Poor Sandals

One of my sandal straps torn off yesterday!

I joined my family shopping in a clothing complex when I realized that my sandals were getting loosened.

I continued walking until my feet couldn't carry my heavy body anymore....

Hurriedly I looked around for place to sit down...

Then I discovered the front edge of the building had some place to sit down.

My wife was busy shopping for bed sheets and curtain fabrics, and my two daughters were busy helping and disturbing.

But my son decided to follow me....

While sitting on the edge of the front porch, we had a long and nice chat.

We reasoned on some issues and we analyzed things together....

As the saying goes, two brains are better than one.

We reached consensus on certain things and we disagreed on other issues.

I made it a point not to press further...

Certain things need to learn through personal experiences...

But deep inside I was very eager to help... to save him the pain....

But nothing comes easy in this life; there is always a price to pay for everything we gain.

While talking, I got into the habit of massaging my leg and my foot....

Then I took a careful look at my sandals and discovered that the sandal straps were in bad shape and the glue was gone....

No wonder.....

I reminded myself to be extra careful with my sandals....

Just then, I saw my wife and my two daughters coming towards us, carrying big bags of things, and smiling and laughing away...

We greeted one another and we made plan....

We decided to visit another complex.

Then quietly I told my wife about my poor sandals.

We walked together slowly towards our van....

But one of my sandals decided to break....

Huh...Sad day.

My helpful family got me a new pair while I waited in the car.

The new sandals looked elegant and trendy.

But I missed my old sandals... and I told me I must glue it back....

Oh, poor sandals, I wouldn't give you up that easily....

He Is My Living Example

When I first knew him, he was a mechanic.

In fact, his brothers and relatives that I knew were all mechanics.

They had come to this small town from a nearby city 20 years ago.

They had made some headway and had individually set up their own mechanic shop.

*******

He was not that successful as a mechanic.

But he was friendly and helpful.

He made many friends and was very active in the local community.

He was a Jack of all trade and very skillful in many things.

Once he helped us in constructing the bathroom and toilet.

His work was meticulous and fast.

Once I asked him how was it that he knew a lot of things.

He told me softly that he took heart and learned.

I was amazed by his patience, humility and perseverance.

Since then, I considered him as my living example.

*******

I didn't hear anything about him for quite sometime.

Then I heard that he had a kidney or liver failure.

Since then, he no longer worked as a mechanic.

It must have been a very miserable time for him and his family.

Then I heard that he was making a lot of pau steamers.

And that he walked from shop to shop, looking for noodle shop owners and restaurants operators.

He requested them to allow him to sell chinese dumplings like char siew pau, bak pau, tau sar pau and siao bee in their venues.

He was indeed my living example.

I admired his high spirit, far-sightedness, and optimism.

*******

He made a good and decent living with his new found business venture.

His wife was a great help to him.

Together they also set up their own shop, selling chinese dumplings.

They worked day and night, making full use of all opportunities....

Once, I was told that his house was burgled.

He lost a lot of cash and many other things.

He was very upset and depressed for a while.

But he recovered fast and moved on....

I admired his resilience and mental toughness.

*******

For the past few weeks, I had been seeing him again,

Bringing his children and grandchildren around for breakfast.

He looked happy, talking softly to them, sometimes creating jokes.

But he looked old with sunken eyes, white sideburns, and lots of gray hairs....

We always greeted one another.

He was still very friendly and kind,

With lots and lots of friends around.

He is still my living example....

Understand Life With Feelings And Emotion

She didn't know that she was adopted by her late mother's sister until after her marriage and had two children.

It had been a very painful blow for her and she broke down and dissolved in tears.

She had a hard time reconciling with her real mother and her brothers ever since.

I remembered she was in her early 30s when this happened.

She must have many painful days and many sleepless nights........

She must have howled and heaved and wept and wailed.......

*******

When the story was finally unfold, apparently it was because of extreme poverty; the parents were unable to provide for the needs of the family......

They had a hard time making ends meet....

They had difficulties raising all the children....

They must be very sad and reluctant to let her go.....

But what else to do?

The poor mother finally had a long and painful discussion with her elder sister.

Her elder sister was barren and had not long ago adopted a son.

So instead of giving her daughter to others, she gave her to her elder sister, knowing that she would raise her up well......

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She was having a wonderful and happy time with her foster parents, being the only daughter of the family.

She mixed around well with her cousins, not knowing that some of them were her own brothers.

********

Her mother came for her wedding but didn't mention that she was the real mother.

She was happy and ran down to hold the man in her arms.

And she married my brother....

*******

Many years had passed.

Her foster father and mother had died.....

Her real father and mother had passed away....

And then I saw her few days ago,

Holding hands with her brothers and their family members....

They had so many things to say, so much feelings to pour out.......

Under the late evening breeze,

Amidst the joy, the cheers and shouts of the people around.....

Celebrating the engagement of her eldest daughter.....

Oh, Who can understand life without feelings and emotion?

Playing Supporting Roles

Everyone needs support system.

The little children rely on their parents for everything.

But as they grow, they become more mature and self-dependent, and love to do things on their own. Nevertheless they will fall back on their parents when the going gets tough and the money gets tight.

The little students depend on their teachers for everything.

But as they develop, they become more capable and self-reliant, and love to do works on their own. Nevertheless they will come back to the teachers when the problems become more and more demanding and less familiar.

Younger people need a lot of care, attention, guidance, support and encouragement.

It is good to see and monitor how they grow and mature. And as parents we want them to outshine us and live a more fulfilling life. As parents we also want them not to make the same mistakes and errors that we ourselves have done.

Some of us parents refuse to let our little children grow. As a result, they are so dependent on us for their livelihood even after they have grown and developed. Some of us children still very much dependent on our old parents... to our very shame....

Some of us teachers fail to let out students self-develop their learning skills. We teach them using the same methods and strategies all over again. As a result, teacher-centered teaching and learning still abound everywhere, and many students do not have the opportunity, freedom and choice to develop, to explore and to discover, to attempt and to do things in newer and better ways.....

As we know, life is a journey of experimentation, exploration and discoveries.

We may be smarter and know better than our children and students, but we are not to mold them according to our wish, our ideal, our hope, our goals....you name them....

Let's spur them on to progress and development... let's lead, guide and motivate them for greater and continuing success..... Let's learn to understand and support them in their visions and dreams to build a better tomorrow....

They are our futures and the futures of the world.

And we are their support system....playing supporting roles.

Go Walking

Walking is fun and relaxing.

And walking is refreshing.

Often it is after walking for sometime that we learn how to adjust our posture and movement to walk faster and longer.

I used to go walking when I am tired and stressful....

... or sometimes when I have unsolved problems and unfinished work.

I love to walk in a park or garden, and enjoy the greenery and natural beauty, the smell of the earth and air around, and the sweet chirping of birds.

Sometimes a walk by a stream or around a lake will be nice when there are fish swimming and the sound of flowing water.

Some people love to compete in walking. They enjoy winning and think it is great.

Some people walk for fun and leisure. They take their sweet time, enjoying every single step they take.

Some people walk for weight control and weight loss. They are very careful with their postures, movements, and speed, and they have various strategies and training programs to suit their needs and aspirations.

Some people walk for problems solving and emotional handling. They walk to inculcate creativity, innovation and confidence in their work. They walk to quieten their hearts and minds.

But most of us walk with no apparent reasons.

We just enjoy walking.

I try my best to walk every evening.

To all walkers, happy walking.