Grace......

HE GIVETH MORE GRACE

"He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater,

He sendeth more strength when the labors increase;

To added affliction, He addeth His mercy,

To multiplied trials His multiplied peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,

When our strength has failed e’re the day is half done,

When we reach the end of our hoarded resources,

Our Father’s full giving has only begun.

His love has no limits,

His grace has no measure,

His power has no boundary known unto men;

For out of His infinite riches in Jesus,

He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again!’”

~ Annie Johnson Flint ( 1866 - 1932 ) ~

The adorables...

Last Saturday, my family and I managed to squeeze some time to spend with our family in Seremban. I must say that we missed the family a lot especially the two adorables - Ryan and Ashley. I guess, over the months, they have grown up nicely while Wei & Jade have always been great family to us. This weekend had been speical as we wanted to spend time with the children Ryan & Ashley, play with them and do the crazy stuff with them. I really am blessed when I am playing with Ryan & Ashley. Now, it's Ashley's turn to exercise her lung muscles with her cries and vocal chords training. She is just so cute and ........no words to describe! She really have grown so much and I am truly amazed with her development in growth. She smiles a lot and playful too but when she cries, she packs a power punch. She's so cute when she on the walker and the ways she slides across the room so fast that you just want to catch her and play with her.
Then , there's Ryan- the lion. I guess, I am stuck with the name "Ah John" for life! Yup, that's he calls me. It is really nice to cuddle with him and play games with him. He's so quirky at times with his antics but he smiles a lot. Even when he is naughty in his ways, he gets away with it with his big smile but I was always there to give him a scolding or two when he gets it wrong. One incident was when he finished his biscuit and he doesn't want to take the bowl to the back. I gave him a tongue lashing and he took it and put on the next table and hide behind the sanctuary of his grandma. Then he came back to me, hugged me and called me " Ah John" stroking my face. I tell you, he learns his trades of melting people's heart fast, man! Hahahahahahahahhahahaaaaa! Anyway, for me, after having and dealing with two children, these old "Tengsuar" tricks don't work on me! Still gave him a lecture on having to clean up after eating and give him a small smack on his bottoms for being naughty. Off he went running towards SLing for some solace! Well, children will be children!

When SLing's mom asked me to cook fish head curry for dinner, I readily agreed though it would be my first time doing it. So, I washed, marinated the garoupa fish head pieces with Baba's curry powder, cut & diced the vegetables like okra, brinjal and got ready some lime leaves for fragrance. Yes, I cooked up the dish the best I know how. Finally, got it done and it tasted not too bad but still miss the Indian spices. I guess, I am happier at the kitchen stove than being stuck behind the moronic machine called the computer. Anyway, Jade cooked her speciality pork ribs dish, fried sotong with curry mixture and wine infused prawns which were excellent dishes. I saw her mixed and prepare the ingredients for her dishes and I must say that she has done well. The dishes turned out good and mouth-watering while I really had a good time with the pork ribs which were really very good. We enjoyed the dishes very much. Way to go, Jade! Looking forward to more home-cooked, ok? Yes, yes, stock up the house with Chinese, Thai, Italian, French and Indonesian cook books! You can do it!

All in all, we had a great time back home in Seremban. I guess, spending time with loved ones are important and really helps to make family bonds stronger. We may all face different kinds of pressures and stress in life but spending time with family somehow soothes away the blues. Yeah, playing with the children, spending time with your family members and sharing great home cooked meals helped to make the day a beautiful day. I guess, I am already missing the tiny tots already and the conversations with Wei and Jade plus SLing's mom.

Looking forward for our next weekend getaway in Seremban again!

World Cup observation...

I know the FIFA World Cup 2010 had started and you're all itching to hear my side of the story, isn't it? Well, I must say I do find it interesting to see more play acting getting done in this World Cup competition. If there is an award for Play Acting of Year, Kader Keita from Cote D'Ivoire ( Some fellas pronounced it as Kotek Di Apa! It is not my problem anyway. I'm just writing how they pronounced it, ok? So , don't blame me for it! I heard it from a nearby coffeeshop! ] would win it hands down for sure. Yup, this is the fella who got Kaka from Brazil ejected from the game.

Coming back to the game, I find it interestingly silly for these players to do such despicable acts of cheating and feint injury. I guess, it had become so competitive that you would have to cheat and lie to win at all cost or get some advantage by getting players off the field. Fair play is definitely not the order of the day. I find it despicable and deplorable for professionals to do the playacting and all that while we are not talking about cheap/"sar kar lor" players but players who had been in some of the most competitive football leagues in the world. I guess, that's why acts like these takes off a lot of shine from this year's WC competition.

The other thing I noted is the increasingly annoying handball offences. For crying out loud, it is football, people and the last time I checked, you don't play football with your hands except for the goalkeeper, of course! This mentality of stopping the flow of play at all cost has to stop indefinitely. It kills the beauty of the game. Look, if they, the players, are fitter, sharper and technically better in their skills, you don't need hands to stop your opponents but like all prima donnas of any game, fitness level is low, they turned their backs on training after one guy got sent home, they bitched and caused a hue & cry about the older players, the pitch, the weather, the ball, the referee, the ball boys, the vuvuzelas and what not except for themselves. Their excuses sound familiar, isn't it? Well, some say it is the drama of WC and we all need some drama in our lives one way or another. I couldn't agree more but it's getting tiresome as the matches are played later in the night and eating into our enthusiasm levels to stay awake.

Career threatening tackles are another down point for the game. If you look at the tackles, they are really crunching and could get people seriously hurt,man. With slow mo and good camera angle, you could actually see some ankle getting twisted or some shins/ thighs decorated with boot studs. I have yet to see some players nuts being stepped upon. [ Ouch! ] Well, it's gotta happened sooner or later with such plays being left unchecked, right?

Then there is this jersey pulling thing and hands grappling & blocking nuisance. You see it rampant during games and some people make a meal out of it. Personally, I find it crazy to do such things. Anyway, I have yet to see anyone grabbing someone's tree stump or pull shorts down during games and so on. Now, that would be interesting, wouldn't it? Hmmmnnnn.... what would be the reaction, anyway. Imagine we have a game of football with stomping on the nuts, pulling of the tree stumps, pulling of hair [ Didn't their mothers teach them to cut their hair and look neat? These Africans and Europeans do need some serious personal grooming lesson! ] and pulling down shorts - all perfectly legal in the game? Now, that would be mighty interesting, right?

The other fun is the fumbling and dumbling hands of the goalkeepers of the participating nations. They produced howlers which might raised questions of whether they can actually take care of their own two units! Bah! Like I always say, you win some, you lose some! This WC is without it's bright sparks. For one, the quality of goals scored and the other is the bundles of energy of the Japanese and the South Korean team. Yup, these guys just run, run, run till they drop. That's the spirit of WC, actually. They fight on till the very end - win or lose. That ,to me, is nice to watch and epitome of a good match. We could all learn a thing or two on endurance from these teams. Sometimes, it makes you wonder whether it is the ginseng work or the suppuku [ Japanese suicide act ] threat that is keeping them alive! Definitely, it is not discussion over book read and sex before game-lar, if you really want to know and must know!

To be honest, it doesn't matter who wins the World Cup 2010 because to me, at the end of the day, somebody has to win that trophy on display. You cannot be asking Nelson Mandela to give away the trophy to the team of sweepers or ball boys, right? So, may the best team win and let us enjoy the finest moments in football with the best footballers of the continents strutting their stuff to being honor and glory to the respective teams!
No matter who wins, I still have to go to work on Monday morning,ok?

Office Anatomy...

While I praised my office ladies yesterday for their hearts, today, I am going to dissect the office mentality in general. This article is not meant for specified individuals or group of people but it is mainly done in satirical look of the daily mentality of the working people in the office. The office is generally divided into the management, the wanna-be management, the kulis and of course, the clerical staff.
While management are usually people who had been sitting the seat for donkey odd years in that position ; lifting their butt off the chair seemed hard to do nowadays except for breaks, teas, lunches, golf and great pleasures from full anatomy massage you can think off. But there are exceptions to certain people who seemed to work their socks off ; forgetting they have families or even a life to begin with. Somehow, life seemed "hard " for them for they lead a team of people who needed their "expertise" in experience and technical know how thingy. So, that's why they stay up there in the management rung. I must say that the management crew are usually made up of the cream of the crop and had mastered the articulate cum masterful stroke of taichinism and seamnism of the highest level. Quite a good handful of these masters had attained the spiritual nirvana, the highest order available in the art of taichinism & seamnism. As always, there are exceptionally great managers out there who really helped out the team and they deserve good praise as well. Only those with a heart will understand the predicament faced by the bottom rung food chain hierarchy at work place.

Then there's the management "wanna be". Well, these group of people are usually so ambitious that they become as blind as a bat and numb to the feelings of the people around them. All they care is just to suck up to the management team, mentally inclined towards blind allegiance to certain individuals, usually have a lot of experience and expertise but refuses to share for fear of losing their knowledge ( Sigh! The very Chinese mentality! ) , somewhat duty shirkers, gave a lot of 5 sen & 10 sen face when given duties, lots of suggestions and does a lot of apple polishing stuff. We call these people the "wayang kakis". These wanna-be are usually easily noticeable by their ways of answering questions with answer like " Why?", " Yes, maybe", " I don't know", "I can't remember"," I agree with you", " I don't have the statistics" , " How to do this, arh?"or simply give you a 100% stupid blank face. Sure, they know the answer but they just "pan sor" [ play stupid as they say it in the Cantonese dialect] when asked for their opinions, directions or sharing of information. I would say too that the people in this bracket are usually highly paid for their head knowledge but has lousy heart knowledge. Other than that, they are great drinkers and hu-ha number making crowd, lousy in pulling out/slow in pulling out their wallet to make payments and often don't do what they say. Pulling in big figures when it comes to year end production [ mainly because they stab everybody in the back or send somebody in some body bag somewhere! ] , make believe that they work the hardest in the organisation or gloat that they are given a lot of expertise work when they actually do nothing much when they have the professional qualifications for it. Sure, they also contribute to the well-being of the company and works as hard for the production. Arr......but all for a reason........better pay , less work and hide oneself when work crunch is round the corner.

Then, there's the kulis. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh................one would think that they are the most hardworking lot. Well, I've got news for you. These are sometimes some of the craftiest, laziest and sometimes craziest lot of all. Their excuses for not coming to work or don't want to do work is totally an artistic blend of craftiness, inexcusable solemn literature and con artistry of the highest level. Yes, they worked hard as usual but they complained a lot at times. They complained from A to Z from management to the very bottom of the food chain including the cleaning Ah Soh. Nothing is pleasing to them except themselves at times. But when it comes to work, this is the same lot that gets a lot of work done too. This lot are the ones that sometimes make or break a company's year end production. Money is their priority while money is never enough is their lifetime motto while going out of the office door on time is equally important too. There is a good blend of experience and not so experience individuals in this group and hey, it's a jungle out there. It is still the survival of the fittest when it comes to getting more work or getting less work.

Then, it's the clerical staff. It is always "money not enough at all" even though their bank accounts may be overflowing with money from their children or even their spouses. This is a mixture of pretty but not so bright head or not so young but efficient in work or pretty and can work or down right dumb-dumb. Yup, these are the Oscar Award category under the clerical staff rung. They are without doubt some of the most important people in the company and sometimes, the most hardworking ones. Anyway, you can normally see through them when doing two tasks. Your career depended on them in a way. Firstly because they answer phone calls and secondly, because they type your works. If they screw up on the first two jobs, you are as good as dead in your career. Imagine if your clerk answers the phone , " Yellow, who you want to speaking to ar?", "Ah?", " So?" or " what you say ar?" Imagine the other ruckus they can cause in your life. Well, don't mess with the clerical staff,man! Some of the good and dedicated staff are in this bracket while some are just wasting their natural raw talents [ bitching and gossiping ] in this rung. If you look at their clothings, make up and time for gossip, you can imagine what they can do to your job sheet. I would sometimes categorised this group as pleasantly working individuals. Money is everything and anything in this category. They would tell you that they don't have time at all at home, feint poor financial constraints, having to do house work and so on but some just spend times yakking away or planning for the next facial/manicure/hair appointment [ as though the face is going to get any younger! I doubt it very much actually but I may be wrong, right? ]. Step right up folks! These are some of the observations that I have seen from experiences far and wide. Like I said, I may be wrong in my observations or you may add your own and make it more fun. Afterall, we live in a mad mad world today while an excuse is still an excuse no matter how flowery you may put it!

So, fancy being in any of these groups?!~

Ladies of thoughtfulness....

Today, I want to give credit to the ingenuity efforts of my workplace office women who had made my life a little brighter each day. Like all civilised society and sometimes not-so-civilised society, food is the medium of harmony that binds us together. Sure, as in any workplace, we do get our friction and heated words here and there but these are perfectly normal in an insane world we live in. One thing is for sure, people like Liong, Kok and Yivon made my life more colourful and vibrant as I trudged along in the routine assortments of daily mental stress, fatigue, heartaches and sometimes, difficult times but littered also with laughters and fun.
For me, I am grateful to them for taking the trouble to get some good fare of home cook meals ready for lunch. It is not an everyday thing but somehow, there is always some food cooking in the rice cooker or pot or even in some packed food. I guess, it is their simple hospitality and sharing hearts that made it such a beautiful thing. Never selfish in sharing whatever meal they brought to work or have in the possession, it definitely showed a whole lot more of character and humility than some pompous or boisterous egoistic maniacs we have today in our workplace. As I looked into the cost of the food prepared , I realised that it didn't amount much but when food is cooked with a giving & willing heart and loads of fun, they will turn out fantastic. We had shared meals like the Hakka dish of "ham choy" soup [ an assortment of leftover pork & chicken meat with salted vegetable, szechuan peppers, assam keping and what not! - mouth is watering already! ] , porridge, bak chang festival meals, sweet potato dessert, tom yam noddles, noddles soup, waffles ( I contributed and make it for them to enjoy! ) and the latest, mee suar soup.

Yunno, I really feel very blessed to have them as colleagues and friends. Afterall, we are of different faith, opinions and ideas but sometimes, they sounded much better than the learned ones we have out there. So, today, I just want to mention my special thank to the three ladies - Liong, Kok and Yivon for taking the trouble to bless our lives in the office with such show of humility, love and great warmness.

Yeah, we may shout, scream and drive each other hopping mad topped up with a flare of temper and storming off just like any other normal days, I just want you people to know that I'm eternally grateful because you people literally fed me when others just prayed about it!

Interesting, isn't it?

Father....

My children and my wife have not missed giving me a surprise on every Father's Day celebration and I must say that I am very blessed for their thoughtfulness. It is not so much for their presents but the fact that they took the trouble to get me something on this auspicious day is something that warms my ol' heart a lot.

I must say in all honesty, that I have never asked for anything in return from them all these years except to live right with God and be good people in life. Sometimes, it can be quite frustrating when I see our good intentions as a family are often taken advantage of by manipulative people who are in abundance out there in our society today. As a father, I feel for my wife and children a lot eventhough I try not to meddle in their lives, show too much emotions or make it too obvious. So, yeah, it hurts when you see your children or wife get hurt in any way. Like all fathers out there, I guess, being in the background and cleaning up whatever mistakes here and there , praising when it is due ; are part & parcel of life. Anyway, God is greater and I always believe that we may look like fools in the eyes of the people but internally, we are already winners in God's eyes. That's all that matters. Yes, I can never write the future of our lives together but I can give a helping hand to the family to help work towards the ultimate goal that God had set in each of our lives. I guess, I want to lay a good foundation for my family to understand that it is not the big house, the big fat account or even fame & popularity that we sought after. I have seen many families who had started out well are soon engulfed and consumed by the chasing of such dreams whether knowingly or unknowingly. I have often reminded myself of the biblical lesson of King Solomon. I am often reminded that in all of King Solomon's greatness in erecting majestic buildings , astute wisdom and all the riches in the world, God simply chose to honour the simple tabernacle set up by David more than what King Solomon had to offer. BTW, the so-call majestic buildings and so on went on to be in ruins in the short span of 40 years! That itself speaks volumes on all majestic buildings and so on! That fact keeps me very much on the ground. I am not saying that we are to live poor for all our lives. I believe, it is important to explain to our children and making them understand that it is far more important and crucial to love the Giver of the life rather than the gifts itself and BE THANKFUL. Afterall,we can't serve two masters, right? BTW, as a father, I am so ever thankful to good friends and families who had blessed our lives so ever richly in words of encouragements, invaluable advices, gifts and sharing of life experiences. Thank you, my friends. Your love have helped me to be a better father and husband to my family!

So, to all fathers out there, Blessed Father's Day and may you continue to bless the lives of your wife and children whom God had entrusted in your hands.~

Of Nasi Minyak & Rendang.......

When I received a wedding invitation last week, I was contemplating if I could make it to the wedding or not. It was more to time commitment rather than any other reason. I decided to attend after freeing myself from some appointments for I do not want to disappoint the person who had invited me in the first place. Afterall, wedding invitation is sorta personal and I do feel that way eventhough many may disagree with me. So, off I went to this wedding reception in one of the kampungs. As I arrived there, I could see a steady stream of visitors to the wedding reception Yup, it was a Malay wedding reception. With a blistering sun and a touch of gentle hot breeze, I was sweating like a lunatic. Anyway, my path to the house was systematically blocked by the bridegroom entourage of kompang wielding men, bunga manggar bearers, lush umbrella holders and crisply dressed people. As the path was small, I was unable to manoeuvre my walk and so I had to walk slowly as we inched towards the bride's house. It was fun watching the beautifully clothed bride & bridegroom plus their team walking slowly amidst all the teasing and so on. I managed to squeezed my way from the group onto a path that leads to the side perimeter fencing of the house which was opened. Aha! Paradise at last. From here, I proceeded to look for the hostess, Linda who had invited me. Having found her, we exchanged pleasantries and she was glad to see me at the wedding reception. I was then introduced to her husband ( In all honesty, I missed her wedding the last time she invited me and I felt very bad that day! ) and after the usual exchange of handshakes and laughters, I was ushered to a makan table which was spread out with food goodies. From nasi minyak to sayur dalca, ayam masak merah, beef rendang , papadam and sayur manis, these were dishes that I needed/ought to get away from , actually. So, I took what was needed but the beef rendang was superbly cooked. As I sat at my seat, I was greeted by people from all walks of life and I am blessed not only by the attention but the simple gesture or acknowledgement and hospitality. Yes, this was the way I used to grow up with in those days. Malay, Chinese , Indian and the rest of the communities coming together to celebrate a wedding reception and having a good time mixing with one another. Sharing laughter, chatting with one another and just having a good time together. Seeing children sitting on the table sharing a meal and the adults helping one another in serving food and drinks. Yunno, I felt at home with the people from all walks of life, race and creed. It was good to be able to have that community feeling again. I remembered the time my dad brought all of us [ my mom, sister, brother and myself when we were younger ] to Pakcik Daud's children wedding and Pakcik Mahmud's daughter wedding and we really had a good time there with them. Back to reality, Linda was constantly asking me to fill up my plate and I had to tell her politely that I needed to control my diet or else she would have to buy flowers, Milo & condensed milk the next time she sees me! We had a good laugh together and she treated me a "tapai" fare from Kandang. Boy, I had not had "tapai" for such a long time and it tasted good.....really good. Before I could take the next tapai, I already could imagine SLing giving a hard time to my ear drums. So, I had one tapai and that's it! It is not out of fear for SLing's ear splitting sermons but mainly I don't want to lie down unneccessarily in the 6'X4' plot that early-lar! The music? Hmmmm........Malay songs from the 60's and 70's but it was fun. A little bit of joget, a little bit of P.Ramlee era music and some fun tunes - it's alright.

As I left the reception that day, I felt happy that I felt as though I was transported back to the yester years of fun and the spirit of oneness....... What fun time .......

Normalcy.......

Yup! It's official now! The Games have ended! Summon books are/will be out! The people in black marias/men in blue and another set of blue-attired local municipality enforcements are back on the streets, wielding & flexing their muscles on traffic offenders! Yup, life is gonna be tough again after 10 days of freedom bliss from these daylight & legal "musclemen". I have better & more flowery words for the them but I'll reserve them as don't want to create a "confusing" state of the mind to young/not-so-young people who may be following my writings in all earnesty!

It is my personal observation that it was purely blissful life not having these people breathing down your neck everytime you park your car somewhere or weaved through some streets everytime some cyclist sitting on their nuts making a run for some medal for the past few days. Somehow, it was truly amazing to have that feeling. Yes, it was quite an adjustment trying to adjust to the virtually non-presence of the daylight/legal "x-men" but you'll get through after a few days. I must say, it feels really good not having them around to issue you a ticket or clamp down your vehicle. Yes, it feels pretty good, actually. BTW, I didn't see any traffic misbehaviour on the part of the public either except parking along the roadside to reach to the intended stadiums/venues of competition. Other than that, we are good and at our best behaviour. Yesserrie! We behaved really well. ( wink! wink! wink! )

But then again, I was kinda accustomed to the nauseating siren sounds every other hour as some "big shots" vehicles weaved by the busy lunch hour traffic and so on. Yeah, why can't they just wait for their turn like any other good citizen of the country, right? So much for Rakyat di Dahulukan, Pencapaian Utamakan "loud" slogan! Bah! Now I am really confused! If the VIP [ Very Irritating People ] vehicles weaves through the crowd with policemen blaring their sirens & shouting instructions while parting the traffic like the Biblical epic scene of the parting of the Red Seas, how is Rakyat DiDahulukan? Hmmmnnnnnnnn......some people just got it all wrong, right?

Anyway, this morning, I see the streets are crawling with these officers who wasted no time in getting down with their "business" Afterall, gotta catch up with the "loss" for the past 10 days, man. Well, as always, it is back to normal. That's good........... or.........eerrrrrrrr.... that is bad?????!!!!!!!!. Haiyah! I'm confused all over again!~

Ugly taunts....

Last evening, I went to watch the men's hockey semi-final match at Bukit Serindit Stadium and I was pleasantly surprised to see a huge crowd there to cheer on the Melaka team. As the main seating arena was already filled with adrenaline-pumping mixture of young, old, men, women and children plus air-horn, kompang frenzy, drums beating & flag waving enthusiasts, I just picked my spot at the metal stairs railings to watch the match. I must say that by the time I arrived at the stadium , the match had started and the score was tied at one a piece for Melaka and Perak team. However, I noted that the playing field metal and brick wall perimeter fence was cramped with supporters from the home team. I am glad that finally there was a good crowd at the stadium but I did not like the things that came out from the mouths of these supporters.

I guess, in all fairness, we would have pockets of verbal abuse specialists in the crowd but I didn't expect it to be that bad. Sure, as sportsmen/sportswomen, rowdy and abusive crowds are part and parcel of any sports but to see people actually stooping so low to degrade players is just too much. In this particular match, there was simply no escape for the visiting and the home team players. The worst part of all is that this group of rowdy, noisy and abusive people are actually wearing SUKMA tags! To me, they should be exemplary in their support but not being abusive. Sure, we want our team to win but at what cost - degrading someone else's son /daughter and making fun of others? To me, that is pure madness.

Then I saw the unthinkable happened. These rowdy buggers with their SUKMA tags dangling around their necks actually climbed onto the ledge of the perimeter wall , shouted obscenities and hurled abuses to the players and the umpire. I don't mind the passion and overzealousness of supporters but this is just ridiculous. Come on, these players are within the 23 - 18 years of age brackets. What type of message do we , as supporters, want to show these youths - that it is okay to hurl hurtful father & mother remarks plus some flowery obscenities? Yunno, I could see that some players are visibly rattled by the hecklers and it is just not right to do such things. I mean, these are young youths,man. They do deserve a chance to play the game the best they could. Afterall, no players wants to play to lose, right? Everyone wants to win and bring glory to the state but there has got to be a winner and loser in any competition,right?

A father of two young children who was beside me was equally disgusted as I was when he told me that this is the failure of our society and culture today. He just shook his head and we both agreed in unison that this type of mentality should not exist in the first place. He then went on to criticised the organising committee to pick people like these goons as pegawais who potray nothing about sportsmanship and sports integrity. This Malay learned man walked away with his two children reminding them not to emulate those goons who are not doing any good to the game. Anyway, I finished watching the match and Melaka team ended up as winners of the tie and reaching the Finals. I looked at the Perak team players and I really feel for them. To lose to the host state is bad enough but to be ridiculed, heckled and sometimes, at the receiving end at hurtful remarks, it hurts ,man. I applauded the Perak team openly even though I know I could cause an uproar or ruckus from the Melaka rowdies but I didn't care less and I don't give a two hoots,actually! To me, they were worthy challengers and they should keep their heads up high. It is bad enough that their state is in political turmoil. Give them a break-dah!~

SUKMA XIII

Last few days, I had the fun of watching some games at the thirteenth edition of SUKMA which was held in Melaka. It was obvious that my love had always been the hockey matches and I managed to catch up with a few friends namely Leo , Shanta, Sewak, Velappan and coaches. One meeting which made me the happiest bloke in town was the meeting of my college days coach, Mr. Siva who is now the hockey coach for Sarawak ladies team. He still looked the same and I had a good chat with him on the sports development and so on. I must tell you that his enthusiasm, commitment and philosophy for the game has not changed at all - play simple hockey and get the job done right. I still have highest regards for him as my coach for what he had done for our college team. I would say that he transformed a dysfunctional team into a credible and winning team. I still addressed him 'Sir' which made him a little bit uncomfortable at first but that's respect for a man like him, really. I guess, as a coach, it is always a pleasure and a great satisfaction when your players recognised you and acknowledged you even after all these years. To me, that's the ultimate satisfaction. For me, the honour was mine for being able to meet my coach, Mr. Siva that day. It was truly a great satisfaction in knowing that he is still doing a good job after all these years.
The other satisfaction was watching Leo & Shanta's Penang hockey team belting their hearts out against the other teams. I must say that I am so proud and happy for Leo & Shanta's efforts. They played a really tactical game and brought off the shine from the more illustrious & fancied FT team. Young team of fighters, I would call them. Superb game in which they could have won had Ladyluck smiled on them. They came out with a draw which was a superb result. I went over to congratulate Leo and Shanta plus the team for a really great effort after the match. Again, Leo had proven to be a great coach and I really respect him for that. He took over a group of no hopers to start with and whipped them into a winning team of players. That's pure courage, boldness and dedication. Cheers to you, Leo!
I guess, watching the hockey matches did bring out some excitement in me. I guess, I must admit that I am way pass the playing stage but the excitement generated in the game still gets to me. I couldn't help shouting out instructions even as a fan on the gallery. I must learn to shut up and enjoy the game more as a fan. Maybe, it is just the hockey blood running through my veins or maybe I should pick up a school team to coach for starters. Honestly, I wouldn't know what it would be but for now, I am just happy watching the game from the stands of Bukit Serindit Hockey Stadium and be a face among the crowds of hockey enthusiasts and fans.

So, people out there, go to the Sukma venues and have some fun in the sun. Too much air-cond in the office may freeze your brains afterall. Get some breeze, sun and shout encouragements to your favourite teams in their favourite games! See you at the venues. You'll know where to find me!~