Frisbee

Am lunching in today, and so have decided to blog about Sun's frisbee.

Although it had been just another regular session, I enjoyed the game very much. Could be attributed to a few reasons: -
1) Encouraging turnout of players and "supporters"
2) The thrill of putting into play the various defensive and offensive strategies that were taught over the past few weeks
3) Familiarising ourselves with the tactics boosted our confidence somewhat
4) Team spirit- working together toward something common
5) A very good workout, considering the amount of running all over the field

We had a new player last week who expressed much keenness to join us subsequently. He is even blocking off his Sat to train with us this week. Of course, he is roped in for the Open as well.

Am looking forward to the experience of playing in the Open. Whether we do decently well, or get trashed is a separate issue, yeah?

A Closed Chapter

I typed this entry over several nights as there are so many things to process through in my mind, and I’m usually exhausted by the time I settle in front of the PC ...

Reached Singapore on Tue evening, after all the funeral matters have been completed in KL. The previous week had been very emotionally draining, stressful and even bizarre one. When we received news of grandma's hospitalisation and ill condition 2 Tues ago, we dropped everything on hand and rushed to KL to visit her. Thank God that we were not too late to see her. She appeared to have improved on Thu afternoon and we thought that she would make it through. Unfortunately, things nosedived from evening onwards. Grandma seemed to know her time has come, and she insisted on seeing every single person in the large family, and convey her final wishes. We all took turns to visit her in the ICU during the visiting hours, as only 2 persons were allowed inside. It was really a touch-and-go time with her. We had no opportunity to spend quality time with her.

That same night, my extended family came to know about some not-so-nice happenings, and confrontations between relatives ensued. Result: an injured relative and 2 broken panels of sliding glass door. I have never witnessed such a scene and honestly, it frightened me. Thank God that the involved parties have since mellowed down and made up. Some of us had this feeling that the incident was kinda like a bad omen. True enough, early next morning, we received the much dreaded call from the hospital and we arrived at the hospital too late...

Funeral arrangements were quickly made. I have never experienced such a traditional funeral before, one filled with rites, rituals and dos-and-don'ts. The immediate family, consisting of my nuclear family, 7 aunts, 4 uncles and the uncles' families were all gathered at my grandma's home (32 pp in all!) for the next 2 days. For whatever superstitious reason, nobody returned to his own home. So it was a very communal style of living, especially when the sons-in-law, other grandchildren and greatchildren arrived in the day. At nightime, people were just sleeping anywhere on the ground. We were also instructed not to wash hair, cut hair, sweep floor, change clothes etc. Such was the extent of my uncles/aunts' deep-seated beliefs.

Throughout most of the funeral period, I was feeling numb. Kind of detached from the happenings around me. With so many people staying together, conflicts and disagreements were bound to happen. The various episodes have taught me the importance of handling conflicts with tact in a cool and collected manner.

As anticipated, there were lots of rites, rituals and burning of incense. My brother, being the eldest grandson, was initially pressured to fulfill the obligations in the rituals. Thank God, we (mum, bro and I) eventually spoke with the “in-charge” and we were graciously excused from taking joss sticks, and doing “extreme stuff”. As a mark of respect, we took part in the rituals (bowing, kneeling, walking) along with the others. Most of the time, the monk or “in-charge” would be chanting in some language that I do not understand, while we sit or kneel accordingly. To me, it was not an entirely futile exercise as the moments of solitude allowed me to focus and process my thoughts better, to think of my grandma, and to pray.

After the funeral wake was over, one of my aunt collapsed and was rushed to hospital. We suspected that it was probably due to poor health, fatigue and emotional distress. Thank God, she was already alright by the time we left for Singapore.

This is by far my most eventful stay in KL

My grandma’s demise has revealed the extent of love and regards that my aunts and uncles have for her. She had influenced so many lives, those of her children and her grandchildren. Everyone loved her deeply. I realized that one of the greatest ways to influence another person’s life is to pour out your life in the caring and nurturing of your own children. And I’ll like to be able to do just that one day…

Busy Week

Realised that many of friends have been updating their blogs more frequently... think I should do so too. Afterall, I have been running around quite a lot and this past week has been rather eventful.

Watched the Dim Sum Dollies on Mon evening w ch mates. Enjoyed the show pretty much, especially the first half. However, didn't really like some of the "off-colour" jokes... Overall, it was worthwhile lah. Incidentally, there were some fireworks display that night, to welcome N Day. So, we hung around to catch the display. Not surprisingly, many folks also had the same intention, gathering and milling around at the Esplanade. At the strike of midnight, the displays were set off and lasted about 10 mins or so. After that. everyone immediately trodded toward the car park to head home. Reached home at 1+am. Thank God that W graciously sent us each of us back.

Tue was supposed to be a holiday, but some of us gathered with P for planning and retreat. We talked about our various Min, and P asked us to dream big dreams for the Mins. We managed to cover each Min, and as usual, many issues were raised and discussed. Some decisions were made, new ideas were toyed with. Other matters were prayed over. I would say that it had been a rather fruitful session. It was clear that P has been deliberating deeply through these issues. His ideas are often new, innovative, but also require a measure of faith. He is hardly bound by the "how"s. Instead he focuses on the "why"s. As Ming rightly pointed out yesterday, this is his area of strength.

The serious stuff ended by lunch time. We spent the rest of the day at the condo, enjoying the facilities and having a barbeque dinner. I took the opportunity to swim in the afternoon as the pool appeared too enticing. I have not swim in ages, and this swim just whetted my appetite for more. But not sure if I would be making time for this sport...

Wed night, the HCM helpers met with P. Another fruitful meeting I think. The whole time, P was sharing his dream about the HCM, and explaining about certain proposed changes. Through the session, each of us had a clearer picture about the "why"s of the changes. We will be praying about the issues before making any decision later this month.

Thu night, we gathered for dinner, and celebrated A's birthday.There were 11 of us. Quite a large group eh, but it was rather fun. We got to share and check out several of the desserts available, in a "pseudo conveyor belt" fashion, as we passed the desserts around. I think that friendship in this rather large group is gradually deepened through such birthday outings. Several more birthdays in the pipeline for this half of the year! Expecting a much lighter wallet...

This evening, I decided against going to NCC bs, thought of coming back early to rest, since I haven't been home early this past week. Upon reaching home, I made myself jog around my estate. Haven't done that in months, but in view of the upcoming F Open, a good stamina is pretty crucial. I hope to be able to keep up at this.

So this has been my week. And I'm super tired now, after this long entry.

Old Struggle

Have finally completed the selection of pics from Perth to develop. Came up to a total of 190 pics! So many eh? Prefer to see them in hardcopy than to view them from PC. Will be sending them for developing soon.

On another note, I have again been plagued by the itch over my body. It comes on-off and brings about much inconvenience to my lifestyle, especially when I commute from place to place in this hot climate. This time round, I try not to think about it too much, until those moments when the itch becomes unbearable and distracting. It kinda robs me of any zeal or motivation I have in life, as I cannot bear living like this for the rest of my life! Makes me wonder what God's good and perfect plan for me is. Thoughts of exasperation and defeat comes easily to mind, and I am so tired of fighting them off... How can I be serving in this capacity?! I wonder.