Count our blessings

Let's open up for discussion 3A-ers!

Jiajun has posted something really interesting and i thought it was really food for thought- It is true, the earthquake that hit Haiti was BAD. It really makes us reflect upon our lives and thank God that we are in here in Singapore. Many times we don't stop enough to count our blessings. We complain about everything: the internet is too slow, assignments are too many, my dad's not increasing my pocket money. Such incidences makes me feel that our world view is so small. Our 'problems' are so meagre compared to those in Haiti. We battle against work and assignment and material gains. Our fellow beings fight for their chance at survival.

No,  I am not saying that we should throw away the textbooks and really just 'enjoy the moment' and live life to the fullest. What I am saying is that we need to learn to give thanks for what we have and learn to appreciate what the Singapore Government, our families, our friends and our school have given to us.

My friend is a photojournalist in SPH (he has just won 2 prizes-- check out Desmond Lim, my friend :))  and he shared his perspective on the fragility of life in a reflection after his trip back from Padang's earthquake (October 2009). That is what I mean by living life out. Upon receiving news of the earthquake in Padang, he hopped on a chartered flight, went there with a small backpack, stayed on the streets for 3 days literally (he had no where to stay!), nearly lost his life--half submerged in mud. The trip has changed his life and you should read his reflection. I have just contacted him and I have gained his permission to put up his article on our class blog. I will post it once I get hold of it. :)

Anyway, I was blog-searching for a relevant article on Desmond's reflection. It is not online. However I came across this other post about his work. It is reflection on Desmond's reflection. It is pretty interesting, do visit it: http://gofar2009.wordpress.com/2009/10/10/we-go-so-that-others-will-know/

Meanwhile, here are the ONLINE TASKS for you to do:

Task:

1. Write down the things in life that matters to you and how you can make your days count even more. (1- 2 paragraphs, in complete, standard English)
2. Write down, in a paragraph, who you are thankful for- it can be a parent, a sibling, a cousin, a friend, a teacher, etc- and why you thank your lucky stars for this person/persons. You can be creative and write a poem if you want. This is not for CA. :)

Make your days count, people.

Love
Miss Tan