Local Panic

It was early morning when my wife received a telephone call from my mother-in-law living in a village 20km away. She screamed to the phone... One of my nieces were having a high fever.

For the past few weeks, everyone seemed to be afraid of the H1N1. Due to lack of exposure to the medias, not many people knew what proper measures to take. Besides, more and more people were getting more and more confused as to what precautions to take when there were so many "experts" around.

Everyone who had flu, cough, and high fever would be panicky and afraid to move around. What if the spread of the H1N1 virus became uncontrollable and unmanageable? Will the world come to a stand still?

We phoned our sister-in-law who was working 100km away. And we decided to buy the necessary medication in a local clinic. It was just not safe to bring her to the nearby hospital where there might be suspected cases of H1N1.

Oh... How can we do to stop the spread of H1N1?

How do we contain it?

Will there be a proper cure?

The local folks look up helplessly to the sky.

They were panic-stricken.

So many natural disasters and epidemics these past years...

When will the Judgment Day be?

God have mercy upon our souls....

A Smile Can Make All The Difference

Smiling can make us look younger and more attractive.

Our smile is always the first thing people take notice.

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Smiling can change our mood.

Smiling can boost our confidence.

A smile can always brighten our darkest day.

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Smiling can be contagious.

When we smile, we help to change the moods of others, and make them happy.

A warm and genuine smile can go a long way in making all of us happy.

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Smiling can relieves stress.

Smiling helps to prevent us from looking tired, worn down, and overwhelmed.

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Smiling helps our immune system to work better.

When we smile, our immune function will improve because we are more relaxed.

A smile can make us live longer.

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Smiling reduces our blood pressure.

A healthy smile can last a lifetime.

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Smiling can make us more successful.

Smiling makes us more confident.

We are more likely to be promoted.

We are more likely to be approached at meetings and appointments and people will react to us differently.

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Smiling can help us to stay positive.

A bright and beautiful smile may land us the job we want.

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So let us remember to smile more often....

Remember, when we smile, the whole world will be smiling with us.

Don't wait for others to smile at us first.

Let us start by smiling at them first.

Remember, a smile can change lives, alter situations, calm us down, and break down walls.

A smile can make a tremendous impact both on our personal and professional relationships.

A smile can even have a positive effect on bullies...

Let us smile more often, and live a better day.

Blogging

Sometimes I have a hard time trying to figure out what to write in my blog.

I will walk around the house, up and down the staircases.

I will find a quiet place to ponder and wonder, sometimes smiling and laughing to myself.

I will flip through the newspapers or watch television, scouting for something interesting and meaningful to write.

I will go for a walk and enjoy the fresh air, admiring the beautiful surroundings and closely examine something interesting.

All these wonderful ideas do help in one way or another.

But the best of all is just to sit down and start writing in my blog.

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Inspirations flow as I think and write.

Many times, I have to switch from one topic to another as more ideas come into the mind.

Some topics are ridiculous and crazy, but really fun to share.

Some topics are food for thoughts, serious contemplation on things important in life.

Some topics are helpful tips and guides.

As I write, I try to list down all my topics.

Then I choose a topic to write.

I list down all my points.

I try to rearrange them.

I try to rephrase them in simple language.

I try to write with one common idea in mine. Sometimes it seem impossible, as my thoughts are carried away by so many considerations.

I try not to write with the intention to hurt others.

I tell myself that if I can't find something edifying and constructive to others, then I don't write. The world has enough troubles and ugliness of its own.

I believe in building up people and communities, not tearing down people and institutions with our ideologies, strong feelings and assertions, or some very serious contemplations.

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I believe all of us have the gift to write down all our thoughts.

Writing down my thoughts help to organize my life.

Writing down my thoughts help to improve my reasoning.

Writing down my thoughts help me to stand by my words.

Writing down my thoughts help me to understand just how insufficient and shallow are my thoughts.

I love to read through all the comments in my blogs again and again.

I believe readers out there are a great help to me to improve on my writing.

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I think I will continue blogging.

Blogging heals my soul when I am downcast and lonely.

Blogging calms my thoughts when I am provoked and get really mad.

Blogging fills me with strong emotion when there are so much concern and love out there in the bloggersphere.

Blogging inspires me and fills me with enthusiasm to live positively and productively.

Yeah, blogging is my life.

I wouldn't give up blogging

We Are Not That Poor

Many of us work in government or private sector with fixed and ready income. For some of us, that is our only source of revenue. Some of us do get ourselves involved in many other money making activities. Nevertheless, working with other people has taken up a major portion of our time everyday.

Many of us are unable to meet our ends with our meager salary and ever increasing food prices. And the fact that many of us are thrown out of jobs during the present economic crisis has caused many of us to give up all hope of living.

Some of us have put our money in the property markets. We buy shop houses, shop space, or commercial property. We invest in houses, flats, villas and resorts. We collect rentals and charges. We buy and sell properties.

But situation changes fast. The economic crisis has adversely affected the business world. Not many are willing to invest in businesses and real estate. Not many want to buy properties. And there are the high operating cost and interest payments on bank loans to look after.

Some of us invest most of our money in stock market, commodity market, and foreign exchange market. Market sentiments are really bad and many of us are losing money. We have incurred great loss but too late to get out. We are badly burnt by the markets.

We want big money but many of us just don't want to work hard.

I have seen newspaper vendors working hard at 3.00 every morning, distributing newspapers despite the heavy rains and thunderstorms just to make ends meet.

I have seen vegetable, fruit, fish, and meat hawkers who are smiling away every evening with their daily sale.

I have seen food, drink, souvenir, and various retail stalls that never run out of customers.

These are people who desire just to live and feed their family with their own hands.

And there are many more among us.

Yet, here we are, still not satisfied with what we have and what we are.

Look around and see how so many of the poor are still having a decent living.

We are not that poor. Aren't we?

Shouldn't we fare much better than them?

Loneliness Kills

I am alone in my double storey terrace house when I realize just how quiet my house can be.

Initially there are five of us living in this house.

But my elder son and daughter are now studying in West Malaysia.

And my wife and I, and our younger daughter remain here in Sarawak, on the island of Borneo, the beautiful land of the hornbill.

Already the three of us have openly or silently complained about the big house.

And now I am left alone at home.

My wife has gone jogging and my younger daughter cycling.

Oh! Just how lonely can a loner be?! I start to question myself.

And so I start to think about it and let my thoughts flow freely... to this blog.

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I believe Adam was lonely.

God had given him the garden of Eden to cultivate and to take care.

He must have been happy with his daily workload. Everything thrived and grew well under the most wonderful conditions, by the grace of God.

He must have been happy with the natural surroundings and the beautiful landscapes. He must have been enjoying the amazing and breathtaking scenery. And his personal experiences everyday must have given him sweet dreams every night and caused him to chuckle in delight.

He had all the living creatures as his friends and neighbors. He must have taken good care of them and they in turn must have taken good care of him.

The beautiful flowers, plants, and trees must have brighten his days and made him even more optimistic and enthusiastic about life.

But Adam was terribly lonely even with what he had.

And he made his request known to God the Creator.

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Adam needed family ties.

Adam needed human relatives and friends.

Adam needed the humankind for companions and fellowships.

Adam needed the human race community.

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And so God granted Adam's wish.

He gave him Eve as his life partner and soul mate.

And God promised to bless him and give him a big family.

They were to multiply the earth.

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And so the human race evolved and spread across the globe all these years.

And with it came human happiness and sorrow.

And with it came human culture and civilization.

And with it came human history and dominance.

And with it came tender loving care and......loneliness.

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Some say loneliness kills.

And so they want to relive the old Adam.

They become nature enthusiasts.

They become animal or plant lovers.

They become outdoor explorers and adventurers.

They live a secluded life away from the eyes of the public and the troubles of the world.

And they think they will be happy and free.

They are yet another Adam in agony.

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No, with so many people around, loneliness needs not kill.

If no one seems to understand us, learn to show interests to those who need understanding. Sooner or later, there will be mutual understanding and fun.

If no one seems to care about us, learn to show tender loving care to those in need of love. Sooner or later, they will be mutual love and care.

If no one seem to want to talk to us, learn to show concerns and interests to those who are in-need of listening ears. Sooner or later, we will be able to make our voice heard.

If no one want to be with us, learn to be with someone who need our companion and friend. Sooner or later, we will be beaming with smiles and laughter.

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It is common among us to be lonely.

But no one needs to be a loner. Do we?