Honour and Courage!

Haven't felt much inclination to blog but lately, been feeding on really inspirational books and movies that've got me thinking and excited about the future! Here's a short excerpt from the script of "The Blind Side". Check out the movie, it's worth watching and thinking over :)

The Charge of the Light Brigade

Alfred, Lord Tennyson

1.

Half a league, half a league,

Half a league onward,

All in the valley of Death

Rode the six hundred.

"Forward, the Light Brigade!"

"Charge for the guns!" he said:

Into the valley of Death

Rode the six hundred.

2.

"Forward, the Light Brigade!"

Was there a man dismay'd?

Not tho' the soldier knew

Someone had blunder'd:

Theirs not to make reply,

Theirs not to reason why,

Theirs but to do and die:

Into the valley of Death

Rode the six hundred.

3.

Cannon to right of them,

Cannon to left of them,

Cannon in front of them

Volley'd and thunder'd;

Storm'd at with shot and shell,

Boldly they rode and well,

Into the jaws of Death,

Into the mouth of Hell

Rode the six hundred.

4.

Flash'd all their sabres bare,

Flash'd as they turn'd in air,

Sabring the gunners there,

Charging an army, while

All the world wonder'd;

Plunged in the battery-smoke

Right thro' the line they broke;

Cossack and Russian

Reel'd from the sabre stroke

Shatter'd and sunder'd.

Then they rode back, but not

Not the six hundred.

5.

Cannon to right of them,

Cannon to left of them,

Cannon behind them

Volley'd and thunder'd;

Storm'd at with shot and shell,

While horse and hero fell,

They that had fought so well

Came thro' the jaws of Death

Back from the mouth of Hell,

All that was left of them,

Left of six hundred.

6.

When can their glory fade?

O the wild charge they made!

All the world wondered.

Honor the charge they made,

Honor the Light Brigade,

Noble six hundred.

Copied from Poems of Alfred Tennyson,

J. E. Tilton and Company, Boston, 1870.

"Courage is a hard thing to figure. You can have courage based on a dumb idea or a mistake. But question adults or your coach or your teacher, because they make the rules? Maybe they know best, but maybe they don't. It all depends on who you are, where you come from. Didn't at least one of the 600 think about giving up and joining the other side? I mean, "Valley of Death", that's pretty salty stuff.

That's why courage is tricky. Should you always do what others tell you to do? Sometimes you might not even know why you're doing something. I mean, any fool can have courage. But honour, that's the real reason you either do something or don't. It's who you are, and maybe who you want to be. If you die trying for something important, then you have both honour and courage. And that's pretty good. I think that's what the writer was saying, that you should hope for courage, and try for honour. And maybe even pray that the people telling you what to do, have some too."

- Poem interpretation by Michael Oher

Reading Wishlist

Autobiographies:

1. Nelson Mandela
2. Martin Luther King
3. Abraham Lincoln

Courage for the soul! :)

Happy Father's Day!

To my Father, thanks for Your love, and believing in me no matter how many mistakes or failures I experience. Because of Your mercy and patience with me, I have the strength to find joy and hope in my life every morning I wake up, and to want to love others better everyday.

To my dad, thanks for your love that will never cease for us children. Dealing with our imperfections and nonsense, yet laying down your life to provide and make sure we have everything we need when we don't deserve it makes me feel really blessed and loved. You taught me compassion and the importance of family ties, you're the best pop in the world! :]

To my spiritual father, Pst Kong, thanks for laying down your life for the vision God gave you, for us CHC members even though you don't know most of us personally. Thanks for showing the way and being a person of integrity, who stands in the public eye with courage and principles and being a role model for thousands of youths and adults all over the world. You're truly an inspiration!

27.03.10

Had a great night cycle by the beach, it's good to make time to clear your thoughts and let the important things settle. Thank God for open skies and beaches!

After a long week, I realise:

I need to pray things through.
I need to have focus and excellence.
I need courage to take the first step and trust that God will guide me as I walk. He's big enough to make a way if I fail.

$$$

My uni classmates and I were discussing how we were supposed to apply psychology in our practice in the future, like translating "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy" into Chinese or Hokkien for our clients. And I realised that unless there's someone who bridges that gap, it means that only people of a certain education level would fully benefit from psychological help. Interesting to see how IMH does it, and it seems I really can't escape not learning to speak chinese and dialect.

But the point of this post was about how this field of psychology is relevant and friendly to people of certain socioeconomic status. Things that happened today to make me realise this:

1. Got fined for an overdue book by my school library. The librarian called and said that because it was overdue for 2 days, I had to pay $10. (!!! and resignation: private schools = private libraries, so more expensive)

2. The school emailed us details of a Psychology Seminar coming up which really sounds interesting. The poster read "$550 SGD for 2 days! Click for details on student prices!" And...don't hold your breath... students only need to pay $330 for 2 days! Hahaha.. this email really made my day, burst out laughing when I read it. Seriously, psychologists have a sense of humor!