If we could shrink the earth's population to a village of precisely 100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look something like the following:
There would be:
57 Asians
21 Europeans
14 from the Western Hemisphere, both north and south
8 Africans
52 would be female
48 would be male
70 would be non-white
30 would be white
70 would be non-Christian
30 would be Christian
89 would be heterosexual
11 would be homosexual
6 people would possess 59% of the entire world's wealth and All 6 would be from the United States.
80 would live in substandard housing
70 would be unable to read
50 would suffer from malnutrition
1 would be near death; 1 would be near birth
1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education
1 would own a computer
When one considers our world from such a compressed perspective, the need for acceptance, understanding and education becomes glaringly apparent.
The following is also something to ponder...
If you woke up this morning with more health than illness... you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week.
If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation... you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.
If you can attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death... you are more blessed than three billion people in the world.
If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep... you are richer than 75% of this world.
If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace... you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy.
If your parents are still alive and still married .. you are very rare, even in the United States and Canada.
If you can read this message, you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world that cannot read at all.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Busy
Busy....busy. So simple a word that's we use so often and freely.So easy to say and simple to write.
Busy....busy. When translates into action it is very hectic and energy consuming.Your routine becomes haywire,your activities overtakes your schedule and your energy level drops very fast.
Busy....busy. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. As your activities goes up and energy level drops.....chemical reaction takes places. Tolerance
level goes down and emotional level rise rapidly.Your rationality equilibrium destabilizes.
Busy....busy. Before, this was never in my vocabulary. Every thing that i experience was jolly and life was just a stroll down the lane.In the last five weeks i have traveled and crisscrossed the state for five times.
Busy....busy. When translates into action it is very hectic and energy consuming.Your routine becomes haywire,your activities overtakes your schedule and your energy level drops very fast.
Busy....busy. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. As your activities goes up and energy level drops.....chemical reaction takes places. Tolerance
level goes down and emotional level rise rapidly.Your rationality equilibrium destabilizes.
Busy....busy. Before, this was never in my vocabulary. Every thing that i experience was jolly and life was just a stroll down the lane.In the last five weeks i have traveled and crisscrossed the state for five times.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
The Meaning Of Life
If you do a search on "meaning of life" on Google, you'll find more theories than I've had hot dinners... and that's a lot!
There will be different definitions depending on whether you :
- are questioning the meaning of life because you've been unhappy
- want to know the meaning of life because you feel useless
- want to see their answer so that you can prove your intellectual prowess by poking holes in it
- don't understand why bad things happen to good people
- think that most of the rest of the world seems completely insane
- wonder why there is so much hatred in the world.
- wonder why there is so much violence in our society
- really don't care about the meaning of life, you're just surfing
On the other hand you could ask a philosopher (A philospher can best be thought of as someone who thinks a lot so you don't have to.)
- For Erich Fromm, man makes his life meaningful by living productively, and by using his powers of love and reason to their fullest capacity.
- For Abraham Maslow, meaning is experienced by the self-actualized,growth-motivated person who delights in using his creative powers for their own sake, and who can affirm himself and simultaneously transcend himself through peak experiences.
- For Rollo May, meaning is experienced by a person centered in himself, who is able to live by his highest values, who knows his own intentionality, feels the power of his will to choose, and is able to love.
- For Krishnamurti, the world is experienced as most meaningful when through the knowledge of self gained through self-observation, man frees himself of the self and attains the state of passive awareness and self-forgetfulness which is love.
- For Paul Tillich, man can choose to make his life meaningful by surrendering in faith and love to Jesus. By opening to Jesus and experiencing His acceptance and forgiveness, one experiences the joy and freeeom of "new being" and the courage to be oneself.
- For Abraham Heschel, man experiences his life as a meaningful when he lives in God's presence - not simpy by encountering God in the world, but primarily by serving God in everyday life, infusing every moment with the spirit of God, and by dedicating himself to ends outside himself.
- Finally, for Viktor Frankl, meaning is experiencing by responding to the demands of the situation at hand, discovering and committing oneself to one's own unique task in life, and by allowing oneself to experience or trust in an ultimate meaning - which one may or may not call God.
There will be different definitions depending on whether you :
- are questioning the meaning of life because you've been unhappy
- want to know the meaning of life because you feel useless
- want to see their answer so that you can prove your intellectual prowess by poking holes in it
- don't understand why bad things happen to good people
- think that most of the rest of the world seems completely insane
- wonder why there is so much hatred in the world.
- wonder why there is so much violence in our society
- really don't care about the meaning of life, you're just surfing
On the other hand you could ask a philosopher (A philospher can best be thought of as someone who thinks a lot so you don't have to.)
- For Erich Fromm, man makes his life meaningful by living productively, and by using his powers of love and reason to their fullest capacity.
- For Abraham Maslow, meaning is experienced by the self-actualized,growth-motivated person who delights in using his creative powers for their own sake, and who can affirm himself and simultaneously transcend himself through peak experiences.
- For Rollo May, meaning is experienced by a person centered in himself, who is able to live by his highest values, who knows his own intentionality, feels the power of his will to choose, and is able to love.
- For Krishnamurti, the world is experienced as most meaningful when through the knowledge of self gained through self-observation, man frees himself of the self and attains the state of passive awareness and self-forgetfulness which is love.
- For Paul Tillich, man can choose to make his life meaningful by surrendering in faith and love to Jesus. By opening to Jesus and experiencing His acceptance and forgiveness, one experiences the joy and freeeom of "new being" and the courage to be oneself.
- For Abraham Heschel, man experiences his life as a meaningful when he lives in God's presence - not simpy by encountering God in the world, but primarily by serving God in everyday life, infusing every moment with the spirit of God, and by dedicating himself to ends outside himself.
- Finally, for Viktor Frankl, meaning is experiencing by responding to the demands of the situation at hand, discovering and committing oneself to one's own unique task in life, and by allowing oneself to experience or trust in an ultimate meaning - which one may or may not call God.
A night out
It rained,gently but never the less the evening was wasted in front of the TV. Nothing much to see and no choice on the channels.....only two.So i took my bath early and waited for the night.
Around 2000hrs i went to the open air stalls to have a bite. I choose the furthest stall so that i could sit peacefully. While waiting for my order, i try to make some observations of things happening around me.
About 15 stalls were operating and about the same number were closed. By the look of things there were not operated for some time. All stalls were attended by customers and it looks as if business was quite brisk.
Not far from me were an European couple, tourist i guess....or backpack travellers. This is not an unusual sight as i have seen many tourist coming in and out of this town. Recently a very notable British Lady was in town......the grand daughter of the last white rajah of Sarawak.
At the other stall, just across were a group of teens....still wearing foot ball jerseys. They were talking about Euro 2008. Not discussion or forum but more like arguments. Can't make much, just it seems that they are unhappy that Russia should lost to Israel. Ahh, boys will always be boys.
Then i saw a group of Indians passing by me. Wow, here we also have Bangla and Tambi?
Even though they were talking, to me it's just sound and noise. When i heard they mentioned SPM, STPM then i realized that they were fellow countryman. Thousand apologies.
When my order arrived i was quite surprised. My waiting time was so short and the food is still hot. Express service.
By the way, how's my Angelina Jolie's background?
See you another day
Around 2000hrs i went to the open air stalls to have a bite. I choose the furthest stall so that i could sit peacefully. While waiting for my order, i try to make some observations of things happening around me.
About 15 stalls were operating and about the same number were closed. By the look of things there were not operated for some time. All stalls were attended by customers and it looks as if business was quite brisk.
Not far from me were an European couple, tourist i guess....or backpack travellers. This is not an unusual sight as i have seen many tourist coming in and out of this town. Recently a very notable British Lady was in town......the grand daughter of the last white rajah of Sarawak.
At the other stall, just across were a group of teens....still wearing foot ball jerseys. They were talking about Euro 2008. Not discussion or forum but more like arguments. Can't make much, just it seems that they are unhappy that Russia should lost to Israel. Ahh, boys will always be boys.
Then i saw a group of Indians passing by me. Wow, here we also have Bangla and Tambi?
Even though they were talking, to me it's just sound and noise. When i heard they mentioned SPM, STPM then i realized that they were fellow countryman. Thousand apologies.
When my order arrived i was quite surprised. My waiting time was so short and the food is still hot. Express service.
By the way, how's my Angelina Jolie's background?
See you another day
Monday, November 19, 2007
Hi....it's me
It's quite sometime i did not jot anything down and that was because i have some urgent matters and errands to attend to.
Being away does not mean that you are alone. Being far does not imply that you are cut off from the rest of the world.
Hey.... what are you doing here? How long have you been in this place? Those will be the questions that you get if you suddenly bumped into someone that you know and they knew you.Both of you will find a cozy place to continue the conversation.
Conversations will then take place over a cup of tea. It does not matter for how long you have last meet each other.It will drag on and on covering a vast variety of topics. Seems that duration does not matter as long as the bla, bla, bla......can continue. You peek over your companion shoulder and caught the glimpse of the coofee-shop operator and and the look on his face is not so good.Fair enough you has robbed him of space and this means losing money. Come on man, just two cups for a couple of hours wouldn't hurt your profit....
Hi.....are you so and so? How long have you been here? Well...this is the situation if you meet someone that you know by face. Probably someone from the same town you were born or your old classmate in the kindy......decades ago. You probably rubbed shoulders with him while you were in the comfort zone,but then you never greet him. After some answers you both exchange smiles and then disappears into the crowd.
So strange. If you wanted to find someone that you might remember by face, where is the place that you might get the greatest hit? So easy....find the most popular place in the town? Where is the most popular place in the town? Is it easy to locate that popular place? It's every one guess and for me to know!
Adios
Being away does not mean that you are alone. Being far does not imply that you are cut off from the rest of the world.
Hey.... what are you doing here? How long have you been in this place? Those will be the questions that you get if you suddenly bumped into someone that you know and they knew you.Both of you will find a cozy place to continue the conversation.
Conversations will then take place over a cup of tea. It does not matter for how long you have last meet each other.It will drag on and on covering a vast variety of topics. Seems that duration does not matter as long as the bla, bla, bla......can continue. You peek over your companion shoulder and caught the glimpse of the coofee-shop operator and and the look on his face is not so good.Fair enough you has robbed him of space and this means losing money. Come on man, just two cups for a couple of hours wouldn't hurt your profit....
Hi.....are you so and so? How long have you been here? Well...this is the situation if you meet someone that you know by face. Probably someone from the same town you were born or your old classmate in the kindy......decades ago. You probably rubbed shoulders with him while you were in the comfort zone,but then you never greet him. After some answers you both exchange smiles and then disappears into the crowd.
So strange. If you wanted to find someone that you might remember by face, where is the place that you might get the greatest hit? So easy....find the most popular place in the town? Where is the most popular place in the town? Is it easy to locate that popular place? It's every one guess and for me to know!
Adios
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Today
After the morning shower, the level of river water is still very normal. There's no reason to push the panic button,
Rain
It was a beautiful morning.Rain was coming down and swifts were enjoying their morning shower. The rain started early morning at about 0300 hours and continue untill late morning.
Little rain will do no harm........
Dusk
Got problem with the internet connection.It was a fine day with shine but life without "connection" was rather dull. Continue my strolling and by now i did manage to get hold of a camera. Took quite a number of pictures and hope i'll be able to post it in stages. I hope i'll get this complitation going on and on as long as i am still in this zone.
This scenery was rather catching for me. A fantastic looking building, just "popped up" in the middle of the jungle. I was a bit of surprised the first time i saw it.
Monday, November 5, 2007
The morning after
Not witnessing the live telecast is bad enough. Knowing that MU conceded a very very late goal is an insult.Twice in a row Arsenal was saved from the jaws of defeated....mere coincidence??I don't think so.......maybe the Chinese papers have something to say.
Talking about papers, that's something i have to forget for the time being. My routine of reading papers as early as 6.00 in the morning is thing of the past. The earliest papers hits the street at about 9.00.
But then life has to go on.
Talking about papers, that's something i have to forget for the time being. My routine of reading papers as early as 6.00 in the morning is thing of the past. The earliest papers hits the street at about 9.00.
But then life has to go on.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
The night
Saturday and Sunday nights are my EPL night. It is a must sit in front of TV night. Other activities have to be put on hold.If MU plays, no other activities.......it's a total stand off.
Last night was a very huge event, traditional nemesis confront each other. And i have to miss the live action, just because there was no where i can get access to ASTRO.Life is so unfairrrrrr.....(to the tune of Malcom in the Middle). Luckily the outcome was a stalemate.
Nights of the week ends were meant for night out with the guys, that is if MU plays late. That's the only time when we could BLA......BLA......BLA...... untill the time of kick off. It's also the time that you could sipped a mug of black Nescafe or tea for an hour or so.
A week ago i never dreamt that i am all by myself......alone,angry and frustrated.
Last night was a very huge event, traditional nemesis confront each other. And i have to miss the live action, just because there was no where i can get access to ASTRO.Life is so unfairrrrrr.....(to the tune of Malcom in the Middle). Luckily the outcome was a stalemate.
Nights of the week ends were meant for night out with the guys, that is if MU plays late. That's the only time when we could BLA......BLA......BLA...... untill the time of kick off. It's also the time that you could sipped a mug of black Nescafe or tea for an hour or so.
A week ago i never dreamt that i am all by myself......alone,angry and frustrated.
Strolling
Keeping oneself in shape is a norm that should not be neglected. So as not to disrupt the routine i have to brave myself for a stroll along one of the roads.
The road was much smaller.......only 2 lanes and more curves. The volume of traffic is light and strolling was much easier. It was ascending all the way and at times it was steep. The descend was not so much of a strain.
At the highest level , the view was so scenic . You could see the rolling hills with all the greens. Houses were built on the hill slopes (in terraces) and some in the valleys. Above all the air was so fresh and refreshing.I felt that i am more harmonious with mother nature.
With so much "back to nature" thing i was wondering, this is sure a postive aspect in my quest.
The road was much smaller.......only 2 lanes and more curves. The volume of traffic is light and strolling was much easier. It was ascending all the way and at times it was steep. The descend was not so much of a strain.
At the highest level , the view was so scenic . You could see the rolling hills with all the greens. Houses were built on the hill slopes (in terraces) and some in the valleys. Above all the air was so fresh and refreshing.I felt that i am more harmonious with mother nature.
With so much "back to nature" thing i was wondering, this is sure a postive aspect in my quest.
As i walk by
It was early morning and like most places it was the most busiest part of the day. The tide was low and the first express boat from downriver has just arrived. The terminal was full of people and goods.
Merchandise have to be carried by man up to height of about 10 meters just to reach the road level. Transportation charges were charged for those who does not possess enought "leg power" or energy to carry their own cargo.
Merchandise have to be carried by man up to height of about 10 meters just to reach the road level. Transportation charges were charged for those who does not possess enought "leg power" or energy to carry their own cargo.
A day of hike
Come November the First, it registers my first day into the discomfort zone........and i was alone. All those who were dear and close were left behind, i leave them with such a heavy heart. But then the call of duty was much greater and i have to abide to it.
Little did i know that my hike upriver was accompanied by much bigger and powerfull hike.......the price hike.Like the wake of the express boat along the mighty Rejang river, the sudden soaring price of food and drinks cause havoc to budget of most people.
Wow.......what a day to remember.
Little did i know that my hike upriver was accompanied by much bigger and powerfull hike.......the price hike.Like the wake of the express boat along the mighty Rejang river, the sudden soaring price of food and drinks cause havoc to budget of most people.
Wow.......what a day to remember.
Comfort Zone
Life was once taken for granted,especially when you are within your comfort zone. You and the environment that surrounds you became the axis of everything. In short that's your universe.
You shut yourself from the rest of the world. Others and events that happens outside does not matter you at all.
But does it means that life in the comfort zone is all that matters? Is that the life you wish to live and die for? Questions that will not be answered if you are too coward to venture ouside.
Do you dare to leave the so call comfort zone and venture into the "Discomfort Zone"?
You shut yourself from the rest of the world. Others and events that happens outside does not matter you at all.
But does it means that life in the comfort zone is all that matters? Is that the life you wish to live and die for? Questions that will not be answered if you are too coward to venture ouside.
Do you dare to leave the so call comfort zone and venture into the "Discomfort Zone"?
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