Company Car.

Passing a driving test usually only brings simple sunday church testimonials[its horrible i have to label such a thing], but what happened today was an incredible reminder of who our God truly is.

Driving to me was never about the freedom, or the thrill of controlling your own mobile box. As i grew older, like most of us, responsibilities increased and so did datelines. TRANSPORT to fulfill such duties was the issue. All i needed was to get from A to B without waiting 5 hours for the bus, taxi, LRT and my own two feet.

A genuine year of frustrations not being able to get around. [nope, no parents to send]. Often i found myself stuck at home alone for 5 days with no means running errands or simply feeding myself. All of this was only because i was born in NOVEMBER. I'll be honest here, i was envious of those who were capable of getting themselves around. they didn't need to and i did. all some of them wanted was the thrill of being at the wheel.

Faster forward to after SPM... I took the first chance i got to go get myself a driver's lesen. unfortunately, hiccups happened. My driving test was postponed 3 times. I was setback an entire 2 months from life. Couldn't work or go out with friends simply because i couldn't get from A to B, heck i couldn't even get to CHURCH. It was frustrating to point where i felt handicapped. 18 years old, still incapable of looking after myself. There were even moments i thought God didn't want me to drive. har har.

Finally, the date was set. TODAY. i woke, said a short prayer, "I give this day to You". The first thing i realized after that was that my glasses were missing. no glasses, no vision, no pass for a driving test. "God, why are You doing this to me?". Without any other choice, i went ahead.

On the way to the testing area i get a call from my driving agency asking me if i want to bribe and get a guaranteed pass. Now, let's weigh the situation at hand. i've been doing nothing for 2 months, frustrated at my "paralyzed self" situation, my glasses are missing, there is no hope for a pass, no hope for any plans i've made before my college starts. What kind of Sam in that situation wouldn't bribe?

I decided against it. I will not conform to the corruption of the very government system i loathe.

Long story short, i aced the test. A bribe-less, glasses-less but full of God ace. At that moment i told God, "You really enjoy your little SOMEWHAT ANNOYING surprises eyh?". In the same moment, i was just so in awe of His love and goodness. i was complete in Him once again.

At the end of the day, it was so much more than a pass for a driving test. I know i made the right decision not to cave in and conform, but to trust when all hope is lost.

His ways are higher.
Isaiah 57 :8-9

God bless.

Hello Hurricane.

Earthquakes, Landslides, Typhoons, Hurricanes, Tsunamis.

Disasters come and go. Each one that comes, is followed by a wave of charity. Advertisements are broadcasted on TV, Facebook posts are posted, everyone suddenly feels SYMPATHETIC, some question life, others are momentarily thankful we live in a "disaster free land", World Vision becomes the trend topic.

Then, the wave passes. No more ads, facebook posts, weeping, questions, thanksgiving, world vision. Like pop culture, no?

We need to ask ourselves this...

Are our efforts merely into temporary charity, or into a permanent change in our world?

Second star to the right.

Neverland. never really wanted to go there, never thought of needing to.

I just watched Finding Neverland for the third time. it's beautiful. Magical enough for tears of happiness to bruise every bit of false ego in you. What really is Neverland?

That depends. is there a Neverland? i do believe so. Is there more than ONE Neverland? could be. what takes you deeper, lifts you higher, brings back soul into your day? what is it that you can't describe, that transcends all things practical, that for a good 5 seconds, makes you look like a fool to a practical's eye.

I shan't give any examples because listing any will only suggest, instead of you finding your real Neverland. well, there you have it, i sound like a fool while you're reading this :)

As for me, i may sound confused or someone who has it all pictured out. Truth is, i really haven't found my Neverland yet. Perhaps i should stop seeking it, maybe then it will find me.

God breathed life into us, shall we not take it?

Have yourself a merry lil' Christmas.

It started out a pretty sucky Christmas, to be honest. i never really was into the christmas spirit this year, no matter how many times i tried. each of my family members being out or overseas on Christmas eve didn't help either. i was alone, but alone with Jesus :)

So, heart started pounding with ideas of ways i could celebrate by myself, as everyone else was out with his or her family. Cooking instincts began surfacing. yes, it was time to cook, but what?

A Christmas dinner. A raw, honest, simple, straight from the heart Christmas dinner. This recipe must be original. trial and error, the best ways of learning. So i grabbed my bike, cycled out to the grocers, only spent about 8 bucks on Chicken, Peppers, Carrots, Broccoli, Potatoes and whiped up a beautiful three parts Christmas meal. most honest culinary creation i've ever done.

The result? magnifique. The Chicken was marinated with italian herbs and rained with paprika. Slow cooked with Garlic until soft and juicy. Potatoes mashed with love. Broccoli, Carrots, Red Peppers blanched and fried with butter.

Cons? there was too much. Just enough for one extra person, who is unfortunately in China.

Blessed Birthday, Jesus :)

Off our feet.

I just watched a documentary of the '04 tsunami on the history channel. different stories of different individuals who all went through the same thing. its so hard to believe something like that took place. things that we can't control. But that's only because we let it get out of control in the first place.


We all know the bible says disasters will happen in the last days. more and more will. events like this show just how bad we as humans have messed things up, until the earth itself goes haywire and turns against us. a total of 250,000 people died in 14 countries in less than 24 hours.


As they filmed bodies being collected and interviews with the people who had lost loved ones, i cried. cried not because i feel sorry for them, but sorry for the way we've made things become. I can't see how we were the ones who were meant to take care off and rule over the earth. Chasing power and dominion, declaring war against each other. choosing the wrong enemy. The devil really purely comes to steal, kill and destroy. The worse part is, he uses us as his tools and we're letting him do it. Maybe, just maybe, if we had done our job, loved one another, took care of our blessings, we wouldn't need a tsunami or any other disaster to wake us up.



But we've let things go way out of hand and then something happens, we lose a loved one and everything comes alive. Suddenly life is seen differently, we're meant for more than to live aimlessly and die. How did we not see that from the beginning? do you really need a Tsunami to let you know how far off track you've gone? even those who were not affected by what happened, do you need a documentary to tear a lil' and move on without doing anything about what we've done?

What most of us fail to realize is that no, this is not karma, this does not mean we're gonna sit around and wait for more destruction. While we still breathe, there's more to be done. Next time you see someone that needs a seat on the bus, don't just give that person a seat, make a friend. You'd never know if he or she needed one. If you see a kid begging on the street, don't just give him cash, bring him home for dinner.

You don't need to run for president or join the peace corps to finally do something great or right. Change the world around you, and you'll change the world.

Do something great on december 26th.

It's gonna be a good night.

Crazy 3 months. simply insane.

I'm going through that phase now. You don't realize how worried free your life is when you're still in school. things are laid out for you, its either you follow or you don't. I'm done with high school, anxious and certainly excited. Now its time to determine our own future, we man-up.

I've gotta say, its been heck loads of fun. 11 years, goshhhh. the nonsense we kids pulled off, the small kid fights we had, birthday parties, trying to act all grown up, PROM, spm, not paying attention in class or tuition, farewells and all that jazz.

Some moments were pretty significant. Shaker's conference, concerts, MTV Asia awards, my band's first gig, school camps, rocking friends. Can't help but feel how blessed you are to have all of that. those older than me would understand.

I really do enjoy looking through the hundreds of photos collected in the last 5 years or reading all the older posts on my blog. progress, baybyyyyy :)

So there you have it, my post-SPM thoughts. now for two months worth of waterfalls, travelling, tamiya cars, a job maybe, a driving license, moving house, reading, gigging[hopefully], late night mamak, modern warfare 2, Arsenal, futsal, mountains, camping, beaches, cooking, and rocking out with Jesus :)

Soundtrack for your life.

It doesn't happen to you, you happen to life. - Superchic[k]

Time is present. it is the past, it is the future.

Its amazing how significant time is. it states being, states what has been and what will be. It suggests progress or stagnancy.

Ahh, dinner time. One bowl of steamed rice, fried yau mak, and herbal chicken. YUCK. we have this everyday. aren't we sick of it? hmm, i wonder what the kids in india are having.

One spoon of rice and erh, one spoon of rice for the whole family. rice, again?! when's the last time i got to have some rice, whoppeeee!

Shucks, its time to get up and go to school. gosh, its 7am and school is so incredibly far awayyyy, i've gotta get into that lousy car and be driven a whole 10 minutes down the road. what a waste of time. I wonder what the kids in africa are doing now..

3am, and a 4 hour hike to school. another great day of learning! one day i'll finally be able to buy myself a good pair of slippers to walk in.

it doesn't happen to you, you happen to life. Be counted for something when its time. we are blessed that we can learn from our forefather's mistakes. with the lessons we've learned, we can do something about the way things are. Something different, something passionate, something real and change the way the future is headed. That spoon of rice? make that family able to eat ten spoonfulls of rice, see what happens. That pair of slippers she hopes to have one day? make her able to wear shoes and see what happens.

we are all agents. we contribute to this world we live in. affect the world around you, and you'll affect the world. so how are we really contributing to this world, are we agents of change?

Stagnancy or Progress.