My book of 'Daily Bread' finally arrived yesterday. I read one of the pages and found one truly meaningful.

Here it goes, ``A comforter's ability to help is not so much his talent for using words as it is his capacity to be sympathetic.``

This struck so much thought into me. Many a times, we found ourselves trying so hard to give encouragement and pieces of advice to those who are in distress. Yet we failed to realise that sometimes being silent is already more than enough to the one who need it. A listening ear and a shoulder to cry on. I've heard this many times.. from different friends who walked in and out of my life. But the question is, "Who really live up to it?" None, including myself. We are used to the busy and isolated lives which we lead individually. I realised i've been neglecting too many people.. and sometimes i dont even know what advices or comments to offer to those who need my help.

I guess what she needs now is sympathy. I hope she will get over her distress..somehow, i know she will.

``[S] y m p a t h y [i] s [t] w o [h] e a r t s [t] u g g i n g [a ]t [o] n e [l] o a d.``

October 29`2005. This day finally arrives after much anticipation and long waiting. It is the day of Francis' baptism! :-)

Early in the morning and afternoon, i was filled with worries. Bcos he could not wake up again!! This problem has been continuing for months.. nearly years. I tried calling him so many times until i fed up. Finally, i decided to give it a last try when i was in the train. haha.. he finally picked up and from his sleepy n unwilling tone, i could sense tt he just woke up. yea.. the time was1.30 pm. But at least he managed to make it on time to attend the chn's cell. ^_^

Before the start of service, Gary and i went to collect a bouquet of flowers from a nearby florist. I was told to present the bouquet of flowers to Francis after he gave the baptism message. I was so shocked!! I felt really scared man... imagine, there were so many ppl at the youth service and i had to walk up the stage to present him the flowers! my jaw nearly dropped.

Then service started.. i managed to take a glimpse of him submerging in water.. haha.. i was so excited tt i immediately held felicia's hand and sccrreamed, "It's Francisss!!!" At the end of the ceremony, he was invited to the stage to give a message. It was touching.. but while he was reading, my mind was also thinking abt what am i going to do later.. i was anxious and scared.

Finally when his message was coming to an end, I stood up and walked to him. (haha.. luckily it's not walking up the stage!) i presented a bouquet of flowers to him. ^_^ His brothers let him sit on their arms, and they began to 'carry' him back to his seat. haha..

We had our dinner at octopus again.. ya.. same food.. chap chai png. After eating, we decided to play sth wild.. at the same time we can burn off our fats... and tt was to play hide-&-seek!!!!! hahahaa it has been a long time since i played the laSt time.. haha.. but we could not tahan after 2 rounds. We have aged. No longer have the energy to run around like a mad woman. hahas.

Gonna slp now. Tt's all folks!

I'm now blogging in my sis' house.. haha.. it's the last week of my holidays hence im able to stay over at her house to keep her company. haha.. I had a great time with my niece! she's sOo adorable.. just like her girl-yi (hey tt's me!) hahahaha. oh no.. im too bhb liao.

Anyway, i went to visit Francis in the afternoon. His mom whipped up delicious dishes for our lunch! haha.. im so glad tt she's coming to service on sat! Becos Francis is baptising on Sat.. hence uncle and her are coming down to witness this significant ceremony.

Francis is so blessed. He is going to be baptised in just three days time! I wonder when will be mine.. i guess i've to wait till i turn 21. But it's alrite.. i noe the day will come.

I think Francis has been working too hard. imagine, working from 5pm till 5am. 12 hrs. And this continues for 3 days. My gosh. Thank God tt we still have some time for each other. We are contented enough even if it was just a simple meet up for lunch or dinner. I'm glad tt sch is starting next week.. at least he needs not struggle so hard. hAha :p

Yeah.. im going to Orchard tml.. Gonna go sHoPpInG with my sis & niece~~ haha.. :D

I am finally enjoying my holidays now. No longer need to wake up early in the mornin for work. Yea.. and this lasts for a week only.. bcos' sch is starting next week!!!!! OMG!! haha

21st Oct is my last day at MHDC. Sad but felt a sense of accomplishment. I felt sad as i am parting with my chn. I will miss the good and bad times.the times when;

* I sprayed water at them with a hose during water play.
* they offered me a 'cake' which was made from sand.
* i sat on a swing and was pushed to and fro by them.
* they help me complete my sentence when i was halfway scolding them.
* they presented me a drawing full of super heros fighting (??!!)
* we worship God with songs and praises.
* we prayed for the rain to stop (so tt we can go playground!)
* they hug me when i needed love.
... and the list goes on...

"Tcher Germaine, where are you going?"
I replied sadly, "School."
"Huh, so big liao got go school ar?"
and they started laughing away...

Tt's chn. living in their innocent world and don't even noe how cruel the outside world can be. How i wish they will always carry this kind of innocence with them..

I'm glad i persevered and finished the will of God. I fell..many times.. but stood up again. Each time i fell, people ard me had given me endless support, love and assurance tt i need. Most imptly, He was there. He has proven to be faithful.

My life in MHDC has just ended. But a new life is awaiting for me.. my new semester in ech & i'm determined to strive hard. ^_^

The day finally arrives after much waiting and waiting... I'm finally 18!!! haha.. I had a great celebration today with my DMN sweeties and Francis. :-)

We had a congregation in the afternoon. After attending the congre, the DMNs led me to a room at Daniel Hall and Juan started to tell me to close my eyes as she wants to pray for me. I listened to her and did what she instructed. Then they popped a cake out in front of me and sang a b'day song. tt's so sweet of them! After blowing out the candle, they told me to look under the table. There was a huge pile of trash bags. They told me to open it and said tt it's a BIG gift. I opened and saw Francis inside! haha.. He came out of those blackie trash bags and presented a bouquet of flowers before me! haha.. Thanks so much for the surprise!

After service, Francis and I went to SUntec City to have our dinner. After eating, we continued to stay there to have a talk. We shared views about our lives, and also the vision tt we want to see in future. It has been a long time since we have this kind of sharing and i really treasured every moment. Thank God for everything.

I pre-celebrated my b'day with meiyi, peng & ling today! We met at Bugis in the evening and went to Oasis Board Game Cafe.

We played with various board games and had a great laugh. haha.. I really cherished the time tt i had with me.. All of us are now in different courses and it is really hard to meet up or chat. Frankly speaking, i don't know when can we ever meet up like this after today's celebration. Nevertheless, we treasured and made full use of the time we had.

We played, chatted and took a number of photographs together! It is a pity that xian could not join us.. if not im sure it would be more fun. But it is ok.. i'm thankful tt the rest set aside their time to celebrate with me. haha.. I look forward to the coming more outings tt we will have!

I had a great time with Shiping, Peiling & Karen today! It was so sweet and nice of them to make themselves available to celebrate my b'day with me.

When all of us arrived, we went to have our dinner at Marche. There was quite a lot of people.. It was out of my expect as i thought nobody would go there during a weekday. Anyway, we were lucky to get ourselves a good seat and we started ordering the food. It did not appear to be a lot of food but somehow we were just too full.. really have to start exercising now. haha

After finishing our food, Karen and Peiling went to buy something. And the table left Shiping & me. We started talking about school and stuffs like tt when Karen & Peiling suddenly popped out with a 'cake' and birthday song! The 'cake' was actually a crepe with chocolate ice-cream and bananas! Isn't it a best combination?! haha.. i was so surprised and elated! We shared the crepes and had a great time taking photographs here and there. haha

Thank you girl for the wonderful b'day celebration tt you had planned for me! I really appreciate it and am thankful for everything u've done! Thank you! :-)

This will be my last week working in my childcare. I felt sad and a sense of unbear. One month has just passed by so quicky.. so quick tt i was unable to know every imdividual in depth. The teacher to chidlrne ratio is too huge. I could not pay attention to each and everyone. I cant imagine splitting into 19 parts for each of them. haha.. tt will be hilarious. How i wish i can photocopy myself into 19copies for them. haha. ok, enough of nonsense.

I was really shocked at some of my children's abilities. During lesson time, they seemed so heck care. They did not seem to pay attention to what i taught. I was really wrong to underestimate them. One by one, i called those chn (those who often deemed by me as SIS - staring in space) up to sit with me. I tested them by giving them a lot of flash cards and instructed them to match the pictures with the word labels. All of them could do it with ease! Wa.. it really shocked me man. Never did i expect them to be so good in their language. haha. Thank God.

Several days ago, Karen told me a story abt her fren. It's really sad. It seems like all the burdens are landed on her now. After hearing the story, i realised one thing. Trials are inevitable in our lives. Who have not met trials before? Everyone had, and will continue to have. It depends on ourselves whether we want to face it bravely or lead a life full of misery. We have a choice. I guess what she really needs now is God.
``Pain is inevitable. But misery is optional.``

I realised that i have not been posting for the last four days. I've been pretty busy with my work and other stuffs. Well, here's a recap of what I did during these few days.

Last Sunday, Francis and I went out with Juan and Simon. We went to a board game shop at Bugis. It's fun!! haha.. we played with a couple of board games.. haha.. the most exciting one is the card game with a bell (forgot the name liao). haha.. Fran kept on losing.. we had no choice but to let him win by putting the bell closer to him.. hahaha. I enjoyed this outing. It allows Fran and I to spend time together and to understand each other better. It's been a long time since we last went out. Thank God tt He has given Juan and Simon to help us out in our r/s. I believe through God and both of them, our r/s will be strengthened and become stronger! I look forward to the coming outings!

As usual, i was serving the children from mon-fri. This week's teaching was great! Neither did i lose my temper easily nor screamed at them. I tried my best to remain calm. I thank God for speaking through Fran and Xueli. His kindness is all you need. His power is strongest when u're weak.These two sentences really spoke to me so much. Thanks Xue!

Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. This is so real. I realised tt being calm and less frustrated, we will be more aware of a person's strengths. We tend to pay more attn to one's weakness rather than strengths. No wonder nothing can ever satisfy us. A thought struck me, "When someone sins against me, will i shun away from him? Or will i forgive and value his presence?" The answer is obvious. Of course it's the latter. But am i able to master it? I used to doubt my ability. But God has set my heart free and i did it. One child has always been getting on to my nerves. Lathargic, bo chap, rude. These three words were used to describe him previously. I dun like him and he hates me too. But things got a change for the better! I tried my best to see his strengths and appreciate him. I talked and humoured with all the most exaggerating facial expressions i could ever displayed. He laughed.. and he looks so sweet! I realised tt attention is what he yearns for. I felt guilty and sad for him when i knew his family background. I felt so relieved tt he's now more obedient in class. At least, he listens to instructions. Thank God.

Dear God,
help me to see each
of my children as
uncut diamonds.
Needing only enough pressure
to knock off the rough edges
so that the brilliance You have
placed in each of their hearts
will always shine through.

I built a guard in my heart
I wanted to protect myself ,
away from any rejection or ignorance.
I tried so hard.
I wanted to make them understand.
Yet they couldnt.
Now, I want to be still.
I want to soar with You.
Please, unlock my guard
so that I can do Your will.
God, I need You now.

Our DMN bbq has finally arrived! Woohoo! All of us have been looking forward to this bbq for a long time. We were sad tt Florence and liwen could not join us.. but nevertheless, they are always on our minds.

After my work, I hurriedly rushed home to wash up and went to Jasmine's house. Woo! I love her house! It's neat, spacious and nice! The four of us (Juan, Felicia, Jasmine and myself) started marinating the chicken and fish. haha.. actually im not very good at it.. first time doing.. but thank God it turns out well. (at least it's edible and presentable). haas

We reached the bbq pit at around 7 and we started the fire. We had fun bbq-ing and eating the food. Don't ever give me sweet potatoes again! I'm tired of eating them le!! They tasted very good initially.. but when I ate the second one, i got tired of it. It looks like a granite lo! haha.. so big and round. haha.. Juan ate 3 of them. She lost. She said she wanted to finish 5 of them. haha.. We even joked tt she may dream of many sweet potatoes piling up on her. hahas

When we're bored of the confined bbq pit, we (Xueli, Felicia, Jessie, Jasmine and myself) went to the pool to wash our feet. haha.. ok, it seems gross but it's really fun and relaxing to feel the water! We were so tempted to go down for a swim! haha.. The fun part was when the security guard came.. we pretended tt we weren't doing anything and Jessie even led us to a jog around the condo. haha.. i think e security guard must be thinking tt we're nuts.

We had an absolutely enjoyable bbq today! Thank God for the wonderful time tt He had set aside for us to fellowship with each other. We were also blessed to have Dellia with us! I look forward to tml's cell and service. And oh yes, tml is Lord's Supper again! Hallelujah!

-=They light up my world=-

Last Sat was Children's Day! haha.. My childcare celebrated it on fri and we had such great fun!

That morning, I left my house early to buy sweets and chocolates for the chn in my class. When i reached the class, I packed them inside the goodie bags. The chn kept on asking me their faces immediately lighted up with joy when they knew it's for them! haha

After their assembly, we started our various rounds of exciting games. These include "pin a nose", "blow wind blow", "the passing game". The last yet exciting game is the stepping balloons game. The teachers even joined the chn in the game! I was scared out of my wits!! All the bursting sounds of the balloons gave me goosebumps! The chn are awesome.. they weren't scared at all! haha..

After the games, we had a sumptuous and full lunch. It's a buffet style and many chn went for rounds and rounds. This is indeed my first time seeing them eating soOO much! Normally they will give me excuses like they are very full or don't feel like eating so as to escape their bowl of rice/noodle. But apparently, no eating problems occurred today! haha.. chn are indeed excellent actors and actresses.

It's great to celebrate children's day with them. It's been a long time since i celebrated this occasion.. cos im no longer a kid. So sad rite.. Happy Children's Day to all the children in the world! Definitely not forgetting those who are in the less favourable countries.. :D

(clockwise) Lingli, Peng, Cal, Han, Spencer

Our gathering has finally arrived! It has been a long time since I met my secondary frens! I was so glad tt they were willing to turn up for this special gathering. However, we were sad tt meiyi was unable to join us. But it's ok, we'll definitely meet u up again meiyi! We met at cineleisure and had our dinner at Friends Cafe. Ah Sing is smart to have make a reservation earlier as there is a total of 10 of us! Without reservation, I doubt we will be able to have the seats. We had a full and sumptuous dinner. It was filled with laughter and we began bringing up those funny and memorable past of ours when we were in hss. I really missed the good old days of ours. The tough and demanding netball trainings, the MacRitchie run on every Sat, friendly matches at Kallang Netball Centre, savoring Macdonald's ice-cream after every training, our chalets, our weekly shopping at town and our self-created jokes and actions. Time flies and we're now in different schools.. pursuing different things in our life. I pray tt all of them will be able to pursue their dreams and I look forward to the next outing again.
"tu(4) zi(3) zai(3) whoosh!"