Transporting Tiger Back

Alvin sent some photos back while he was transporting his Tiger back from JB to KL.

Sister Theresa Birthday Celebration

Today is Sister Theresa’s birthday, her family Sister Sophia, Brother Sanjay and his wife Sister Kushila organised a small surprise party or gathering for her.

Sister Sophia have planned everything and few of the Church members together with the sisters missionary came and celebrate with their family. It was a happy occassion for all of us.

Zentangle 1st Class 18 Jul 2019

Today is the 1st class of attending Creative Aesthetics Art class at Puchong Tzu Chi Continuing Education Center at Setiawalk. The lesson that we started with was Zentangle.

Zentangle is founded by Rick and Maria in United States. The Zentangle Method is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns repeatedly.

The Eight Steps of the Zentangle Method (from www.Zentangle.com website):

• Step 01 – Gratitude and Appreciation

Get comfortable, take a few deep breaths and feel gratitude and appreciation – for this beautiful paper, for these wonderful tools, for this opportunity to create something beautiful.

• Step 02 – Corner Dots

We teach beginning Zentangle Method with beautiful museum grade cotton paper, 3.5 inches (89 mm) square. To answer a familiar question of what to put on this beautiful paper, place a light pencil dot in each corner, about a pen's width from the edges. Now it’s no longer a blank piece of paper.

• Step 03 – Border

Connect those dots with a light pencil line, straight or curvy, to create a square. And that is your border.

• Step 04 – String

Inside the border, draw a light pencil line or lines to make what we call a “string”. The string separates the tile into sections, in which we draw our tangles. A string can be any shape. it may be a curvy line that touches the edge of the border now and then, or series of straight lines that go from one side of the border to the next.

• Step 05 – Tangle

A tangle is a predefined sequence of simple strokes that make up a pattern. Draw your tangles in pen inside (usually) the pencil strings and borders. Tangle is both noun and verb. Just as you dance a dance, you tangle your tangles. Draw your tangles with deliberate strokes. Don't worry about what it's going to look like. Just focus on each stroke of the pen as you make it. Trust that you'll know what to do next when the time to do it comes. There is no up or down to Zentangle art so feel free to rotate your tile in any direction that is most comfortable for your hand as you draw.

• Step 06 – Shade

Add shades of gray with a graphite pencil to bring contrast and dimension to your tile. The black and white two-dimensional tangles transform through shading and appear three-dimensional. You can also use a tortillion (a paper blending stump) to soften and blend the graphite.

• Step 07 – initial and Sign

This is art you created. You should sign it. Put your initials on the front (many people create a unique monogram or chop for this step). On the back, place your name, date, comments and observations.

• Step 08 – Appreciate

Hold your tile at arm’s length. Turn it this way and that. Appreciate what you just created.

Today Teacher Mici taught us about the basic tangle that founded by the founders: Fluxes, Hollibaugh and Paradox.

Besides that, we were assigned some homework to do in the home and bring over for the next week class.

I got to know some new friends in the class and all of them are married with children. I think all of us have the same reasons that want to attend some enrichment classes to release tensions or learn something new to rejuvenate our own lives.

Well, the 1st lesson indeed inspired me to love myself more and at least give myself some “Me Time” 15 – 20 minutes a day to focus on something I love to do and find some inner satisfaction in it.

Relief Society Activity ~ Say Cheese ^^

Today Relief Society having the baking cheese cake activity for the sisters at our Puchong Chapel at 3.00pm today.

As Issac is having his art class every Saturday from 1.00pm to 2.30pm, after his art class I just drove headed to the Chapel.

Prior to this activity, there were already sisters in the Church requested if Sister Anita could give a lesson on baking cheese cake.

Sister Anita’s cheese cake during Church activities or linger longer was tasted so yummy and delicious.

She was happily to share her talent with all of us. We started with the opening prayer, then Sister Anita is the one whom will lead this activity.

First of all, she introduced all the ingredients needed to bake a cheese cake. Then she demonstrated step by step to do it, and invite the sisters to try at the same time.

Every sisters take turn to try to do it. After all, when it is done we just wait for the cheese cake to be baked in the oven.

Sister Anita did prepare a cheese cake earlier for us for our tea time! At the same time Sister Saffron did share some gospel media with the sisters.

The cheese cake indeed very nice with served a cup of nice tea. Sister Saffron prepared the nice herbal tea for us.

The sisters had a great time being together and sharing each other talents, learning something new for themselves!

Patience, Experience and Hope

I am entering the Epistle of Paul to the Romans. It is really kind of hard and difficult for me to digest and hard to read. There is something that I read that enlightened me.

It is about Abraham’s faith In Romans 4: 18 – 22. Abraham maintained his faith in the Lord’s promise to give him posterity without number, even though by age 100 he had not yet fathered his son Isaac. Abraham “staggered not at the promise of God”, but he continued to hope despite his seemingly hopeless circumstances.

I am thinking of myself. How can I maintain as like Abraham? I know Heavenly Father knows my desires, but I am not sure if that desires is His will for me?

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland encouraged us to be like Abraham in maintaining hope and trusting the divine promise:

“To any who may be struggling to see that light and find that hope, I say: Hold on. Keep trying. God loves you. Things will improve. Christ comes to you in His “more excellent ministry” with a future of “better promises.” He is your “high priest of good things to come.”

“I think of those who suffer from sin—their own or someone else’s—who need to know there is a way back and that happiness can be restored. I think of the disconsolate and downtrodden who feel life has passed them by, or now wish that it would pass them by. To all of these and so many more, I say: Cling to your faith. Hold on to your hope. “Pray always, and be believing.” Indeed, as Paul wrote of Abraham, he “against [all] hope believed in hope” and “staggered not … through unbelief.” He was “strong in faith” and was “fully persuaded that, what [God] had promised, he was able … to perform.”

“Even if you cannot always see that silver lining on your clouds, God can, for He is the very source of the light you seek. He does love you, and He knows your fears. He hears your prayers. He is your Heavenly Father, and surely He matches with His own the tears His children shed.”

“Don’t give up, boy. Don’t you quit. You keep walking. You keep trying. There is help and happiness ahead—a lot of it—30 years of it now, and still counting. You keep your chin up. It will be all right in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come.”

“Some blessings come soon, some come late, and some don’t come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ, they come.”

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

An High Priest of Good Things to Come

October 1999 General Conference

Then I read on further and I came to Roman 5. The first 5 verses, especially verses 3 – 5. I do not know why. May be it was due to yesterday I was thinking a lot about how to make myself happy again? How can I be happy in the state of what I am in now?

I feel comforted by these verses.

It seems as these 3 verses are the answers for my doubts and thoughts yesterday. I should endure well in whatever the things that come to me.

As tribulation would develop the patience that I need, from patience would develop the experiences that I need, and from experiences would develop the hope towards the Savior and Heavenly Father. Our hope in God’s promise will not disappoint us.

I may never know in this life why I face what I do, but I feel that I can grow from those experiences which allow me to become a better person.

I Want You to be Happy

I think I want to record this down. I was not in a very good mood last night. I felt sadness surrounds me which made me not comfortable. I do not know why I have the doubts that I have.

I just prayed to Heavenly Father before I slept. I asked Him, “What wilt Thou have me to do?”

There is a thought came into my mind…

I can hear it clearly…

“I want you to be happy.”

At that moment, my heart was pumping fast and I hold on all the tears in my eyes and my throat. I know that this was from Him.

How to make myself happy again? Doing the things I like to do? I even forgot what and how does it feel to doing the things that I love to do, the things I used to do. Well… May be I have to be Alive again… Able to feel again… Able to create again… Able to be myself again…

Turn Trials into Blessings

I continued studying Acts 27 – 28 today. At the end of the scripture study, I have learned something – If we are faithful, God can help us turn trials into blessings for ourselves and others. It is just the same as how Paul experienced his trials at sea, while shipwrecked, and while imprisoned in Rome.

This bring my memories back then to our family Hong Kong temple trip this year. During our family temple trip, our family faced some challenges since the day one we entered into the temple.

Issac and Annabelle were getting missing in the busy streets of Hong Kong, Alvin lost his job, Alvin’s car broke down on the highway on his way back to Kulai after he came back from temple, and many more.

I realized that Heavenly Father blessed us with so much more. Issac and Annabelle gained their testimonies: they both know that Heavenly Father hears and answers their prayers. They have the testimony of the Holy Ghost that guided them to find their way back to the group safely, and came back to the temple patron house.

Alvin now no longer worked in Kulai. When he told me that day that he has a woman during at Johor, I know that it is not a co-incident that Alvin lost his job during we were at Hong Kong. I know that Heavenly Father wants him to come back, He wants him to stay nearer to us, closer to the family.

I know now, why Alvin’s car would break down at the highway on his way back to Kulai. He had been stranded at the highway for almost 3 to 4 hours. I know that Heavenly Father wants him to know and to learn by himself and think about what happened and why it happened.

Eventually, with no choice he had to call the tow truck to tow his car back to the town. The cause of the car broke down was due to the engine. The estimated cost of repairs initially is high, but it became half of the cost. I know that it was because during that time, the children and I were praying hard and sincere for their dad’s safety and minimal cost of damages. Heavenly Father heard us…

I am so touch that I know that all these happened because Heavenly Father knows that I am trying my best to be faithful for the sake of protecting my family. I can feel Heavenly Father’s love for me and my family.

The Lord gave us both the callings to serve in the Church. He extended the callings to us so that both of us can serve and learn from our callings. I know Alvin’s calling might be a test to him, but I know that as I encourage him to continue to serve, everything will be alright. Everything will become better and better.

I am grateful for my calling too as Relief Society President. It gives me opportunity to learn to communicate, to learn how to care, to learn how to see and feel the Savior’s love for all the sisters in the branch.

It will be the same to me as how it happened to Paul. I know that sometimes it is really heartache, hurt and feel the pain of the challenges that I have to face, but I know that I can go through it with the grace of the Lord.

I know that I will be blessed lots more after everything I have been through with cheerful heart and continue to be myself – His special, unique and beautiful daughter!

The Savior said, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.” This is His promise to all of us. I know this promise is real. I know that He lives, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.