Train and Train Track #Day4 #30DaysBlogChallenge

NOTE : Sorry, again I was late to post. 

 

 

 

Photo from purpletwirls.com

 

 

Day 4: Discuss your views on religion?

There was a slow emerging vision of Train, Train track and Train Control Master in my mind as I ponder upon the topic of religion in today’s blogging topic. Train is the God we human called by many name, the divine concept we believe d in. Train Track is the religion, the set of rules that govern our religious life towards the divinity we call God. Train Control Master is the one and only God, the controller of our lives, the universe and time. 

Religion for me is a track (imagine a train track) but it is a Divine track. It guides us on our way to learn about, to follow, to ‘find’ God. Some may say it is a road a way etc but for me it is a track. A track gives us clear limitation on what to and what not to do. Unlike roads, train track do not gives you an opportunity to sway left or right. You stay on your track or you will topple over. You may get off at any station of your life by your own decision (read: deciding not to practice what your Holy Book and Prophet prescribe), you may choose another train (read: God by other name, different from the one you are born with or the one you first believed) and you may also change your route (Read: join a different denomination, sect, practices, cult, group etc). In the end, it is a matter of whether your train and train tracks lead you to God. 

http://www.constructionlawsignal.com/by-state/maryland/pennsylvania-rail-system-receives-68m-grant/

Sadly, some extreme people devoted all their faith in the train and train track instead of seeing him as a greater divine being that control the whole universe. I saddened me when people of faith claim to be the most righteous, the truest truth and everyone else is wrong and deemed for hell. The only one who can judge that is God when the end of the world is here and (according to my believe, Christianity) Jesus will come for the second time as the King and judge and who ever believed in him shall not perished but have an everlasting life. God and God alone can make the judgment on how true and righteous you are and your religion. So instead of forcing your chosen religion down someone else’s throat, let’s race to do more kindness, do all the goodness that it prescribe. I am sure people will follow our religion upon seeing our good deeds, attitude and life. 

So, when it comes to religion. It is a private matter. It is a business between you and your Divine God. Practice it well! Make impact in a positive way! Live your relationship in an intimate manner with God and live in peace and harmony with all God’s creation.-

MY Pet Peeves #Day3 #30DaysBlogChallenge

Day 3: What are your top 5 pet peeves?

NOTE:

Yes, I am late to post this. My Apology. However this been typed and finished but sue to some hectic cleaning up day at my language center, I was not able to upload it to the internet.

Pet Peeves, I know this word when I was in junior high or early high school. I remember this not so vividly. But I do remember that I heard this word from a Teen TV show, “Saved by The Bell”… For you reader who immediately cringe and said, “What?!! Who?!!”… well… face it, I am a bit ancient. All you got to do not is Google it. Anyway, One of the character talked about Pet Peeves, and it bugs me for days because I do not know what does it mean. Were they talking about pets? Is that why  they talk about spiders, but they also talk about picking your nose. I used the English-Indonesian Dictionary but it didn’t help me much. Only until I was in my later year in High School and my English got a little better, I was able to use my father’s English-English Dictionary and had my ‘eureka’ moment about the words. 

According to Mirrian Webster Disctionary, Pet Peeve/s is  something that annoys or bothers a person very much. So the following are my top 5 Pet peeves:

1. People smoking inside a room. It gets worse when it is an air conditioned room or when there are children, pregnant woman and old people around them, or when the smoker smoke when at other people’s house visiting and happily huff and puff their way oblivious of people around them. I think these people are not rude but a moron with no heart and no education. These are selfish people who only think of themselves. We should have like an astronaut helm put on their head so they huff and puff and swallow their own polluted smoke. I do hope they choke and stop being a pest to other people
2. People cutting the queue (especially when they are cutting mine) or people won’t stand in line. Seriously! Everybody have rights. If you want yours to be respected, respect others. This is selfish act where you want to get yours first and don’t give a **bleep** about other people. Perhaps queuing is a mark of a sustainable society (not so much of educated though, this is relative), Take for example in England, people queue for everything. It is a norm and common practice that when you attempt to not doing it, you’ll be like a fish out of water. Sadly, I witness my fellow Indonesian got told to by fellow queues’ and/or staff about respecting others by queuing up. This is sad because we claim to be a cultured and religious people whose holy books talks about respecting others. Sadly, we are not able to embody and practice it in real life.
3. Parents/adult who thinks it’s alright to let their children run around disturbing people and moment in public. Listen! I have my own child. I am a firm believer that children should be left being children. But there is a firm difference between being a child and have no manners. When a child mis-behaves like this, it is not the child we should be blamed. It is the parents. Aren’t parent’ responsibility to teach their children manners? It annoys me when a child is seriously misbehaving and are disturbing others and the parents/adult he/she are with laugh thinking its funny or pretend they do not see it or ignore it and continue with their chatter. Last month, we were having dinner at a newly opened restaurant joint. We had a nice time until 2 ladies with their 2 children came and sat on the table next to us. Apparently these 2 ladies are friends and were catching up on stories. However, after few minutes, the children began climbing chairs, shouting, waving balloons and smacking the waitresses. They even come and ‘glued’ themselves to our table and stare at our food and at us eating. The little one even try to grab my drink. And what did the ‘parents/adult’ do? Keep chatting!!!! Until one of the head waitress come and reminded them to control their children. What did they do? They smacked the Kids and said loudly, “What is wrong with you? You have no manners!” --- well sister, did you teach them, give them example and be consistent about it until they learn? Kids learn more from actions/examples that through words.
4. Littering : People who don’t throw garbage in its place. Now these type of people are imbecile. What is wrong with moving your lazy bottom to the nearest trash can? You can also keep it in your bag until you find one. Sadly in Ambon people see that is is OK just to do that. Fancy and expensive car pass by aaaaaand… the window rolled open and out fly an empty plastic mineral water bottle or crumpled tissues or used plastic bag, snack wrapper AND Soiled Nappy. SMH!!!
5. Being significantly late to meetings or appointment without reasonable reason. There’s no such thing as fashionably late. Being late is no longer in fashion. Ambonesse have this ‘Jam Karet’ or Rubber time habit that they quite surprisingly proud of. I can tolerate 5 up to 15 minutes late but up to 20 minutes up is rude and disrespectful of the person you are going to meet.

As you can see! I feel quite strongly about these. My list still continues but they ask for my top 5 so… there it was.

The Future : 10 years from now #Day2 #30DaysBlogChallenge

Day 2: Where would you like to be 10 years from now?

That is both exciting and overwhelming questions for a daydreamer me. I have too many dreams and ideas and then feel overwhelmed and a bit down because of the little time and so much to do mindset. However, just for the sake of it let me imagine where I would like to be in 10 years from now.

-          10 years from now I will be in my  40s.

-          I would love that I live peacefully, blessed and happy with my husband and daughter (and our other child) on our little house on the hill.

-          I would love to have another child. I hope it will be a boy.

-          I would love to have sent my parents to the Holy Land

-          I would love to have done many travelling inside Maluku, Indonesia and Abroad with Simon and Tania (and our other child)

-          I think I would be based in Ambon simply because I am now a ‘PNS’, a lecturer at Pattimura University.

-          I would also be a successful Businesswoman co-managing a successful, professional and purposeful organization specializing in Language Teaching… (Baca: Kursus) with my husband and family.

-          I would love that My Current Language center becomes a household name and also I got to sell it as a franchise.  

-          I would love to be able to open job opportunities for others

-          I would love to have be finished or on the process of finishing my PHd from one of the university abroad… (hey… one can dream!!)

-          I would love to set up a foundation to fund underprivileged young people of Ambon to further their study. Or an organization for other good cause.

-          I would love to still be teaching and reaching out to young people of Ambon and Maluku.

I think that’s about it. I have many dreams. But some are too abstract I can only feel it hehehe…

Me and My Relationship #Day1 #30DaysBlogChallenge

Each relationship is unique. Don't ever try to generalized or compare yours to others.
Here are stories of some of my precious relationships

Marriage
My husband, Simon (whom I usually refer to as my better half) and I have been married for 7 years and 10 months. Prior to that we dated for 6 years and engaged for 1 year. So… I (usually) insisted to say that we have been together for 14 years. Things are never easy peasy and lovey dovey… that belongs to fairy tales. But what we have is real. We laugh, we argues, we give each other cold shoulder, we tease each other endlessly, we respect and support each other in work or in live, we cherish each other strength and work every day to accept and work with each other’s flaws and weakness. You cannot accept all fun and happy things in life especially in relationship such as marriage. It is a take and give process but most of all is about making sure we go extra length to create a lasting smile on the face of our spouse. Yes, we may have our low and down times but together we bounce higher.

Motherhood
Motherhood is a humbling journey. Having a child makes you consciously build your life around that little being. Motherhood/parenthood makes you realize your priorities in life. My daughter teaches me so much about life and about ‘being there’ 100% for another person. In the age of connectivity where we are bombarded with constant need to social media, she taught me the simplicity of ‘being there’. She taught me that the best things in life are free such as smiles and hugs. She makes me a superhero whose strength is my kiss which can heal all aches and pains, my hugs which makes the bad day go away, my smiles which brighten her day and my acceptance and pride of her small milestones achievement which makes her who she is.

Friendship
I have many friends. But along the way, I have known that I have only a handful of them whom I can call true friends. I am not a saint so I made mistakes and being a jerk sometimes. But these friends see me for who I really am past these flaws I made. They accept me and cherish me and in turn… they know I have their back.







Family
No matter where you go and who you meet, family is always your home. We fight, we argue but never once did their love fail me. My family made me who I am today. My parents give me wings to fly and roots to stay grounded. As I grow older, I have my own opinion and thoughts; many are not the same as theirs. But through and through they always wants what’s best for me and my future. –



My relationships teach me so many things and I am not finish learning yet.

30 Days Blog Challenge

I found this on the internet few days ago and I think this is a good idea to start the year.
So I invite anyone who would like to join me. It'll be fun...

First Work week of the year

This is a first for me. This year I am officially joining the band of government official, ‘the serious and the seriously working’ as a friend once label it. It’s not a bad thing really. But after years of freelance and self-initiated work not to mention countless networking works, 8 to 5 – 5 days a week job is a bit of a prison sentence. This is especially if you are me and boredom is only a breath away.

Now, this grants my start of the year with a bit of an undertone. I must admit it is rather scary to think I will have to be at work, rain or shine throughout the year. However, the work I am currently doing is nonetheless my passion and fortunately there are more than enough wriggle room for creativity and innovation on my part.

I am an English Lecturer (in other word a glorified English Teacher).  I am proud to a teacher. This is the path where I am directly in touched with the life of my students where my words and actions help set their foot to the course of their purpose driven life.

So as the dawn of the first of working week of this year come upon us… I raise my hot tea cup to toast the start of a new adventure. Here’s to days of grading, planning, executing, assessing, laughing, crying, sleeping, eating and witnessing the process of learning (and teaching)