, relax, endure through it or enjoy it, it will not last.

Thus don't be too attached to any experiences or emotions, it will not last.

Treasure the present, the now. But once it is over, look forward and embrace the present that ensues.

Hence, people also change, grow and mature. Let's not attach any labels to anyone, let's not say "always", "never" etc in the context of someone's character.

Let's not also get trapped within the labels given by yourself or people around us. We definitely can transform beyond the limited judgement of others. Rejoice! =D

So hope Jun Han can win both sides of me (angel and devil) over with his true compassion and sincerity. JiayouzX2! =D

‘Do not pursue the past.
Do not lose yourself in the future.
The past no longer is.
The future has not yet come.

Looking deeply at life as it is
in the very here and now,
the practitioner dwells in stability and freedom.

We must be diligent today.
To wait until tomorrow is too late.
Death comes unexpectedly.
How can we bargain with it?

The sage calls a person who knows
how to dwell in mindfulness night and day
‘one who knows the better way to live alone.’
~ The Buddha~
Text: Adapted from the Bhaddekaratta Sutta

Emergency number!

Read from Cleo's June issue, something that both women and men HAVE to know!

Your guardian angel
Your lucky number(s)

Remember 112!

Dial this and our mobile can help to establish emergency number for us!

PlusX3! We can even dial this magic number with our keypad locked! *Try it!*

Rejoice! We have learnt one more way to save ourselves and even others! =D

ExerciseX3!

Just read an online article from www.runnersworld.com re: running therapy.

Interesting things about running therapy being mentioned.
"With just 20 to 30 minutes of vigorous exercise you get five or six hours of lasting effects--reducing anxiety, anger, fatigue, and other negative emotions."

"All the visual, aural, and olfactory experiences of the outdoors help you remember that you are experiencing life. It brings you into the present--you are part of nature, not just a passive observer."

With such beneficial returns, guess I should engage in more running therapy=)

Being mindful of my health.
Being mindful of my breathes.
Being mindful of my heart beating and pumping.
Being mindful of all the trees and greenery which are actually alive and living, and not as stagnant as they may seems.

Finally started my 1st running session after the exams, much thanks to the "peer pressure" from Dawn, Ernest and Xu Wen. They are all diligently running regularly, early in the morning or even late at night.

Today I shall continue my running regime=)

Cheers to pink health and rosy cheeks=D

*P.S. JiayouXinfinity to all fellow joggers! Then we can look forward to a more rewarding supper treat!*

live each breathes, live each moments, live each life...

"breathing keeps us alive, but being mindful of breathing keeps us awake!"
[www.TheDailyEnlighenment.com]

Be mindful always.
It simply means to be fully aware of what is happening to us, in us and around us.

Or is it really as simple as we think?

That's why all the more we should be aware of our naturally unminful mind, and to constantly learn to keep track of our thoughts and emotions running through our minds.

Simply being mindful of each breathe we inhale and exhale, we should be glad that we are alive still, we should be glad that we are not suffering from any breathing difficulties, we should be glad that the air is still fresh and clean, we should therefore be glad that we are who we are, we are where we are, in this clean and green country.

Be contented always.
There's always something to rejoice about.

Look carefully, observe mindfully and you will realize that life can be that simple and happy.

The child who smiled so widely even when he led his family in the wrong direction.

He is optimistic and he is teachable. Rejoice!

My student who believes he can be one of the top 3 students of his class by the end of the year even though he is still an average student.

He is confident and he is willing to work towards his own goal. Rejoice!

Smile always.=)
Every moments are worth your smile, if you are mindful enough to see its hidden happiness.