Recently, my girlfriend Linda sent me a video featuring Korean girl playing exquisitely beautiful music. Hee Ah Lee, who was born with pincer-like fingers - only 2 on each hand, is a living testimony of how with grit and determination, one can overcome barriers and make dreams come true.
I did a bit of online research and have come across a few websites that have verified that this tale and the video are authentic. For further verification, please click HERE.
When you watch the video clip, you will be amazed by this story of a mother and a daughter who have overcome odds from the very beginning.
Lee’s father is a disabled man who was injured during a military operation. Paralyzed from the waist, he took morphine for ten years. Lee's mom met him because she was his nurse.When they got married, they never planned for a baby. The pregnancy was a surprise. Doctors told her that because of a medication she had been taking, her child would not be normal.
Hee Ah's mom decided to go ahead with the pregnancy and in 1985 in Seoul, South Korea, little Hee Ah Lee was born with only two fingers on each hand, disfigurement of her legs, and slight brain injury. The hospital told Sun that she could not care for the child at home and relatives wanted her to place the child for adoption in a foreign country. Hee Ah's mom thought her baby was beautiful, however, and was determined that she would live a successful life.
By the time Hee Ah was a pre-schooler her mother decided that she wanted her daughter to take piano lessons and for two reasons. One was that she felt it would help her strengthen her hands so she could hold a pencil. The other was that she felt that if she could master the piano, she could master anything.
For six months piano schools turned them down then the one teacher who did accept the task got discouraged and wanted to quit. It became a three-month contest of wills between mother and daughter that led to a confrontation in which Sun actually threw her daughter on the floor in frustration. She said Lee got back up on the piano bench and for the first time played the children’s song she had been trying to learn. That was the turning point and one year later Lee won the grand prize in a piano concert for Kindergartners. It was at age 7 that Lee won Korea’s 19th National Handicap Conquest Contest and was presented with her award by the President of Korea.
Today Lee is 22, has won numerous awards. She is a widely traveled concert pianist with more than 200 appearances. Her first album titled “Hee-ah, a Pianist with Four Fingers” will be released in June.
Lee gives tribute to her mother for challenging her to master the piano and said that although her training was difficult, "as time went by, the piano became my source of inspiration and my best friend."
Dear readers, please click on the video and marvel at the inspiring video of Hee Ah Lee - the fantastic four-fingered pianist.
The fart it is a pleasant thing,
It gives the belly ease,
It warms the bed in winter,
And suffocates the fleas.
A fart can be quiet,
A fart can be loud,
Some leave a powerful,
Poisonous cloud
A fart can be short,
Or a fart can be long,
Some farts have been known
To sound like a song....
A fart can create
A most curious medley,
A fart can be harmless,
Or silent , and deadly.
A fart might not smell,
While others are vile,
A fart may pass quickly,
Or linger a while......
A fart can occur
In a number of places,
And leave everyone there,
With strange looks on their faces.
From wide-open prairie,
To small elevators,
A fart will find all of
Us sooner or later.
That farts are all bad,
Is simply not true-
We must never forget....
Sweet old farts like you!
Kinda brings a tear to your eye doesn't it?
Have a lovely evening, dear reader!
An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, Eleven plus two = Twelve plus one, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place. Someone who creates anagrams is called an anagrammatist. The original word or phrase is known as the subject of the anagram.
Take a look at the following anagrams and then try to see how many words (minimum = three letter words) you can form with "adventure" (simplified version of anagram in that you don't need to use all the letters for each word).
E.g. ADVENTURE
* dare
* venture
* dune
* advent
etc.
NOTE: You can only use each letter once for each word. Please type your words in the comment box and let's see how many words you can make. Have fun and enjoy the weekend!
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DORMITORY:
When you rearrange the letters:
DIRTY ROOM
PRESBYTERIAN:
When you rearrange the letters:
BEST IN PRAYER
ASTRONOMER:
When you rearrange the letters:
MOON STARER
DESPERATION:
When you rearrange the letters:
A ROPE ENDS IT
THE EYES:
When you rearrange the letters:
THEY SEE
GEORGE BUSH:
When you rearrange the letters:
HE BUGS GORE
THE MORSE CODE:
When you rearrange the letters:
HERE COME DOTS
SLOT MACHINES:
When you rearrange the letters:
CASH LOST IN ME
ANIMOSITY:
When you rearrange the letters:
IS NO AMITY
ELECTION RESULTS:
When you rearrange the letters:
LIES - LET'S RECOUNT
SNOOZE ALARMS:
When you rearrange the letters:
ALAS! NO MORE Z 'S
A DECIMAL POINT:
When you rearrange the letters:
I'M A DOT IN PLACE
THE EARTHQUAKES:
When you rearrange the letters:
THAT QUEER SHAKE
ELEVEN PLUS TWO:
When you rearrange the letters:
TWELVE PLUS ONE
AND FOR THE GRAND FINALE:
MOTHER-IN-LAW:
When you rearrange the letters:
WOMAN HITLER
IF your friends haven't seen this one, DON'T FORGET TO SHARE THIS!
At about 2p.m. today, Malaysiakini announced:
The Health Ministry has confirmed Malaysia's first case of A(H1N1) infection after tests were conducted on a student currently warded at the Sungai Buloh hospital.Extracted from THIS LINK.
In a statement today, Health Department director-general Dr Ismail Merican said that the 21-year-old youth was warded on May 14 after suffering fever, sore throat and body aches, after returning home from the United States a day before.
"Anti-viral treatment has been administered on the victim and he is in stable condition," said Ismail.
However, Ismail said that the public has no reason to panic as his department was collaborating with all relevant agencies to ensure that monitoring works were intensified and other proactive measures were taken to protect public health.
Ismail said that the health ministry had taken measures to prevent the virus by initiating contact investigations between the victim, his family and the airline's cabin crew.
"The health ministry also advises all passengers of MH091 from Newark, USA which arrived on 7.15am, May 13 to contact 03-8810-0200 or 03-8881-0300 for further action," he said.
As of midnight, May 14, Ismail said that the ministry's Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC) were notified of 11 of suspected A(H1N1) victims nationwide.
Other than the case in Sungai Buloh hospital, clinical tests revealed that all suspected victims tested negative for the virus.
MOH travel advisory
Ismail also said 20 thermal scanners have been installed in entry points nationwide and 9,324 individuals from affected countries have been scanned as of May 14.
"However, no one has been referred to the hospital for investigations," he said.
According to Ismail, Belgium is the latest country to have confirmed cases of A(H1N1) virus, thus bringing the total number of affected countries to at least 34.
Out of the 34 countries, more than 7,457 cases of the deadly virus outbreak has been reported with 70 deaths, as at 8am today.
According to World Health Organisation, the pandemic alert level is at phase 5 - out of a possible 6 - which means a global outbreak is 'imminent'.
Ismail also advised the public not to travel to affected countries while those returning from affected countries showing flu symptoms should seek immediate medical attention.
"Furthermore, there is no risk of A(H1N1) infection if meat or swine products are properly prepared and cooked," he said.
Further information regarding the virus outbreak can be obtained through the Health Ministry website.
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A few days ago, my dear girlfriend Linda (mom of a former student) called me excitedly to let me know that when her husband asked her what she wanted for her birthday present, she replied, "Paula in Macau". Thereafter, he agreed to pay for a return air ticket for me. Of course I was absolutely delighted. It has been three years since I last saw Linda. Then Angela, a much beloved girlfriend knocked some sense into my head by saying, "Don't forget the A(H1N1) flu." My heart sank. To date, I have yet to book my ticket to take up Linda's offer, much to her disappointment. Thanks, dearest Linda but I have to wait and see first - after all, I have till November.
I am well aware of the dangers of flying during such times and would not want to risk being quarantined and putting other people who have had contact with me into a quarantine situation as well. My boy's Grade 6 piano and violin examinations are coming up and my better half is buried in work at the work place. Whilst I do not want to sound paranoid, I believe it is our responsibility to take precautions to reduce risk factors and to be in the pink of health.
So for this afternoon, I'd like to share this simple but useful article with you regarding how we can avoid contacting A(H1N1) flu. Take care and may God bless you and your family with good health. Have a great weekend.
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Grant Yourself the Gift of Immunity: 9 Ways to Stay Healthy This Flu Season
It is often hard to stay calm, when the news reports contain such words as Swine Flu: Impending Pandemic. Moreover, just the seasonal flu kills an estimated 36,000 people here in the U.S. every year. However, anxiety works against your immunity and other important body functions. You need to strengthen your body and can do so by practicing relaxation techniques, eating healthful foods, and adding natural supplements to your diet.
There are a number of things we can all do in the meantime to minimize our chances of getting the influenza virus. Vaccines and drugs are not at all reliable when it comes to especially a new viral influenza strain. Bolstering your immune system is the best way to protect yourself and those around you. There are a number of techniques we can safely utilize. The details are found in my book: PREVENT CANCER, Strokes, Heart Attacks and other Deadly Killers.
1. Good Hygiene
The old saying still holds true: Wash your hands, often! Any time you cough, sneeze, touch food, or use the bathroom, thoroughly wash your hands. This means a gentle, natural soap and water for a good 20 seconds. Use a face mask when out in public. Keep your environment clean with natural cleaners and air purification.
2. Watch for Flu, Respiratory, or Pneumonia Symptoms
Since swine flu is manifesting as a respiratory problem, you should keep an eye out for these symptoms in yourself and others. Symptoms include fever, sore throat, cough, muscle pain, fatigue, diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, giddiness.
3. Stay Home
If you are experiencing any suspicious symptoms, stay home from work, school, travel and social engagements. This will help slow the spread to other people, and help you to heal faster.
4. Relaxation
Our immunities and inflammatory responses are compromised by high-anxiety situations. Studies have shown that psychological stress reduces the immune system's reactions to hormonal secretions that are normally used to fight inflammatory response. Consider spending time focused on relaxation: buy a yoga video, explore meditation, practice positive visualization or look into guided imagery techniques. A good massage can also help.
5. Sleep
Get seven to nine hours of sleep a night, and take a nap if you need to. Sleep helps the body to heal, and limits your chances for picking up infection.
6. Healthful Diet
Proper nutrition through a varied diet is the ideal way to promote a strong immune system. Consume more fermented foods in your diet, especially fermented soybean which contains probiotic bacteria, isoflavones, saponins omerga-3 fatty acids, and phytosterols. These help to build one's immunity by helping to maintain peak levels of natural killer cells and macrophages (types of white blood cells) and by supporting cytokine production, which responds to infections.
7. Sunlight
Sunlight is the best way for your body to make vitamin D, which is great for immune system support. If you can, try to get 15 minutes of direct sunlight each day. Eat lots of berries and leafy green vegetables to protect your skin from being burned. I recommend at least 2,000 I.U. of vitamin D per day. Studies show that vitamin D stimulates the immune system and disease fighting cells, called macrophages and T cells.
8. Exercise
Regular exercise activity is wonderful for keeping the immune system strong. Several 20-30 minute brisk walks a week are recommended for most adults.
9. Natural Supplements
It is nearly impossible to get all the body needs to ward of viruses through diet. Supplementing your diet with natural products containing fermented soy, curcumin, resveratrol and green tea will give your body the boost it needs to be at its peak.
Fermented Soy: Boosts the body's immunity and regulates its inflammatory responses.
Curcumin: Have anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, anti-fungal and immune regulating properties.
Resveratrol: Is found in red wine and has been considerered a life prolonging plant. Taking Resveratrol supplement rather than consuming alcohol is a safer, more effective way to benefit.
Green Tea: One cup of green tea provides 10-40 mg of polyphenols and has antioxidant effects greater than a serving of broccoli, spinach, carrots or strawberries. Green Tea supplements provide the maximum benefit.
Yours in Vibrant Health,
Dr. Vijaya Nair, MD, FAMS, MS
Visit jivasupplements.org to learn more about the natural products discussed in this article and about Dr. Nair and her extensive research.
Author's Bio
Dr. Vijaya Nair is an esteemed medical researcher and epidemiologist with a passion for integrating Eastern approaches with Western medical and scientific training. A native of Singapore, she earned her medical degree from the National University of Singapore in psychiatry. Dr. Nair later immigrated to the United States, where she received a master’s degree in epidemiology from Columbia University and completed her post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School.
This has been a terribly stressful week for me not just because of self-imposed deadlines and work but also because of what is happening in the country. Thus it was unbelievably therapeutic when I had the opportunity to hang out with two former students of mine (taught them General Paper in the A level program, 2004) last night - a soon-to-be 4th year medical student Wei Lyn Chung and a fresh psychology graduate, Xinch.
As always, we headed for Super Tanker hawker centre to gorge ourselves silly on AKI's famous pancakes. Xinch had her usual Ham & Cheese Pancake (Bun Chang Kuih) while I had my tuna pancake. I am not sure what Lyn had as I was far too busy enjoying mine and over lor-bak, po-piah and other delicious hawker fare, we reminisced, joked and discussed serious issues after which we all proceeded to my place for more tete-a-tete.
Anyway, Lyn shared with us some of her hilarious moments doing her ward rounds. She encountered a few tricky situations as she is not that fluent in Hokkien. Here are two gems she shared with us last night...She has given me her permission to post these...
For all you Penangites or Hokkien speakers out there!
Scenario 1
Wei-Lyn wanted to ask if her patient, an old Chinese uncle, had bloody faeces. So, she said:
Uncle, lu eh ka chui kang ho bo? :-)
Literal translation: Uncle, how is your ***hole?
His reply : Hoe (Yes)
Scenario 2
She asked yet another uncle what medicine he had taken in the morning and the gentleman replied that he had consumed what the hospital had given him and also tang ku choon medicine.
*tang ku choon means cholesterol in Hokkien
So she asked him where he bought the medicine and he said,"Traditional chinese medicinal hall."
Subsequently, she wrote in the medical record - "Consumed tang ku choon medicine" thinking that it was the brand name of some traditional herb and only found out when we told her last night what the term meant!! :-)
Having said that, I wish to put on record that Lyn, Xinch, together with Nisha (4th year medical student at University of Queensland), Nicholas Au (4th year medical student in PMU), Vanmala (Masters student in journalism, Concordia University in Montreal, Selene (4th year medical student in PMU, Malacca), Chris Chua (University of Sydney, software engineering major and interned with Microsoft, Seattle in January 2009) and a few more whom I taught in the 2002 cohort are the last of the bright students that I taught.
Lyn and Xinch are very intelligent(both in IQ and EQ), mature and resourceful young ladies - each a force to be reckoned with in her own way. Of course they did get into trouble with me :-) for some pieces of work (by the way Lyn and Xinch, I believe you still owe me some pieces of work!! Tsk tsk..I should have brought this up last night. Dang!) Yet, they pressed on and performed remarkably both academically and in their personal lives and their blogs are fantastic! I am indeed proud of them and love them very much, including many others who keep in touch with me.
After they left last night,...I started thinking about the deteriorating standards in education. I know I blogged about it in THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY but you know what, there are still other aspects which I did not mention...
Once again, I lament the death of critical thinking skills in many students today. I can see how quite a number of those whom I taught in the late 1980's are now famous entrepreneurs with multi-million dollar businesses overseas while most of whomI taught in the early 1990's have either a Masters and/or Ph.D. degree from ivy league universities but the deterioration in standards began from the mid 1990's.
From 2005 onwards till the present, I have only encountered ONE bright student - Hobart Lim and even then, he knows as I tell him very often, that despite being the creme de la creme he is a long way from those students I had in the past.
I can see how some:
*only want to be spoonfedBelieve me - many primary school students DO NOT even know what is the meaning of part of speech...have no idea of what is an adjective, adverb, let alone the difference between a preposition and a conjunction or the fact that there are many different types of nouns. Oh - it is a horrible nightmare in the education system. OK. Enough ranting.
*refuse to think for themselves and ask questions immediately after I finish a lecture
*only want to express what they know instead of answering the question and distort the question to their own advantage
*only want to memorize phrases from goodness knows where only to regurgitate them in an out-of-context situation thereby committing malapropism
*only want to work hard just to get straight As in a public exam and memorized their way through each public exam and deprived themselves of developing their thinking skills by NOT evaluating what they are learning and synthesizing these with their own knowledge
*only want to have fun and pleasure where the discussion is centred on branded goods, overseas holidays, partners, fashion, which hand phone they have, the usual airhead bimbo talk and gossip
*only want to get into a good university based on their academic achievements but are unable to cope because they are simply not world class standard due to the appalling education standards locally
* are unable to see their own errors in their written work and/or unwilling to review their assignments to check for typographical/spelling errors or even problems in syntax or rationale in their arguments
*only want to do work for the sake of handing up the work and NOT for learning and with this attitude cannot improve in their grammar and perpetuate their errors in subject-verb agreement, sentence structure, tenses, etc etc.
For me, I left the education industry because in 2005, I threw in the towel when I saw the declining standards. Four years down the road, I am glad I made that decision because had I stayed on, I would have pulled out all my hair in frustration. Teaching at A level or at diploma level is frustrating if I have to teach students simple tasks such as planning an essay or simple skills such as sentence structure. At that level, they should already know what is a thesis statement, how to construct a coordinate statement to support the thesis statement and how to design subordinate sentences with evidence to support the coordinate sentences. But truth be told, many have no idea about all that and cannot be bothered to know even if they were taught because far too many bad habits have been allowed to thrive and to become part and parcel of their abilities.
Some don't even see the need to work hard because they were born with silver spoons in their mouths. Once, I had a student who told me that he did not need to work hard as he would take over the dad's business and that it would be a piece of cake as all his dad does is play golf and talk on the handphone!!! Many do not see the wood for the trees!!! What will happen in the future???? That is the tragic state of affairs.
All I can say is that I am happy where I am now - with the memories of yester-years and the knowledge that the investment I made in my former students have paid dividends because a significant number of them are my good friends. Although I have no status, prestige or professional position as a full-time housewife cum blogger, and live a simple, reclusive life, I am very satisfied knowing that when I had the opportunity to teach - I gave my best and many of those kids realize it and still come back to spend time with me and that is the greatest reward of my teaching career.
So if you are a parent, please ensure your child has sufficient intellectual stimulation. Help your children to exert themselves intellectually and to take responsibility for their learning WITHOUT an overload of tuition classes or an imbalance between time spent on extra-curricular activities and their studies. Guide them and be their moral compass to ensure that they grow up with values and morals that will equip them to face the challenges in society and to make the right choices, especially as a citizen!!! Surround them with love and give them a sense of pride in their work and do not overemphasize academic achievement at the expense of character development. It is not easy to live in modern society but with the right approach and perspective be it as a student, parent, child or whatever role/status or position you have in society, you can excel and leave a mark that will endear you to others.
The choice is ours.
This particular post is one of my favorite articles and I posted it on April 26th as The Law of the Garbage Truck and am reposting it again if you missed the earlier one. Have a nice day!
How often do you let other people's nonsense change your mood? Do you let a bad driver, rude waiter, curt boss, or an insensitive employee ruin your day? Unless you're the Terminator, for an instant you're probably set back on your heels. However, the mark of a successful person is how quickly she can get back her focus on what's important.
Sixteen years ago I learned this lesson. I learned it in the back of a New York City taxi cab. Here's what happened. I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for Grand Central Station. We were driving in the right lane when, all of a sudden, a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car’s back end by just inches!
The driver of the other car, the guy who almost caused a big accident, whipped his head around and he started yelling bad words at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was friendly. So, I said, "Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!" And this is when my taxi driver told me what I now call, "The Law of the Garbage Truck."
Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it. And if you let them, they'll dump it on you. When someone wants to dump on you, don't take it personally. You just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. You'll be happy you did.
So this was it: The "Law of the Garbage Truck.” I started thinking, how often do I let Garbage Trucks run right over me? And how often do I take their garbage and spread it to other people a work, at home, on the streets? It was that day I said, "I'm not going to do anymore." I began to see garbage trucks.
Like in the movie "The Sixth Sense," the little boy said, "I see Dead People." Well, now "I see Garbage Trucks." I see the load they're carrying. I see them coming to drop it off. And like my Taxi Driver, I don't make it a personal thing; I just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on.
One of my favorite football players of all time, Walter Payton, did this every day on the football field. He would jump up as quickly as he hit the ground after being tackled. He never dwelled on a hit. Payton was ready to make the next play his best.
Good leaders know they have to be ready for their next meeting. Good parents know that they have to welcome their children home from school with hugs and kisses. Leaders and parents know that they have to be fully present, and at their best for the people they care about. The bottom line is that successful people do not let Garbage Trucks take over their day. What about you? What would happen in your life, starting today, if you let more garbage trucks pass you by? Here's my bet. You'll be happier. Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so.. Love the people who treat you right. Forget about the ones who don't.
-written by David J. Pollay-
