What matters in life?

Working in the environment that I am in, it's hard not to get caught
up in the insane slew of reports, proposals, student feedback/
complaints, etc etc that we have to deal with every day. Recently,
most of my colleagues have been very stressed out papers and research.
Apparently there is some movement afoot to raise the bar, so to speak.
And everybody is worried sick about it.

I got an email from a dear friend recently. This friend is married
with small children, with a considerate, God-fearing spouse and a well-
paying job. Everything would point to an idyllic life. However, my
friend struggles with a serious illness that not only severely affects
quality of life, but it also possibly life-threatening. And the
doctors do not seem to know the cause nor the cure for the illness.

Every time I get an email from this friend, first I start wondering why.

That question will have to stay unanswered until the day we see God.

The next question, is, inevitably, what are the things that matter in
life?

When I was in GS earlier this month, I was very impressed and touched
by the teachers there. They sacrificed a lot to obey God's calling and
go to care for some children whom nobody else cares about. Life is
dreadfully boring there, and there's not much in terms of material
goods, either. And yet, they were just like normal people, not the
holier-than-thou martyrs that you'd expect them to be.

Except that if I am to use one word to describe them, it would be
"content".

How many of us can really claim contentment with our daily lives? And
if we can't, why?

Service Learning: When's it worth it?

(This picture was taken at the New Years' dinner, which was coincidentally held during the last night of our project. I call it "Locusts descending upon Egypt".)

Invariably, whenever we do service learning projects, especially those that take lots of time and effort such as HB or GS, there comes up the question of whether it was worth it. I get asked this question lots of times, and I will admit also that I ask myself that question sometimes, too. And a couple of times (not too often, thankfully), I have actually wondered seriously whether or not to continue. 

God has been kind to me, though -- it has never been more than a couple of weeks before I get some pretty firm, positive sign that it was worth it and it is worth continuing. This time was no exception. I was going through our kids' post-trip reports today and it was heartening to see that they all appreciated this trip and most importantly, they felt that their hearts were touched in some way by the plight of the orphans and the dedication of their teachers. Here are some quotes from the reports:

• Before the trip, I thought that maybe I cannot handle those kids ... But I was really moved by those naughty but sensible kids once I saw them in Gansu. I became patient when with kids. I'm really enjoyed with them.
• I obtain many benefits from this trip. And I think it is a good experience for many people who live in Hong Kong. I realize that we are all very lucky. We can enjoy lots of sources in Hong Kong. So we need to cherish those we have.
• The interaction and communication between the kids in JCPS and us is really active. The kids are happy to learn IT from us and they did a good job. When I saw they can operate PC to create their own art work, I felt so happy and excited.
• I learnt how to help others, how to put heart into a meaningful activity, how to make myself more responsible and considerate... this trip is only a start of help and learning, I hope I can do more and really make a difference.
• I opened my heart, at the beginning, and suddenly I not only made good relationship with them, but also saw a never-seeing world hidden of my heart. That was the first time I knew I could spend so much just for making those kids happy, and I didn't expect I would devote my whole heart into them, laughing with their happiness and crying by their sorrow.
• I was very upset to know that some people are still living under such a poor condition. As all of us are living on the same Earth, we should try our best to help the needed ones if we are able to do so.
• During this trip, I grow up more than expect. I learn how to talk something in front of many people and how to present my idea clearly. Also, I learn how to communicate to others from my teammate. Obviously, l got some computer knowledge. More importantly, I had the chance to make friend with the children and playing game with them.
• I do believe what I got from the trip is more than that I gave. I used to be a very passive person. In this trip, I had tried to push myself to be less passive ... Also, I didn't have enough confidence to take up works which were new to me ... I have learnt to be more confident in facing challenges.

Each service learning project is different, and it would be unfair to compare HB with GS -- indeed, it would be unfair to compare HB 1 with HB 2. However, this was certainly one of the most rewarding projects that I have been on so far. Our kids excelled themselves in being hardworking, disciplined, caring and compassionate -- indeed, this is truly a team that we could be proud of. And I am sure that my colleagues felt the same way. On my part, I do have to say that I am truly grateful to Him for giving me this chance to blend my ministry with my career, and for giving me some wonderful colleagues and co-workers (and if you happen to be reading this, no, this is NOT a blatant attempt to suck up!)

(This is my first attempt at mailblogging. Let's see if it warps up the format.)

Northwest China

For some reason, I have always had a keen interest in Northwest China and Central Asia, and therefore, being able to do a service learning tour to Gansu province this winter was a dream come true. About two weeks ago, Stephen and I brought 7 of our students to Gansu, where we set up some computer infrastructure and taught some IT classes for a primary school that caters to destitute orphans. You can read more about the details in the community service blog.

Remembering the harsh landscape of the land there, it is only too obvious why this province is among the poorest in China. I have been to desert regions before, but somehow they have never seemed as desolate as this. The tenacity of the human spirit is amazing. The human ability to survive is no less so.

You can see some more pictures on my Flickr album. I will post more here when I have collected my thoughts.