There are many many thoughts that run through my mind when i look back at the past 1 year..

What a year indeed. many many ups & downs. times when im truly happy, i can feel the happiness in my whole body, time when i fall down so hard, i thought i can't get up anymore, times when i was disappointed that i sort of lose hope.. but through it all, good times or bad times, i learnt many many lessons of faith. time and again, God reminded me that He is always there.

I thank God for my family, indeed i am so blessed. I thank God for friends, especially those whom i hold close and dear to my heart. They have always been there for me too.

there's still 2 more mths to go before i graduate. the year 2009, i wonder what would it be like.. wonder what my results will be? what am i going to do after i graduate? which uni will i be going to? will it be in singapore or australia? will i get to go for a mission trip before uni?..... so many questions, so many possibilities, so many decisions to make, so many unknowns..

but well, ready or not, 2009 is here...

been busy with activities for the past 1 week.. so here's an update. since im kinda lazy to blog. hehe.

Monday: shopping at taka with my mum, bro & sis. need to shop for christmas cards and exchange present for the yr end theme party. crowded like crazy! make me feel so frustrated. but thankfully, i managed to get what i needed.

Tuesday: my cousins came for stayover so that they can practice the christmas songs that we're going to perform for the adults on christmas eve.

Wednesday: woke up at 8am, only to realise that all my cousins are alr awake and playing with the WII Rockband set that my cousin, pearlyn, brought over. at night, all my relatives came over for celebration. haha. it was a super fun time! had caroling, and we played our usual blanket game. laugh till our sides hurt and our eyes are tearing.. haha :D

Thursday: went to church for christmas service. zhiyi, terry, bingbing & dion got baptised! so happy for them! gave out some cards. love the cards & gift that i received (: then went out for dinner with my family.

Friday: met up with carmen to go to 师母's hse for lunch. had a nice time there. and then, when i reached home, i realised that i've forgotten to bring my keys with me! and no one was at home! i called my mum and waited for them to bring me out for dinner. haha. had dinner at Turf City's Manis Manis, a peranakan food restaurant. good food!

Saturday: went for morning walk at Henderson Wave. a little tiring, but enjoyed the walk. evening was soar & qi cheng's yr end theme party! haha. the theme was BIG. and i cldn't rly think of any idea.. so i decided to bring my big umbrella along with me. had a crazy fun time playing the games! sucking the ping pong ball, catching the bread with yr cheeks, blowing the ping pong ball.. hahaha :D

Sunday (tdy): after church & tuanqi's mtg, went to vivo with carmen and zhiyi for a short while. met my parents to go to Manis Manis for dinner again. went there with aunty mingmei's family & 师母's family this time round. after dinner, we went to play soccer at Temesek Club. well, technically speaking, those who played soccer were the males plus hua sze and my sis la. 5 adults (uncle daojun, my dad, uncle jifu, uncle biaoxi & 牧师) against 11 children. while the rest of us just sit there and watch and talk. hahaha. it's quite fun to watch them play, see how the kids tackle the adults. haha.

so yup. that's abt it. my 1 wk since i came back frm china. what an activities-filled week huh... going to get busy with my projects soon, from tuesday onwards. the train is abt to begin it's journey once again. the final lap... sch's starting soon!!! :S

fun trip! great time! many funny/crazy experiences. what a trip indeed! best part of the trip: visiting my relatives. the feeling is awesome. though we are from different parts of the world.. yet we are related. and we bond quite well too! haha. i kind of miss them.. who knows when would be the next time i see them...

so, some highlights/interesting experiences/whatever you call it.. haha

1. im officially known as the toilet queen of the trip. cos ive no idea why, but i go to the toilet like nobody's business.. feels like my bladder died on me.. it wasn't working at all! hahaha

2. the weather is very cold! and when the wind blows..... brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

3. getting to see my grandpa's side of relatives again (:

4. visiting my grandma's hometown! best part of the trip! seeing all my relatives makes me feel.. warm inside? yup (:

5. saving a dog that is abt to drown in the cold pond at the tea garden. yup. what a kan cheong experience mannnn...

6. we sang karaoke there. what a crazyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy fun time we had! hahahahaha!

7. along the way back to shenzhen, our bus tire was punctured by some nails on the road. so we were stranded on the highway for abt an hour. since it isn't safe for us to be waiting along the highway (cos we might get robbed or smthg la...) we took refuge among the tall trees/shrubs and bushes next to the highway..

8. first time peeing among the bushes.. well, i had no choice. we were stranded along the highway, there was no toilet and i was on a superrrrrrrrrr high tide.. so. yup. what a super embarrassing experience :S

9. first time getting counterfeit money.. 20RMB. now we know how to differentiate between the real and the fake alr..

10. giving my mummy a mini surprise bday celebration (:

well, personally, i felt that i enjoyed my time at shantou much more than at shenzhen. perhaps it's bcos my relatives are at shantou, or bcos i felt that shenzhen seems to be .. quite messy.. or maybe simply bcos i was alr sick when im at shenzhen. yup. as predicted, haha, i fell sick. sore throat, cough, flu. quite bad actually cos i started to get a bad headache, ended up taking 2 panadols :P all in all, this trip was a great experience. ain't sure when im gonna go back and visit my relatives again..

so. Christmas is coming! can't wait can't wait! it's a time for gathering, a time for thanksgiving cos Jesus was born, a time where fun, laughter, peace, love, joy, blessings are shared and spread (: what a wonderful feeling it is...

have not been seeing my dear friends for abt 3 wks alr... can't wait to see them again!

im leaving for china this evening.. it's been ages since i went on such a long trip, and it's my 2nd family trip overseas ever since i entered poly. 1st would be the genting trip last yr for 3 days only... having sort of mixed feelings abt this trip. kinda excited abt it, yet there is still smthg that is holding me back... which is my projects and presentations i guess :S

but nevertheless, i will enjoy my time there. afterall, im going to visit my hometown. haha. i like that kind of feeling... you know.. going back and visit the places where my grandparents were born, see how different it is, etc.. yeah. my mum says that the temperature there now is 13 to 22 degrees... wonder exactly how cold that is.. but it sure sounds cold enough. haha.

so, remember to miss me while im away (:
yes, i'll miss you all too :P

im back from church retreat! had a wonderful time there (:

to think abt it.. it rly isn't abt the food, or the lodging, or shopping or whatnots, but rather, it's the people, the friends, the time that we spent together worshipping, listening to the messages, playing the group games, chatting with friends, having fun together that makes the church retreat such an enjoyable one...

it feels good to be able to getaway from the hustle and bustle of life in singapore for awhile.. to spend some time to rest and reflect on God's word. kinda missed the retreat time now.. the time spent with friends and all that. even my sister feels the same way.. although everyday is scheduled, you have to wake up early and all.. but still, we enjoyed it. haha.

will be away from 12th to 21st dec. going to china (shantou & shenzhen) to visit my distant relatives. yes. i still have relatives in china k.. my grandparents' brothers and sisters, nieces nephews, etc... haha.

carrying out the StompAIDS roadshow tdy is really very tiring. lots of stuffs to set up and then after that have to walk around to give out balloons and flyers, etc.. not forgetting the weather! my gdness. very very hot ah! i feel like im in a sauna constantly. the only comfort is that the response for the roadshow is quite good. hopefully, tmr when the HPB pple come down to our roadshow for observation and all that, they will be satisfied with what we've done...

there's still RM roadshow on wednesday and thursday! and it's B.A e-learning week! i wonder where are we going to get the crowd from... and i still need to study and prepare for BB common test! gdness gracious me.. aiis.

Dear God, please grant me strength and perseverance.. thank You so much.

okays. need to continue studying now..