Promise. Promise.

Once upon a time, there was a man who worked all of his life and saved all of his money. He was a real miser. He loved money more than anything else. Just before he died, he said to his wife,"Now listen. When I die, I want you to take all my money and place it in the coffin with me. I want to take my money to my afterlife." So he got his wife to promise him with all her heart.
One day, he died. His body was stretched out in the coffin. The wife was sitting there in black next to her closest friend. When they finished the ceremony, and just before the undertakers got ready to close the coffin, the wife handed out a shoe box and placed it in the coffin. Then the undertakers locked the coffin down and rolled it away.
Her friend said, "I hope you weren't crazy enough to put all that money in the coffin." The wife said, "Yes. I promised. I'm a good Catholic. I can't lie. I promised him that I was going to put that money in the coffin with him." Her friend raised her voice, "My goodness. You mean to tell me you put every cent of his money in the coffin with him?" The wife said calmly, "Why, yes. I sure did. I put them all into my account, and I wrote him a cheque."

Confusion. Confusion.

I was writing a blog some other day. I was trying to say something was stationary (i.e. not in motion), but I suddenly forgot whether it should be spelled as 'stationary' or 'stationery'. I knew they are both pronounced the same but their meanings are entirely different. To ensure the correctness of my writing, I had to look up the dictionary to find the right word to use.
After the writing, my mind wandered along similar vein. A couple of other words came to my mind which I felt very easy to get confused and mistaken. Following are some examples but I'm sure there could be many more others. If you know which is which, good on you. If you are not that sure, it's better to consult the dictionary before putting them into writing. Good luck!

aides/aids
aisle/isle
ascent/assent
born/borne
breath/breadth
canon/cannon
complement/compliment
complementary/complimentary
capital/capitol
cast/caste
counselor/councilor
cubical/cubicle
decent/descent
discreet/discrete
ensure/insure
fiance/fiancee
hail/hale
heroin/heroine
immerge/emerge
insolate/insulate
incidence/incidents
instance/instants
kerb/curb
loath/loathe
marshal/martial
principal/principle
recount/re-count
rein/reign
rhyme/rhythm
sensor/censor
stationary/stationery
storey/story
vain/vein
wean/ween
wreath/wreathe

Finally, don't confuse 'we' with 'wee' as we wee.

No Worries

All things in life are temporary. If going well, enjoy them, they won't last forever. If going wrong, forget them, they can't last long either.

WORRY will not take away tomorrow's TROUBLE. It only takes away today's HAPPINESS.

Jobs in the Zoo

One day a young man went to the zoo for an interview of a job as a street performer. The zoo keeper said to him that the zoo's most popular attraction, a gorilla, had died suddenly and he feared that attendance to the zoo would fall off. He offered the young man instead a job to dress up as the gorilla until they could get another one. The young man accepted.
So the next morning, the young man put on the gorilla suit and entered the cage before the crowd came. He discovered it was a great job. He could sleep all he wanted, played and made fun of people, and he drew big crowds to the cage. However eventually, the crowds got tired of him, and he got tired of just swinging on tires. He began to notice that people were paying more attention to the lion in the cage next to his. Not wanting to lose the attention of the audience, he climbed to the top of the cage, crawled across a partition, and dangled from the top to the lion's cage. Of course, this made the lion furious, but the crowd loved it. At the end of the day, the zoo keeper came and gave the young man a raise for being such a good attraction.
So this went on for some time. The young man kept irritating the lion, the lion got angry, the crowds grew larger, and his salary kept going up. Then one terrible day when he was dangling over the furious lion, he slipped and fell into the lion's cage. The young man was terrified. The lion stared at him and prepared to jump over. The young man was so scared that he began to run around and around the cage with the lion close behind. Finally, the young man started screaming and yelled, "Help! Help me!" The lion was quick to jump on his body. The young man found himself lying flat on the floor looking up at the angry lion.
Hastily, the voice of the lion said , "Shut up! Shut up idiot! Do you want to get us both fired?"

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 .............................