Short story 3

Yet another story I was inspired to write. The names, events and characters are purely fictional and any resemblance are purely conincidential.

It is a beautiful morning with a lovely sunshine. Children are playing at the park, and Jack is watching them playing, sitting nearby. It is school holiday.
And then there is a child crying at the playground while the others continue playing, ignoring him.
Jack, who is concerned for the child, walked towards him and asked "What is wrong, kid?"
"Those kids made fun of me!" replied the child.
"Oh, don't let that take away your joy, my child." said Jack "They can make fun of you all they want, but you must not let it bother you. Otherwise you will always be upset whenever they make fun of you. Be strong. Come, talk with me. My name is Jack, you can call me Uncle Jack"
The child answered "My name is Tony, Uncle Jack"
And so, the child Tony and Jack became friends from that day onwards.
Every morning, during the school holidays, Tony would always go to the park, the usual place to chat with Jack. Even when school reopens, Tony would have meet and chat with Jack before going to school. Although Jack was an old man, Tony gets along very well with him. Tony's father left him when he was a baby, and Tony's mother had to work long hours to provide adequately for him.
Jack had been like a father to Tony. Their friendship grows day by day.
Years passed. One morning, Tony went to meet Jack at the usual place, but Jack did not come. He waited and waited. Then a young man came, and asked "Are you Tony?"
"Yes" replied Tony. "I am Edmund, Jack's son." replied the young man "I am sorry, Jack won't be here again. You see, he passed away last night. Doctor said it was heart attack."
Tony was saddened by the news. At school, the class teacher notice his sad countenance, went and talk to him. When she learned about what happened, she said to Tony "Don't be sad. Jack is in a better place now. I have known him for many years. He is a good man"
Many years passed, and now Tony is now an old man. He was sitting at the park, watching the children play. And then there was a little girl crying at the playground. Tony walked towards the little girl, and asked "What is wrong, dear?"
The little girl replied "Those kids made fun of me"
"Oh don't let that take away your joy, dear" replied Tony "They can make fun of you, but you must not let it bother you, otherwise you will always be upset whenever they make fun of you. Be strong. Come talk to me. My name is Tony, you can call me Uncle Tony"
The little girl then saw Tony carrying a bouquet of flowers.
"Those flowers, they are beautiful" said the little girl.
"Yes, they are" said Tony. "They are for a good friend. Today is an anniversary of our friendship"
"Where is your friend now?" asked the little girl.
Tony replied "Oh, he is in a better place now. I have known him for many, many years. He is a good man".

Time to re-examine yourselves during these tough times

These are challenging times
Companies are restructuring
People are being retrenched
Jobs are hard to get
Worse of all, a new threat just came
In the form of H1N1
Which is a worldwide threat

It is precisely at this time
You need to take a deep look a yourself
If or when problems arises
There is no point in blaming others for the problems that occured
Yes, others may contribute to the problem
But we cannot change others
We can change ourselves

We can change for the better
We can find out how we ourselves contribute to the problem
And change ourselves
It is time look at ways to improve ourselves
To prevent us from contribute to the problem again
We can learn from our experiences

Do not bear grudges, or give in to anger
For a heart full of love
Is better than
A heart full of hatred
For a heart full of love
Is much more happier than
A heart full of hatred

No one can take your joy away
Unless you allowed them to do so
But why must you allow your joy to be taken away
What was it that is worth to have your joy exchanged ?
You can be joyful even in the midst of trials
If you wanted to

There is also no point to have anxiety in your hearts
For anxiety never benefit us
Instead anxiety is harmful
Instead we must strengthen ourselves during this time
Both mentally
And physically

Instead of worrying over things
Instead of fretting over things
Find ways to improve things
Find ways to strengthen ourselves
We can use our experiences to better ourselves

Sure, there are things we cannot change
Things happened that affected us
Yes, it was not our fault that things happened to us,
But it certainly our responsibility to restore and heal ourselves
It is time to adapt
And become stronger

It is also our responsibility to keep ourselves healthy
To strengthen our immunity
We must never give up hope
For hope never disappoints
So do not let anyone take our hope away

Ode to fathers (and mothers too)

Remember our fathers
With love and respect
For us, they have worked hard
To provide for us
When we were still young

If not because of our fathers
We would not be in this world
Whatever our fathers had done to us
Whether pleasant
Or unpleasant
Remember, they have our interest at heart
For they cared for us

For those fathers who have been abusive to us
Or had abandoned us
It is time to forgive
And to restore relationship
For to restore is better than to retaliate
Restoration is an act of love
Retaliation is an act of hatred

We have but one father
We cannot change our fathers
But we can change ourselves
We can undo the damages that they had done to us
We can prove that we are better
By forgiving and restoring
For by forgiving and restoring
we can redeem the situations in which we suffered at their hands

So remember our fathers (and mothers too)
Who have worked hard for us
Show appreciation to them
With a simple act of love
With simple hugs
With simple words
With good meals, gifts and
Whatever that will lift them up
To show that you care
And appreciate them

A short story 2

Another story I was inspired to write. The names, events and characters are purely fictional and any resemblance are purely conincidential

John had always been busy. His job wasn't easy. He had to meet the demands of his employers and customers. His work also is very competitive. Many of his colleagues wanted the position he was in.

Nowadays, things are very demanding. His company was looking for ways to cut costs, and one of the ways is of course, retrenchment. So, John has to work very hard, to keep his job and his position in the company, to keep himself from being retrenched. Moreover, his colleagues always look for ways to find fault with him, to "dethrone" him from him position.
So, John had to work hard, working very long hours every day to keep his "rice bowl".

John lived with aged father. He seldom had time for his father. Yet when John was just a child, his father gave him undivied attention. His father loved and cherished him.
Well, the economic structure at that time is different. His father was just a simple clerk, but manage to provide for his needs. Not much long hours then. Life was much simple then too. John's family lived in a "kampong" area.

Well, things are different now. John always have to work long hours, thinking of provided for his father, but gave him no attention. Even when he was at home, he brought back home his work, and worked until crazy hours at night, never even said a word to his father. Everytime his father wants to talk to him, he would say "Sorry, daddy, I have to work to meet the tight deadlines,to keep the job."

Then one day, his father wanted to say something to him."Daddy, it will have to wait. I have got work to do. Deadlines to meet. I've got a presentation to make, so I have to be well prepared."
His father said "But son...." John said sternly "I said not now. CAN YOU SEE I AM BUSY??"
His father then walked away. But John caught a glimpse of his father's eyes. He saw the hurt in his father's eyes. But he got no time to think of that now. He has got work to do. Deadline to meet. Presentation to be prepared. Keep his job. Lots of things.

Months passed. John is still very busy. Deadlines to meet. Lots of work to do. No time for his father. Rice bowl to protect. Finally John was promoted to a manager of his company. John, being very happy, and wanted to tell his father about it.
He drove home, but he could not find his father. Then, in his found a piece of paper on his desk. It was a note from his father. It written months ago, the night when he talked sternly with his father. The note says that the doctor gave his father few more months to live. Then his handphone rang. It was one of his siblings. "John, you better come now to the hospital. I drove him to the hospital hours ago. I tried to contact you earlier..." John blurted..."But I was in a meeting..."
"No more excuses" said his sibling. "If you want to see father, come now, or you won't have another chance!"
John rushed to the hospital. When he reached the hospital, he saw his father lying on the hospital bed, motionless, lifeless. "Father, father, wake up. I have been promoted! Please wake up! You must see this.I have worked so hard for this!"
"Too late" said his sibling, as tears flow from his eyes. "He cannot hear you now"
Then as John was weeping, thoughts came to him. He could have spend time with his father went he had a chance.Just a small conversation is enough to show he cared. Just a little time, before work, just a little time before he started the work he had brought home,just a little time when he got home. Just a simple warm smile. Just a simple "hi", "good morning","how are you". All these will mean something to his father.
But now, he has lost the chance.

Reading comics as a hobby and the challenges

I love reading comics at a young age.
I use to admire the superheroes of the comics.
Now I am happy that some of my favourite superheroes are shown at cinemas!
I especially love some of the artworks of some of my favourite superheroes.
But reading comics can also have some challenges as well.
There are times when, the story and art was so good that the comic became a collector's item, and was so quickly out of stock.
One time, I was following a story of a particular superhero because the story and artwork is really fantastic. When the next shipment came, I rushed to the comic shop to buy the comic. And I worked at a very "ulu" place, so my journey to the shop takes about an hour or so. (Also because of traffic too), When I reached the shop, and I asked for the comic, the shopkeeper told me it was out of stock. He also said some people buy 3 to 4 of the same issue of the comic at one time.
Then, I went to another shop. Same thing happen. Out of stock.
I travelled all the way, endured the traffic jam, just to find out that the comic is out of stock. How frustrating, especially when the story is getting exciting!
Then, another challenge is that there are always delays in shipment of the comic.
I waited and waited and waited, and this is what I get, delayed shipment!
So for those comics I missed, I will have to wait for tradepaper backs(again have to wait) or buy the reordered back issues(if there is any left).
So, in reading comics, one also must have patient!
Then, another thing in reading comics is the change in artists and writers.
There is one time, I enjoyed reading one comic title, because of the great story and art. Later, the writer left. The new writer is not as good, but at least I enjoyed the great artwork. But then the artist also left. And the new artist is also not as good. He drew my superhero in a way that makes him look very "cartoon", and the superhero's girlfriend(who use to be very beautiful when the previous artist drew her) looked like "lau auntie"(old auntie). I think even my 7 year old niece can draw better than him!I then stopped buying the comic for some time, but later start collecting again because a better artist and writer took over. I enjoyed the comic for some time but then,one thing I don't like about the writer and the artist's style is that they love to drag the story into many episodes, when 1 or 2 episode is sufficient. And, one more thing I do not like about the writer, is that he likes to make the evil characters of the comic prospers. That evil character did so many bad things, and in the end he won, and the poor hero suffers, and then the whole story was dragged into many episodes! Then some of the episodes of the comics was sold out, some, have to wait because of delayed shipment, and I have to travel a long way from my workplace to the comic shops just to catch up with the story to see what happenned to the good guy, and up to now, the bad guy is still a winner!
Wah, so troublesome!
Well, as in everything, reading comics has challenges as well!Have to be patient!

Selling methods I REALLY dislike................

I remembered particular day walking around so and so shopping centre, where an exhibition is held for so and so product. Because of my curiousity, I went to take a closer look.
Then, one Uncle approached me, and said, "Hey, this is a promotion which will end today. Faster order today. You also can put down a deposit. Today offer end, you know. Tomorrow you pay more. I am not bluffing you..."
I felt a bit uncomfortable about this, partly because of the way he talk, so assertive, partly also because he had a strong cigarette smell around him and also I have to go to the toilet.
"Please, let me consider first....." Before I finish my sentence, he interupted me saying, "But today offer very good you know...."
I said, "OK, let me think about this...."
He interupted again, trying to make me buy their products or pay deposit. And he was standing in my way.
Finally, because I really have to go to the toilet, I said sternly,"Please, I need to go to the toilet, so would you PLEASE let me go?" (I did not shout, just talk in a very stern manner)
He finally let me go, but with a black face, like someone rub charcoal on his face.
Then I rushed to the toilet. What a relief!

Wah! What a way to do selling! I really dislike it. To me, it is no selling at all.
In my opinion, a sale is an exchange of goods for money between 2 parties with a WILLING MIND, not under duress or any type to pressure.

Staying hopeful

Well, all of us faced challenges almost daily, not only in workplace, but there are times we to faced challenges at the places where we think we are "safe".
I think it is important to build a foundation within ourselves to face challenges from things we cannot control.

People can say a lot of things, (well people are not perfect!)

Well, let's face it. We all grew up differently. We have different cultural backgrounds.

But whatever culture we grew up with, I believe that there is absolutely no excuse to be harsh to others if they had done you no wrong.

But then, oh well, we cannot prevent what others say to us, but we can control how we feel or how we react to what others say to us.

We can condition our thinking to think that we not as worse as what others say about us. Even if what others say about us is true, we can believe that we can change for the better.

If people called us "stupid", we can think we are not stupid, we are just "in the process of acquiring the required wisdom". We must not give up hope for ourselves, regardless of our age. There will be problems for a person who is without hope. So it is important not to give up hope.

Think positively. Learning is a lifetime process.

If people called us "ugly", we can think we are not ugly, we can think we are beautiful, but our beauty is not being appreciated by some people, perhaps due to different tastes.

Everybody makes mistakes in life. We learn from our mistakes and also from the mistakes we see others make. We learn to live with our mistake. Then we move on in life.
(Show me a person in the world who is alive who never make mistakes.Can you find one?)

We are living beings, capable of changing and adapting to the environment.
Our thoughts can affect us, but we can control our thoughts.
Always be hopeful no matter what people say to us, or how bad the situation is.

Studies shown that a hopeful person is healthier than a person without hope.
So always stay hopeful.

Recipe for Love

Ingredients:-

A lot of Patience
Plenty of Kindness
The whole Truth
Plenty of Endurance
Plenty of Perseverance
Always Hopeful
A lot of Trust (in the best)
A reasonable amount of Strength

Mix the above ingredients evenly in a blender.
Sprinkle a reasonable amount of Protection in the mixture.

Take a good amount of Flesh, and remove any Envy, Boastfulness, Pride, Rudeness, Self-seeking, Anger, Malice, Bitterness, Lying and Evil desires from the Flesh.
Clean the flesh thoroughly, and marinate the above mixture on the Flesh, until the mixture is fully absorbed into the Flesh.

Put the above into the oven and slowly adjust the heat level into Warmth, until the Fragrant of Life permeates the whole area. Then it is ready to be served, and is best served Warm.

A short story 1

This is a story I was inspired to write. The names, events and characters are purely fictional and any resemblance are purely conincidential.

James have always been patient. His friends, acquaintances and colleagues have complained and makes unkind remarks about his mother whenever they meet her. They complained about the way she talks, walks and all her gestures and mannersims. Some say she is crazy. Some say she is mad. Some say she is stupid. But his response is always the same. He would say "I have only one mother, and she is the one. I cannot change who my mother is. I will take care of her all my life, because she had taken care of me from childhood till now. I still loved her and will always will.

Brian who have been his best friend visited him one day, and because he noticed this thing for some time, asked him about this matter.

"She put up with me a lot of times when I was young. We were poor at that time" James said.
"When I fought will my classmates at school, my teachers caned me and complained to my mother, she put up with me. Though she chastened me, she was not ashamed of me or disowned me. When my grades were not good, she put up with me, though my father chastened me.
When there are not enough food on the table, she goes hungry and gave me her portion of food.
She suffered a great deal raising me up when my father passed away. "

"There was one fateful night" he continued, as tears flow from his eyes.
"It was a cold, very cold night. Our blankets have worn out, we've got no money to buy new ones. My mother covered herself around me to warm me, and with the last bit of blanket left she used it to cover me. The next morning, my mother was ill. She had a fever, a very high fever. We have no money to get medicine or see a doctor. Finally a kind neighbour brought my mother to the hospital. But then it was a bit too late. The fever was so severe that it damaged her brains.
That is why she behaves kind of weird and people always criticize her."
James continued "I got help from one of my cousins later on for my education and finally got a scholarship. I landed in a good job. I regret that my mother did not see all these in her right mind. But no matter what, I will take care of her. No matter how repulsive her behaviour or how embarassed she made me, I will still love her because she is my mother, and she took care of me when I am young. I will continue to get good doctors for her for her recovery"

Brians now understands the situation. "Ok" says Brian. "If you need any help, I will gladly provide it"

"Thanks" says James.

Cycling on the sidewalk - Irksome mannerism

I was walking the bus stop one day, and finally the bus that I waited for arrived. Then.....Whooshhh!!...a cyclist surge from out of nowhere behind me, almost hitting me, and went on his way! Though I am not harmed, but I got a shock and very agitated about this!
I mean, the cyclist could have been more considerate and not sneaking from behind me like that!!
He should be more careful and not dash through the sidewalk/pavement. It is dangerous. There are no traffic lights on the sidewalk you know? Imagine one cyclist knock down another cyclist on the sidewalk!??
I am quite concerned about this. I have walk on many sidewalks , and faced the same thing, cyclist almost knock on me. I have exercised care to look around for cars, motorcycles when crossing the road, but now, I must also be watchful when I walk at the sidewalk!??
What if the one who is walking is not me, but a child or a pregnant lady?? Will they get a shock too?? Is getting a shock good for them??

The art of thankfulness

The attitude of thankfulness is really an asset. It costs you nothing, but you have everything to gain from it.
The attitude of thankfulness allays or even prevents us from envy, bitterness or anger.
The attitude of thankfulness makes us a lot more happier.
There are always something to be thankful of no matter how bad the situation is.
This world we lived in is not perfect, but...well, we still have a world to live in!(At least this world is liveable as compared to Jupiter, Mars, Uranus etc)
A person with no shoes can be thankful that he still have a pair of legs and able to walk.
A person with no hat can be thankful he still have a head.
A person who is blind can also be thankful that he can still hear, that he can focus on hearing beautuful tunes, melodies etc.
A person who is deaf can also be thankful that he can still see.
Even a person dying of cancer can be thankful for the time spent meaningfully during the last days with loved ones!
The point is:- Why focus on the things that we do not have or unpleasant things in the world and be angry and miserable? Instead be thankful for what we have, what we still have, and what we are going to have?
Think the best of everyone and everything.
This makes life a lot more happier.

Talk is cheap......OR NOT!!!

There is a saying that talk is cheap. Well, I think in some case, talk is NOT CHEAP, but COSTS A LOT!!

There is also a saying that, a problem shared is a problem halved, but in my opinion, this is true only if you share it with the right person/people and at the right time. If you share your problems with a person who have a habit of making fun of people then the problem shared is the problem doubled!!!

Words once spoken cannot be taken back. And especially if the words are not used tactfully and carefully. Even if the intentions are for good, but if wrong choices of words are used, it can have a very bad effect or even be counterproductive.

For example, if a person, who is feeling down, wants to talk it out with someone he/she trusts, but if wrong choices of words are used to console or advice, whether intentionally or not, this can damage the friendship or in some cases, even ended it. Because the person who is feeling down trusted the other for consolation/comfort, he/she will feel disappointed/betrayed if the words used are hurtful. And even if the person who is in the wrong is forgiven, he/she will lose the respect and admiration he/she once enjoyed. And it is very difficult or even impossible to win them back.

Word spoken rashly in anger also can do much damage. People can say things they don't really mean in anger, so it is very important to be careful with words, especially in angry situations.
A person can even say wrong things in happy times, especially while joking with friends.
The words may be meant as a joke, but the words used can hurt others unintentionally.
The impression of the person in others can be changed merely by the words spoken.

Some people have baggages in their lives, and if the words spoken (unintentionally) that touched those areas of hurt, then the words can be offensive.

So, think before speaking. It is better to remain silent than to say the wrong words and then try to take it back.

Well, talk is not cheap! It can be very expensive, that even money cannot resolve it!
It can ruin friendship, destroy relationships, destroy reputation and many other things!

Why I slept very little some nights

Nowadays, well the weather is so warm, that even at night, we all still felt it.
Well, that's mother nature, and nobody can do anything to change that!
But humans also can contribute to that too.
Well, one night, I remembered that I have to be up early
the next morning, so I went to bed early at night at about 9pm.
But then, there are some events happening downstairs my block, and it was so noisy.
The music was so loud and not soothing. Everyone downstairs were like shouting, and having a good time while I struggled to get some sleep! That went on until almost 11pm.
Finally, when it was over, I thought, wah now at least I can sleep now. But then I can't get to sleep, probably due to the frustration felt earlier about the noise downstairs.
Just as I was about to close my eyes, then "Vroommmmmm!!! A group of motorcycles dashed though the streets, as if there was a race going on. This lasted for some time.
I thought, hey, why is the sound of the engines so loud! Did they modify the engines or what?
Why are they, at this hour of the night, making so much noise, having a good time at the expense of others!
After the motorcycles have gone, another source of noise came and this time from sports-cars!
These sports cars dashed through the street, and the sound of the engines of the cars was so loud, I think they disturbed the whole neighbourhood! Sometimes they came also during the daytime! I began to have concerns about the safety of the kids crossing the road when I think of these motorists!! They had fun at the expense of others and also at the risk of others' lives!! Another type of IRKSOME MANNERISM!!
Later, the a sound of a BIIGG motorcycle engine at the carpark under my block, making so much loud noise like "Brp! Brp! Brp!". The bike went round and round the carpark, for a long time, blaring away.
Wah, tough time sleeping! I looked at my alarm clock, and man, it was already late in the night, and I've got only very little time left to sleep!
I managed to catch some sleep, but didn't felt enough!
The next morning, I had a desire to drink 2 cups of kopi gau!