An old indian parable that i read today (Light in the shadow of Jihad, Ravi Zacharias) that carried a profound message that i would like to share. Stay with me, i promise it'll be interesting.

A man in one village loved a woman in another village. One day she said to him, "If you really want my love, you will have to prove to me that you love me more than anyone else." He assured her that this was already the case. "Oh no," she said, "you love your mother more than you love me." As the dialogue went back and forth, he asked her what it would take to prove to her that he loved her more than anyone else. "Bring me your mother's heart in your hand," she insisted.

In anguish, the man wrestled with her demand and his love for his mother. In a frenzied moment, wanting desperately to win her, he killed his mother. Wrenching her heart out of her body, he clasped it against him and began to run across the miles to give it to the woman whose love he wanted.

But as he ran through a section of the woods, he stumbled and fell. The heart flew out of his hands, and when he got up, he could not find it. He searched frantically on the ground until he finally found it. As he stood and brushed the dirt from his hands and knees, suddenly he heard a quiet voice coming from the heart, "Son, are you hurt? Son, are you hurt?"

i cant start to tell you how much i cried after i read this. the writer explained his meaning in the ensuing paragraphs. from the cross of Jesus Christ strikes a resemblance. we had Him all pierced because of our foolishness. we dont want to accept that we are sinners and have fallen short of the glory of God, we dont want to accept His teachings because it's too hard and we just wanna live our own lives, play by our own rules. following Christ would mean other people laughing and mockng us, callng us 'Jesus Freaks'. but yet, in the midst of Him being crucified, we hear His quiet voice asking us, "Are you hurt? Are you hurt?"

in actual fact, we do hurt. and we are hurting deeply. because of loss of loved ones, failed relationships, unsuccessful acheivements, goals and dreams. uncertainties and our insecurities. but healing can begin when we receive forgivenss and pursue the future God's way, not ours. let Him help us with this 'game of life'. He has purchased you with the blood of His Son, and there is nothing that will ever keep you away from God, and how much he loves you. the way of life is through the Cross. there, hearts are changed, one at a time, and life, love and peace replace death and hate. no one's forcing anyone to accept Christ, but if ever, you feel really really hurt and have no-where and no-one to run to, try running to Jesus at the Cross. like they say, if you never try, you'll never know. take care and God bless!

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY SRI!!!

so, happy belated birthday sri! and also a happy deepavali to everyone. the usual gang went out for a dinner at Cicerellos after the longest time since we have ever seen each other(thanks row, im not slow, just sleepy okay!). the usual suspects, sri, faz, kailin, rick and tina. i remember we met at 6pm and i didnt reach home till 12. goes to show how much time flies in the company of friends. it was really nice to just hang out again. i rememebered my best and happiest times in Perth was also with these crazy people.

man, kailin finishes this sem, and the rest of us finishes next year. how fast time flies! sigh, i wonder where we all will be after we grad, even more so, will we ever see each other again? i think the whole idea of international students coming together to study is a cruel cruel deal. we make good friends from different countries, which is fantastic, but at the end of it all, we are all made to say our goodbyes and back to where we came from, and probably, the paths we take will never cross again. emo man, emo.

actually, its been a really tough semester. alot of downs this semester. but i hold dear to the promise made in Romans 5:2-5.

"And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we rejoice in our sufferings, because we know suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not dissapoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy spirit, whom He has given us."

its hard to have fallen in love, made a fool, and pretend nothing has happened. indeed, i am laying down my arms and running helplessly to Yours because i have nowhere else to run. life's tough for those who've been through what im goin through, but God's good, and that's enough. *smile*

back to basics...

Back to Basics...

apologies to many people, i know, i know, the last i blogged was in july. haha, just that i never did got the time to sit down and ramble on with my thoughts. not that i have the time now, i've got exam on monday and assignment due on wednesday, but see how i prioritise my time...all of you should learn from me...

figured i should change my backdrop, back to basics, and to my fave colour, pink! whee! well, i put in a few photos, for your pleasure...

family portriat - me, yvonne, stefanny, christy.

my dearest peachkins (centre, iman) left for med sch, dont go breakin all the boys' hearts!

another of my dearest left, sarah-jane, will miss all the times we sang and played the piano together, see you back in spore and dont you dare go apply for a green card and dont come back!

alrighty, the time i allocated myself to do this has run out...till then, i shall leave you with a song that just makes me listen to it over again and again and again...

When did you Fall -Chris Rice

You're all smiles and silly conversation As if this sunny day came just for you You twist your hair, you smile and you turn your eyes away C'mon, tell me what's right with you? Now it dawns on me probably everybody's talkin’ And there's something here I'm supposed to realize 'Cause your secret's out, and the universe laughs at it's joke on me I just caught it in your eyes, it's a beautiful surprise

When did you fall in love with me? Was it out of the blue? 'Cause I swear I never knew it When did you let your heart run free? Have you been waiting long? When did you fall in love with me? When did you fall in love?

Make your way over here, sit down by this fool, and let’s rewind C'mon, let's go back and replay all our scenes You can point out the hints, the clues, the twists and the smiles this time All the ones that slipped by meI bet my face is red, and you can hear my heart poundin’ Well I guess it don't matter now that I realize 'Cause baby I missed it then, but I can surely see you now Right there before my eyes You're my beautiful surprise

Was it at the coffee shop? Or that morning at the bus stop? When you almost slipped, and I caught your hand? Or the time we built the snowman? The day at the beach, sandy and warm? Or the night with the scary thunderstorm? I never saw the signs Now we've got to make up for lost time And I can tell now by the way that you're looking at me I'd better finish this song so my lips will be free

Have you been waiting long, when did you fall in love? I kept you waiting so long, when did you fall? Have you been waiting long? When did you fall in love with me? When did you fall in love?

5 days left...

well. lets see. till now, i dont feel like im ready to go back to studyin. but sch starts next week howwwww? someone just kidnap me and take me to the bahamas or something.....eish!

durin the first week, i managed to complete leen's present (pinkie operation! remember?) such a joy i tell you! although i was working thru the day and slept at 5am at most nights just to complete it by saturday night. and the end result? my dearest eileen cried! Aww! i actually felt so bad cos her bday was on april 20th and i only gave it to her recently. im like 3 months late laa! but she was still touched! it was so cool! i will try to steal the book from her to take pics and i will post it up. i know some are interested to see how their pages turn up in the end. Patience! and also, i want to thank those who took the time to meet up with me, pen down your wishes, take a pic and do a short clip for eileen, i really thank you, it really meant so much to her. it really gave me great joy to see her so happy. i mean, i couldn have done it without you guys. THANK YOU *smile* (you should go ask eileen to show you the present and tell me what you think!)

i remembered taking the mrt during one of the earliest days this hol, and i was staring out into the window and looking at everything. i had al green, let's stay together playin on my discman, reading my book by piers anthony, it was just nice. like it was nice to be alive. nice to know that i could appreciate all these things in life, to see, to smell, to read, to imagine, and to me importantly, to dance. Sometimes we just take them for granted. yup, im blessed! just a recollection.

oh yes, i visited my hairdresser. i asked for nice big curls, but i kinda look like a cauliflower now. eish! i never knew how much my life depended on her. sigh, i guess i have to live with it. all those who tell me its nice, i thank you for being too kind.

so thats the first week, second week, i spent most of my time with my aunt and uncle who came for a visit from norway. and then last week, after sending them back on tuesday, i came down with high fever and flu and spent 4 days on bed. it was SO terrible!! omg. i wanted to do so much but i got freakin ill! eish!

well, its my last week and i still haven met up with alot of people i miss! oh dear! oh dear! i guess we'll just have to wait till christmas. Ooo, i love christmas! i like walkin down orchard road, just looking at the lights, its niceee. Mmm, christmassssssss. i so want christmas.

alright, back on track, ive completed the whole 7 books of the incarnations of immortality! awesome! after the 5th book on nature, i thought the ending was SO good. the satan one after was abit hard to get past the first few chapters for some reason and the last one on God, was defintely blasphemous but it was alright. i guess i preferred the endin for mother nature. it was SO touching laa!!! sri quickly read so we can so talk about it! i really liked the whole idea of how incarnations are offices held by normal people and i kept thinking as i read the book, why hasn anyone done a movie on it?! then again, no movie can compare to the original, oh well. maybe one day. i'll ask ryan to read and then make the movie. im sure he'll do a good job.

so there, i guess this last week would be settling my own stuff like visiting the dentist (im so deaddd), gettin new specs (im so blind, its all education's fault), gettin stationary, hm, what else, not too sure at the moment, im sure i have other rubbish to do. alrighty, any more meals anyone? smile. take care, God bless!

home sweet home

alrighty, im back in singland for about 1 month before i go back. this break is desparately needed and its really sweet to be home. cant wait to meet up with all my friends and will be postin some photos hopefully if i have the time. exams totally sucked big time, so hopefully i'll be able to pass all my units and havin the thought of re-taking any of them is...eish! dont wanna think bout that. whee! cant wait to take on all the food ive been missing for the longest time. so anyone who wants to go luching or dinnerin with me, feel free to call me out ya? see you guys soon! take care and God bless!

to ryan: yup, i read your msn msg, and in all honesty, if you STILL dont get her by tuesday, you are the biggest dope i ever know. dont fail me, my child. haven i taught you anything? haha, all the best! much love from singapore! keep me updated yupyup! (:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRINE!!!

*sings out loud*ahem*

Happy birthday to you...

Happy birthday to youuuuu...

Happy birthday my dear (beautiful-loving-crazy-adorable-strong-sensitive-poor cousin who lives with knut and especially asbjorn ) TRINE...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!! :)

min kjær trine, glad glad glad fødselsdag!!! kan all Deres drømer kommer sann. hus at jeg elsker De. fra Deres babysøskenbarn, shelby!

oh yah, remember, we live for the beautiful nonsense. missing you very very much! *muacks* have fun hon!

this entry is for you.

my dearest dearest baby girl. i wish that i could be there to hold you through the night as you cry your heart out. i know that it hurts so bad and its tearing you apart. i know that you just want to end the pain. i know how it feels to have loved someone so much and have them love you back and suddenly things change. im really really sorry things have to happen this way. i know you still love him very much but things have changed. girl, you have to be strong. you have to pick yourself up again. you have to learn how to trust again. i believe that God has bigger plans for you. you just have to believe. i know memories are hard to let go, but only time can heal. always remember that there are so many family and friends around you who care very much. i love you very much and it hurts me so to see you cry like that over the phone and i cannot do anything. darling, you have to just let him go. it's not going to be easy, but i promise that i'll with you every step of the way. know that i love you. very much *hug*