Take time to smell the roses....

I was admiring the long stemmed pink rose that Ruth presented to me for Valentine's day. Although it's a little wilted (she hid it inside her schoolbag), it was a nevertheless something very special. She also presented a bar of Cadbury's chocolate to hubby. These were Ruth's first Valentine gifts to us and it was a very touching moment.

I stopped for a moment to smell the rose. Something beautiful, fragrant and powerfully compelling. It hit me hard that we had all been real busy catching up with the ebb and flow, the mundane routine of life that we hardly took any time to appreciate the little, perhaps, sometimes insignificant things in life.

Hubby never really like chocolates, but Ruth's gift touch him in a special way. He unwrapped bar and proceed to share the contents with us. We had something real sweet and beautiful to linger on.

Kong Hii Fatt Choy!

Happy New Year! Kong Hii Fatt Choy! It's already four days into the new year, but still not too late to wish everyone the best of this auspicious occasion and may the year of the Golden Rat ushered in health, wealth and prosperity to all.

We finally made the trip to join John and mum in Mukah for the reunion dinner. Sister-in-law is a good cook and we enjoyed a sumptuous spread of yummy food. John had "open house" the following day, so we had double the portion of curry chicken, rendang, masak merah, cakes, biscuits and other delicacies. It's no wonder that we just could not help putting on a few fat pounds after each new year festivities.

We then proceeded to Sibu and Sarikei for another round of "pai nien" before returning back to Bintulu today. Visited all of hubby three sisters and an auntie in Sarikei. Ruth also took the opportunity to call on his tuition teacher. She collected lots of "angpows" and seems to be smiling all the way to the bank. It will be a tidy nest-egg for her future education.

It's back to the routine of work for me and school for Ruth tomorrow. Time really flies when you have fun doesn't it?

Just a line.......

It had been quite sometime. Been real busy with office work and supervising Ruth's school work. Plus the fact that she had been down with a bout of asthma, flu and coughing. She's still on medication and hopefully will recover before the coming Chinese New Year festivities. With my hands full, I guess it will be the last minute shopping for the usual new year goodies, savouries, cakes and biscuits. We will be leaving Bintulu to join John and mum for the reunion dinner in Mukah before continuing the next leg of our trip to visit hubby's sisters and Ruth's tuition teacher in Sarikei.

Hubby will be leaving for his new posting in Malacca by 1st March and Ruth will be facing her first semester exams in the same week. It's a real challenge for Ruth in her new class and hopefully she will put her best foot forward. With hubby home only once a month, it is also a major adjustment in our daily routine..

Farewell & Changes

Just recently, we bid farewell to a close family friend. We knew them for almost twenty years, as hubby and the head of the family were course mates in the university. We attended their wedding ceremony, celebrated the births of their children and went for holidays together. They will be moving overseas to take up a new posting. Our hearts felt heavy on their departure but we are also happy that they will be venturing into newer and greener pastures. But we still have those twenty or so years of good memories. It seems strange that many a times, we meet some people whose lives leave a deep impression on us, while others just touch us for a fleeting moment. We can only pray the God will continue to bless and keep them.

On the other hand, we are also adjusting to some changes in our lives. Hubby will be leaving for his new posting in Malacca by March . Ruth and I will be staying back in Bintulu until she completes her form three. He will be coming back to Bintulu once a month. As such, there will be minimal interruption to Ruth's education and I can keep my job for another two more years before opting for early retirement. . . . .

New Year plans

We are into the second week of the new year. Ruth started her new school term last week, facing another year of learning, homework, projects, assignments and examinations. She wasn't too enthusiastic about school, understandably after a long break. Well, she will get use to the routine sooner or later.

The Chinese New Year festivities is around the corner..Left and right, one can hear of friends and relatives soliciting orders of cakes and biscuits. With the surge in the prices of ingredients like flour, butter and cheese, I would expect that the price of our favourite cheese cake and kek lapis to be on the increase. Ruth is also looking forward to get some some new clothes and "ang pows"..

We might be celebrating the coming new year with my brother John and his family in Mukah. Mum wanted the whole family to assemble together so John proposed to hold the reunion dinner at his new house. Ruth is really excited to see her cousin Jane, whom she has not visited for quite some time. Hopefully our plans materialize this time!.

Footprints

The countdown is on. In a few hours, we will be bidding adieus to 2007 and ushering in year 2008. Time really flies. Before I round up 2007, here are some updates.

On 14th December, Ruth celebrated her thirteenth birthday. Organized a small party for her. She invited some close family friends. We catered food and hubby cooked his favourite mud crabs and "long life" noodles. It was an enjoyable occasion and Ruth received lots of presents and "ang pows".

Four days later we left for our vacation in Malacca and Singapore. Spent three days in Malacca, visited the famous "Afomosa" ( a popular tourist resort), some cultural and historical sites around the city and sampled Malacca 's famous rice ball chicken "rice" and Nyonya food. We then proceeded to Singapore by coach. Ruth had a great time visiting the Singapore Zoo, night safari, Science Centre, Sentosa Island and of course, shopping. It was a good nine days' break from Bintulu!. On yes, this was our first Christmas abroad and we had a sumptous spread of goodies for our Christmas eve dinner in one of the hotels in Singapore.

Ruth will start the new school year on 3rd January 2008 and she's happy to be admitted into the "top class". Hopefully, she will continue to excel in her studies, social and emotional development.

Musings

A friend of mine often forward me lots of e-mails. Most of them are about Christian living, jokes, snippets of life and some very touching and real life stories. Just recently, I received a particularly touching story written by a doctor.

The story relates to an elderly gentleman, who is one of his patient. It was a busy morning, approximately at 8.30am when this gentleman dropped by his surgery to remove stitches from his thumb. The man said that he was in a hurry for a 9.00am appointment. As he examined the thumb, the doctor began to engage in a conversation with this gentleman. The gentleman told him that he needed to go to the nursing home for breakfast with his wife. She was a victim of Alzheimer disease and had been at the home for quite a while. So, the doctor asked him whether she would be worried if he was a bit late. He replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him for the last five years.

The doctor was surprised and asked the gentlemen. "Are you still going there every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?" The gentlemen smiled, patted the doctor's hand and said. " She doesn't know me, but I still know her". It was indeed a very touching and revealing thought. What boundless love binds this elderly gentleman to his wife, even though she does not even know or recognize him. Indeed, true love is neither physical or romantic. It is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be. A real lesson in life!