The Crossing of the Rubicon

Date: 15th September 2007, Saturday
Mood: Thinking thinking thinking (as always)....


In a nut shell, It is really strange to be back at "square one"... One of my colleagues asked me recently how I was settling back at work. I told him that I have kind of settled back into the routine of work but yet I am still unsettled by life in general. I guess to see the same stations every day, to hear the same noise but yet you have changed, it's a very provocative feeling.

So what's next? I have no idea. A part of me still longs to keep following the clouds in the sky. But I know this for sure, once you have started following your clouds and crossed over to the other side, you will never be the same again.

I think this world has a lot to offer: places to see; and people that you'll meet. It will change your perspective on the wildness and the beauty of the place that we live in and also the depth of human relationships and emotions that we will experience. Life is too short to fully appreciate what we have been given and what we can do to turn the "worse" for the better, that will always remain the challenge when you cross over to the other side.

Otherwise, you can just stay where you are; keep living life as it is and hopefully when it's time for life to pass, it will pass in a manner that is the least disruptive to you.

The question is: is that what I want? The answer is: no, I think it's too late, the crossing of Rubicon has already started.


The Scattered Clouds

Nomadic Rantings:

R. Buckminster Fuller

The minute you choose what you really want to do it's a different kind of life.

Unknown

When I am anxious it is because I am living in the future. When I am depressed it is because I am living in the past.

Ponderings....Back to Basics

Date: 10th June 2007, Sunday
Mood: Pondering....


I was reading the BBC world news a couple of weeks ago and it had an article on what makes the great investors great. One factor that it observed was that they love what they do. In other words, despite passing the retirement age, they still work at what they love best. Hence, when they make investment decisions, they do it because they want the best in all aspects and are not there purely for the money. The author also noted that those who wanted to make their fast million for the sole purpose of retiring early often don’t have the best interests at heart.

That made me wonder what really makes me tick. Having being on this program and getting the opportunity to teach, I have to admit it is the people that have brought a smile to my face. Some how, I like this society and I feel safe. But to work in a corporate setting is somewhat different from the education sector. Nevertheless, I still believe that in all sectors of society, there will be an incredible amount of politics. Not knowing the language fluently, it helps maintain my ‘innocent’ belief that it is a less political environment and it cares more about the people than red tape or political maneuvering. But age makes one cynical at times.

I think that I will be going back to corporate world with a different perspective this time. Having settled into a simple lifestyle and also feeling more contented with life as I have achieved one of my life goals. I hope that I will not be agitated by the incompetence, injustice and also at times the blunt corruption of the corporate setting. Don’t know what the latter part of 2007 will bring when I set foot back home. Only God knows. The biggest thing that gets me is that people are not appropriately recognized and rewarded especially those who does it well and has the best interests at heart. But I now realize that I can’t change the system, but I can effect change on a person-to-person basis. One rule in mathematics is that if the problem is too hard, go right back to the basics. I believe that it is a universal rule.

I guess that's why from a Christian perspective, as God has the power to affect change universally, He still chose to go right back to the basics: By giving people a choice to change, on a person-by-person basis.

In respect to the business world, I suspect that the most influential person, is not usually the person that holds the "title" or the "power" or just "looks good", but the person that holds the strings of relationships. And, relationship is established when you respect the person enough to allow them to make his or her own choice but with you also supporting them as a friend to see them achieve the best that they can achieve. That's team work. The ability to give, to challenge and to push others further.

And this "team work" should also apply to all facets of life and society. Hopefully, one day, we would see a society that has both hands stretched to give and to include other people rather than to take and push others away. Especially to those who don't "fit" their set of expectations.


The Homeless People at Ueno

Nomadic Rantings:

John Welwood

The most powerful agent of growth and transformation is something much more basic than any technique: a change of heart.

What is Life?

Date: 22nd April 2007, Sunday
Mood: Restless....


Once, I was asked: how would I do life? At that time, I was a youthful University graduate and I replied: to work hard and reach the top. As years go by, I realized that it is not me who “does” life but it is life that “does” me.

On many textbooks and the moral books of the world, one would equate: work hard and be honest will gain you the recognition of people and ultimately position, power and respect. However, life and the world will throw many anomalies that will make a basically good and moral person cry. Do I then lose hope or do I still stand my ground on what I believe is good and right despite the circumstances? It is only through those episodes that I realize that I now have new dimensions and depth to what I believe and stand for, and how I think and act.

The term “refining fire” is an oxymoron as fire is often associated with unruly destruction and anger. To refine is to demand discipline and to add value. Thus, I can only sum up that such is life: an oxymoron .... but don't lose hope.


Hakone

Nomadic Rantings:

Helen Keller

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.

The Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara

Date: 11th April 2007, Wednesday
Mood: Relaxing...


Yes, two blogs in one week. Shock horror, it actually happened.

Below are the photos from the World Heritage site in Nara.

Photo One

















Photo Two

Nomadic Rantings:

Dwight Moody

I have had more trouble with myself than with any other man I've met.

Genbaku Dome - The Dome of Peace

Date: 9th April 2007, Monday
Mood: Thinking...


It has been a while since I have written eh. Well, a new academic year has just started. My gosh, time really flies.

Below is a picture of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial (Genbaku Dome) which was the only structure left standing in the area where the first atomic bomb exploded on 6th of August 1945. The trip to Hiroshima was highly unusual, in the sense that it felt like it was a journey to pay my respects to the sentiments of what the Genbaku Dome stands for and what the people of Hiroshima fought for. It was through those efforts that this Dome has been preserved in the same state as immediately after the bombing.

I remember walking down the rainy path that day in Hiroshima, pondering upon the meaning of peace and its various forms. Mother Teresa once said that if we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.

This peace is not a once off decision as John F Kennedy once put it, "peace is a daily, a weekly, a monthly process, gradually changing opinions, slowly eroding old barriers, quietly building new structures". It was a moving experience for me to read of the first hand experiences of the victims and view the broken articles of war. I hope that the world sees that this memorial hall serves as the reminder of the truth of what happened and why it happened, and that peace is a working relationship between nations, people and oneself and that war is not an option to serve one's selfish means.



The Genbaku Dome

Nomadic Rantings:

John Foster Dulles

The world will never have lasting peace so long as men reserve for war the finest human qualities. Peace, no less than war, requires idealism and self-sacrifice and a righteous and dynamic faith.

Trip up to Nagatoro

Date: 8th January 2007, Monday
Mood: Dreaming...


I can't believe that my winter vacation is almost over ... back to school!

Well I have attached some photos of my trip up to Nagatoro, which is located within the Chichibu Tama National Park in the western part of Saitama.


Chichibu Mountains













Nagatoro Town

















Picture of some Resturant















As you can tell that I have been doing quite a fair bit of thinking during my break.... Well, here are some of the things that I reflected upon in hindsight:

1) I should not try to think too much before taking a risk.

2) If I decide to take a risk, better take a big one.

3) If I sit there, I wouldn't get.

4) How can I improve if I have not failed nor being rejected before.

5) STOP worrying about what people think but be the one to think what I should be doing.

6) Do what I have to do eventhough people think I am crazy.

7) Take responsibilty for the risks that I take.

8) Have the courage to go first before waiting for consensus.

9) Ask myself this: will I regret this if I don't try? And what do I have to lose?

10) Keep taking risks and change! ..... Or moss will grow on me.

Why this talk about taking more risks? For me, some times by taking risks, I get a glimpse of the big picture of life rather than focusing on the little things of life.

Nomadic Rantings:

Chinese proverb: Pick up a sesame seed but lose sight of a watermelon.

Happy New Year!

Date: 2nd January 2007, Tuesday
Mood: Happy New Year!


I wonder what the new year would bring. And at the start of each new year, I often ponder on the deeper issues of life....

Nevertheless, this short essay written by Jailed Uyghur Writer Nurmuhemmet Yasin talks about "What is Love?" Enjoy.

What is Love?
-----------------

“What is love? This mystical, mythical question goes back to ancient times—without a coherent answer. Each person’s experience of love is uniquely varied, and each person’s understanding of love is different from the next. Love varies from one period to another along the length of a human life; a person can have many loves, but each experience will be different from the next. Summing it up, or pinning it down, are both impossible.

“Love is like a continually shattering mirror that always leaves behind images etched in people’s hearts; but it will itself remain a mystery forever.

“Many people give themselves over to this mystery, but while love can produce the most tender and delicate feelings in anyone’s soul, it alone can open a window in the hearts of a very few.

“A simple analogy might be that of spring water which satisfies an extremely thirsty soul. Imagine, in the intense heat of midsummer, a very thirsty shepherd, using both hands to scoop the running water from a roadside creek to drink with a joy that satisfies his thirst. Such a sensation is beyond compare.

A Transformative Process
-----------------------------------

“Similarly, when a tired and weary person returns home from far away, he says to himself, ‘Finally, I have come home,’ before stretching himself out on his bed to rest. This joy, too, is beyond compare. Again, when a writer who has been up all night working puts the last full-stop at the end of his article; this, too, is boundless consolation for the heart. These all are phenomena of love.

“In fact, love is a sort of deeply pleasing satisfaction, but with various manifestations. It defies explicit definition. Khalil Gibran gives us an extremely vivid description: ‘For even as love crowns you, so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning. Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun, so shall he descend to your roots and shake them in their clinging to the earth. That is to say, love can occupy the deepest places of your mind, shake the foundations of your life, and force you to leave your native land. Like sheaves of corn he gathers you unto himself. He threshes you to make you naked. He sifts you to free you from your husks. He grinds you to whiteness. He kneads you until you are pliant; And then he assigns you to his sacred fire, that you may become sacred bread for God’s sacred feast.’

“Love is the kind of process described above; it makes you understand yourself. Only through this process, will you be able to become a soul, to become a part of life. Gibran uses a real life image to describe it, precisely because it is so difficult to give an explanation. A profound understanding of the process is even more difficult.

“Everybody has a different explanation and a different definition regarding the love they experience. The majority of people can suddenly fall in love with a stranger. If you ask them what they see in their lover, sometimes they can’t give you a clear answer. But the fact of their regard for each other is indisputable.

“Regardless of the secret mystery of love, it is a process in your feelings and in your heart. Love, too, always manifests itself in the body. Love will appear repeatedly in your life. In fact, the Gibran description of love is also talking about a solid, concrete form of love. Still other forms of love exist secretly in a human life.

A Performance of Self
-----------------------------

“Love is a kind of performance of the self, a satisfaction of the self; love is a kind of need, or is a much-needed satisfaction. Love is a kind of tendency toward both secret transformation and public transition. No matter what, if you fall in love with an actual person, you can feel your body making various unexpected changes. You might also realize that changes are taking place in your thoughts as never before.

“If this kind of phenomenon appears in your life, you may presume you are in love, for these phenomena are a form of love in themselves. Regardless of whether these phenomena last a long time or a short time, whether they are painful or enjoyable, they constitute riches, which will inscribe themselves in your heart forever.

“In brief, as a living human being with a soul, it is impossible not to fall in love in the course of a lifetime. Love is like the sunshine; no matter how tightly you shut down your heart, the sunlight will find a way to shine into it. Love’s process is unstoppable. Therefore, my advice would be: Don’t waste your precious time trying to define the meaning of love. The best definition is already in your own heart and mind.”

-------- The End ---------

Here is a picture of a garden in Kawagoe in Saitama-ken. Very pretty but a manufactured pretty. I wonder how much we can manufacture our life so that it will look "pretty" as opposed to letting nature takes it course and create a wild beauty.

I wonder how I will decide when 2007 throw some really unexpected options that I need to decide. Have you ever been in a situation where your mind and worldly wisdom opposes the desires of your heart? Will I follow the desires of my heart and take risks that is totally out of my intellectual comprehension? Or follow the safe path of my intellectual wisdom and not really live life?

I think this is going to be an interesting year.


A garden in Kawagoe

Nomadic Rantings:

"As you travel through life, your dreams will guide you, determination will get you there, and love will provide the greatest scenery of all." Michelle C. Ustaszeski