5th Anniversary in Japan

Wow! It's been a while since I last blogged.. Been drafting a series of reports from my big adventure in Egypt and Israel.. but it seems that there were just too many things I wanna write and thus I could never manage to finish them :( someday soon I hope..

Meanwhile, I guess I just wanna write something short to mark my 5th year in Japan. I think the exact date should be 30th August or somewhere very near the end of August..
5 years ago.. I got here.. in the land of sushi, sashimi, sumo and samurai.. still remember the first impression on the way from the airport.. everywhere I saw were factories, industrial areas and buildings.. all white, clean and somewhat cold.. certainly that first impression wasn't that impressive.

Then my supposingly 3 week trip was stretched to 3 months and then 1 year, and somehow going up to 5 years now..
During that first trip, I experienced 2 big earthquakes in a row on the same evening that made me prayed my earnest prayer and ran down 22 floors in about 5 minutes. Also that year it just so happened that we had many big typhoons.. one after another. What funny is I actually haven't had such big earthquake and so many typhoons anymore since then. If that was a way to welcome me to Japan, I certainly would prefer not to be welcomed at all :p

Looking back these past 5 years, I am just so overwhelmed.. seeing what great things God has done in my life, I could not help but feel humbled. Never in my wildest imagination I would think about going through all the experiences and to be where I am today.. and boy! how I grew through them all.. From a (not-so) innocent 27 year-old-girl.. to a (not-so) innocent 32-year-girl.. hmm.. that doesn't really sound like a big contrast :p Well, I guess I have come a long way to know more about God.. about myself.. and about the world.

The past 5 years of adventure with God has been awesome.. it wasn't always sweet.. but always.. He makes everything beautiful in its time. He never promises only sunshine days and no rain, but He does promise, when the rain comes, He would provide the shelter for us to carry on till the sun shines again.


"No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him" [1 Cor 2:9]

The Trip of A Lifetime

It's really hard to contain this excitement.. In a few hours, I'll be on my way to Egypt and then the Holy Land.. And it ain't a usual sightseeing trip coz it will be a mix of self tour, adventure and study. It's gonna be fun being a student again after leaving college close to 10 years ago and on top of that, I'm gonna be studying about Jesus and His times(!). That's definitely one big factor that makes this trip so special.

Then I'll also have two bodyguards doubling as private porters travelling with me.. how lucky they are! ;) I'm sure it's gonna be awesome travelling with these two good friends of mine. My Chinese friend told me about one Chinese proverb that says, "To know the true of a person, you should travel together". uh-oh.. I hope and pray that our friendship will grow stronger as we spend time together and get to know each other better.

And as a bonus, I'll be celebrating my birthday in Israel.. How cool is that!
Ugh.. the clock is ticking.. better get some sleep now.. news update from Israel is on the plan..
So long!

Happy Father's Day

I received this forwarded email from a friend; not sure where the source comes from, so to whoever wrote it, thank you!

Eight Ways to Become a Better Father

Parenting is one of the most rewarding - and most challenging - jobs out there. As an encouragement to fathers, I want to share with you the eight ways to become a better father. Even if you're not a father yet ...or your kids have grown up and moved away ...or you're a single mom raising children without a father, there's something in this list for you.

But don't read these points and tuck them away for another day. Start acting on them right now - it's never too late to become a better father! Your children will thank you!


1. Get to know God as Father.

God is the ultimate Father ...loving, wise, encouraging, slow to anger. As a father, you are His representative here on earth, and if you get to know Him better, you can better parent your own children. Spend time building a relationship with your Heavenly Father. Understand that He loves you, comforts you, protects you, provides for you ALL THE TIME ...and you'll be better able to do the same for your own children.


2. Give your children a sense of belonging, acceptance, and identity.

Don't treat your children as an interruption. Don't make them feel that they're in the way. You're a parent and your job is to do the parenting!

Make sure your children feel that they hold a unique place in your special family. They belong there, and what matters to them should matter to you. So if they bring you a problem - a bully at school or a tough test ahead - talk to them. Listen to them. Maybe you faced the same predicament as a child and know that it's not a big deal.. But to them right now, that problem is a big deal - maybe the biggest one they've faced so far in their lives.


3. Embrace your children.

One of the best ways to give your children that sense of belonging is to hug them - even when they wiggle out of your arms. Hugs are therapeutic and give children acceptance, love, and warmth. Studies even say that they reduce the risk of sickness and disease!


4. Love your wife.

A sense of security comes to a child who sees his father love his mother. They need that security!

Love your wife unconditionally, uncompromisingly, sacrificially, continuously and your marriage will blossom ...and your children will blossom too.


5. Respect your child's thoughts, feelings, and dreams.

Please, guard your tongue. Don't let the words, "That's a dumb idea. That's stupid." come out of your mouth. If you had come up with that idea, maybe it would have been dumb. But since your child did, it's the best one you've ever heard!


6. Keep your promises.

Be careful of the promises you make. Love says, "I will never break my promise." So, again, you have to watch your tongue. Get it under control, and don't commit to something you can't make good on. When you say you'll do something, do it!

Keeping promises also builds trust. When your children have grown up and are no longer under your care, they'll be able to trust God because you paved the way. Your behavior can offer them a glimpse of their Heavenly Father!


7. Encourage your children.

"Fathers, don't exasperate your children" . In other words, encourage them! You can do that through kind words - like, "You're so smart." "You're a thoughtful child." "I'm proud to be your father." You can also do that through your actions. So, smile at them! Give them more hugs! Sometimes it's easy for us as parents to forget that our kids aren't little adults - they're children. They don't have all the skills grown-ups do. So, when your daughter knocks over the lamp in the living room, for example, show her understanding. Don't discourage her, and don't rebuke her for being uncoordinated or clumsy - her body just isn't done growing.

Happy Father's Day!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qE13deI4uaM

Character

Been reading the book 'Who You Are When No One's Looking' by Bill Hybels, one of my fave writer. Definitely the book makes it to my fave list too. It doesn't take much for a book to be nominated in my A-list.. not too thick, reasonable sized fonts, well spaced (the wider the space between the lines the better), content is light, yet biblical and practical with few hints (or more) of humour. Alright, maybe it does take much.. :)

Anyway back on track, I came across this powerful phrase while I was still a young Christian and was really taken back by it. The complete phrase was this: Character is who you are when no one but God is looking. Till this day, it still speaks a great deal to me and I'm really grateful for a book written about it. Highly recommended!

Fight or Flight

Honestly, 100% of the time I'd rather choose Flight.. When faced with a tough situation, I'd prefer to either run away or pretend the problem is not there or try to do something only to give up all too soon. It's an easy way out I guess..

Running away or pretending the problem isn't there doesn't make the problem go away unfortunately. It only means a delay in dealing with the problem and sometimes the delay makes things even worse.

Giving up all too soon means missing out on the opportunity the situation brings. Thinking back, one of my proud achievement is actually to be able to ski. Learning to ski was unbelievably difficult (a contrast to how easy it seems) and I was already at the edge of giving up. But somehow I managed to stick to it and didn't give up. And boy! how I'm glad I didn't.
I would also consider my work assignment in Japan as one of my toughest point in my life. There were countless times when all I wanted to do was just throwing in the towel. But staying on and keep fighting at those two situations actually stretched me beyond what I thought I could do.

This needs to be my constant reminder: Be courageous, face the problem and keep fighting.

The Good Samaritan

Back in the good old Perth, I was driving slowly out of car park tonite when suddenly a pick-up car behind me signalled me to stop. A very nice young couple inside it pointed to me that I have a flat tyre. Then they went on to ask me if I needed any hand to change the tyre or not. And they did help me doing the whole thing, coz actually I had no idea whatsoever how to change a car tyre (I probably know now after standing there the whole time watching the guy doing everything).

I must say that their act of kindness touched my heart soooo deeply, especially when I found out later that they're Christian. This is truly what sharing God's love is about. I guess for me action always speaks louder than words. If a person says that s/he loves me, but her/his action doesn't reflect that, then the words are just hollow to me. But a help extended to a stranger in need, sacrificing time and energy without expecting anything in return.. man! you don't need to say a word about love, coz I could see it all clearly.

It is this sacrificial love that I received tonite that reminded me once again about my first love with Jesus and of what He wants me to do as His follower.. and the same love I'm praying will give a nudge in the heart of my mom and sis who were with me tonite.. that they may feel God's love through this act of kindness.
May the Lord bless that lovely couple abundantly...

Noticing the Unnoticed

My workmate, GC, showed me this interesting link today:
http://www.publicartaroundtheworld.com/Impossible_Triangle_Sculpture.html

For a few moment, I couldn't even recognize the place, although I have actually passed through that round-about with the sculpture many many times.
Well, apparently there's an intelligent idea behind this sculpture, rather than just a random steel shape *doh* Quoted from the website above:
"the trick or illusion of this clever design is that if you wander around it long enough you will find a spot where the sculpture will give the illusion of being a perfect triangle."

Now I can't wait to get back to Perth and wander around it to find the perfect triangle..let's just hope I don't have to spend one whole day to figure it out. If I'm in good mood, I might post my finding here later.