Windy Weekend


All my winds are back!
One of those rare weekends where i got to indulge in all my "distractions".

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Attended a combined area contest on Friday,
to watch how others competed.

it stretched all the way to midnight and i got so concussed i cancelled all the other toastmasters stuff scheduled for Sat.


there're only so many speeches one can take in 48 hours.

I guess it didn't help i was sitting under the aircon for 4 hours.
I only fully defrosted the next morning after a period of nausea.


I think i'll take the contest more lightly.
it's the only approach i can take.
God (or if you like, the creative genie) put the laksa in my speech the last time,
He will give me ideas for the next one.
And if He doesn't, then it's just not meant to be.


I remember the evaluation contest i watched last year.
there was one contestant from NTU that gave a super evaluation.
it's been a year and i still remember her speech.
In my conversations with several pple, i found that they remembered her speech too.


I forgot how far she went in the competition,
but I think one of the pinnacles a performer can reach is to give something that pple remember even when it's long over.


I daren't say laksa is anywhere near that.
But several pple have come up and talked abt my laksa thing.
and i'm just contented that I was able to give something that made an impression.


Even if it's just a one off thing.


Whether the genie or God would do it again is not in my hands,
all i can do, in the words of Liz Gilbert,
is to turn up and do what we do with pure passion and sheer stubborness.

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I just watched a talk by a past World Champion Speaker.
hmmm...food for thought:


1) Do you know what you have to give?
In the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king. The little you know, is so much to others.


2) It's not about you, it's what the audience leave with.


3) It's not abt making new speeches. It's abt perfecting the speech you care about, and making it so good others will pay to hear it.


4) Our safety nets can be our dragnets.

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Started juggling again.
i KNEW i still had some juggling in me,
even though it felt so much like goodbye the last time.


for one i'm only 8% done in my M.A.D journey,
and if all else fails, i want to at least nail the 5 club cascade.


today felt like one of those days back then.
where we juggled and lost track of time.
where we juggled and ignored food until we became too hungry or it became too late.


we also threw some ideas around.
I'm always excited abt ideas, i just don't have the time and energy to initiate and see them through.
but i may have finally found pple with the same vision,
and hopefully collectively something can happen.


C suddenly got in touch with me,
and updated me on her 10 year old son's progress.
He hasn't joined us for a while because his violin lessons clashed with our sessions,
but recently he joined a children's talent contest and decided to juggle instead of play the violin.


She filmed him down and shared the video with me,
noting that she saw "a glow in his eyes whenever he juggles"


This was really one talented boy.
I replied to her that he reminded me of the days when i begun,
where there's so much to learn and everything was so fun.
And that he was very fortunate to have an encouraging mother.
One who saw the glow in his eyes instead of one who would scold him to spend time on things that are more "worthwhile".


I just managed to link up Mediacorp with them,
and soon he'll probably be on TV.


that's just super cool. :)


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On thursday during cell group I suddenly discovered something new.

But first i must state that there is a difference between believers and disciples of Christ.

Believers, meaning those who converted, but don't truely follow the Bible, are merely skimming through the surface of what Christianity is about.
Disciples, on the other hand, try their best to live Biblically.

I like my church because i think they are very focused on discipleship. :)

"If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.
Then you will know the truth,
and the truth will set you free"

And the thing that dawned on me that evening,
was that a community of disciples is a very unique special thing.
It is a community of tolerance and support and encouragement.

And to spread this kind of community to the world must surely not be a bad thing.

Perhaps that is the essence of Christianity.
Not so much on the believe-and-go-to-heaven thing,
but in creating this community on earth,
where pple learn and live on tolerating, supporting and loving each other.

"Make room for us in your hearts.
We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have exploited no one."