Thursday, May 7, 2026

Follow... (unpublished post from 2012)

Not many of us are natural born leaders. On the other hand, not many of us are natural born followers either. And I don't mean following a crowd like a herd of sheep kind of follow (because we seem to be pretty good at that, aren't we?), but following a particular leader and submitting to his/her leadership kind of follow.

In fact, I think we all want to be our own leaders. Or, to put it in another way, we don't want to be forever looking at someone else's back. After all, the view at the front is always much better.

I once gave myself a challenge: to test how long I can stay behind a car on a stretch of road given we were both travelling at or under the speed limit. I can tell you, it didn't last very long. The car in front of me wasn't slow, nor was he driving poorly in any way. There was no reason for me to overtake him, and yet, be it lack of patience or the fact that I just wanted a better view, I eventually ended up overtaking anyway. And the view was great! There was no car in front of me to obscure my view (not that it really did), and even though I travelled at the same speed as before, it meant I was no longer following the car that was in front of me.

Granted, this probably is a fairly poor example of the point that I'm trying to make. Yet I do not think the mentality of not wanting someone ahead of us is foreign to any human being. Admittedly, we don't really like rules, or maybe we just don't like the rules that someone else has made up for us. We don't want to be pushed to travel at someone else's pace. We just want to do things our way, as we see fit. And when great minds think alike, you get a following. Not following a particular leader, but just a set of ideals or ways of doing things.

Having said all that, we know for a fact that there has been, and still are, plenty of leaders that are worthy of following. 

Find them, or be one of them.

Epiphany

I had an epiphany today.

I do not like to 原地踏步 (literal meaning: stepping in the original spot). That must be why I don't like exercises that require being in the same spot the whole time (e.g. treadmill). I would much rather spend an hour walking outdoors in nature than spend 15 minutes doing HIIT.

And yet, 原地踏步 is precisely what I have been doing these past 10 years.

And yet, whilst I do not like being stuck in the same spot, I am also resistant to change. I have always hated moving houses, moving cities. If I had the choice, I would have stayed in the same organisation as long as I possibly could. Mostly because I'm fiercely loyal, but I can't help but wonder if it's also because I'm resistant to change. 

這也太矛盾了吧......

Too much for my little brain to deal with today, but at least I have an excuse of why I don't want to do exercises that require movement in the same spot! 

An unfinished poem from Oct 2015...

Oh! How fleeting it is!
To pour your heart and soul
Only to be trampled and thrown

Oh! How fleeting it is!

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Standstill



In the stillness of a busy street
In the silence of a million voices
The world is moving on
Yet my time
My time is at a standstill

In the calmness of a roaring sea
In the tranquility of a thundering waterfall
The world is spiralling from under my feet
Yet I feel
I feel I am standing still

Shall I go forward, or shall I go back?
Who can wade through the depths of time?

In the crevice of an open road
In the darkness of shimmering lights
The world is leaping
Yet my mind
My mind is at a standstill

In the whisper of the howling wind
In the quietness of a raging storm
The world is fiercely changing
Yet I am here
I am still here, standing still


Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Father and Son


Hold my hands and guide my steps,
But don't drag me to the place where you think I should go;
Stand behind me and catch me should I fall,
But don't stand before me to stop me from finding my way...

Monday, September 2, 2013

親愛的爸爸 (To My Dearest Dad)


親愛的爸爸

感謝您
從不讓我「有求必應」
好讓我學會珍惜我所擁有的

感謝您
從不給我過多的零用錢
好讓我學會積蓄和節儉

感謝您
每年每月不停努力的工作
讓我體會到努力不懈的成果

感謝您
從來沒有要求過我什麼
好讓我能夠闖出我自己所要走的路

感謝您
從來沒阻止我的信仰
好讓我得到了人生最大的福份

感謝您
一路以來那無言的愛
好讓我明白到行動比說話更重要

感謝您
一路以來對我的不離不棄
好讓我生活從不缺乏

感謝祂
讓我有福氣成為您的女兒
讓我成為今天的我

爸,打從心底的感謝您,父親節快樂!



To my dearest Daddy


Thank you
For never fulfilling my every request
Such that I could learn to cherish the things I have


Thank you
For never giving me too much pocket money
Such that I could learn to be thrifty and save up


Thank you
For working hard day and night, month and year
Such that I could see the fruits of hard work and perseverance


Thank you
For never asking too much of me
Such that I could find and walk my own path in life


Thank you
For never stopping me from my faith
Such that I could obtain the biggest blessing in my life


Thank you
For loving me without words
Such that I could learn actions speak louder than words


Thank you
For never giving up on me
Such that my life has never been lacking


Thank God
For the blessing of becoming your daughter
Such that I could become who I am today


Daddy, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Happy Father's Day!

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Underneath the fancy clothes
A decaying body
An ugly heart
A wretched soul
Selfishness, anger, malice
Envy, jealousy, and pride
Reeling their ugly heads
Catching me unaware
Is this who I was?
Who I am?
Or what I have become?

But by this I know
Of this I can be certain
I have been saved by grace
And grace alone
An ugly heart
Given a makeover
A wretched soul
Given the light of day
Not because of who I was
Who I am
Or even who I will become

On that last day
His blood
His righteousness
His glory
Shall cover my sins
My guilt
My shame
My decaying body will be no more
My ugly heart no longer be
And my soul
My wretched soul
Will be forever renewed
And forever belong to Him