The fraility of life

It's not uncommon to hear people say "Life is so fragile". And I absolutely agree with this statement.

I have seen and heard so many cases of lost lives, in rather abrupt situations. And, the recent cyclone that hit Myannmar, taking away over 20,000 deaths and still counting, shows how unexpected events could just happened. Of course, the proximity of such disasters may not impact our lives, but what about those that happen to our loved ones?

My grandmother entered Persistent Vegetative State today. It happened very abruptly and I last saw her on Saturday. On that day, I already noticed her body stiffness worsening on top of her loss in appetite. Even so, I had other activities I wanted to attend to, so I left her place early without much interaction with her.

I brought my observation up to my dad the next evening and we both agreed to take her to the hospital for a thorough check-up soon. I was secretly worried that she was gradually progressing to stroke. But I did nothing, but waited.

After that, I got busy. On Wednesday, I had to leave for Bangkok. At the airport, I called my loved ones, including my paternal grandma. Just before calling my darling, I thought of calling my maternal grandma. I contemplated. I didn't call. I decided that since she could hardly talk, it didn't matter. I would see her on Saturday.

But, I didn't get to see her, or talk to her. And now, I am not even sure if she could hear me. I was planning to bring my mom out for mothers' day lunch before visiting my grandma with her mothers' day tea. I didn't get to do it.

I wonder if she knows how much I love her or appreciate her. I so hope that she would watch me walk down the aisle with my DD. Yet, everytime I see her suffering from the pain of walking, it hurts me.

It occurs to me how we usually take people around us for granted, typically people who love you a lot. They are usually the family members. We always have this "there's still tomorrow" thought and sometimes, forget to appreciate them, or express our love to them. At times, we quarrel but we forget to love.

Ronan Keating's song, "If tomorrow never comes" suddenly made a lot of sense to me. I mean, it always makes sense, but I never ponder on the words so much.

I think it's very important to "kiss and make up" with loved ones. And, we should never wait for "tomorrow" to spend some quality time with them, or tell them we love them. Whenever we are able to, we should. Because life is really so fragile. Unexpected events could just take a life away.

I really do cherish and love my family. I hope they will always know my appreciate and love for them.

Time zoomed by

This is yet another "Time zoomed by" blog. But it's true. Sometimes, I really have no idea how time could just slipped me by. I am just so caught up in my own life events that I lost track of the ticking hands.

Nevertheless, today, I decided to blog again.

For two reasons.

1. It is Good Friday as I am blogging. It's a holy day when our Lord sacrificed for us to free us from all our sins. God loved us so much he sent his one and only son to die for us. This is a love so great. And as a Christian, I have seen so many miracles in my life. I really thank God for everything.

2. I saw something that really warmed my heart today. It's about another father's love. I was having dinner with my mom and two tables from us sat a father and a daughter. He got angry because the order took too long to arrive.

After much chasing, the food finally came. When the food arrived, I noticed they were sharing one plate of food. And the father gave most of the food to the daughter. It really warmed my heart how much a father who could be so furious and shouting at the restaurant staffs could be so gentle and generous with his daughter.

It reminded me of how my dad would wake up in the middle of the night to phone me when I was out late. Or when I forgot to call home to tell him I would be out late or staying out. It reminded me of how my dad couldn't sleep well when I travelled alone on business trips.

It reminded me of how my dad would worry about my heartbreaks and even had pet talks with me. Or how he would help me tie my hair when my mom was sick so I could go to school. Or how hard he works so hard so I could be comfortable.

Yet, not once did he complain. He is always happy to see me around.

Today, I felt the love of a great father, our God, a love of another father, my dad and the love of all fathers. I know all fathers love their children. O! How great is a father's love.

Happy Good Friday.

Let us remember this day that our heavenly Father sent Jesus to die for us and set us free. In doing so, he sacrificed his son and we know how much our heavenly father loves us.

Amen.

Shalom Israel

Shalom!

I have been to Israel, the chosen land of God and back. Feeling melancholic, there's a desire to pen (or type) some thoughts down before the pictures are processed.

On the contrary of what we have seen on CNN, BBC and other news broadcasts, Israel basks in a peace and tranquility that can only be experienced by setting foot on the holy land. Quoting my tour guide, Amir, a really charming and eloquent man, "I used to tell the Americans that the most dangerous part of the trip is the journey from their homes to their airport." Indeed, it's true.

No bombs, no guns and not even terrorist-suspicious-looking locals. This is a nation of peace-loving people. Believe it or not, Bethelem, the birthplace of Jesus Christ, became a popular breeding ground of terrorirsts. What happened to it? It has been cordoned off from the rest of Jerusalem! The security checks into and out of Israel is so strict that we had to be questioned and our luggages thoroughly scanned and physically checked before we could pass the immigration. If this is not sufficient to illustrate its stand on security, we drove on the West Bank, right into Palestine and back to Israel to get a sense of its peace between the stretch of two walls separating the countries. This is how secure that country is.

My interests in this country has risen by a few notches. I now look at this country differently - from a historical and archeological point-of-view and a spiritual, Christian point-of-view.

The country is steeped in history - having been under the rulings of several types of cultures. The Persians, Romans, Greeks, Babylonians, Arabs, Crusaders and so on, until they became independent under Isralis' ruling in 1948. Because of this, Israel has many charming sites where cities have been built upon cities. Through the ruins, we saw traces of the different cultures - architectures, materials used for buildings, household items and so on, spoke of the thousands of years of history that Israel had before becoming independent.

Israel is also the only country in the world that's transacting in the biblical age shekels. Of course, to fit into the economics world, US dollar is accepted. Its first language is also the biblical age Hebrew, which I thought to be extinct, as a Christian, reading the bible from a spiritual point-of-view. On top of that, we also witness the aged-old traditions of the Jewish rituals at the Welling Wall, where the Jews prayed with all their heart, mind, soul and body. This site was predominant even at the airport. While waiting to move on to our coach, we saw a group of Urtho-Orthodox Jews praying in front of a wall. Of course, it was a good start to the trip. We were full of curiosity of this country that we understood through our bible, which, we have so far considered a spiritual tool to understanding our Abba Father.

The bible, is in actual fact, more than just spiritual and the words of our God. It also contains thousands of years of history of Israel. The core of the "story" is of course, God. And indeed, this country has seen the works of God. The miracles that kept Israel's survival, which otherwise, the country would perish.

Geographically, it's located on the globe such that it has very little water access. It's also surrounded its enemies, who could wipe them out easily, population-sense. Geographically, it also has a bad military strategic location. But Israel has lived on, through God's promises.

It's a flourished land, where peace prevails. There's no barren but lands filled with green pastures, olive trees, springs and farmlands. As we drove by its neighbours, we could see the contrast of the barren lands as opposed to Israel's.

I can't speak enough of the beauty of Israel, and this Emmaus walk or the journey of Christ deeply seeps into my heart. I long to visit this Holy Land again.

For pictures (Day 1 - 6): www.picasaweb.com/pepperick

(Note that it's up to day 6 because the other pictures have been destroyed when the computer crashed. Very sad indeed. Nevertheless, enjoy viewing.)

Semporna (8-12 July, 2007)

Semporna is the town where I took my diving license with Scuba Junkie. This small town is some drive away from Tawau Airport in East Malaysia, Sabah. We took boat rides out to the different dive sites daily from this town.

An inn built on stilts.
View from a cafe we hanged out every day after diving.


THE Iced Mango Sago we loved so much.
It was deliciously cooling and refreshing!


The small town of Semporna is lined with rows of shophouses.


Children, who we suspected were going to do some "serious business" on the rocks. They went down with plastic bags, which we thought would be used to contain pebbles. But when they started stripping their pants, we wondered about the real intention.

A child on the street.


A fishmonger and his stall.

*More updates to come*

Diving @ Sipadan (8-12 July, 2007)

Sipadan is one of the top dive sites in the world. Second to the Great Barrier Reef, it is located at Borneo and reputable for the BIG (macro) stuffs - sharks, huge fishies, turtles and etc. I saw for myself why divers go back to this dive site over and over again.

The dive site charms divers with not only its collection of colourful tropical fishes, corals and other lives under water, but also the talcum white sand and the azure clear water. The water is clear right up to the shore, with finds of big fishes just metres away from the beach! Wade in and duck your head in the cool water, and you will surprise yourself with beautiful fishes right before your eyes such as Garoupa, Nurse Shark and even turtles.

As a matter of fact, I became a PADI certified diver on this very island. People said it would set a very high standard for me. Oh boy! How true it was. No where else that I have been to so far could be compared to this very much raved about dive site. It indeed stays true to its reputation.

Please allow me to clarify too that this site is only one of the two sites I dived at in Borneo. The whole dive trip left me a deep impression of the wonders of diving at Borneo, and definitely memorable.

Once, is not enough.

Friendly Green Sea Turtles were everywhere!

Not shy to strangers and cameras, they swam up close to us

and peered at our cameras, curiously.

Tornado of Jacks.

Nothing beats swimming amongst them

and being circled by them.

Diving with a school of Moorish Idols.

A school of Moorish Idols.

The renowned wall of Barracudas at the Barracuda point.

It was amazing holding on to a rock, fighting the current and

watching them slowly moved past us from 30m away.

A white tip shark. Not a rare sight at all!

And... Fear not. They do not eat human beings.

A Shrimp.

Difficult to spot as Shrimps often hide among the corals.

On top of that, they are actually many times smaller

than what you are looking at now.

Puffy a.k.a. Puffer Fish.

A Hermit Crab in hand. Such a puny creature!

Diving = my second nature

My DD and Me

Some of my favourite photos of us.
For the benefit of my readers, DD refers to Darling Derrick.

Simply blissful enjoying each other's company.

Our dive kiss - who said salt and sweet won't taste good together?
I say it's electrifying.


The first picture taken as a couple.


On the sky ride, at Sentosa.


All smiles at Gotham Penthouse.


The first spark at Mambo, Zouk.


Dining at one of the street hawkers in Semporna,
where I became a diver and dived at Sipadan.

Time Lapse

Sometimes, there's simply no way to hold on to the hands of the clock. They just keep ticking by, moving on. Watching the seconds ticked by, I realised it has been weeks since I last blogged. It's now time to revive it.

I have been kept happily occupied throughout this hiatus. Due to limited time, this blog would be a brief update, without some really juicy images. But, I promise I would include more pictures in my next blogs. Hopefully, in the not-too-far future.

Let's see.

I have been highly favoured, truly blessed and deeply loved. Many beaufiful things happened to me during this lapse. I encountered amazing experiences with my mighty creator's most wonderful creations.

HE sent me one of his most amazing works. A creation I never expected I would fall in love with. But when I finally gave in to my feelings of falling in love with him, I know we would be together in every sense of the word. For he is God-sent, to make my life a better, more joyous, loving and wonderful place to dwell in.

He brought joy to not just my life, but also my family's. He is my DD and I thank our Father Lord for him. Since he is so special, you will definitely see more of him.

My diving dream finally materialised. The world I longed to see did not disappoint me. It is filled with colourful creations of God.

I love the feeling of being immersed in the water, the taste of the salty sea water and feeling the coolness of the water on my skin. I enjoy breathing through the regulator, listening to my breathing, watching the sea creatures swim by, or sometimes just corals, hovering to watch some sea creatures and being propelled by my very nice Twin Jet fins. It's a whole new world to explore. And I am determined to dive the world.

By the way, I do feel quite belonged under the sea (for those who are sniggering, I know why). And I yearn to keep going back to that world beneath. Since this is also special to me, I would be writing more on diving too. Of course, diving is even more special to me because it was the beginning to my walk of love with MY DD.

I am not relaxing anymore, but found a job. A job in an industry that I always wanted a foot in. Things are going well so far. I am definitely enjoying the challenges, my job scope and environment.

Heeding the Lord's calling, I am also serving in my church in the Children Ministry. After starting off with the P3 & P4, I decided to have a go at the nursery. They are the Lord's such endearing creations! I have fallen in love with them. And I look forward to seeing these children every Sunday.

In order to build a deeper relationship with my Heavenly Father, DD and I have also started our bible study class. Definitely challenging, but insightful.

So, my dear readers, as you can see, so much have gone on in my life during this time lapse. However, I am happy and enjoying my life. I give the credit to my first priority in life, my Father in Heaven. He has blessed me abundantly. Amen!