fences

Before you pull down any fence, always find out why it was there in the first place.

- G.K. Chesterton, writer.

not always right

I'm willing to admit that I may not always be right, but I am never wrong.

- Samuel Goldwyn, American film producer.

a lost love letter

After reading the following news, I hope someone would make a good movie out of this true love story.

A British man and his Spanish former sweetheart have finally married 16 years after they drifted apart, reunited by a love letter lost behind a fireplace for over a decade, reports said on Monday.

Steve Smith and Carmen Ruiz-Perez, both now 42, fell in love 17 years ago when she was a foreign exchange student in Brixham, southwest England, and got engaged after only a year together.

But their relationship ended after she moved France to run a shop in Paris.

A few years later, in a bid to rekindle their love, Smith sent a letter to her mother's home in Spain. It was placed on the mantelpiece, but slipped down behind the fireplace and was lost for over a decade.

The missing missive was only found when builders removed the fireplace during renovation work.

"When I got the letter I didn't phone Steve right away because I was so nervous," Ruiz-Perez told the Herald Express local newspaper.

"I nearly didn't phone him at all. I kept picking up the phone then putting it down again.

"But I knew I had to make the call."

When they were reunited, it was as if time had stood still, said Smith, a factory supervisor.

"When we met again it was like a film. We ran across the airport into each other's arms. We met up and fell in love all over again. Within 30 seconds of setting eyes on each other we were kissing.

"I'm just glad the letter did eventually end up where it was supposed to be," he said, after the couple married last Friday.

- Lost love letter reunites couple after 16 years

chinese don't get sick?

Foreigners have illness, Chinese people don’t have illness, Chinese pigs even more don’t have illness.

- Gao Hongbin, China’s vice minister of agriculture.

secrets of success

We suck less!

- JP Morgan's CEO Jamie Dimon at Harvard Business School centennial conference

God's family

There is no joy like God's joy. There is no family like God's family.

- Gary Thomas, Sacred Parenting.

journey thru the wilderness

Often, we ask God “why” we are compelled into the wilderness. We grumble and complain in our lament and try to hurry our way into the Promised Land by forcing our own way or by seeking to return to Egypt to meet our needs in our time and through our own methods. The journey of all Christ-followers is a journey through the wilderness towards the Cross. We cannot escape it, nor can we go around it. And yet, the wilderness, the Cross, and the ultimate resurrection of Jesus all demonstrate that no matter the wilderness we find ourselves in, God will bring us through to life on the other side. We will not be delivered from the suffering of the wilderness, but with God’s help we can indeed be transformed by it.

- Margaret Manning, The Journey Through the Wilderness, Mar 10 2009.

need...sleep...

The unarguable demands that our bodies make for sleep are a good reminder that we are mere creatures...

- Lauren Winner, Books & Culture, January/February 2006, Vol. 12, No. 1.

not about what you want

Son, life is not about what you want...It's about how you cope with it there and then...

- Lo Wing Ee, 1952-2009

Well said, Mr Lo. Though I don't know you personally but these words shared by your son really taught me something. May God continue to bless and watch over your family.

baby donkey

If you come across an adorable baby in Turkey, you are to say that the baby looks like a donkey! This may sound ludicrous, but you are actually paying the baby and its mother a major compliment. This custom is rooted in the belief that there are evil spirits all around, which may grow jealous and cause bad things to happen to the little one. Hence to avoid bad luck, you deceive the evil spirits by uttering the opposite of what you mean.

- I’Ching Thomas, Attentive Eyes, 19th Feb 2009

Easiest Major

I majored in psychology, but only because it was the easiest major...

- Gene Weingarten, a humour writer for Washington Post Magazine.

How many other things are we missing?

"What do We Choose to See?"

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule. A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk. A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3-year-old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats average $100.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

Seems like the experiment really took place and more details of the newspaper article could be read over here.

Feeling sorry...

Last Sunday morning, I was awaken abruptly by a dream. I felt rather disturbed by the dream and not too sure why. Just couldn't go back to sleep. The dream went like a flash and I couldn't make out clearly what took place but could only remember pieces of it. My heart felt heavy when I reached church. Then during the worship practice, somehow the dream made sense.

I thank God for showing me my sins and I know I did wrong.

I thank Him for loving me too.