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.

The Spirit of Christmas

Walking through the shopping malls and business districts during Christmas is quite an experience. Maybe it's the booming economy this year, but somehow, the usual orgiastic shopping experience that cumulates around Christmas seems to be especially pronounced this year. Being at St. John's on Christmas Eve was especially revealing -- it's always glam at St. John's, but somehow this year seems especially so -- almost everybody is dressed up to the nines, more as if they were going to a party or a dance than going to church.

I wonder -- where is Christ in all of this? It seems that the more blessed we are, the less likely we are to remember God. Maybe it's a hazy memory biased by the nostalgia of childhood, but I remember when I was growing up, and the society as a whole was less prosperous, every Christmas brought hope and joy. Maybe it's because now I am older and more cynical, but I find it hard to recapture those feelings nowadays. Christmas almost seems to bring more pressure than relief.

On a personal level, the closest I felt to God this Christmas was not at a church service, but among the mentally disabled children that we spent Christmas Eve with.

(BTW, this picture above was taken at the Central escalator. I was surprised to see such a strong religious statement in the midst of the business district. It's a good reminder of what Christmas is all about.)

In the Image of God

For Christmas Eve this year, we brought a group of our students to a home for the mentally disabled to throw a Christmas party for their kids. This is mainly due to the efforts of one of my colleagues, for whom this has been a family event for many years -- and made the extra effort last year to extend it into a school event for our students.

Spending several hours with the kids at the Home is quite an experience. It is challenging -- children with mental disabilities also often have physical disabilities and emotional/behavioral handicaps mixed in with it. Some of these children are so severely underdeveloped that they have trouble holding their own heads up, or they do self-destructive things like putting their hands so far back into their throats that they choke themselves, or even go about running into things and hurting themselves.

A friend and I went to midnight mass at St. John's the same night. The service started with the traditional hymn, "Once in Royal David's City". Listening to the choir sing the words "with the poor, the scorned, the lowly", and "he was little, weak and helpless", images of the children kept on popping up in my head, and I was so overwhelmed that I broke down in tears. Indeed, each of them were made in His own image, and He obviously loves them as much as He loves each of us. And we can be thankful for the hope that He promises for all of us:

we shall see him; but in heaven,
set at God's right hand on high;
when like stars his children crowned,
all in white shall wait around.

Those children will be at His feet, healed of the afflictions that handicap them here on earth.

Multiple Choice: Expected Value

When we discuss how our students answer exam questions, a common comment is that since they seem to just pick multiple choice answers at random, they might be better off just picking the same choice for all the answers, and get the same expected value outcome. However reasonable this seems, none of us had ever seen a student actually try this tactic, until this year, when a student tried it in StephenC's class.

When StephenC showed me that exam paper, I commented that maybe the usual practice of giving points for correct answers but not taking off points for incorrect ones actually encouraged students to try such a tactic. To try and preempt that, I set my exam to give 2 points for a correct multiple choice answer, and -0.5 points for an incorrect one.

I spoke too soon. Take a look at this exam paper. Apparently the possibility of getting points deducted isn't strong enough. And yes, the result is right at the expected value.

Relationships for a season

A friend and I were discussing recently how some friends tend to be friends for a while, and then they kind of drift out of our lives. She was rather hurt by this, and I was trying to tell her that sometimes, people come into our lives for a reason, and when that reason is over, they leave, and we shouldn't try to hold on and make them stay.

Anyway, today, I received a chain email from another friend. Normally, I really hate chain emails, but this one was actually quite coherent, so I'm sharing it here:

-----------------------------
People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.
When you know which one it is, you will know what to do for that person.

When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed.
They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend and they are.
They are there for the reason you need them to be.
Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end.

Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away.
Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.
What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done.
The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.

Some people come into your life for a SEASON, because your turn has come to share, grow or learn.
They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh.

They may teach you something you have never done.
They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy.
Believe it, it is real. But only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons, things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation.
Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life.
It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Thank you for being a part of my life, whether you were a reason, a season or a lifetime.
-----------------------------