Search This Blog

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Everything starts with just a thought

Thought manifests as word.

Word manifests as deed.

Deed develops into habit.

And habit hardens into character.

So watch the thought and its ways with care.

And let it spring from loveBorn out of concern for all beings.


-- The Buddha (563?-483? B.C.E.)Siddhartha Gautama

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Travel light

If you wish to travel far and fast, travel light. Take off all your envies, jealousies, unforgiveness, selfishness, and fears.

-- Glenn Clark


It is great to read something like that today as it is very meaningful to realise why I can have a different world of experience when I reflect it in retrospect.

Travel light physically and mentally!

Even with motion sickness on plane, in car and ship, I find ways to many places with friends who enjoy visiting and experiencing the life of different places together.

I think we are able to travel light physically and emotionally!

Having very light luggages ease the physical journey and with light emotional baggages make the choice of tour mate an easy task!

Cheers!

Dexterine Ho

Thursday, August 26, 2010

一個“放”字

Just received the followings today from a friend:

千般哲理, 一個“放”字
有一種養心方法叫“放下”。
擅樂者希聲,養心者留空。
何時放下,何時就會獲得一身輕鬆。


有一種處事方法叫“放棄”,
放棄無法擁有的,
重要的是放棄之後就不要悔恨。
獲得幸福的不二法則是珍惜所擁有的。

有一種辦事方法叫“放置”。
放置不是閑置,
今天無頭緒可能明天有條理,
因為事緩則圓,事緩就有變。


有一種管理方法叫“放手”。
管理不是緊緊抓住不放,
更非事必躬親,
而是有條有理地調動大家的積極性,
捆住了手腳當然就無活力而言。


有一種思考方法叫“放飛”。
放飛思緒才會天馬行空。
創造源於想象,想象力遠比知識重要。


有一種表達方法叫“放聲”。
若不影響他人,不妨放開喉嚨,
壓抑是致病的罪魁。
需要注意的是,放聲之後應知道何時收聲。


有一種觀察方法叫“放眼”。
能放眼時應放眼,放眼之處皆風景。
目力所及可見銀河星瀚、
高山流水、雲卷雲舒,遠比眼前風景好看得多。


一個“放”字,千般哲理。

運用得好,就會使復雜的生活回歸簡單,
紛亂的思緒回歸明晰,浮躁的心境回歸淡然。


“放”作為生存之態,是化繁後的睿智,
是畫龍後的點睛,是深刻後的平和。


梭羅說:“一個人越是有許多事能夠放得下,
他就越是富有。”


“提得起”常被人稱道,
“放得下”則更令人贊嘆。

Source of original information: Unknown

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Attachment

I like these quotations someone sent me:

"The worst in life is "ATTACHMENT", it hurts when you lost something!"

"The best thing in life is " LONELINESS", because it teaches you everything and when you lose it, you get everything!"

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Creation of something

It is wonderful to be in on the creation of something, see it used, and then walk away and smile at it.
-- Lady Bird Johnson (1912- ) American First Lady


It is a joyful journey when I travelled the path of creating something I like and have a smiling day after doing it!
 
I enjoy the mode of doing something creative and innovative.  It can be just as simple as cutting something out from paper, planting something green and beautiful in the garden, or just doing some arrangement and re-arrangement of artifacts around me etc...
 
Creating something just take a few minutes or less than an hour, yet the joys of looking at it last for the whole days or, some time, years!
 
It is a good way of trading time for something that please your and other's heart that is everlasting!
 
Dexterine Ho

Saturday, August 07, 2010

Singapore - Crossroads of the East 1938

A tour of the British colony of Singapore in 1938.  Footage from this film is available for licensing from http://www.globalimageworks.com



I can identify some of the scenes taken in Singapore River then as the River in the late 1950s and 1960s when I am a child was like that in my memory, especially the sights of Chinese workers (Ku Li) walking on planks with loads of goods on their shoulders brought back many fond memories of my childhood living near boat quay (Tan Thye Alley)

My father came to Singapore in the 1940s, if he is still around, this film will bring back some of his fond memories:

Singapore in 1938:
- the Gibraltar of the East!
- the cheapest shopping centre in the whole world!
- with modern buildings and large boulevards!
- thriving harbour!
- a lively city with lively people!
- religious freedom and harmony!

When I heard this in the movie, it is like what is like reading printed text in the geography text book in school in the late 1960s. Yet is was the achievement 30 years before Singapore's Independence.

We were told that Singapore was a poor city and it is very enlightening to see 1938 with all the modern facilities already in place!

I really enjoy this movie as it made me understand the way Singapore is today are the toils and hard work of our ancestors.

During that period of time, the whites are the ones who enjoy themselves while our ancestors toil. 

Now some of us are engaging foreign maid and doing the same like the white did in the past. 

The population in 1938 was only 500,000.  Our ancestors were immigrants then and now in 2010, the population is 5,000,000+ and many of our maids and workers etc are immigrants.

If history can help us reflects and projects into the future, it will tell us whatever we have at present will not be permanent!  Things will change and evolve from time to time.

The future of our Singapore is for all of us to create!

Whoever toils and hard work, like our ancestor may harvest the fruits of their labour, if not within their generation,  it will in their next generation.

What will Singapore be in 2050 and who are the Singaporean then?

Friday, August 06, 2010

亲爱的潮州

潮剧艺人张长城,黄盛典,郑舜英等以潮曲介绍美丽的潮州。

Thursday, August 05, 2010

With whom you are going to spend most of your waking hours

The people with whom you work reflect your own attitude. If you are
suspicious, unfriendly and condescending, you will find these unlovely traits echoed all about you.

But if you are on your best behavior, you will bring out the best in the persons with whom you are going to spend most of your waking hours.

-- Beatrice Vincent


For those who are in working world for years, you will have enough experience that boss attracts only like-minded subordinates.

If you do not like to be re-format by your boss and you cannot change your boss's ways of doing thing, the only way out is to ask for transfer or post yourself out. 

There are lot of rooms for exploration if you try another way of living your working world.  We are not obliged to work for one organisation or one boss for life.

If we like the way the organisation run and identify our dream with their mission and vision, we stay longer and become a loyal staff.

If we entered to a work place with disillusion and misconception, and after a while your realised that it is not a place for you as it is not healthy for your body, mind and soul, you will know that it is time to say "I had tried and I understand I can be better elsewhere" and you moved on ...

Work is just a place for your mind and soul to explore the potential it may extend.

If your mind, body and soul is at a stand still or degrading and you have to create a new place and made new room for the body, mind and soul to breath freely and healthily, you will make the choice, however costly it is. 

Dollars and cents will not make much sense at this juncture, as it is the value in the decision you make that benefit the rest of your life.

The cash that you chase and trash yourself in at work day and night, may ruin your mind, body and soul!

If you choice the way you work, you will have the like-minded with you and you will never be alone!


Dexterine Ho

Tuesday, August 03, 2010

Singapore - The Lion City, 1957

A visit to Singapore in 1957. To license footage from this film, visit www.travelfilmarchive.com




I was filmed in 1957 and I was too young to have any impression of Singapore at that time!

"Singapore was once so pretty!" I can see that places and things changed so much within 50 years if you compare the places of interest THEN and now.