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CJ

The fence

By Wisdom
Barge haulers by Victoria Ivanova

Barge haulers by Victoria Ivanova

There once was a little boy who had a bad temper.

His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence.

The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down.

He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.

Finally the day came when the boy didn’t lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper.

The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence.

He said, “You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won’t matter how many times you say I’m sorry, the wound is still there. A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one.”

As William Arthur Ward once said,
“It is wise to direct your anger towards problems – not people;
to focus your energies on answers – not excuses.”

[source: http://authenticawakening.com/2010/07/02/the-fence-a-poem-for-parents-dealing-with-childrens-anger/]

一辆脚车让穷学生圆梦‧印裔律师感谢华裔夫妇相助

By Compassion
菲莱登(左起)与谢欢来和许玉英多年来感情如同亲人,当然会邀请他们一起出席和见証他成为执业律师的重大时刻。(图:星洲日报)

菲莱登(左起)与谢欢来和许玉英多年来感情如同亲人,当然会邀请他们一起出席和见証他成为执业律师的重大时刻。(图:星洲日报)

(柔佛‧麻坡11日讯)一辆平凡的脚踏车,让一名家境贫穷印裔男孩踩上求学道路,完成梦想。

来自居鑾的菲莱登(56岁)歷经多年苦读,今日终於正式成为执业律师。

对他而言,若当年没有得到谢欢来夫妇的热心帮助,送了他一辆脚踏车,就不会有今日的成就。

菲莱登今日上午正式成为合格执业律师。除了其家庭成员受邀出席观礼外,他也邀请了感情如同父母的谢欢来(75岁)和许玉英(71岁)一同在麻坡法庭见证这纪念意义深远的一刻。

菲莱登表示,他12岁时就认识了当年经营杂货店的谢氏夫妇,彼此感情都很好。

他还记得,当年谢欢来甚至能用简单的淡米尔语和他交谈。

面临停学获赠脚车

他说,由於家境贫寒,家中更有8个兄弟姐妹,让他在中四时一度因为无法继续缴付巴士费用,差点被迫停学。

“谢欢来知道我或面临停学的消息后很关心我,问我怎么办?我告诉他,若有一辆脚车,就算每天来回必须踏上40公里的路程上下学,我也愿意。”

菲莱登没有想到的是,谢欢来在隔天便带著他到居鑾市集为他买了第一辆属於自己的脚车,令他感动不已。

也因为这辆脚车,他可以继续求学,直到中学毕业。

半工读完成硕士课程

他表示,中学毕业后,他担任教师,並继续半工半读,也曾因为经济困境而3度停止修读法律课程,但他没有放弃,並在1996年获得学士学位,2007年获得硕士学位。

“经过9个月实习后,如今我终於披上律师袍,成为执业律师,我很感谢谢氏夫妇当年的热心协助,让我能完成学业。”

自从谢氏夫妇在1978年从居鑾搬到麻坡定居后,目前身在居鑾的菲莱登每次来到麻坡便会登门拜访,与他们相聚,互相问候。

除了菲莱登外,另有3名实习律师也在今日正式成为执业律师。他们是来自麻坡的卡丽达、昔加末的林艾婷,以及峇株巴辖的谢焕錚。

[source: http://www.sinchew.com.my/node/226348?tid=1]

Donation for Bangkok flood crisis

By Involvement
juesatta awaken foundation (draft logo)

juesatta awaken foundation (draft logo)

Major flooding has occurred in Thailand during the 2011 monsoon season, most severely in the Chao Phraya River but also in the Mekong River basin. The country’s worst flooding in half a century have killed over 300 people, affected over 2.3 million people, and caused damages estimated to be up to $5.1 billion.

Raw sewage and animal carcasses can be seen bobbing in waters ripe for disease. In some areas, crocodiles have escaped from overwhelmed farms, and snakes searching for dry land have slithered into homes. Twenty percent of Bangkok is now under water yet many people choose to stay in their inundated homes, despite risks including electrocution and disease as well as shortages of food and drinking water.

People in Bangkok now require a huge amount of support to provide relief and recovery efforts. Each and every cent makes a difference. If you wish to send donations to help fund the relief effort in Bangkok, you can do online via Thai Red Cross Society.

Here in juesatta, we’ve collected an amount of RM750.00 from friends and transferred to Yayasan Sin Chew taking aids to help flood victims. Our heartfelt thanks for your kindness.

May all beings be happy.

A main road is cut off by the flooding in Bangkok (photo from news.sky.com)

A main road is cut off by the flooding in Bangkok (photo from news.sky.com)

Local residents evacuate their neighbourhood in Bangkok (photo from news.sky.com)

Local residents evacuate their neighbourhood in Bangkok (photo from news.sky.com)

Mandy + Daniel = wedding reception

By Photography
mandy + deniel wedding reception

mandy + deniel wedding reception

I received an invitation from my old friends, Deniel and Mandy to attend their wedding dinner last month. The fantastic and wild wedding reception of Mandy and Daniel was held at the Lu Yeh Yuan Restaurant, one of the biggest restaurants in Melaka.

Deniel and I were secondary school classmates and we used to hang out at Deniel’s cyber cafe and snooker center during the old days. Then I got to know Mandy when Deniel started to date her about 8 years back. Those are amazing couples and have finally tied the knot.

I too met many old friends the Franciscans that night. Most of us didn’t get to meet each other after our secondary school when everybody off our own way to tertiary study. This dinner however had made us reunion, came and gathered together and brought back all the memories of the old days.

Iu-Lung the young and talented photographer was there as the official photographer of the reception. I brought my gears and it was intended to take a few shots of my old friends. However, being a photographer myself, it has already become a practice and I started to go around and photographed the reception with Iu-Lung.

The night was simply fun. Everybody had a good time laughing and drinking as much as we could.

Congratulation to Mandy and Deniel on your marriage! Wishing you a wonderful journey as you build your new life together.

Below are some images I took. May all beings be happy.

泰柬越寮水灾,星洲日报、光明日报联合发动跨国赈济行动

By Involvement
泰柬越寮水灾,星洲日报、光明日报联合发动跨国赈济行动

泰柬越寮水灾,星洲日报、光明日报联合发动跨国赈济行动

东南亚湄公河流域洪灾情况恶化,星洲日报、光明日报联合发起人道主义筹款賑灾行动,吁请读者响应,援助流离失所的灾民们度过水劫。

星洲日报基金会將由即日起接受读者捐款。

根据联合国统计,东南亚各国,包括泰国、柬埔寨、寮国、越南、缅甸已有逾700人在这次水劫中丧命,800万人受影响。其中以泰国最为严重。

凡有意捐款的读者,可將支票(抬头志明:Yayasan Sin Chew)连同捐款表格,邮寄至19,Jalan Semangat,46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.並注明:星洲日报基金会(人道救援东南亚洪灾)。

此外,读者也可把善款匯入RHB A/C No:2-12479-00043019,之后请將匯款单或银行转账单,连同捐款表格传真、电邮或邮寄至星洲日报基金会。捐款表格请见今日星洲日报全国版。或者於週一至週六(9am-5pm)前往星洲日报总社或各大办事处捐款。

任何疑问,欢迎来电向星洲日报基金会询问,电话:03-79658675/79658852;或电邮:yayasan@sinchew.com.my;或传真至03-79658551,以获更多详情。

泰国‧连续4天烹煮100人份量‧善心大叔赠灾民饭菜

By Compassion
遭遇水劫不忘施恩行善。泰国一户人家Ratanasunya Teerachat在居住的受灾区提供食物賑济灾民,为灾民带来一丝暖意。(图:法新社)

遭遇水劫不忘施恩行善。泰国一户人家Ratanasunya Teerachat在居住的受灾区提供食物賑济灾民,为灾民带来一丝暖意。(图:法新社)

(泰国‧曼谷29日讯)危难中的曼谷,每天仍见到不少温情场面,湄南河边一名卖佛像维生的男子,已经连续4天煮好约100人份量的饭菜,派给附近的灾民。

这位热心大叔说,他准备的饭菜分別是红米粥、鸡肉及大蕉,“有肉、有水果又有米饭,相当健康”。

附近另一座寺庙虽未受洪水所侵,但在庙外四处都是洪水。该庙住持对记者说,寺內僧人平日都会外出化缘,可是近日洪水却令他们完全不能外出,“不过善信们都很好,知道我们的需要主动拿(饭菜)过来”。

驶车到天桥以车为家

另外,家园被淹,不少水灾灾民选择驾车离家后驶到架空公路天桥避难,以车为家。有隨家人避走天桥的少年说,不想留在水灾地区,因担心会成为鱷鱼的大餐。

曼谷外围不少行车天桥及高速公路旁,均泊满长长车龙,部份是民眾不想车辆被浸坏而停泊该处,部份则是灾民的“流动避难所”。

17岁的Jay说,一家所住的村落已被水淹,水深过膝,只好驻扎在离开曼谷市中心30多公里的一条天桥上。

Jay直言他们已把家中生活物资全搬过来,有时驾车经过的好心人也会给他们一些食物,父母因提防有人趁乱打劫,平日会回家看屋,他和弟弟就留守看车,三餐就在车后的帐篷下用气体炉煮食,吃饱就在车上或地上睡觉。

怕水流中潜藏鱷鱼

日復一日,在桥上无所事事的日子已过去5天,Jay坦言最大愿望就是回家,但遥遥无期。他说自己不懂游水,洪水固然可怕,但最怕的还是可能潜藏水流中的鱷鱼。

少年Terapon亦与双亲在天桥上扎营一星期。他说,“很无聊,最多是打电话。”他们在离曼谷30多公里外的村子亦遭水淹,道路中断,“我们很幸运,能及时逃出”。

[source: http://www.sinchew.com.my/node/224924?tid=2]