love is...?

Love is unconditional.
 

(2013) love in a teabag.

shine like a jewel, baby

This entry was inspired by an episode of The Amazing Race (season twenty-three, woohoo!!!) which I watched yesterday where former NFL teammates Chester and Ephraim were eliminated. I know it does not sound convincing at all that I am extrapolating life lessons from a reality television series.. but... well.. I can't make it sound better. Read at your own risk then.

Excerpts from the CBS website:

"At the start of Sunday's episode, the footballers were in first place as teams were told they had to fly from Santiago, Chile, to Lisbon. A string of bad luck for the pair began here -- their flight plan was supposed to put them in Lisbon at 7 a.m. after a connection in Brazil, but the travel agent mistakenly entered the wrong date. Before the mistake was realized, married ER doctors Travis and Nicole got their spot. The NFL guys got on another flight that arrived later, but the agent felt bad and called them back, offering a different itinerary with two connections that would still get them in at 7 a.m. They decided to take the risk. Bad idea."

As you would have guessed, Chester and Ephraim arrived horribly late due to a series of unfortunate flight delays and missed connections, after all the teams have completed their tasks and have checked in. They were eliminated.

It got me wondering.. how this is so much like LIFE - where the best plans fail, no matter how much the odds look in your favour, sometimes not due to elements within one's control. As much as I would like to say that I believe in the power an individual has and the control an individual exerts over his/her life, I truly believe that fate/luck/whatever one calls that mysterious unseen power also plays a huge part in one's life and the consequences of one's choices. 

I am not promoting fatalism here nor am I trying to encourage anyone to be more superstitious. What I gleaned from the episode is how one should not be judged solely based on an outcome, given that so many uncontrollable elements are at play. The intent and effort one makes towards a desired outcome are also important, albeit with the 'results-focused' mentality that permeates the society now, not many people think the same way as I do. Very often, one is so obsessed with the results, and overlook the 'journey' or the process of hard work that one endures towards the end. Surely, that counts for something - a learning experience to say the least? If this outcome is not desirable, how about trying again? Create the second / third / fourth chance.

I used to get really disappointed when things did not turn out my way and sometimes blamed myself for it, even though things did not work out due to a series of unfortunate events / unforeseen circumstances and I could not have done anything to prevent it. It was frustrating and I had to endure a lot of self-loathing, which was not healthy at all. Nowadays, I just ensure that my intents are kind and genuine and that I put in my best effort in whatever I do, then leave the 'greater beings' above to take care of the rest. Life is much easier this way. Perhaps some things do not work out now so better things can work out in future? A negative outcome should not stop me from believing in myself or from doing what is good. Positivity is my new mantra!

"A good will isn't good because of what it effects or accomplishes, it's good in itself. Even if by utmost effort the good will accomplishes nothing it would still shine like a jewel for its own sake as something which has its full value in itself" ~Immanuel Kant.

september

I must admit life has been pretty pleasant these days.
Just had an awesome popiah party with the extended family and I cannot overemphasize how much I appreciate time with my family.
I have also recently subscribed to a new life philosophy (see quote below), choosing to find joy in the littlest details, and believing that every good thing that happens to me is the work of magic.
Indeed it is not hard to feel joy when I think I have been dealt an extremely good set of cards due to some mysterious divine intervention. Everything becomes a miracle, and a reason to feel thankful.

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
― Albert Einstein

how timely...

From a friend:
I wish you all the best and all the happiness that you deserve. I also hope you will not question and deconstruct it too much when it presents itself to you.

places...

I have been particularly pensive lately, thinking and evaluating my life since I graduated, and whether I am living the life I think I should be living and the thoughts eventually led to... travelling. Travelling has been the only respite from the drudgery of my work life, and I listed down all the places I have been to for a little escapade.

1. Kuala Lumpur, Pulau Aur (Malaysia)
2. Bali, Batam, Bintan (Indonesia)
3. Macau, Hong Kong (China)
4. Sydney, Canberra, Snowy Mountains (Australia)
5. Colombo, Nuwara Eliya, Dambulla (Sri Lanka)
6. Taipei, Taichung (Taiwan)
7. Krabi (Thailand)
8. New York, Washington DC, Niagara Falls (United States of America)
9. Hanoi, Sapa, Halong Bay (Vietnam)
10. Kathmandu, Pokhara (Nepal)
11. Phnom Penh, Siem Reap (Cambodia)

Looking at the list, I instantly feel very blessed to have been to all those wonderful places, and to have sweet memories of the trips that no one can take away from me. I feel blessed, also, to have the financial independence to travel, and to be able to take leave to do so. I learnt on a recent trip that taking leave is practically unheard of in developing countries, where they still work seven days a week and can only dream of the luxury to take a fourteen-day break from work, as many of us in Singapore are accustomed to doing, even assuming it as a right. I am thankful to have met and spoken to many strangers during my trips, and to take away so much from each of them. Travelling indeed makes me a better person by giving me a chance to know myself better (both my strengths and my flaws), by allowing me to interact with people I would otherwise not have come into contact with, by making me understand that the world is bigger and more complex than what my puny mind can ever imagine. Each trip I take sharpens my character and makes me a more humble citizen of the world.