Last day of August, 2007

Never been better! Came back from a camp organized by SP! Tired but exuberant.

Five-star resort at Batam! Food's super! Hiking and trekking through the jungle's really fun! River rafting's also just as great! High rope was damn scary, but super enjoyable!

The leadership workshop, alas, wasn't as interesting. Still, I came back, not just better, but a blacker man.

Anyways, many things happened that are noteworthy, among the really humorous guys from EEE, the electrical and electronics engineering school; there was this Chinese guy who speaks extremely fluent English, even though at first impression he looks nowhere near a linguistic man. He easily alters between various accents, ranging from German (Deutsch), to Indian (Tamil). He is really a gifted comedian, Mr Brown style!

At the shopping mall trip the last day, most of us had quite a lot of spare change of Rupiah in our hands. One guy was flipping a 100 and 200 Rupiah coin up and down, basically fiddling with it and saying that he was rich, with 300 bucks to spare. Another guy took out 10 cents, in Singapore currency, a solitary coin so much smaller than the Indonesian coin, and declared, and rightly so, that his was worth twice as much. All who were in a 1 meter radius about the vicinity burst into laughter.



Fun aside, I learnt that Poly life is so much more different and unique. Through this camp, I look into the lives of all my seniors and other "polymates" with a totally different viewpoint. Every seemingly differing person has a totally diverse life story. I feel so much more attached to the Poly and its students and lecturers now.


One student, who prefers to be called Rain, really has a strong and touching story to tell. She had a little bit too much alcohol during the night parties, and said quite a bit, fogged both in frustration and sorrow. She is also in DMAT, 1 year my senior, and also plays the piano. She sure has composed many songs. Apparently, she joined the camp to escape from home. Her father, a Malaysian, is a pastor and missionary. Her mother is just as fervent a Christian. Not surprisingly, she is under strict curfew and her life devoid of freedom. Complaining of being unable to have unchained access to the computer for her parents do not want her to be at risk, denied leave to a chalet for fear of being raped, and the list goes on. Even though she does exceptionally well in study (GPA 3.94, 0.06 points less from a perfect score for her Poly studies), helps out in church, but her life has yet to be really touched by God. I wonder what will be the future of her poor soul. She still has not really experienced God's great and unconditional love for her, as well as for everyone. Maybe because of her confined and shackled upbringing, or maybe for other reasons I do not know, she is completely wrecked and empty. She would dread going back home to an home with devastated family ties and try to fill her emptiness using boyfriends, anime and the like. She also voices out her grief and hurls vulgarities and obscenities at ease. She broke up and to date, has a new boyfriend.

I know for sure that a life truly committed to God will not have ended up like this, and that I must help her to see God's wondrous ways. I pray that I know how. One thing's for sure; her story will be continued.

24th August 2007

One of the most important but underrated qualities that we should have is humility.
Many a times, the things preventing many youths from humility is their pride and ambition. When supposed to have a change in our character, like being more forgiving, having a faith, we find excuse in lavishing it to be very hard to put down their freedom or authority.

Think of it as a child standing on a trunk at the back of a car, then extending his arm to the lid, planning to lift up the trunk and his own weight at the same time. Vanity. The question is whether or not he can lift the lid; it is whether he be willing enough to get down from yore trunk and simply lift up the lid.











Get my drift? We are always reluctant to get down the lid, straining ourselves to lift our own burden when it could easily be let go... How hard is it to convince my fellow friends the same theory... I pray, that God would give me the wisdom and courage, not for mine, but for their own good... How hard it is to be understood by them and let them not see my efforts as chauvinist but as an unconditional love for them... I pray.

21/08/07

LOLx, been writing on another medium until now...

So much to say, so much to hear, so much to see...

D'oh.

Wow, there are fantastic pianists out there! First, Igudesman, then, Maksim Mrvica, then, Bruce Greer! Wow... I really gotta train. Bruce Greer's concert at the 19th of August really was a whopper. All these complex chords... I mean, the other time, I heard from this Chill CD, they also played a lot of groove chords, and after buying it and listening to it, I started playing said groove chords at ease from around May onwards... U know, like minor 2nds inside a chord, which by right, sound awful when playing alone, but in the said groove chords, bring a powerful effect...

But this Bruce, he plays the chords one whole tone higher! It's like, playing a D when a C chord should work.. And that he plays the chord for an entirely different tonality! Then, he uses a lot of flourishes, that is, the MANY little notes at the high end... At least I can copy that... BUT it will be years before I can go like machine gunning entire suspended scales, dorian scales, phrygians, and mixolydian modes up and down the piano at surprising speed. WOW. Enough said. In short, that guy is awesome. More so that he uses his talent for God's ministry. He arranged so many songs... Composer, blah, blah blah, u name it. Wow.

Take less than 5 minutes off your time, u must look at this video. Igudesman at work.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xui7x_KF7bY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifKKlhYF53w