masterwordsmith-unplugged

My fellow primates,did you know that Charles Darwin was born on this day 200 years ago? Extract from The New York Times:

Charles Darwin developed the first scientific theory of evolution. His books--in particular the Origin of Species--became the bedrock upon which modern biology stands.

Darwin was born in 1809 to wealthy parents, and as a teenager he was expected to become a doctor like his father, Robert. But after he enrolled in the University of Edinburgh, he proved more interested in natural history than medicine. Darwin moved to Cambridge, where he began to train to be a clergyman--a common path for affluent young Englishman with an interest in nature. But an invitation to join a voyage around the world aboard the HMS Beagle altered the direction of his life one final time: over the next five years Darwin was transformed into a naturalist.

For more, please click here.

Another article of worthwhile mention is Olivia Judson's "The Origin of Darwin" which appeared today in the Op-Ed section of The New York Times. She says:

Unlike many members of the human species, Darwin makes an easy hero. His achievements were prodigious; his science, meticulous. His work transformed our understanding of the planet and of ourselves.

At the same time, he was a humane, gentle, decent man, a loving husband and father, and a loyal friend. Judging by his letters, he was also sometimes quite funny. He was, in other words, one of those rare beings, as likable as he was impressive.

For example, after his marriage, Darwin worked at home, and his children (of the 10 he fathered, seven survived to adulthood) remembered playing in his study. Later, one of his sons recounted how, after an argument, his father came up to his room, sat on his bed, and apologized for losing his temper. And although often painted as a recluse, Darwin served as a local magistrate, meting out justice in his dining room.

For more, please click here.

Now, did you ever wonder why Darwin was able to accomplish so much and be ahead of his contemporaries? Read what Nicholas Wade had to say about Darwin:

One of Darwin’s advantages was that he did not have to write grant proposals or publish 15 articles a year. He thought deeply about every detail of his theory for more than 20 years before publishing “On the Origin of Species” in 1859, and for 12 years more before its sequel, “The Descent of Man,” which explored how his theory applied to people.

He brought several intellectual virtues to the task at hand. Instead of brushing off objections to his theory, he thought about them obsessively until he had found a solution. Showy male ornaments, like the peacock’s tail, appeared hard to explain by natural selection because they seemed more of a handicap than an aid to survival. “The sight of a feather in a peacock’s tail, whenever I gaze at it, makes me sick,” Darwin wrote. But from worrying about this problem, he developed the idea of sexual selection, that females chose males with the best ornaments, and hence elegant peacocks have the most offspring.

Darwin also had the intellectual toughness to stick with the deeply discomfiting consequences of his theory, that natural selection has no goal or purpose. Alfred Wallace, who independently thought of natural selection, later lost faith in the power of the idea and turned to spiritualism to explain the human mind. “Darwin had the courage to face the implications of what he had done, but poor Wallace couldn’t bear it,” says William Provine, a historian at Cornell University. (Read commentary by Dr. Provine on passages from "On the Origin of Species." )

Darwin’s thinking about evolution was not only deep, but also very broad. He was interested in fossils, animal breeding, geographical distribution, anatomy and plants. “That very comprehensive view allowed him to see things that others perhaps didn’t,” says Robert J. Richards, a historian at the University of Chicago. “He was so sure of his central ideas — the transmutation of species and natural selection — that he had to find a way to make it all work together.” (Dr. Richards comments on "On the Origin of Species.") For more please click here.

Now I am in NO way saying that I believe in Darwinism. I don't. Take a look at Carl Safina's discourse on "Darwinism Must Die So That Evolution May Live". He said:

Equating evolution with Charles Darwin ignores 150 years of discoveries, including most of what scientists understand about evolution. Such as: Gregor Mendel’s patterns of heredity (which gave Darwin’s idea of natural selection a mechanism — genetics — by which it could work); the discovery of DNA (which gave genetics a mechanism and lets us see evolutionary lineages); developmental biology (which gives DNA a mechanism); studies documenting evolution in nature (which converted the hypothetical to observable fact); evolution’s role in medicine and disease (bringing immediate relevance to the topic); and more.

By propounding “Darwinism,” even scientists and science writers perpetuate an impression that evolution is about one man, one book, one “theory.” The ninth-century Buddhist master Lin Chi said, “If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him.” The point is that making a master teacher into a sacred fetish misses the essence of his teaching. So let us now kill Darwin.Please click here to continue reading.

Personally, I find Charles Darwin and his works utterly fascinating. The fact that he could be so progressive while devoid of all the contraptions of modern society, in particular the internet, and also volumes of reference books, seems to tell me that mankind has NOT really progressed with the death of critical and creative thinking skills. A man, far ahead of his times indeed, Darwin was able to plod in his investigations without knowing how much he was right about so many things...and he did it purely for the quest of knowledge, not for any paper qualifications!

It is my prayer and hope that there will be more people like him in this world who will persevere in their undying pursuit of knowledge...

Happy 200th Birthday, Mr. Charles Darwin!!!

This afternoon, the Ang family treated me to a lunch at Paddington's House of Pancakes, Queensbay Mall. I taught the triplets H (Electrical Engineering, University of Melbourne), G (Medicine, Dublin) and Y (Mechanical Engineering, University of Melbourne) years ago.

Their mom, Anne, is another lovely woman who is not only patient, but kind, generous and very involved in Buddhist charity work. It has not been easy for Anne to bring up the three boys, especially when they were babies but it has been worth the investment of love for her as all the three boys are doing very well in their studies at tertiary level. Indeed, I am very proud of them and am greatly blessed to know Anne, from the days when I was teaching in the international school circuit.

I love the pannekoek(pancakes in Dutch) that is available at Paddington's House of Pancakes and today, we had a lovely array of pannekoek, blintz and other lovely stuff as well. For starters, we had original nachos which came with three types of dips - guacamole, sour cream and hummus.
I had Mexican blintz (next pic). Very well marinaded beef, not too oily and the pancake was just the right thickness.
Anne had pannekoek Honolulu with pineapples and diced chicken.
H had Pannekoek Tokyo...
Y had Buckwheat Pannekoek Brussel Sprouts...
Their cousin Man Heng who lives in Melbourne and is a first year student (commerce) in University of Melbourne enjoyed the Full Monty.

Thanks for the lunch treat and fellowship. Most of all, thank for the friendship, love and respect you all have shown me over the years....I am indeed blessed to know you all...God bless you all and bon voyage as you all leave next week for Melbourne!

Years ago, oooops - not THAT long ago ;), lovers courted each other via love letters and not emails or skype/internet chats. Hours were spent thinking about what to write to express one's love for the other and not reading or blogging (haha!!!).

I still have ALL the birthday cards and most of the letters that I received from 1967 till the present. Forty-two years of memorabilia is a lot of stuff to keep BUT having said that, I cannot deny that once in a while, I will take out those boxes and pore over each one and let the memories just flood my whole being and be swept away by the torrents of feelings and remembrance. So, what is this long winded blogger trying to say?

Gee...I hope my hubby will read this...*wink* (Ada udang di sebalik batu - which means there is a hidden motive behind a move haha!).

It is February 12th today - two days before Valentine's Day. Hmm ...for that matter, everyday should be Valentine's Day cos we should show love EVERYDAY and not just on one day...but heck...let's just go with the flow for now...


Valentine’s Day can be like New Year’s Eve – a lot of hype and high expectations and people can spend SOOOOOOO much money on soft toys, chocolates and all kinds of expensive and fancy bouquets. Blah! Who wants that?

I have enough soft toys and stuffed bears to open a small neighborhood Toys R Us branch. :-) I need no more chocolates because the total amount I consumed in the last three months to make myself happy after the harrowing experience I had would be enough to shock my doctor. I don't need to dine in fancy restaurants in perfectly coiffed hairstyle because I am a simple old lady. Despite being a die-hard sentimental romantic person who can still swoon at the sight of roses or a candle-light dinner or the strains of Moon River being played in the background, to me, there are two things that really melt a person’s heart:

* a simple, meaningful straight from the heart type of hand-written love letter showing your partner gratitude and thoughtfulness AND

* good conversation to create a special day together.

So my suggestion for this coming Valentine's Day :

Surprise your partner with a love letter, letting them know just how grateful you are to have them in your life.

Think of a favorite or special activity, a memory, a moment shared and tell them in your letter why it is important to you.

And when you are talking with your partner, take a step back and look at them – ask yourself what does this person bring into your life?

How is your life better because of them?

And then tell them!

Make your partner feel cherished by listening to them as they talk about their thoughts.

Get involved by asking questions to really understand their perspective ...and then...

share parts of yourself with them. Just talk ...and let him/her talk...endless conversation that can go on for hours and hours and you would not know how time has passed you by...

We are often so determined to be heard that it is so refreshing and enjoyable to actually listen.

Get caught up or go deeper: examine their eyes when they talk, look at their expressions, listen to their laughter.

To me, thoughtful words written and spoken are more endearing and memorable than any expensive gift given - these are the gestures that speak of true love and respect.

Enjoy your Valentine’s Day!

By Dr John C. Maxwell

In the early years of my career, I did not have a correct view of life. I approached life as if it were a slot machine. I wanted to put as little as possible into it, and I always hoped to hit the jackpot. I’m embarrassed to say that I often had a similar approach in my interaction with people. I was more focused on what people could do for me than what I could do for them. As a result, I would try to make relational “withdrawals” without ever having made any “deposits.” Needless to say, I was not very successful.
As I spent more time working with others, my thinking slowly began to change. I began to learn the Big Picture Principle, to see people in a different light, and to place a higher value on them. Once my attitude started changing, so did my actions. I started to invest in people simply because they had value. They were important. And I found that when I focused on what I could give rather than what I could get, people blossomed, relationships matured, and life was more rewarding. After I started to make giving my goal, I often felt that I received more from people than I was able to give.
Over the course of many years, I began learning to invest in people first and often. Somebody has to make the first move in relationships. So I figured, Why not me? I started to take a giver’s approach to life, focusing on what I could give in relationships. And I often tried to do it without an expectation of receiving something in return. I discovered that when I added value to people, many desired to add value back to me. When that happened, the relationships developed an incredible synergy and went to a new level.

WHAT GOES AROUND

Where do you stand on the subject of giving to others? I believe there are only three kinds of people when it comes to this subject:

1. TAKERS RECEIVE AND NEVER GIVE. Many people focus on themselves and rarely go out of their way to do anything for others. Such people are takers. They worry only about what they can get, and they are never satisfied.

2. TRADERS RECEIVE AND THEN GIVE. Some people focus on keeping score. They are willing to give, but their primary motivation isn’t to help others. They see relationships as an exchange. Often they give because they think they owe something to someone who has helped them, and they desire to make things “even.” I was like that early in my career. I was grateful to people who helped me, but I didn’t understand the value of adding value to others. And I didn’t initiate giving.

3. INVESTORS GIVE AND THEN RECEIVE. In this third group, people focus on others. They give first and then receive if something is offered in return. They believe that success comes from being helpful, caring, and constructive. They desire to make everything and everyone they touch better, and they understand that the best way to accomplish that is to give of themselves. Ironically, by possessing an agenda to give first, they are the ones who most often experience the synergy of win-win relationships.

People who invest in other people have some things in common:

Investors Understand That People Are of Great Value

Once when I was speaking to employees at BellSouth, an executive for the company stated, “People are our company’s most appreciable asset.” I heard good news and bad news in that statement. The good news is that he truly valued his people and cared about their well-being. The bad news is that what he said is only partly true. People are an appreciating asset only if we are willing to invest in them. Most people, if left alone, remain much the same.

Investors Embrace the Boomerang Principle

People who invest in others know that the best way to help themselves is to help others. They start that investment process by investing in relationships. They see everyone as a potential friend. Counselor and author Alan Loy McGinnis noted:

In research at our clinic, my colleagues and I have discovered that friendship is the springboard to every other love. Friendships spill over onto the other important relationships of life. People with no friends usually have a diminished capacity for sustaining any kind of love. They tend to go through a suc­cession of marriages, he estranged from various family members, and have trouble getting along at work. On the other hand, those who learn how to love their friends tend to make long and fulfilling marriages, get along well with the people at work, and enjoy their children.’

When you invest in a friendship, you open the door to investment— and ultimately the possibility of a return.

Investors Practice the Principle of Sowing and Reaping

There has never been a person who gave that did not receive in return! You may not believe that, but it is a fact. The Boomerang Principle is true: when we help others, we help ourselves. Here’s why I say that. Whenever you give to another person, you will receive something in return that affects your valuables, your values, or your virtues.

• VALUABLES: the things that provide financial worth. When people think about receiving something in return for giving, their thoughts often turn to material benefits. Sometimes when you help others, you do receive something of financial worth. But that is only one kind of benefit and perhaps not the most common kind.

• VALUES: the things that bring fulfillment. Have you ever given anonymously? If so, then you understand that while you received nothing tangible in return, you benefited emotionally or spiritually. Anytime you do something to fulfill your values, you benefit.

• VIRTUES: the things that develop character. Many benefits we receive from giving come in the area of character. Every time you overcome the inclination to be greedy by giving, you become less selfish. Every time you help someone and don’t see an immediate return, you become more patient. Such things build character.

In nature, if you sow, you reap. What you reap depends on what you plant. And you always reap later than you sow. The same is true when it comes to relationships. As in nature, they take time.

Investors Believe That Helping Others Is the Divine Work of People

American literary giant Ralph Waldo Emerson advised:

Don’t be a cynic ... [and] bewail and bemoan. Omit the nega­tive propositions . . . Don’t waste yourself in rejection, nor bark against the bad, but chant the beauty of the good ... Set down nothing that will not help somebody. It is one of the beautiful compensations of life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself. To help the young soul, to add energy, inspire hope, and blow the coals into a useful flame; to redeem defeat by new thought and firm action: This, though not easy, is the work of divine man.

TAKE INVESTING IN OTHERS TO A NEW LEVEL

Investing in others is one of the most noble and productive things we can do. Whatever we can do to help others makes the world a better place. As President Woodrow Wilson said, “You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand.”
So how do you enrich the world and become someone who invests in others? Begin by taking these five steps:

1. Think “Others First”

Good, healthy, growing relationships begin with the ability to put other people first. Remember the Big Picture Principle, and work to develop an attitude of kindness toward everyone. Begin every relationship by giving the other person respect—even before he has had a chance to earn it. Initiate acts of kindness with everyone.

2. Focus on the Investment, Not the Return

Novelist Herman Melville believed that “we cannot live only for our­selves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men; and along those fibers, as sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects.” We are intimately linked with other people, and our destinies are interwoven. As a result, when we help others, we will benefit. But that is not where we should place our focus.
Investors in people are like investors in the stock market. In the long haul, they will benefit, but they have little control over what that return will look like or how it will occur. But they can control what and how they invest. And that’s where they should focus their time and energy.

3. Pick Out a Few People with Great Potential

In 1995 when I began investing in people full-time, I felt called to invest strategically in ten people. My desire was to pick people with great potential and invest in them to help them become better leaders. The list of people has changed over the years, but my commitment to serving others has not. If anything, it has intensified. In 1995, I simply wanted to add value to others. Now ten years later, I want to multiply value to others by adding value to leaders.
When people prepare to make financial investments, the wise ones don’t put all their money into a single stock or fund. They diversify by investing in several areas. (If you invest in only one and it doesn’t perform well, you’re in trouble.) But good investors don’t spread themselves too thin, either. They know they can give only so much time and attention to each particular investment. Wise investors in people follow a similar pattern. Pick only as many people as you can handle with intensity, choose only people with great potential for growth, and choose only people whose need for growth matches your gifts and talents.

4. With Their Permission, Begin the Process

You cannot help someone who does not want your help. That seems so obvious that I hesitate to say it, but I feel that I must because I see people with good intentions trying to initiate the process without getting the buy-in of the person they’re trying to help.
In The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, the Law of Buy-In says that people buy in to the leader, then the vision. Mentoring relationships possess a leader-follower dynamic. The people being mentored must trust and believe in their teachers. The stronger the relationships and the greater the trust, the higher the likelihood that the investment process will work. But it must begin with agreement.

5. Enjoy a Return in Due Season

Poet Edwin Markham wrote.

There is a destiny that marks us as brothers;
No one goes his way alone:
All that we send into the lives of others
Comes back into our own.

I am convinced that when people’s motives are pure and they genuinely desire to add value to others, they cannot help others without receiving some benefit. The return may be immediate, or it may take a long time, but it will occur. And when it does, the relationship begins to resonate with synergy.
You are probably familiar with the story of Helen Keller, the deaf and blind girl whose life was transformed thanks to the efforts of Anne Sullivan. Keller, who was only seven when Sullivan came into her life, lived almost like an animal. But Sullivan taught her to communicate and opened the world to her. By the time Keller was an adult, she was able to take care of herself. She went on to receive a degree from Radcliffe College and to become a famous author and lecturer.
What you may not know is that when Anne Sullivan became ill years later, the person who took care of her was none other than Helen Keller. The helper became the one who needed help, and the one to whom she had added value turned around and added value to her. Invest in others, and like a boomerang, it will come back to you, sometimes in a most unexpected way.


Touching Hearts ... Changing Lives .... Pass It On .
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Some of you who have been following my blogs for some time would be aware of my recent experiences. During the worst times, I banged my head on the wall and asked why and an endless barrage of questions.

Having survived it so far (keeping my fingers crossed), I know that life is a very strange journey whereby our destination is unknown. A narrow minded person would expect things to turn out this way or that way and me, with a neat and tidy (and sometimes overproductive mind like tonight where I have been hit by a blogging frenzy)mind tend to restrict expectations to the worst case scenario and in the process, rob myself of the joys of living life the way it is meant to be lived.

Actually, I used to think that by going through the worst possibilities, it might ease the pain of suffering in the future. What a stupid notion! In doing just that, I had merely dug the grave deeper for myself when I had not even died yet! I don't know if you can get what I am saying. It is almost 2 a.m. and I am still not sleepy. Anyway, here's a story that sort of sums up what I have been trying to say quite incoherently...

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Two traveling angels stopped to spend the night in the home of a wealthy family. The family was rude and refused to let the angels stay in the mansion's guest room. Instead the angels were given a space in the cold basement. As they made their bed on the hard floor, the older angel saw a hole in the wall and repaired it. When the younger angel asked why, the older angel replied..."Things aren't always what they seem."

The next night the pair came to rest at the house of a very poor, but very hospitable farmer and his wife. After sharing what little food they had the couple let the angels sleep in their bed where they could have a good night's rest. When the sun came up the next morning the angels found the farmer and his wife in tears. Their only cow, whose milk had been their sole income,
lay dead in the field. The younger angel was infuriated and asked the older angel, "how could you have let this happen!?

The first man had everything, yet you helped him," she accused. "The second family had little but was willing to share everything, and you let their cow die."

"Things aren't always what they seem," the older angel replied." When we stayed in the basement of the mansion, I noticed there was gold stored in that hole in the wall. Since the owner was so obsessed with greed and unwilling to share his good fortune, I sealed the wall so he wouldn't find it.

Then last night as we slept in the farmers bed, the angel of death came for his wife. I gave her the cow instead. Things aren't always what they seem."

Sometimes this is exactly what happens when things don't turn out the way they should. If you have faith, you just need to trust that every outcome is always to your advantage. You might not know it until some time later.

A few nights ago, I had a karaoke session with my former students at Penang Swimming Club. Here we are - my goddaughter Kat, Ruttigone (who is finishing her PhD at RMIT) and I doing our version of Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive".

Daniel Jones(Indonesia), Kat and I doing Air Supply's "Even the Nights are Better".

And believe it or not, Ruttigone and I doing a Teresa Teng number - Yuet Liang Tai Peow War Te Xin (The Moon Represents My Heart) - one of the few Mandarin songs that I know how to sing!!! Thanks for a lovely night!

So for Mamasita, Chahya, Kak Teh and Kak Ezza...here's Paula signing off and wishing and hoping that we ladies can get together one day and belt it out OUR WAY!!!

Here's Teresa Teng singing one of my favorite songs!!! The Moon Represents My Heart!