Seagulls...

It X'mas once again... And as with every X'mas, its always a good time to reflect upon our lives and take stock of what we've done throughout the year...

This year had been a much better year for me... things are slowly falling back into place... Charon (my ex-wife) is finally on talking terms with me... Iggi is coping well in the UK... I've got a nice boss... great colleagues... my job's busy but satisfying... a bunch of supportive friends... my newly arrived Isaiah... my new flat... and not forgetting, a new wife (hee hee)... well, what more can I ask for??

But prior to that, life hadn't been kind at all... the things that I went thru was hell... looking back, its a miracle that I pulled thru... hanging on that thin line, I was like a sampan in a tsunami... left with just grit and a will to hang on, I licked my wounds in pain and picked up all the broken pieces of my life together a little by little... having lost everything (and I mean EVERYTHING)... starting over was not easy at all... imagine having failed in my business... being declared a bankrupt losing my house and all that I had... my previous marriage was in total wreckage.. I lost the custody of iggi, my beloved son... having lost my job... did time... GEEZ... its really scarry.. I'm just glad that everything is history now...

Its not that I want to hang on to the past, but those trying times were indeed very important milestones in my life... I hang on to it not to hold onto the anger and pain... but to hold onto the lessons I've learnt from there... I'm telling you guys that what I went thru, really made me appreciate the simpler things in life that most of us would take for granted... Happiness is indeed what we make of it... Life will still be tough... money will never be enough... many things that we dream about will probably never become a reality... BUT SO WHAT??? I'm telling you that as long as you are still hanging on... as long as you survive the storm... that's all it takes to start all over...

There is a chinese song that I used to sing to when I was in the forces that is really meaningful... I was humming it to Isaiah when I was putting him to bed that night and suddenly I found myself choking back on my tears... Below are the lyrics and for those bananas (like me) that understand very little chinese, there's the english translations in brackets... to listen to the song CLICK below...

Meanwhile... hey... it's X'mas... let's fill this season with love and warmth... and let's not forget those that are less fortunate in our prayers and celebrations for X'mas...

http://sg.geocities.com/mykpnn/Sound/seagull.asf

Title: 海鷗 (Seagulls)

海 鷗 飛 在 藍 藍 海 上
(Seagulls flying above the blue seas)
不 怕 狂 風 巨 浪
(Braving the raging winds and tidal waves)
揮 著 翅 膀 看 著 遠 方
(Spreading its wings, looking beyond)
不 會 迷 失 方 向
(Never drifting from its course)

飛 得 越 高 看 得 越 遠
(Flying higher, looking further)
它 在 找 尋 理 想
(It is seeking its destiny)
我 願 像 海 鷗 一 樣
(I wish to be like the seagulls)
那 麼 勇 敢 堅 強
(and to be that brave and that strong)