I've heard many people talk about "natural responses". To me, I don't like the term. I don't like hearing it, I all the more hate using it. It is the modern way of declaring irresponsibility and immaturity.

Okays, so I'm actually fine with it, but I just dislike it when nothing is done after "responding naturally", especially when it is said by Christians. Like when we say the "natural response" of people to the gospel is to question the truth of it, I'm fine with it. When it is used to say the "natural response" of Christians to the promises of God is to doubt, I'm fine with it too. But if we do nothing after "responding naturally", we are irresponsible and immature.

The truth is, Jesus died and broke the power of "natural-ness" in our lives. We no longer are under the rule of human nature. But we have to choose to come under the rule of Christ. When we died when Jesus, we also regained control of our actions. Before we were saved, we had no choice but to sin. Now that we are saved, we can choose our actions.

Therefore, if we give reasons that our actions were "natural responses", we are not controlling our actions; and "natural responses" are just a "lack of control".

Yet, "natural responses" are also a "lack of surrender". It is about surrendering our actions to our Lord. We are surrendering to our human nature when we "respond naturally".

The apparent contradiction is this: how can we control and surrender at the same time? The simple answer is this: we control our actions by NOT responding naturally, and we surrender to God by responding as Jesus would or responding as a Christian should.

Of course, I am aware that to some, "responding naturally" is due to a "lack of knowledge" - they don't know that they CAN choose to respond differently! So, this is a charge to all who are reading this: tell those who do not know that they can respond differently that they can! Because Jesus has liberated us! =D

Imagine getting 29/30 for an essay. Insanely high mark. Content: 15/15 Language: 14/15. wOw.

Some more... teacher take and print for the whole class... and says... it'll be criminal if she did not print it out for the class...

Hahaz... so it can be understood as my response to my mom's constant REMINDING that I must not forget about my English and must learn to write more balanced essays and not just talk about God and Christianity. Okay so I did infuse Christian thinking into my essay.

Siao. 29/30.

The testimony is this: was praying because deadlines all closing in on me one after another. That was on 12 July if I remember correctly. Essay due next day 13 July. CDrama production on 15 July. Service-Learning competition 15 July. Humanities Research Paper 17 July. Added to the fact that for production we have rehearsals every day until late. Prayed that God will clear my timetable for me. Asked some people to pray for me too.

English teacher extended my essay deadline to 17 July. Service-Learning competition somehow postponed by organiser to 22 July. Humanities Research Paper deadline extended to 24 July.

I finished the essay by 13 July anyway. Spent 1 hour(?) typing. If I remember correctly, I slept at 2am?

I was aiming for a 24/30. I overshot. =P

God is good.

Attained merit award for the Service-Learning competition. Not too bad lahr. Could have been better if group members put in more effort. It's okay.

Will post the essay up. =D

On a Cold Road to Jericho

Philip Loh Zhi An 4F25

200601142100

On a cold road to Jericho, a wounded and robbed man laid bleeding half dead. The Parable of the Good Samaritan reminds us that there are people who do not care, but there are people who do. Is Man a hard-hearted creature, whose eyes cannot see beyond himself, whose heart cannot feel for the people around him? Or is Man unfairly stereotyped by a few black sheep?

Man is, by nature, self-centred. A baby need not be taught how to snatch a mutually desired toy from another toddler. He tries – be it failingly or successfully – to grab the toy for himself. Sharing never comes into mind. Sharing is the virtue that needs to be taught to Man. Self-centredness is the default character of Man that determines to fulfil one’s own desires even at the expense of another. Human history is tarnished by the existence of people who climb ladders of which rungs were made of others’ lives. People who are obsessed with power and authority who tend to “step on” others to achieve their goal. We can see in the corporate world how people can be ruthless and scheming to the point of cheating their colleagues and subordinates of the credits for their well-done assignments.

The self-centredness of Man leads to Man becoming a hard-hearted… creature… if I must use the word. Many people who are well off are blind to the hands of the needy, are deaf to the cries of the poor; are insensitive to the pains of his neighbours, are lacking in compassion for the suffering of his fellow men. We see vivid examples as we walk through the pages of History. The United States of America, once upon a time, imported slaves from the continent of Africa. These black-skinned people, or Negros as they call them, were mistreated and abused. The Blacks had minimal civil rights if any; they were despised and were seen as second-class, inferior to the Whites. Years later, when Thomas Jefferson pushed through a constitution for the equal status of Blacks, many Whites still chose to ignore the Law and keep their servants under slavery. Truly, forgive me for the pun, but is Man unfairly stereotyped as being hard-hearted by a few black sheep?

Mao Zedong and the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Nicholas II and Bloody Sunday. These are examples of people in power, who overlooked the needs of the people, who interpreted the cries of the poor as a threat to revolution. Hitler and his Nazi Party and the genocide of the Jews in World War Two. Together with the Whites they were people who regarded one race superior than another, that they cannot view Man as equal; people who trample on lives and civil rights. Might it be as some people say, power corrupts?

Hannes Urban, of Germany, is a taxi-driver by profession. Yet he is not just a taxi driver, he is the founder of the one-man charity organization Wir Helfen (German for ‘We Help’). He is your average citizen, with no portfolio or greater ambition for his life than he has for others’ lives. He delivers donations to nations whose names might seem obscure to some people. He evangelizes his cause by driving his taxi, maximising his social contact with people.  Passengers normally give him more than the fares demand – the excess goes into the funds of Wir Helfen. He says this of donors: “It is normally the poor who give the most.”

The majority of the world’s population is your average citizen. People who go through life as life is: unfair. Some people triumph over the cruelty of life, yet some people are held captive by the injustice of the world. The former are people who know what it means to suffer, who understand what it means to be in need. The latter are people who know what it means to suffer, yet find no way out of the suffering. The former are those who normally help the latter.

But a Samaritan, as he travelled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. “Look after him,” he said, “and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.” (Luke 10:33-35)

The Samaritans were half Jews, despised by Jews of their time because of their mixed blood. As the above hypothesis suggests, the one who knows the cruelty of life and understands the injustice of the world is normally the one who helps his “neighbour”.

Man is by nature self-centred. Yet not all people are hard-hearted and lacking in compassion for the suffering of their fellow men. The prominence in history of some black sheep has stereotyped Man as a creature beyond salvation. However where there is love there is hope. And certainly love has not departed from this world. The extremist’s point of view must change – yet it can only be changed by a Good Samaritan – for it truly seems as if the one who gave the comment has been wounded, robbed and left bleeding half dead – where people have passed by and not helped – on a cold road to Jericho.

(900 words)

Wolf

Wingless Angel
20040720

The sky was dark, the cliffs were silent, a cold breeze blew; dawn. The walls were cold, the lights were weak, a door; a wolf¡¯s den.

He awoke. He, wolf. He, wolf, lord of the cliffs. He, Lang! Night predator Lang, with perfect hearing and sense of smell; he awoke at the sound of clawing. His door was being clawed upon! An unknown animal? No. A distant relative¡­yes, he smells like¡­!

Lang dashed from his resting place to the door, only to find a warning. Actually, it was more like a threat. Who dares threaten Lang, lord of the cliffs?

¡°Lang, it¡¯s been awhile. A long while. A long while since we last met. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll remember me¡­after all, you did steal my throne 18 years ago¡­just because¡±

¡°He didn¡¯t finish. He must have heard me. Hu. What does he want? It has been 18 years¡­¡±

¡°18 years. He never forgets.¡±

¡°Ah! Cheryl. You¡¯re up.¡±

¡°Yes. I can smell him from miles away. Although it has been 18 years¡­¡±

¡°What do you think he would do? After all, you should know¡­¡±

¡°If he were my brother he would come for revenge, but if he were my brother I would be able to stop him. The thing is, if he WERE my brother. I don¡¯t know if he still treats me as an older sister.¡±

* * *

¡°OF COURSE I DO! But do YOU treat ME as your brother? Family ties will not dilute this anger in me. It took me 18 years to find this place!¡±

¡°Hu, it¡¯s you. PLEASE. It HAS been 18 years.¡±

¡°And just when I was going to be crown prince you just had to marry my sister and give birth to a son, right, Lang?¡±

¡°That¡¯s not the point.¡±

¡°Then what is?¡±

¡°¡­¡±

¡°Hu, PLEASE.¡±

¡°FINE. Now since I still treat YOU as my sister, I WILL TRY to forget about this. But how do you explain my daughter and your son?!¡±

¡°Gabriel? He¡­has been weird. I¡¯m not sure if that¡¯s adolescence or¡­! What did you say about your daughter?!¡±

¡°I WILL NOT APPROVE OF THIS RELATIONSHIP!¡±

¡°You mean they¡­¡±

¡°YES! DID IT EVER OCCUR TO HIM¡­sorry¡­did it ever occur to him that they are cousins?¡±

¡°Oh my¡­oh my¡­I never knew¡­¡±

¡°Well now you do. By the way Rachel will be going off to the wilds. Shi the lion asked for her paw in marriage for his son.¡±

¡°And you came here to¡­¡±

¡°To tell your son to back off. The two kingdoms ¨C the cliffs and the wilds ¨C SHOULD NOT and WILL NOT fight over a girl. MY GIRL.¡±

¡°Come on, we¡¯re old already. Our time has passed. Leave it to them.¡±

¡°¡­¡±

¡°Mom? Is that¡­uncle?¡±

¡°Well it¡¯s good to know that you treat me as your uncle AND NOT YOUR FATHER-IN-LAW. Rachel will be pawed-over to Shi at the cliff of cliffs at sunbright. Do come to see her off. After all, you should. You¡¯re her cousin.¡±

In a flash, Hu left. As swiftly as he came, he left. As he came, he left. He, Hu, uncle, left. He left and he left Gabriel, heir to the throne of the cliffs, petrified and heartbroken.

Rachel, off to the wilds¡­Rachel, off to the wilds? Rachel, off to the wilds!

* * *

¡°NO!!!¡± Gabriel¡¯s howl was heard over the whole cliff kingdom. The whole cliff kingdom¡­which means¡­Hu too¡­and Rachel. Startled by this familiar voice but unfamiliar howl of distress and disappointment, she wanted to find him. Him, Gabriel, love of her life, but cousin too. Love of her life, but forbidden fruit from now on. Will she disobey her father? Will she, out of love? Will she?

¡°No. Don¡¯t go. You only have 2 shadow-casts left to sunbright. Shi will be here by then.¡±

¡°But father, I just want to tell him that¡­¡±

¡°That you love him and will always love him. Aww¡­but Rachel, listen to me. You¡¯re still young. You don¡¯t understand.¡±

¡°¡­Yes¡­father¡­¡±

Two shadow-casts. Gabriel spent the first staring in mid-air, with occasional blinks whenever a fly flies past. Rachel spent the first in her room crying, reliving past memories¡­and they both spent the second thinking of each other, even as they were getting ready for her paw-over.

¡°Aww¡­you two just look perfect together¡­¡± Shi, king of the wilds said as he saw them standing closely together¡­well¡­two leaps apart.

¡°Dad, does she¡­have to go?¡±

¡°Sometimes, there are things in life where you cannot change.¡±

¡°So what do we do if we cannot change them?¡±

¡°You know what? I really don¡¯t know. For once I feel that¡­you¡¯re growing up.¡±

¡°Of course¡­I AM your son¡­¡±

Lang smiled and shook his head.

¡°Umm¡­mister lion king of the wilds sir¡­can she not go with you?¡±

Shi stared at Gabriel. Although he was the crown prince of the cliffs, he did not seem to have an aura of ego around him. Not to his liking. ¡°NO.¡±

¡°But¡­we love each other.¡±

* * *

A sense of shock spread through everyone¡¯s faces. Smiles are contagious¡­but horror?

Aber could not bear it anymore. He stepped out, and with arrogance looked into Gabriel¡¯s eyes. ¡°Duel?¡±
Aber always liked to fight. As he stood next to Gabriel, he seemed to tower over him. Advantages to him were obvious.

¡°Duel.¡±

Gabriel accepted the challenge. He did? He did! Shi and Aber were laughing when he did. His parents? They looked at each other and nodded, mutually and silently agreed that their son had grew up. After all, he was their son. Hu was nowhere to be found. Rachel? She¡­cried¡­

Without prior notice Aber tackled Gabriel. Gabriel just moved away and stuck out his foot. Aber tripped. Angrily he pounced back at him, only to receive two kicks on his chest as Gabriel lied back before that, preparing to counter his attack. As a final attack, out of rage, Aber kept clawing and pawing his way to Gabriel. His speed was incredible! Those watching held their breath. Could Gabriel escape?

* * *

¡°NO!¡±

He fell. A claw on his skull killed him. Cranial blood was flowing from his head. He fell. He, Aber, prince of the wilds, fell.

¡°NO!¡± roared Shi.

Gabriel saw Aber¡¯s flaws in his attack and simply leaped up. He extended his claw to launch an aerial attack. Gabriel¡¯s sharp claws penetrated through Aber¡¯s skull. He won. He won the duel, but most importantly, he won Rachel. He turned back to look at her, and smiled.

¡°NO!¡± Shi roared as he charged towards the victorious yet mildly ecstatic Gabriel. He did not expect this. In fact he did not even know about the attack. Until his father dashed out and pounced on Shi, just claws away from Gabriel. They rolled to the edges of the cliff. They rolled down. For once there was silence. Complete silence. Until they saw a paw on the edge of the cliff. Lang¡¯s paw.

Slowly another paw appeared. Shi¡¯s paw. Shi¡¯s paw? Shi¡¯s paw! Then another one. Shi¡¯s! He was climbing up Lang¡¯s body!

Lang lost grip slowly, and Shi inched up slowly. Cheryl saw this, and dashed to the cliff, just in time to catch her husband¡¯s paw. Now she was hanging in midair. But Shi slowly gained ground.

Gabriel wanted to help, but didn¡¯t. He was stopped. Not by Rachel, but by Cheryl! A mother¡¯s intuition¡­she knew what her son wanted to do¡­and now all he can do, is stare.

* * *

Finally she could not hold on anymore. She gave a command to her son, that he would take good care of Rachel, and blessed them, that they would have a happy family. But Shi had almost climbed to the top already! Out of desperation, Cheryl grabbed his foot, and pulled him down together with her and her husband. The cliff of cliffs was the cliff of cliffs. Exceptionally high. There was no hope for them.

Gabriel teared. He did not cry. He was now lord of the cliffs. He would not cry. But nobody said he couldn¡¯t tear, so he teared. He recalled the good times and bad times he had with his parents, and remembered his mother¡¯s last words. Of course, he never forgot her sacrifice. He turned to Rachel, and forced a smile.

Rachel fell into his arms, and cried. She was lady of the cliffs now, but nobody said ladies of the cliffs couldn¡¯t cry, so she cried. Even as Gabriel was tearing, and Rachel was crying, the warmth of love slowly dried up their tears. Their love brought them together, and a mother¡¯s love for her husband and her son made it possible for them to be together. Love. The strongest agent of change in the world. Love.

The sky was bright, the cliffs were silent, a sacrifice; a newly-wed couple brought together and made possible by true love.

(1460 words)

Fun text:

Just realised "stupid" was such a good word to use. Well, not really good, but it can be used to describe tons of things.

Like when my brother's Malay teacher circles his name word by word just because at the footer of a formal letter he wrote it in caps and no caps when it should be all caps. Sometimes things are THAT dumb and stupid. Aha! I found the word!

Like when my brother and my other brother fight. "Go away, you stupid boy!" "You stupid ah!" "You ah!" "Mommy!" "Mommy! The stupid boy kacau me!". Erpz, I can't say that my brothers' vocab is limited but... Duz it show?

Like when I ask someone what the person likes to do and I get the answer "stupid things". Then I receive advice from people (esp. my mother) telling be not to do "stupid things". But I love to do "stupid things" but I won't do "stupid things". Get what I mean? Stupid is versatile. "Stupid things" might not be as serious as "stupid things". "Stupid things" might be fun, "stupid things" might be dangerous. You know... something stupid called tone?

Ahaha! So I've got your attention! Stupid! Oh yeah the tone was a joking one so it means a sense of gratitude that I paiseh to say out, although I'm smiling now. You know, something like when you paiseh to say "thank you"... Ahh... have to add something stupid called body language.

Well... Erm... Enough of this stupid dicussion about "stupid" (NOT stupidity even though stupid is an adjective and stupidity is the noun form but in this case stupid is a noun). Anymore discussion about "stupid" will be classified a "stupid thing" to do. Hey but it's fun.

Exercise:

Try pronouncing "stupid" in as many ways as possible.
1) Stu-pid
2) Stew-pid
3) Stu-pit
4) Stew-pit
5) Sze-tu-pid
6) Sze-tu-pit
7) Stu-peed
8) Stu-peet
9) Du-pit
10) Tu-pit
11) Stu-piak
12) Tu-piak
Etc. If you have anymore stupid ideas can gimme a comment. Muahahahaha. Stupid.

[Written By Andrew Loh Zhu An, My Brother]

Once upon a time, there was a country named Aisyalam. Aisyalam was a very beautiful and diverse country with lots of wonderfully nice and friendly people called Aisyalamians.