Importance of Common Language

In a flash, the September 1 week holidays have gone by. Let me recapped some things I have learnt and what I have done during this week of rest. Hmm. Spend 4 days on friendly matches. All of them at other secondary schools. One of the experiences that I found valuable was in Ang Mo Kio Secondary School.

As I was a reserved, (though I do play in quite a lot of matches :D) I helped out by refilling bottles, ball keeping and cheering. There was one time when I went to the canteen to fill the bottles of my friends, I realise that the two water coolers that I have found could not produce any water. I tried again and again but my efforts were completely futile. I then proceed to find someone who could help me out. I saw two school cleaners and went up to them saying, "Excuse me, the two water coolers there do not have water." (I know that its broken English) It seemed that I was either too soft or they did not know I was talking to them though there were only the three of us. I tried again louder this time and they indeed responded by looking at me, speechless. I figured after moments that they could not understand me as they were rather old and they were Chinese. I began to point to the water coolers and turning the bottles, that I am holding on, upside down to show that the water coolers could not produce water. For a moment, I thought that I was back in the era of cavemen body languages. The cleaners seemed to understand my frantic gestures better and walked towards me, leaving their job of washing the floor for a while. I tried to communicate with the auntie, whom I guess would be more friendly than the uncle, because of stereotype reasons. The auntie attempted to tell me using English that the water coolers have spoiled and the students did not told them about it. However, the English was mixed with Chinese and Hokkien Dialect, which I could understand only part of it. Furthermore, because of her lack of teeth(no offence) her pronunciation was rather inaccurate and I have severe problems understanding her. She seemed to know that I could not really understand her and she repeated what she wanted to communicate to me more than 3 times. As I was in a hurry in giving my thirsty mates their water and the match would be starting soon, I tried to thank her and be back on task without being too rude. Unfortunately, she could not sensed my urgency and tried to get me into a conversation by saying something about the students and them not telling her about the spoiled water coolers. I was in a dilemma as I really did not want to be rude or late back and she could not understand me when I told her I need to get back and passed the water bottles back to my friends, in chinese. In the end, I simply started to inch off little by little and continued smiling at her engaging in her conversation. I was glad she was so amiable and truly would like to stay and chat but my captain will surely fly into a rage at me for taking so long.

In conclusion, I learnt the importance of having a common language through a real life experience. Though in this case, its because the auntie was uneducated, but when I was to grow up and work in foreign countries, I will be like the auntie with my inferior and Singlish-English.

The Cat And The Moon by William Butler Yeats

The cat went here and there
And the moon spun round like a top,
And the nearest kin of the moon,
The creeping cat, looked up.
Black Minnaloushe stared at the moon,
For, wander and wail as he would,
The pure cold light in the sky
Troubled his animal blood.
Minnaloushe runs in the grass
Lifting his delicate feet.
Do you dance, Minnaloushe, do you dance?
When two close kindred meet.
What better than call a dance?
Maybe the moon may learn,
Tired of that courtly fashion,
A new dance turn.
Minnaloushe creeps through the grass
From moonlit place to place,
The sacred moon overhead
Has taken a new phase.
Does Minnaloushe know that his pupils
Will pass from change to change,
And that from round to crescent,
From crescent to round they range?
Minnaloushe creeps through the grass
Alone, important and wise,
And lifts to the changing moon
His changing eyes.

The personification used are in the line,"And the moon spun round like a top,"The author used this personification to perhaps show that the moon dances very elegantly. I am not very sure but I thought that the moon actually symbolise the eyes of the cat. The moon is still a moon but the eyes of the cat was like the changing phase of the moon.

I like this poem because I thought that the theme mysterious and complex. I especially liked the part where the poet asked Minnaloushe that if it knows that its pupils will change? The pupils could be the pupils of the eyes or pupils of Minnaloushe which was the moon. It may not be so complicated but it seem to be so. Thats probably why I choose this poem to share because I might get to know others perspective in this particular phrase.

Buddhists and Christians--A difference with similarity

I am going to share a story I have just read in Oriental Ghost Stories By Lafcadio Hearn. The title of the story is A Passional Karma. Let me briefly narrate the story to you all first. The author went to watch a play called 'Peony-Lantern'. The story of the Ghosts in the Romance of the Peony-Lantern is like this:

A young samurai named Hagiwara Shinzaburo went to visit O-Tsuyu, the daughter of a high-class samurai, with O-Tsuyu family physician. Shinzaburo was a unusually handsome and gentle lad and O-Tsuyu was as beautiful as a morning dew.(Tsuyu signifies Morning Dew) It was a love at first sight without the physician knowing and soon they have to part. At parting, O-Tsuyu whispered that if Shinzaburo was to not come and see her again, she will surely die.
The physician soon realised the relationship between the youths and decided to not bring Shinzaburo from seeing O-Tsuyu again. He was scared as O-Tsuyu's father has a reputation of cutting off heads. Soon after, the two love-sick youths became very sick and O-Tsuyu died. (With her servant O-Yone) Shinzaburo was grief-stricken and he placed a tablet with O-Tsuyu's name on it on his Buddhist shrine. O-Tsuyu and O-Yone came back to find him on the Festival of the Dead and bluff Shinzaburo that they are not dead and told him that its a horrible thing for people to tell him that they were dead. Shinzaburo and O-Tsuyu was very happy together and O-Tsuyu and O-Yone came back night after night. Tomozo, the servant of Shinzaburo, was afraid that his gentle master was duped by some cunning wanton and went to check on his master in his room late at night.

He was freaked out when he saw a being long dead. He ran all the way to Hakuodo Yusai, a person who could tell other people's fortunes by looking at the faces. The old man was very worried as the young man would die very soon if he was to be with a ghost. He managed to convince Shinzaburo to check out where O-Tsuyu and O-Yone said they were staying. Shinzaburo went and found out that instead of houses, he found tombs with O-Tsuyu and O-Yone names. Terror-stricken, he went to find the high-priest for help and the high-priest lent him a amulet and told him to chant a certain sutra every night in his house. He also ask him to paste holy-texts over every opening of his house. Night arrived and O-Tsuyu and O-Yone was not able to enter the house. Thus the undead went to haunt Tomozo threatening him if he dun peel off one of the holy-texts, he will know how hateful they can be. Tomozo's wife persuaded her husband to request for gold in return from taking away the amulet and the holy-texts. The ghosts managed to find gold and bribe Tomozo. Tomozo peel away the holy-texts and let the ghosts entered the room. Shinzaburo was found dead the next morning.

According to the author, Christians believed that they had only one human life to enjoy in this world and they would only be too glad to follow a dead sweetheart into the grave. However, in Buddhist thinking, they have millions of lives and the author think that he was selfish not to give up even one life for the sake of the girl who came back to him from the dead. In both religion's thinking, Shinzaburo was contemptible, cowardly and selfish. I am surprised and glad at the same time that the thinking of both religion is different yet similar in a righteous way.

Confessions of a Storybook Maniac

I still recalled that there was one time I read a book continuously for 3 hours. This could be counted as non-astonishing for some of you but to my mother, she was freakishly shocked. I still remember that that was in my Primary 6 schools holidays and I ate my lunch an hour late. I have forgotten the title of the book or else I would have recommended it to you all. :)

That was only one event that I have relate to you but there were times when I could not recover from the over-reading. I would not stop reading a book I really liked unless my mother stopped me or another event that caught my interest that was able to tear me away from the book. Hunger, thirst and fatigue are definitely not one of the factors if that book were to caught my interest. That was another time when my mother yelled at me to stopped reading and start revising my homework and I have no choice but to listen to her as her face was turning pale. (with anger) I stood up immediately and my eyes saw only colours of the rainbow and a overwhelming pain in my brain knocked me straight back onto my seat. The swirling of the rainbow's colours made me feel dizzy. That was the very first time I really considered taking note of the time I spend reading a book continuously.

However, I notice that time in secondary schools are limited. Naturally, I would spend lesser time to read. Even so, I would love to recommend the book 'Garden Spells' By Sarah Addison Allen to you all. It has some adult content but what I really wanted to share is the idea of the *country* that surface in my mind during my post of I Rather Be The City Rat Than The Country Rat. The scene where the story has mostly taken place was at a town in North Carolina. The town seemed to me as a part of a country rather than a part of a city because locals know the secrets of their neighbours. Also, in this little place, the surname mean something. Examples are the Waverley women, which are the main characters in the story. The Waverley women are always somehow touched by magic. There are also the Hopkin men who always married older women. Well, the country in my mind was like this where locals know secrets of their neighbours and generations of staying in the place has it meaning.

Is progress necessarily beneficial for society? Comment.

My stand is, progress is beneficial to the society. Before I slammed a whole chunk of words on you, let me share a hilarious thought. You would not be reading my post now on a flat screen if not for progress. Well, I liked to start with reminding you that the Computer was part of progress. :)

Let me just take the most recent event for example. Swine Flu. Without progress in medical knowledge we might not be able to produce medicine that could cure Swine flu. Without progress in basic hygiene knowledge we would not be able to decelerate the rapid spreading of Swine Flu. Without progress in technology, we might not be able to continue learning behind our computer screens if we were to be quarantined.

Just imagine if we were to be in the 1960s. The era when medical knowledge was not that advanced, personal hygiene was not always practiced and computers were not in Singapore yet. Could we fight Swine Flu that way?

On the other hand, because of progression, cars and air-conditioners were made. They cause pollution but its also because of progress that we created better cars and better air-conditioners which are more environmentally-friendly. Imagine cars were not created, we will be riding bicycles to work and school. The sick and injured would be lying down on a trishaw on their way to the A & E Unit. Ridiculous. Movie-goers exasperatingly fanning themselves while watching a movie. Haha. Elderly and young shivering while bathing without a water heater on a cold, rainy day.

I hope you all find my examples humorous but at the same time think about how progress is beneficial to the society.

The Book(s) that Made an Impact in My Parents' Lives

My father is reading "'The Master-Key To Riches' by Napoleon Hill. He feels that the book is very inspirational and the book is said to "form the success experiences of hundreds of the world's most powerful and wealthy men, will show you how to succeed in any walk of life".

He chooses books with titles that could give self-motivation. He thinks that reading for leisure could build up interest in reading and reading for work would somehow have some pressure. The book that has most impact on him is 'Think and Grow Rich.' He said that the book inspire him to work hard towards his objective.

The book that he deem the most enjoyable was 'Never Love a Stranger' by Harold Robbins. He read the book at the age of 18. He finds the book exceptionally enjoyable as he was at the peak of his puberty. According to Wikipedia, the book was said to be able to created controversy with its graphic sexuality and Ian Parker says that according to Robbins, publisher Pat Knopf bought Never Love a Stranger because "it was the first time he had ever read a book where on one page you'd have tears and on the next page you'd have a hard-on."

If his shelf caught fire, he would grabbed 'Winning' by Jack Welch. He like Napoleon Hill's books the most because his books are always very inspirational and motivating. He reads his books whenever he is free. He encourages children to read Enid Blyton. He thinks that Enid Blyton's books are very adventurous and interesting. He thinks that reading is a good pastime and it improves his knowledge and made him a wise man. It also broadens one's perspective. He told me that the chinese have one saying, “书里自有黄金屋，书中自有缘如玉”. *Note that this saying has many variations.*

I rather be the city rat than the country rat. Comment.

Well, if I were to put it in a very organised layout, it will be the pros and cons of living in the country and the city.


Country
Pros:

I got to experience the wonders of the country! I always love camps and overnights in the wild. The feeling you get would be totally different. You could really feel your five senses activating, reacting to the different sights, sounds, smell, feel, and maybe taste! I would have really like the Secondary 1 camp if the number of people could be reduce and perhaps the attitude of the trainers and my friends would be more positive? This is my personal feeling that I have not voiced out till now. I would loved to see the picturesque scenery of the country and the weedy backyard of my cottage. (If I could have mine.) I would loved to hear the cheerful chirps of the birds and the incessant buzz of bugs. I would loved to smell the sweet aroma of fresh-baked homemade bread and the damp earth in the morning. I would loved to stroke my own marmalade-coloured pussy on my lap when I got home (I loved kittens!) and the rough texture of my home's ancient stone walls. (Which I hope that's what my cottage was made of.) I would also loved to taste my own papaya grown from my papaya tree in my backyard. Of course, all of the wishes seemed very far-fetched and countryside was depicted like some paradise in the Garden of Eden. However, this would be true if I were to worked hard.

Living in the country would prove to be a boost for my health because I could escape from the deathly fumes released from the factories. Well, Singapore certainly do not have very polluted air. However, a breath of fresh morning air a day, keeps drowsiness far far away!

Cons:

Access to electricity and having high-tech appliances could proved to be more challenging in the countryside. Furthermore, if I were to rear poultry and cultivate crops, the effort needed to do the chores would no doubt be extremely tiring and the capital needed would not be very small. Access to transport will also be difficult in the countryside. Literacy level may be lower than urbanites. Medical services may not be that available too?Hmm...I suppose that's all? I could not think of anymore already. Please comment to let me know more cons of the countryside.


City
Pros:

I can have very high-tech appliances and a very convenient lifestyle. Examples of very high-tech appliances that perhaps cannot be found in the countryside would be the deem-to-be-indispensable air-conditioner. How many homes in Singapore owned a air-conditioner? And how many homes in Singapore owned more than one air-conditioner? I doubted countryside houses would be filled with air-conditioners like ours. A lot of people deemed air-conditioner as a very necessary and important appliance at home. I cannot denied it being important as it brings comfort though I use my air-conditioner once in a blue moon. :)
The transport in the city were very efficient and convenient. The food in the city are very health-wise too. The medical services should be rather available.

Cons:

Most cities has polluted air that can caused many undesirable illness. The cost of living would be very expensive too. Living in the city can be very stressful and pressurizing. The population could be quite dense.

In the end, I considered very long and I went to read Joshua Hia's, Si Hao's and Zheyi's blog. Then I realise one thing that was different from one another's blog post. The city would mostly be compared to as Singapore or Bombay and the countryside/country would most likely be compared to as the village Thul or some other countries with scenarios like storybooks description about countryside/country. Finally, I realised I have not much of a stand but if the scenario were to be Thul Vs Bombay, I would choose Bombay because it would be much more practical. However, if it were to be *The Peaceful Country* Vs Singapore, I would choose *The Peaceful Country*, as it has always be my dream to experience country life.

My Favourite Part in "The Village By The Sea" by Anita Desai

My favourite part are from Chapter 7 ~ 9. That was where the start of Hari's real adventure in Bombay really begins and where he met his benefactors one after another. Hira Lal, which was one of the first benefactors, brought Hari to Sri Krishna Eating House which provided him with a shelter and a job. What touches me was that in midst of so many rude, busy and uncivilised people, there was a kind person who was willing to lend a hand to Hari. The shroud of helplessness and hopelessness that covered Bombay seemed to be lifted by that simple, helpful act.

Jagu, the owner of the Sri Krishna Eating House, who was also one of the benefactors of Hari, was hospitable though he definitely was not well-to-do. It was evident from the squalid eating house he owned and the vile smelling, dingy house of his. Despite such poor living conditions, he was still generous with the salary and the amount of food provided. Such selfless spirit really made me think again whether people are really benevolent, neutral or malevolent towards one another. I like this part because it brought me warmth and a comforting sensation.

Mr Panwallah, the old watch-repairer, whose shop was right beside the Sri Krishna Eating House, proved to more amiable than Jagu. He carries hope as a character in the story. Hari, whose life seemed onerous, was given hope with the skill that Mr Panwallah imparted him. His friendly demeanour and willingness to teach Hari new skills seemed unlikely in this compeititive society where one must benefit from helping another. Such a person seemed like a fairygod(father) in a fairytale. The aid given to Hari was filled with such kindness and incredibility so much so that its very enjoyable.

Lastly, it was the de Silvas family that surprises me. Who says that wealthy people are snobs? Anita Desai seems to try and show us that there certainly will be compassionate people in this world that we lived in. No matter how depressing our lives may be, there will certainly be assistance from other people.

The numerous benefactors in this part of the story gave me much heartwarming and comforting thoughts and it really gave me a Positive Mental Attitude. The countless miracles in this fateful part of Hari's life gave a very seemingly fairytale-like storyline and as a pre-teen, I really like it a lot.

My Reading Habit

I love reading.

I love fantasy.
I love ghost stories.
I love novels.
I love a little of romance.(recently)

I like to manipulate the characters in the stories in my mind, to make them do something not according to the story and predict what will happen if they do that.

3 Ways to save Earth

1)Take shorter bath!!! Inspired by Hwa Chong's clip...(saw it on TV mobile when I was on my way to Volleyball Training on the bus)

2)Increase the temperature of your air-conditioner!!!Inspired by Hwa Chong's clip...(saw it on TV mobile when I was on my way to Volleyball Training on the bus)

3)Switch off lights and fans when not in use!!! >Inspired by Hwa Chong's clip...(saw it on TV mobile when I was on my way to Volleyball Training on the bus)

By the way...the clip was very creative and innovative!!!

I have been thinking about these questions when I was eating and when I go to the toliet.(It is rather exaggerated.Haha.)*What is the real job of a teacher?* and **Who is the real *killer* of Adeline Ng Ai Choo?**

Firstly,I wished to answer the first question. I felt that the real job of a teacher is to teach. What exactly do I mean? Teaching involves teaching morals,knowledge and skills. So not only academic is involved. That is the real job of a teacher. However, a teacher can choose to do beyond the job. Why should they do beyond their jobs? That may be one question you all may asked. Its because when a teacher teaches, a bond is actually formed. The student-teacher bond is exactly why a teacher should do more for a student.

Secondly, I wanted to answer the second question. In my point of view, I thought that Adeline Ng Ai Choo is the killer of Adeline Ng Ai Choo. I, myself, thought that it was weird to write that down. That was my first thought. Though I have change my opinions for countless times when I was thinking, that was still my final answer. In my opinion, it is she, herself, who choose the road to death. Nobody force her. It was very very true that her parents and perhaps, her teacher, played a big part in indirectly causing Adeline Ng Ai Choo's death. The stress,the pressure,the expectations and the desperation is all caused by the parents and the teacher. However, its herself who cannot cope the stress,pressure,expectations and helpless feelings. I am not saying that I can cope the stress though... No matter literally or whatever,she still kill herself. I am beginning to think I am a cruel person...

Honestly, according to Mr Lau's question, I think that the teacher should not press on for more details. In case any people do not get what I am blogging about, I am blogging about the *If a teacher should press on for more details*question, asked by Mr Lau. Why do I say so? If a teacher presses on for more details, a student may be more pressurized. I would suggest that the teacher do some *detective work*. For example,she/he could asked her parents or her friends what was happening. Similarly, the teacher could observe a student actions and inferred that something has happened. Let me give an example: A student has suddenly became more bad tempered. He/she also do not hang out with his/her usual friends. His/her academic results dropped. You can actually inferred that he/she has be takin drugs! It may seemed to be assuming to somebody but with these clues, the teacher can actually do something!

In Mrs Tan Cheng Kwee case, she could actually contact Adeline's parents when Adeline's grades were dropping and when she refused to say anything. In conclusion, what I wanted to say was, a teacher can use other ways to help a student instead of pressing on for the truth.

"Wait For You"

[Verse 1]

I never felt nothing in the world like this before

Now I'm missing you& I'm wishing that you would come back through my door

Why did you have to go? You could have let me know

So now I'm all alone,Girl you could have stayed

but you wouldn't give me a chance

With you not around it's a little bit more then I can stand

And all my tears they keep running down my face

Why did you turn away?

[Bridge]

So why does your pride make you run and hide?

Are you that afraid of me?But I know it's a lie what you keep inside

This is not how you want it to be

[Chorus]

So baby I will wait for you

Cause I don't know what else I can do

Don't tell me I ran out of time

If it takes the rest of my life

Baby I will wait for you

if you think I'm fine it just ain't true

I really need you in my life

No matter what I have to do I'll wait for you

[Verse 2]

It's been a long time since you called me

(How could you forget about me)

You got me feeling crazy (crazy)

How can you walk away,Everything stays the same

I just can't do it baby

What will it take to make you come back

Girl I told you what it is & it just ain't like that

Why can't you look at me, your still in love with me

Don't leave me crying.

[Bridge]

Baby why can't we just start over again

Get it back to the way it was

If you give me a chance I can love you right

But your telling me it wont be enough

[Chorus]

So baby I will wait for you

Cause I don't know what else I can do

Don't tell me I ran out of time

If it takes the rest of my life

Baby I will wait for you

If you think I'm fine it just ain't true

I really need you in my life

No matter what I have to do I'll wait for you

[Bridge]

So why does you pride make you run & hide

Are you that afraid of me?

But I know it's a lie what your keeping insideThats not how you want it to be

Baby I will wait for you

Baby I will wait for you

If it's the last thing I do

[Chorus]

Baby I will wait for you

Cause I don't know what else I can do

Don't tell me I ran out of timeIf it takes the rest of my life

Baby I will wait for you

If you think I'm fine it just ain't true

I really need you in my life

No matter what I have to do I'll wait for you

I'll Be Waiting.

source from http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/elliottyamin/waitforyou.html

Just want to have a clearer image of the song Mr Lau recommended.