VVJ380

When I purchased my Ford Fairmont Ghia sedan in 2002, I also bought a personalized registration plate (VVJ380) to come with it. VVJ stands for my three children: Vickie, Veronica and Johnson. 380 was the airbus aircraft model introduced at that time. As I had been working in the airline industry for over 30 years, I had particular passion for choosing such number. Besides, 380 also mean:

3 (生) - healthy
8 (發) - wealthy
0 (靈) - intelligent.

I'm so fond of the number 380 that, every time I go to withdraw money from the ATM machines, I withdraw $380 for no reasons!

The Window in the Hospital

Two seriously ill men were staying in the same ward in a hospital. Eddy had to sit up in his bed every afternoon for an hour in order to drain the water from his lungs. His bed was beside the only window of the ward. Ken had to lie flat in his bed all day for his illness and could not see the window. Everyday the two men talked about everything, including their families, houses, work, hobbies and holidays.
In the afternoons, when Eddy sat up to drain the water from his lungs, he looked out through the window and described what he saw to Ken in every details. Outside the window, there was a park and a beautiful lake. Several ducks and swans were swimming leisurely on the water. Children were playing with their toy boats. Young couples were leaning upon each other beside the colourful flower beds. There were beautiful city landscapes in the far distance. Ken listened attentively in closed eyes, imagining the views of all the activities and colours in his mind. Day after day, Eddy told Ken the scenes happening outside the window and Ken said to Eddy he felt very happy with all those views and events.
Time passed. One day when the nurse came by for regular inspections. She found Eddy had passed away quietly and peacefully during his sleep. Eddy's body was subsequently removed from the ward by hospital staff. Several days later after things settled down, Ken asked the nurse if he could change to the bed beside the window which Eddy previously occupied. The nurse gladly agreed and changed accordingly.
In his new bed, Ken forcefully pushed himself to sit up slightly and turned his head slowly to look out through the window, hoping he could have a look himself on the real world outside. But he was shocked as he could see nothing except a white wall of another building opposite. He couldn't understand why Eddy told him things so differently in all those days. He asked the nurse, and she replied, "Eddy was blind. He couldn't see there was a wall outside the window."

Eddy was just trying to create happiness and joy with his imagination, and shared them equally with Ken in order to cheer him up at their difficult times!!

No matter what situations we're in, if we can make others happy, we'll feel happy ourselves too. Sharing sadness and pain reduces sadness and pain by half. Sharing happiness and joy multiplies happiness and joy manifolds. As Michael Jackson also put it in his song (Heal the World):

"We could really get there
if you cared enough
for the living.
Make this little space
to make it a better place."

The Story of Buddha (3 of 3) - The Eightfold Path (八正道)

The Eightfold Path (八正道) describes the ways to end desire and hence suffering as laid out by Buddha. It outlines a plan of self disciplines regarding wisdom, ethics and mentality with the goal of freeing the individual from all desires and hence sufferings, and finally leads to understanding of the truth of life. The Eightfold Path should not be taken as a sequence of eight individual steps. Instead, they are highly interdependent principles that have to be seen in relationship with each other.

The Eightfold Path can be described in simplistic terms as follows:

Wisdom disciplines (智慧) - these require people to establish correct thinking and willingness.
1. RIGHT UNDERSTANDING (正見解)
In order to start down the Eightfold Path, people must understand the Four Noble Truths and the reason for choosing this course of action.
2. RIGHT INTENTION (正思想)
People must be firmly convinced that following the Eightfold path is what they wish to do.

Ethical disciplines (持戒) - these require people to take specific actions in their lives.
3. RIGHT SPEECH (正語言)
People need to consider their words carefully. What they say may not be totally freed from faults, but they should aim for truthfulness and kindness.
4. RIGHT ACTION (正行為)
People must think about the motives for their actions. Actions should be caused by selflessness and kindness, and not selfishness and cruelty. All their actions should show respect for others.
5. RIGHT LIVELIHOOD (正職業)
People should earn their living in ways not to harm others, but show respect for all living creatures, and allow them to continue with their own moral and spiritual growth.

Mental disciplines (定力) - these require people to take specific actions in their minds
6. RIGHT EFFORT (正精進)
People should persist in their effort to live their lives in keeping up with the principles of the Eightfold Path. Don't be too rough on oneself when things got messed up. Just pick up, dust off and gently and firmly set back in the right direction. Practice makes things perfect.
7. RIGHT MINDFULNESS (正意念)
People should be very aware of their own minds and bodies. They should notice when moods and feelings change, not for the sake of judging them as good or bad but for the sake of noticing what they are and how rapidly they change.
8. RIGHT CONCENTRATION (正禪定)
In this step, people must focus their mind and meditate. With correct practices of meditation, their bodies will relax, their minds will be calmed and freed from all distractions. Their minds will enter into a state where all mental forces are unified and directed into one particular object for contemplation.

By following the Eightfold Path, people would be led ultimately to the liberation of all sources of desire and hence suffering, thus attaining nirvana - the state of being freed from all sufferings. It is anticipated to be difficult but achievable.

After Buddha attained his enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree at the age of 35, he chose to return to the world to share his knowledge with others. Over the next 45 years, he travelled from place to place to preach his teachings to everyone who listened (including the five ascetics he met, his own wife and his son), and his followers multiplied as time went along. His teachings were later collected and organized by his disciples and became today's Buddhism. As Buddhism continued to be spread worldwide, Buddhism became a bit localized (and unfortunately a bit mystified). But nevertheless, Buddha's teachings are always regarded a good philosophy of life. Buddha died at the age of 80.

The Beauty of Mathematics

1 x 8 + 1 = 9
12 x 8 + 2 = 98
123 x 8 + 3 = 987
1234 x 8 + 4 = 9876
12345 x 8 + 5 = 98765
123456 x 8 + 6 = 987654
1234567 x 8 + 7 = 9876543
12345678 x 8 + 8 = 98765432
123456789 x 8 + 9 = 987654321

1 x 9 + 2 = 11
12 x 9 + 3 = 111
123 x 9 + 4 = 1111
1234 x 9 + 5 = 11111
12345 x 9 + 6 = 111111
123456 x 9 + 7 = 1111111
1234567 x 9 + 8 = 11111111
12345678 x 9 + 9 = 111111111
123456789 x 9 + 10= 1111111111

9 x 9 + 7 = 88
98 x 9 + 6 = 888
987 x 9 + 5 = 8888
9876 x 9 + 4 = 88888
98765 x 9 + 3 = 888888
987654 x 9 + 2 = 8888888
9876543 x 9 + 1 = 88888888
98765432 x 9 + 0 = 888888888
987654321 x 9 - 1 = 8888888888
9876543210 x 9 - 2 = 88888888888

1 x 1 = 1
11 x 11 = 121
111 x 111 = 12321
1111 x 1111 = 1234321
11111 x 11111 = 123454321
111111 x 111111 = 12345654321
1111111 x 1111111 = 1234567654321
11111111 x 11111111 = 123456787654321
111111111 x 111111111 = 12345678987654321

I Know This Lawyer

A prosecuting attorney called his first witness to the stand in a trial. The witness was an old, grandmotherly woman. He approached her and began, "Mrs Jones, do you know me?"
She responded, " Yes, I do know you, Mr Williams. I've known you since you were a little boy. And frankly, you've been a big disappointment to me. You lie. You cheat on everything. You manipulate people and talk about them behind their backs. You think you're a big shot when you haven't the brains to realize you'll never be able to do the simplest bit. Yes, I know you."
The lawyer was stunned. Not knowing what else to do, he pointed across the room and asked, "Mrs Jones, do you know the defense attorney?"
She again replied, "Why, yes, I do. I've known Mr Smith since he was a youngster too. I used to baby-sit him for his parents. And he, too, has been a real disappointment to me. He's lazy, a big loser. He has a serious drinking problem. He can't build a normal relationship with anyone and his law practice is one of the worst in town. Yes, I know him."
At this point, the judge ordered the courtroom to silence and called both counselors to the bench. In a very quiet voice, he said to them, "If any of you ask her if she knows me, you'll be in jail in 3 minutes."

The Story of Buddha (2 of 3) - The Four Noble Truths (四聖諦)

After abandoning his old life behind him (the palaces, his father, his wife and his son), Siddhartha began to beg for alms everyday for living like other monks while making his journey to enlightenment. He was determined to find the truth of life and suffering, and ways to end all the sufferings. He wanted to do it for himself and for all everyone.
Siddhartha spent six years on the quest of knowledge, truth and answers. First, he made his way to two Hindu masters to study with them, hoping to learn how to end suffering. From them, he learned the concepts of Rebirth (輪迴) - the cycle of birth/death/rebirth, and Karma (因果) - the philosophy of cause and effect; and the arts of Meditation (冥想) - a technique of deep concentration in a relaxed state where the mind can be freed from all distractions, and Yoga (瑜伽) - a series of postures and breathing exercises practiced to achieve control of the body and the mind for deep concentration. While he had learned much from the two masters, Siddhartha found that he was unable to find ways to end suffering from them. Next, he turned his attention to asceticism (苦行) - the practices of self-denial and self-mortification in order to attain a high spiritual and moral state. He joined five ascetics in search of the understanding of suffering. The ascetics were very strict. They starved themselves and denied themselves of all physical comforts. They tried to master suffering by making their minds so strong that they forgot their bodies.
For a long time, Siddhartha only had water from the rain and a grain of rice for food while he did meditation all of his time. He became very thin and weak, and was close to death. Until one day during meditation, he heard a voice of a boat people saying to another when they were trying to pull up the sail of the boat in the river, "If you tighten the string too much, it will snap. If you leave it too slack, it won't play." Suddenly, Siddhartha realized he had been wrong all the time. Starving could not help to clear his mind, and neither was asceticism. Siddhartha now discovered the only path to enlightenment was the 'Middle Way' - a line between the two opposite extremes of self-indulgence and self-denial. So he went down the river and drank the water. A young girl passing by gave him a bowl of rice and he began to eat. The five ascetics saw him and felt he was not strong enough in the pursuit of truth. They were disappointed and left him in disgust.
Siddhartha did not bother. He knew firmly that he had already found the right path to enlightenment and was very close in finding the answers. On a pleasant night in May, he seated himself under a Bodhi tree (菩提樹) and began his meditation on the final process to enlightenment. He seated firmly in his posture of the Lotus Position (蓮花座) and overcame distractions of all sorts - crime, greed, fear, ignorance and desire. There he stayed in deep meditation the whole night until at last he understood everything. His final process was completed in three stages. In the first stage, he reviewed all his past existences and understood the laws of cause and effect. In the second stage, he reviewed death and rebirth of all living creatures and understood the laws governing the cycle of birth and death. In the third stage, he identified the Four Noble Truths - the prevalence of suffering, the cause of suffering, the solution to suffering and the ways to end suffering. It was at this point Siddhartha attained enlightenment. He now understood the true nature of life, death and suffering. At the age of 35, Siddhartha became a Buddha.

Buddha's approach to the answer to end suffering resembles very much the modern systematic problem solving methodology, viz:
. identify the problem,
. determine the cause of the problem,
. find solution to the problem,
. develop plan to resolve the problem.

The Four Noble Truths can be presented in a simplistic way as follows:
1. The Truth of Suffering - Life is filled with suffering.
People are happy or unhappy for various reasons. But neither happiness nor unhappiness is permanent. Even when people are happy, they fear old age, sickness and death. They fear losing the people and things they have. Therefore, suffering is always present. even at the moment of happiness.
2. The Truth of the Cause of Suffering - The cause of suffering is desire.
People are not satisfied with what they have or what they are. Their minds are filled with greediness and desire, and suffering will automatically follow. The attitude of selfishness and greediness is the cause of dissatisfaction, resulting in suffering.
3. The Truth of the End of Suffering - Suffering stops when desire stops.
This part is relatively simple. Knowing suffering comes from desire, if we can end desire, we can end suffering.
4. The Truth of the Path to End Suffering -The way to end desire and hence suffering is to follow the Eightfold Path (八正道).
Like a medical doctor prescribing treatment to illness, here the Buddha laid out in a very logical, systematic and precise manner the ways to end suffering. Following the eight-step Eightfold Path is difficult but achievable. It would lead ultimately to the liberation of all sources of desire and hence suffering, enabling people to attain nirvana (涅槃) - the state of being freed from all sufferings.

The Four Noble Truths, together with the Eightfold Path, built upon the concepts of Rebirth and Karma, constitute the main essential theories of Buddhism. Buddha further explained the Eightfold Path in details .............................

The Warmth of 1°C

A couple was facing a sudden financial disaster. That winter, the husband's career hit a snag, and the couple lost most of their fortunes. To pay the debts, the couple had to move out from their warm and beautiful house in the city and rent a simple and ugly unit in the remote rural area. The unit was cold and grim like their feelings. The husband said to the wife, "Believe me. Things will soon be alright." The wife agreed in confidence.
During the day, the husband worked tirelessly outside in order to earn as much as possible. He was so busy that he couldn't make a single phone call to his wife in the entire day. During the night, the husband spent most of the time at home finishing his work on the computer, and making phone calls to clients. He seldom had time to talk with his wife.
As days passed, the wife gradually noticed that her husband was no longer the same as before. In the evening, the husband always wanted to take the bath first which in the past, he always let the wife to take it before he did. The wife asked the husband if she could have the bath first as before. But the husband insisted that after a hard day's work, he needed to take the shower first to clean up and refresh himself. At night, the husband always got into bed before the wife, which again in the past, it was the wife who usually got into bed first. As the wife asked, the husband replied that he was so tired everyday that he had to get to sleep as soon as possible. The wife was very sad, thinking that not only had she lost the house and fortune, but also the love from her husband.
One day, when the husband was out at work, the wife saw her husband's diary lying in the drawer. Out of curiosity, she opened and read it. Tears began to fall as the wife read on, " Today, she asked me why I always took the bath before she did, and why I always got into bed first. I said to her that after a whole day's work, I had to wash and rest as soon as possible. But I didn't tell her, and I didn't want to tell her, that our situation was so bad. The bathroom was so cold. If I took the bath first, the bathroom temperature might increase a few degrees, 3°C, 2°C or at least a 1°C. When she next took the bath, she would feel a bit warmer. The unit was so cold. If I got into bed first, I could warm up the bed for a few degrees, 3°C, 2°C or at least a 1°C. When she next got into bed, she would feel a bit warmer too. In these difficult times, I think that's the very least I can now give her, 1°C .................................."

Love prevails in different forms and in different styles. Sometimes, we just don't appreciate the good fortune when in good fortune. At times (especially difficult ones), we might lose our faith in love, despite love is already around us without our knowing.

The Story of Buddha (1 of 3) - The Four Signs (四跡象)

I recently read some stories about Buddha. Although I'm a Catholic, I found these stories very interesting and inspirational.

The word 'Buddha' (菩薩) means 'the awakened one' or 'the enlightened one' - one who discovers the truth of life. As such, anyone who reaches the stage of understanding the true nature of life (awakens or attains enlightenment in Buddhism terms) can be called a Buddha. Our stories are about Gautama Buddha (釋迦牟尼) who was the founder of Buddhism more than 2500 years ago. He is generally regarded as the Supreme Buddha (佛祖) or simply called 'The Buddha'. Like Jesus, Buddha was a real person.

Siddhartha Gautama was born in about 563 BC (exact date not known) as a prince, son of King Sudhodana and Queen Maya in ancient India. His mother, Queen Maya died just a week after his birth. His father, King Sudhodana loved him very much. The King was determined to have his only son to become the future king of the country, and provided all the best things possible to prepare him for this role. So Siddhartha grew up in a very comfortable environment. He was handsome and intelligent. At the age of 16, he was married to Princess Yasodhara whom he loved. In order to keep all the unpleasant things away from Siddhartha so he could concentrate on becoming a great ruler, the King built three palaces for the couple; one for summer, one for rainy season and one for winter. Siddhartha was kept in these beautiful palaces, surrounded by luxury and happiness but separated from the rest of the world.
When Siddhartha was 29 years old, one day an idea suddenly came to his mind that he wanted to go out of the palace and have a look of the world outside. The King, still wanting to surround him with only happiness, ordered the streets to be swept and decorated, and any ugly and sad sights to be removed. Despite the King's effort, there were four incidents Siddhartha encountered as he was traveling through the streets with his servant, Channa.
First, he saw a man among the crowds. The man's face and body was withered. His eyes were clouded and his mouth was toothless. Siddhartha was shocked by the man's appearance. He asked Channa, "What's wrong with him?" Channa replied, "Nothing. He's just old, my lord. Old age destroys beauty, memory and strength." Siddhartha shook his head sadly and walked on. That was the First Sign - OLD AGE.
As they walked further, they saw a woman lying in a shelter. The woman was pale, very weak and had an expression of great pain. Siddhartha asked, "What's happening to her?" Channa answered, "She's sick, my Lord. When reaching the moment of death, everybody has to fall into sickness at least once." That was the Second Sign - SICKNESS.
Siddhartha said to Channa, "Show me death. I want to see death." Channa then led him to a funeral place where a corpse was lying on the ground, and people were beginning to cremate it with fire. Channa said to Siddhartha, "Death is the moment of separation, my Lord. It happens to every person and every family." Siddhartha looked at the cremation with awe. That was the Third Sign - DEATH.
Siddhartha was very depressed as he walked on slowly. He was contemplating the scenes he saw before finally running into a monk along the road. "Who are you?" he asked the monk. "I'm a seeker of truth. I'm looking for freedom from pain and unhappiness." replied the monk. "And do you think you can find it?" asked Siddhartha eagerly. "Is it possible?" The monk replied, "I can but try. It is for that I live." The monk bowed to the prince and continued to walk on. That was the Fourth Sign - SEEKER OF TRUTH.
That day, Siddhartha realized things beyond happiness for the first time. He now knew everybody would grow old and become ill even one was still young like himself. Death was unavoidable. No matter how happy one might be today, such happiness would not and could not last for ever. That day, he learned much about suffering and discovered compassion. The Four Signs had aroused in him the thought that an answer must be sought about life and suffering. He too needed to become a seeker of truth. He had to take up the task of finding ways to end all these sufferings, and he wanted to do it for himself and for everyone. As Siddhartha walked slowly back to the palace, he had already made up his mind.
That very night, his son, Rahula was born. In spite of his love for the family, he was determined to free himself from them so that he could begin his quest for answers. He knew his work would take the rest of his life. He would have no time to spare for his family and for becoming a ruler of his country. Very late that night while everyone was asleep, he took a final look of his wife and his son, and to the palace. He rode off with a white horse and with his servant Channa, and left the palace. When they reached to the wilderness, Siddhartha cut off his hair and bid farewell to Channa and the horse. He then went into the forest alone by himself, for his quest of knowledge, truth and answers of life and suffering.

There and then, Siddhartha's long journey to enlightenment had so begun ..........................

Kung Hei Fat Choy - Year of the Rabbit

Rabbits are active, cheerful, pure, honest and elegant. They have sharp observations, vigilant and cautious. They enjoy freedom and the nature.

Wish you a happy, healthy, wealthy and wishful Year of the Rabbit.

Kung Hei Fat Choy!

Commonwealth Games 2010 - Delhi

Following is a piece of news from Sydney Morning Harald on Friday 21 January, 2010.

India on Thursday ordered Commonwealth Games organizers to sort out differences with foreign contractors and sports bodies amid complaints and legal threats over millions of US dollars in unpaid bills. The Sports Minister told a news conference that he has set a 10-day deadline for government officials in the organizing committee of the October 3-14 event to settle all "legitimate" dues.
Firms in Australia, Britain, France and Germany are among those owed money, while national Commonwealth Games Associations have complained of missing refunds and travel subsidies.
An Australian contractor behind the opening and closing ceremonies said his Commonwealth Games experience had soured his view of the host country. He told the press, "We decided that