Sunday, August 28, 2005 @5:47 PM
The Unexpected "Good" Week
National Service...
Guys who have not enlisted, dread it.
Guys who are still serving, can't wait for it to end.
Guys who have finished serving, breaths a great sigh of relief.
Well i guess for majority of the male population in singapore, National Service is not something any of us wants to go through. We'd rather say, we're forced to go through. Hence, I began to assume that I should expect only the worse to happen. However... The past week has proved me wrong!
Here's what we did. On monday & tuesday we had our practice range on some computer system. Wednesday we had practise on life rounds(real bullets). Thursday we had our test for life firing. Friday we practically didn't do much cept to wait for the next day to book out.
Monday and tuesday was fun firing in an air-con environment.
On Wednesday it was kinda stressful handling life rounds for the first time plus I had a bad encounter with an instructor, instead of helping me, was just yelling his lungs out. The stress probably got to me and my cough got worse. Felt pretty low that day. Until my Platoon Commander walked up to me and asked if I was alright, aware of my serious cough. What touched me was the fact that he did not just asked and forget abt it, but back at the company line he offered me his cough drops.
Action speaks louder then words. His actions reminded me of how some of us always ask why did Jesus die for people as unworthy as us... like my platoon commander was not obligated to offer a recruit his cough drops.
My spirits were kinda lifted the next day as I went for my test. I am very sure that my day range is a lot better than my night. Though slightly nervous I was, I scored 14/16 shots for my day. When came the night range instead of becoming more nervous, I felt very peaceful at the sight of beautiful stars that lit up the dark skies. Somehow I was reminded of God as I was appreciating his awesome creations, like as though he was right there with me, watching over me.
When the test ended, my results were 29/32 & got marksman.
I may not be able to bring my family & friends with me to camp, but nothing can take me away from my God. Isn't it amazing how he can make your day in the simplest ways?
* Let no one disregard you because you are young *
Monday, August 08, 2005 @12:32 PM
What if... Something's missing?
This post is like months due cos i was too lazy to create my blog la.. haha
Be warned... it's a long entry =)
However, I hope you enjoy reading!
It was a normal Sunday afternoon after a usual confirmation class. I was on my way home. Boarded the 159 bus and sat on a seat facing the passangers. As I was making myself comfortable, the scrawniness of an old man caught my attention. He was in polo tee, casual shorts, sandals & socks and a pair of glasses with huge frames. At the evident sight of bones which his flesh seemed to barely cover, I believe him to be a Prisoner of War during the Japan invasion.
As I continued observing him from the corner of my eye, he attempted to scratch his face, or should i say... he rubbed his face. The fingers on both his hands seemed to have been cut off, hence rubbing was the only way to ease the itch. Upon this realization, his sandals with socks mismatch didn't feel weird anymore. The width of his feet fits the sandals, but not the length. My guess? He was missing toes too.
For the rest of my journey home, I was thinking "What if... Something's missing?". Could you imagin wearing clothes, socks, having a meal, typing on a computer or even typing sms on your handphone to be an almost impossible task to do without fingers? And walking carefully is the only way u can move about, because it's hard to balance without the support of your toes? Even when u fall, your palm is the only thing that can break your fall?
From that experience, I realized the need to learn to appreciate not just my fingers & toe's more. But rather, everything that I 'still' have. Physical things like, the gift of sight, hearing, speech & of course my fingers & toes. The nature that God created, the friends and family that God gave to me. Well these are just some of my examples of things I 'still' have to appreciate, the list goes on.
Reason why I use the word 'still'? My thoughts are, these gifts are not meant to last forever. Appreciate them while you still have them, so you won't regret when you lose them. These gifts are not given because he's obligated to give, but because he loves.
* Let no one disregard you because you are young *