Red Azaleas

Updated

Upon waking up, my first thought was of the 杜鵑花 (Azalea).  

The Azalea flower is associated with passion, femininity, womanhood.  The meaning of giving this flower to loved ones is to tell them to take care of themselves.

In Chinese culture, the azalea is also dubbed the "thinking of home bush".

The Red Azalea is also the title of a memoir by Anchee Min where she writes about her life during Communist China's Cultural Revolution, a campaign launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 to rid the Communist  Party of China (CPC) of its rivals, but which ended up destroying much of China's social fabric. On October 1, 1949 Mao had proclaimed the foundation of the People's Republic of China (PRC), a one-party socialist state controlled by the CPC.

Red Azaleas

The Spring Festival is approaching.  Come January 31, the Wood Horse gallops in as the Water Snake slithers away.

The nurseries are filled with beautiful blooms now as the Chinese community starts spring cleaning and adorning their homes with all things auspicious for the Lunar New Year, which lasts for 15 days.

Flowers symbolise rebirth and new growth. The azaleas is regarded as auspicious,  Roses, not so much, because of its thorns, if you believe in Fengshui.

There are a myriad of auspicious symbols for abundant prosperity and longevity.  Looking at these items also symbolises our intention.

But what is more important is to look at our deeds and thoughts.

Ponderosa Reunion

Anybody remember the TV series Bonanza?  There was Ben Cartwright, Hoss, Little Joe, Candy and Hop Sing, among the characters of the popular western series.

Well, the Ponderosa Golf and Country Club was inspired by this TV series.  There's a Chinese restaurant here named after the cook, Hop Sing.  And Ponderosa was the name of the ranch in Bonanza.

The trend before eating a meal nowadays..  The phone eats first.

with Adeline Chng (left) and Zahayu Shima Ayub (right)

Among the three of us in the picture, guess who speaks the most fluent Mandarin?  Yes, you're right.  It is Ayu, a former Johor Bahru Foon Yew High School student.  Foon Yew High is the largest independent Chinese school in Malaysia.

To get away from the hustle and bustle of city life, one can come to the Ponderosa in Taman Molek, Johor Bahru, which has an Olympic-size swimming pool and a 18-hole golf course.

The weekday room rate is RM180 per night and weekend rate is RM210 per night.   

The XO sauce fried rice.

This dish is my absolute favourite. 

Chef Koh Heyau Pang

Chef Koh hails from Pontian, Johor.  He is seen here showing a plate of chicken dumplings.  Hop Sing, does not serve pork nor lard.  It is open from 11am to 3pm for lunch and from 5.30pm to 9.30pm (dinner).  It closes on Monday.

On the far right (picture) is the resort's general manager Ivan Teo,.

Guess which one is Ivan's charming wife?

Oh, she is not in this picture.

The dishes churned out by Chef Koh

That's Josephine Lim on the far right.

The Ponderosa Golf and Country Club

 

With deadlines to meet and errands to attend to, it is hard to find time to catch up with friends.  But it is worth the effort and time.  Let's do this again.

Bachan Singh

Bachan Singh, 57, who lives with his wife and three children in Taman Bukit Indah, Johor Baru, tells us why he practises meditation and laughter.

15 January 2014

Meditations on life and laughter

By Chuah Bee Kim

HEADS turn when I start speaking in Thai. Many are surprised that I can speak the language fluently.

I love learning foreign languages. Although there aren't not many opportunities for me to converse in Thai in Johor, I have no regrets learning it because learning not only brings joy to life, it enriches the mind.

My hometown is Tumpat, Kelantan. I left in 1973 to pursue my studies in Kuala Lumpur. I obtained a Diploma in Civil Engineering and started my career in 1977 as a technical assistant in the Public Works Depart in Kulim, Kedah.

In 1984, I left the Public Works Department to take up the position of senior technical assistant at the Works Department of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) in Johor Baru.

I took study leave in 1995 to pursue a degree. Upon obtaining the degree, I took up and completed part-time course for a Masters' degree programme.

After that, in 2000, I joined UTM's Faculty of Civil Engineering.

I am now a senior lecturer in the Department of Structures and Materials. I really enjoy lecturing, as we all learn by sharing. The more you share, the more learned you become. So, my advice to everyone is not to be stingy when it comes to the sharing of knowledge.

I am married to Kaldip Kaur, who is from Batu Pahat. We have three children -- a daughter and twin sons.

Besides Thai, I also speak Bahasa Malaysia, Punjabi and English. I am able to speak Thai because I attended an advanced course conducted in Penang.

I am not someone who will let distance deter me from self-development. I have just come back from a three-day motivation workshop held at The Regency Jerai Hill Resort in Kedah, organised by Oracle Advanced Toastmasters Club District 51, Malaysia.

I am the president of the Bahasa Melayu Toastmasters Club as well as the vice-president of the UTM Toastmasters Club.

I am also an associate member of the Malaysian Association of Professional Speakers. My interests also lie in spirituality. I am fascinated by thought management and everything to do with the mind. In 1980, I attended the Silva Mind Control course and have since bought many books that focus on the mind. I studied a little of Christianity, Sufism, Buddhism and Hinduism.

I am also interested in laughter We live in a world that is full of stress, but we can "laugh" away the stress and replace it with joy. I attended the Certified Laughter Yoga Leader course in December 2011 in Johor Baru. I even went to Bangalore, India, last January for the Certified Laughter Yoga Teacher course.

I have conducted motivational courses and lecture to part-time degree students in Sarawak, Sabah, Terengganu, Kelantan, Kedah and Kuala Lumpur.

TIME OUT IN KEDAH: The writer with MK

Read more: Meditations on life and laughter - Johor - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/streets/johor/meditations-on-life-and-laughter-1.462294#ixzz2qQGfKVej

Some of my Favourite Quotes

Reading to my pets

Below are some of my favourites sourced from Facebook


Sometimes those who don't  socialise much
aren't actually anti-social, they just have no
tolerance for drama and fake people. 

When you are dead, you don't know 
that you are dead.  It is 
difficult only for others.

It is the same when you are 
stupid.

Consider the trees which allow
the birds to perch and fly away
without either inviting them to stay
or desiring them never to depart.
If your heart can be like this, you will
be near to the Way.

What is True Happiness?

At times we need to ardently indulge in stillness and silence.  That is the only time we can hear what our inner voice is telling us.
 
I posted this article before in another blog.  It is so profound that I am posting it again here.  It is sourced from the Metta Lodge Johor Bahru facebook page.  It was a talk given by Bro Punna.

In our culture it is easy to confuse pleasure with happiness.

Pleasure is derived from things like a fine meal, sex, live theatre, a vacation, or a new car. The advertising industry, in fact our entire economy, is devoted to stoking our desire for new pleasures. While these things are enjoyable, and should be enjoyed, they are not the same as happiness. If we are not truly happy and we look to sensual pleasures for fulfillment, we will never find that spiritual completeness for which every human naturally longs. The desire for physical objects or external experiences will never be extinguished. When we finally acquire something we have been striving for, we will experience a temporary satisfaction, but we will soon want something more. Even when we get what we want, there is always the fear of losing what we have.

We love praise, success, pleasure and fame and hate their opposites. But when we are holding onto a stick there is always a danger of grasping the wrong end. As they say, the main cause of divorce is marriage. Think of all the dualities: health-sickness, life-death, young-old, rich-poor etc.

True happiness is uncaused and is not dependent on external objects or experiences.

You are happy for no reason at all. Happiness is our natural state. Only our attachments and burdens draw us away from our most natural state of being.

To acquire happiness you don't have to do anything, because happiness cannot be acquired. Does anybody know why? Because we have it already. How can you acquire what you already have? Then why don't you experience it? Because you've got to drop something. You've got to drop illusions. You don't have to add anything in order to be happy; you've got to drop something. Life is easy, life is delightful. It's only hard on your illusions, your ambitions, your greed, your cravings.

- Bro Punna -

Happy Bee

I love this song.  It's so soothing and calming.  The voice, the lyrics, the melody... I'm deeply captivated by it.