Saying goodbye is hard to do...

Today is officially my last day in Singapore.





Give me some time to let it sink in.




My last day in Singapore...




Tomorrow, my life as I know it will change drastically.

New friends, new environment, new food, new church, new school, new home, new boyfriend (HAHAHA kidding kidding :P I'm kidding only la!!!).

God willing, the one thing that won't change will be my love for Him and desire to live a life worthy of the Gospel of Christ (Philippians 1:27). Everyone back home, it is YOUR job to keep me accountable on that!!

To all my friends who've made so much of a difference in my life, thank you and keep in touch. I can't name names, there would be too many, there are SO many joyful moments, tears, laughter and countless sweet memories that would stay with me for awhile yet. :)

Braced with a sense of adventure and wholly reliant on God's providence, Sydney, HERE I COME!!!!!!

I will miss you girls!

some special people...

Maggie and I at NUS canteen!
















Ruth with her bright blue shirt and mo-mo beads hahah












Mavis and I!!













I thought this was a nice night shot. heh.

Some things that I will NOT miss about Singapore

The disturbing trend of people not giving up their seats on buses and the MRT to people who need it more than them has been around for awhile. I get really riled and agitated when people don't graciously take the inititive to give up their seats to the elderly or pregnant ladies.

On the MRT on my way home today, I had to give up my seat not once, not twice, but THREE times to the more needy. Not that I'm complaining (or trying to show off my charitable side) - I'm more than happy to stand and let someone else sit. What irked me was that no one else bothered to offer their seats!!

There were two secondary school students (from a relatively renowned school, though school, class or soci-economic background is not an excuse for ungraciousness) who were standing, and next to them was an old man who was so obviously struggling to stand during the train ride. (At this point I had already given my seat up and therefore, had no seat to give)

Two girls alighted at the next stop, leaving two empty seats. The two secondary boys, instead of alerting the old man to the seat, dashed to the vacated seats saying to one another "Ah! seats, sit sit, lets take a seat!!"

I was absolutely disgusted!!

What's troubling is that this is not an isolated incident! IT HAPPENS ALL THE TIME!!!

What's the point of Singapore progressing so quickly, with our economy (supposedly) growing leaps and bounds, when society in general is completely apathetic to the needs of the elderly in simple day to day situations?

When I become a full blown teacher, I'm going to make sure the students in my class are taught generousity and graciousness and hopefully they'll be useful members of society.

I will do the same for my offspring.

I hope my friends will do the same.

I hope those reading this will be initiated enough to offer their seats to the needy, instead of selfishly dashing for the first available seat like its their right to be there.

A string of farewells

Have had the privilege to meet friends here and there to say bye before I go. (Gasp! Only a week left in Singapore!!) The most memorable farewell would have to be the "Back to School" themed one. Where the PUNJers were sporting enough to wear their old school uniforms! haha!! Here are some pictures. Enjoy!























Some of the dudes and dudette from my JC. We went to Settlers Cafe at Holland Village and played random games. Fun!




















This is a balloon that the Young Ones from PUNJ gave me. It says "wild about you". Aww.. So sweet. Makes my heart melt. Hopefully (and I know they're reading this) they'll continue growing in Christ and next time they'll be doing bible studies for my kids!! haha HINT HINT scholarSSS!!











The Young Ones (plus some wannabes) from my bible study group in PUNJ















As punishment for not wearing a uniform, Gabe had to don the RGS pinafore!!! HAHAHA!!! (Sorry ap, heh :P )



























Jac and Tim and Tim's Props!! The memo jazz pager and the old school Errison handphones were so IN back in the day!!





















A class photo. Aww.. Look at that. Everyone in their old school uniforms. Sweet memories! :)

A day at the zoo!!

I finally had the chance to visit the zoo. For those who've never been there, the Singapore Zoo is a MUST SEE!! The animal shows are much better than the ones I've seen elsewhere. It's comprehensive and very nicely done up. It feels like you've been taken away from the bustle of city life in Singapore and placed in tranquility among various animals and plants. Here are some photos. National Geographic should hire me to take pictures for them. heh.

All throughout my life

I've been systematically packing my things into boxes in a bid to empty my room completely before I leave for Down-under. I don't want my parents to have the burden of clearing my left-behinds you see. Among my things is a whole drawer full of old diaries dating from my early early teens.

I spent one afternoon reading my old entries rather amused at my superficial babble, which, in my defence is all part of growing up!! Things like "oh I have a crush on that cute guy in sec 4. OMG we made eye contact in the canteen!" or "I'm so sad, I felt so left out in school today, I had no one to talk to" or "I hate it when my parents ask endless questions on where/who I'm going out with. I wish they treated me like an adult!!" heh

One thing that struck me though was how, in the midst of my childish banter, God, in the splendor of his fore knowledge, was always working in my life, even though I wasn't consciously trying to live for him.

Like many second generation christians, of which I am one, I grew up with the knowledge of sin and the need for salvation through Jesus Christ. But this knowledge only translated into reality in my early twenties (I'm still in the age bracket haha) when I started making a conscious effort to live as God would want me to.

Its amazing how God allows certain things to happen in our lives to slowly mold us into who he wants us to be. Looking back on my life, I see how God has slowly revealed himself to me and how my understanding of who he is grows as I mature.

I was really surprised to see how the prayers written in my teens were peppered with the obligatory "if it is God's will". So a typical entry would be "if it's God's will, I pray that the cute guy will ask me out" (haha, really) or "if it is God's will, my parents will allow me to do this and that" or "if it's God's will I'll do really well for my Maths test"

What is shocking is that I had no understanding of the concept of God's will at that time, nor did I have a real desire to please God with my life. Yet, in his own mysterious, amazing way, he was always working in my life even when I didn't know it!

Praise God for who he is and for patiently waiting for his lost sheep to turn to him. With God's help I hope I'll live in full submission to him till I reach my heavenly, eternal home. :)

Random pictures...

I'm feeling really nostalgic thinking about the many things I'm gonna miss when I'm gone. I've "left" home many times before, Hong Kong and Germany and countless long/short holidays, but something's different about this leaving. I can't quite place my finger on it, but its different no doubt.. God has a plan for me, for all of us, and something tells me there's an adventure awaiting me. God willing I'll walk the narrow path daily...

I've chosen some random photos to put on the blog. There are SOOO many other people who have made a difference in my life I can't begin to name them all. There are many other people I want to "show off" on the blog, but my photo collection isn't extensive enough. haha (I'm not a photograph person la)...





Graduation 2005











Elliot and I














Cel and I on the indiana jones heh












Cari and I freezing our pants off













preeettty ladiesss












haha CLAR :P with CC in the background hahah










Mike and I














Tennis with Kate....














... and me cuz



















Christabelle and I in transit

Some things that I will miss...

The reality of me leaving Singapore to start a new chapter of my life in Sydney is taking a while to set in. No doubt many new challenges will come my way in the months to come. But for now, I'm content to just take things one day at a time, making the wisest decisions I can for each day.

Some things I know I'll miss dearly when I'm gone are:

1. My family - As much as I yearn for my independence and as much as I appreciate living on my own, doing my own thang, I know my family will always be "home" and the people/place I seek comfort in.

2. THE FOOD!!! OH MY GOSH!!!! THE FOOD!!!! - I eat and eat and eat. I LURVE eating! Goodbye Char Quay Tiow, Roti Prata, Nasi Lemak, Mee Rubus, Fish Bee Hoon, You Tiao, Hokkien Mee, Sambal Stingray, Chilli Crab, Ba Chor Mee, Chee Quay oh my gosh I could go on...

3. The PUNJers/ARPC - PUNJ has been so much a part of my life the past 6/7 years. PUNJ has been instrumental in my growth as a Christian. Praise God for how faithfully His Word is taught there, with godly leaders setting very good examples.

4. My friends - The close ones and the not so close ones... You know how there are some people that you're not that close to, in the sense that you don't meet up regularly or share your life intimately with, but they're still people that you treasure? Close acquaintances I call them. I'm gonna miss everyone.

5. The kids that I've had the privilege of teaching over the past year and a half - Man, what makes me sad is that I may never see these kids again. They grow up, leave school and start a life of their own. Hopefully I'd have made some sort of positive impact on them. There were many frustrating moments and times when I questioned why I did what I did (leaving the law and pursuing teaching). But its been a tremendously fulfilling time and I've learnt SO much. Sometimes I wonder whether its the kids or I that have benefited from my teaching stint.

6. The familiarity of home (and by home I mean Singapore) - Its hard leaving a place you've lived in for most of your life. And depending of what God has in store for my future, I may or may not come back.

There are probably a million other things I'll miss but won't know it till I'm in Sydney. So I'll leave it at that.

I now have about three weeks to prepare myself for what lies ahead. There are so many things to do, and so many people I want to meet up with to say bye. I hope I'll have the time...

My first major blow of the year

2007, as with most other years, started marvellously for me. I was looking forward to starting a new phase of my life as a graduate student (gasp!) and anticipating many new challenges i would face as I (grudgingly) inch my way through my 20s (GASP!!). You can imagine my emotional high as 2007 approached.

Then came the first blow.

It had to come.

Not that my university withdrew my place.
Not that my parents suddenly decided to withdraw the funds meant for my education.
Not that I didn't get the hostel of my choice.
Not that I put on 3kg (which I did, by the way, but that's for another discussion)

But that... Brace yourselves now...

JUSTINE HENIN-HARDENNE PULLED OUT OF THE AUSTRALIAN OPEN DUE TO "FAMILY REASONS"!!! MEGA GASP!!!!

The unthinkable happened. The current world number one, the player who reached all four grand slam finals last year (shut up those who are scoffing under their breath that she only won one. That is irrelevant), the female player with the sweetest backhand ever, IS NOT PLAYING IN THE AUSTRALIAN OPEN!!!

Sometime in late November last year, I was a mouse-click away from buying tickets to the Australian Open and minutes from a phone call to my travel agent to shift my flight to mid-January so that I could watch the games live. (Watching replays on cable is so last year, hahaha).

Thank God common sense and practical fund management got the better of me and I resisted the urge to make my way to Melbourne like a crazed fan. What's the point of watching the games live if my favourite player isn't playing?

Which brings me to my next point. Why oh why isn't she playing?

Quick research on my part unravelled this: She is having marital problems and may divorce her husband. Aparantly he's having difficulty being second fiddle to the other man in her life- Carlos Rodriguez, her coach.

A tinge of disillusionment crept through me as I read the report online. When I was a little girl there were always these celebrities I'd imagine as having the perfect fairy-tale life. Mariah Carey, Andre Agassi, Princess Diana just to name a few. I'd always imagine them as the ones who had it all, fame, fortune and a happy family life with many happy kids. But Mariah divorced Tommy Mottola, as did Andre from Brooke and Princess Di from Prince Charles.

I guess the celebrities from yesteryear have long been taken off my "idol" list and I've since outgrown the whole happily ever after notion. (At least on this physical world. I still look forward to my happily ever after with God in heaven) But watching Justine play over the seasons reminded me of how I'd always use to look up to random celebrities and attempt to model my life after them. Only to realise that they're far from perfect and suffer as many problems as we mere mortals do.

For the first time in a long time I thought maybe Justine will be the one. The one who'd live a "good" life. Do her thing, be a good wife, give lots of money to the poor, make her marriage work.

But yet again I was proven wrong. Again I'm humbly reminded that the only person I should ever attempt to model my life after is Jesus. That he is the ulimate "good" guy. The only ever truly perfect person to walk on earth. The only person who can bridge the gulf that separates God and I.

I do wish Justine all the best. I sincerely hope she can work her marital problems out. But better yet, that she (and many others who don't already) may come to know God and who Jesus is and the salvation he has to offer.

That way I can always watch her play tennis in heaven, forever. Though, I know for certain, the joy and awe that I'd experience in heaven would far exceed watching my mere worldly idol play tennis.