Valentine’s day is around the corner.

To love.

To be loved.

Lovers.

Disagreement.

Missing each other.

wild bird flying along the canal

Passionate reunion.

This video, featuring scenes from nature and a pair of wild birds is dedicated to lovers out there.

Roses are red

Hydrangeas are blue

I lay on my bed

Thinking of you.

Strawberries are red

Their flowers are white

Why do I need

You by my side?

Roses are red

These flowers are blue

Kisses are sweet

And so are you.

Christmas trees and festivities brighten up homes, the streets and malls alike. What struck me most was the Christmas display at a Tangs that went

He makes all things beautiful in its time.

How true.

Like a dad who cares for his kids, He doesn’t molly coddle them. He lets them learn.

Patience is borne through waiting for trials to end.

The rewards from all the pain, trials and effort are worth it.

It’s worth a stroll down Orchard road at night for a closer look at the beautiful display.

Talking about orchard road at night during the Christmas season, we drove down orchard to see the Christmas light up.

Christmas trees punctuated the predominantly blue christmas street decor.

It is interesting how Christmas trees dominated the place.They weren’t actually part of the original Christmas story.. a story of love that’s mind boggling.

Christmas has got to be the biggest birthday celebration of the year. The birthday of God’s son, Jesus. That sacrificial baby is His gift of love. That’s what Christmas is about. A celebration of love.

Just attended a friend’s wedding.

She’s a very strong woman with a vibrant personality.
It was a traditional wedding held in an Anglican church. I was wondering how she would take that part in the scriptures that says that wives are to submit to their husbands.

Does submission equate to subservience?

Wedding Well Wishes. Friends and family write their well wishes for the weddiing couple on paper leaves.

As I entered the church, the receptionists guided me to a basket of paper leaves in the colours of fall. Each of us wrote a message for the wedding couple. Wishing them a wonderful marriage ahead with lots of babies on the way.

2 passages were chosen for the wedding.

• Ephesians 5:1-2, 21-33
• 1 Corinthians 13:1-7,13

I winced at the reading of the first, especially the part that goes : Wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord.

Isn’t that a recipe for abuse.

That verse is so often quoted by bullying men who insist that their wives obey their every whim and fancy. So upon marriage, the men gain a maid and someone who does his bidding.. who has to give whatever he asks for to her “master”.  My heart bled for her.

But that is not the way it was meant to be. Taken in its entirety, the men is to lead the wife, lead the family, the way Christ led, cared for and cleansed the church. Leadership in the Christian sense is about serving those you lead.

The husband makes all decisions in best interest of the wife. He feeds and cares for her, loves her.  For a woman to find such a man.. she’s got to be the luckiest woman alive. How many men actually fulfill that responsibility?

The wife in turn respects her husband.

It is all about respecting each other. Making decisions to the best interest of the other.
That is love.

Marriage is all about love.

But The Greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13 talks about what love really entails.

It isn’t all about fuzzy feelings from brain chemicals — you know the feeling of being in love.

Love is about patience. Kindness. Trust. That one passage sums it all.

That’s the blueprint of a great marriage.

The bride was as witty as ever. Her sparkling personality that we all love shone through.

She is embarking on a new journey that requires tremendous courage and trust. She’s a smart girl with a strong personality. She doesn’t dive into things without knowing what she’s getting herself into.

I believe she chose well and will have a wonderful, God-centered marriage.

Although this song, Remember Me This Way is more about friendship, it’s also about fleeting love.

Love.
Precious and fleeting.
I wept when I first saw this.

Heard this song and started crying again.
Just lost my unborn baby.. fleeting love.. never got to know the little one.. the heart never started beating.
Lost dreams. Excitement at first about our plans for the little one. Fleeting happiness.
Remembering mybaby.. the way it could have been.

I know you’re in heaven, with angels for your nannies.. until I meet you one day when my time here is up. I love you.

Jordan Hill - remember me this way

A friend once told me that men can be likened to champagne or orange juice.

The bad boys are like champagne. You know that type. You feel high when u drink champagne, but you get a nasty hangover the next day.

Bad boys are exciting. They are intoxicating to be with. Potentially addictive. But boy, do they leave a nasty after taste.

The nice guys are like orange juice. Orange juice is nice when you taste it. Good for you. Pleasant. But you don’t get high with good old orange juice. The soul mate. Best friend. The guy who is best for you. Whom smart girls would choose. Orange juice.

Which is yours?

Who did you fall in love with?

Which are you drawn to?

Champagne or orange juice.

Do share your experiences.

Zsa Zsa Gabor was a legendary beauty. She was born in 1917. So many decades later, at the age of 93, her physical beauty may have faded yet to her husband, Prince Frederic von Anhalt, she is still the apple of his eye.

The elderly couple, still in love, still caring for each other.

On August 16, 2010, Zsa Zsa Gabor fell unconscious. A priest was called to read her last rites just before she blacked out. She is still bed ridden, and was cared for by her loving husband.. to the point that he too collapsed from exhaustion.

Love. Caring for your loved one selflessly.. often at the expense of one’s own welfare.

Romance. Not exclusive to young couples, in the bloom of health.

The love between Zsa Zsa Gabor and Prince Frederic von Anhal.. a lasting love that defies age.. stands the test of time.

Now that is true romance.

Real love.

That’s what marriage is really about.

Fresh out of school, a young woman and her friends boarded a ship for a fun cruise. Hey, when you’re young, the world’s your oyster. There are so many things to see. So many experiences waiting for you.

The young lady,  vibrant and beautiful caught the eye of a gorgeous hunk. It was love at first sight.

Imagine being whisked away into a fairy tale romance, on a leisure cruise. The waters around, sometimes tranquil, other times tumultuous.

So he wasn’t a prince who had some kingdom at his beck and call but he was a perfect gentleman. Everything she could hope for in a guy.

He spoke of marriage. They would meet again after the cruise, to be declared husband and wife.

She gave in to the passion that engulfed them. They were as good as wed.

As the cruise ended, her lover gave a a beautifully wrapped gift, making her promise not to open it until she got home. Her heart leaped. Was it an engagement ring?

Once home and family hugs were exchanged, she rushed to her room, tore off the wrapping, eager to see the promise.

To her horror, the promise was one of death. The gift was a tiny coffin.

In it were the words “welcome to the world of AIDS.”

The lady, from Australia, shared her tale as a warning, hoping none others would be tricked the way she was.

I hate to bring bad news to the Orlando single female fans out there but Orlando just married his fiancee of 1 month, Miranda in a private and intimate ceremony.

Word got out when the stunning beauty, the secret bride was conspicuously missing.

They’d gotten married and were off on their honeymoon.

Let’s be magnanimous and with the Blooms a wonderful marriage ahead.

When my grandpa was young, his father remarried. Upset, the youth ran away from home and joined the crew on a ship, leaving his native home, Singapore.

Sailing from shore to shore, he met and fell in love on an island in Indonesia.

His step mom loved the runaway boy and sent his uncles to scour the islands for her step son.

Eventually, his uncle found him and persuaded my grandpa to come home.

Starry eyed grandma followed my hunky grandpa (he was an athlete who represented Malaya in the iron man games) back to Singapore.

Years passed. Grandma bore grandpa seven sons and one daughter.

Her once svelte, hourglass figure was gone.

She fell ill. Grandpa spent his fortune on doctors, trying to find a cure. She became morbidly obese and needed help to move around.

Grandpa, still in great shape loved her and faithfully tended to her needs. They survived a world war and raised a huge family together.

She died.

Grandpa, a chain smoker quit smoking in memory of her. He never puffed a cigarette again.

That twinkle in his eyes vanished with her death.

Everyday, for over a decade, he spoke about going home to her. Love lasted beyond the grave. Christians, he longed for his reunion with his love and wife in heaven.

He had a stroke and was paralyzed from waist down.

One day, he told one of his sons he was going home. He said goodbye to his loved ones.

The next day, he had a massive heart attack.

Doctors could not save him.

He died.

He looked happier in death than he had since grandma passed away.

He was finally reunited.. with his love.

What do you see when you look into the mirror?

A nose that is too big?
A glaring pimple?
A plain jane?
The world’s most beautiful person?

A person you accept, whom you love, flaws and all?

Self esteem.

How you view yourself is directly related to your happiness.

A person with low self esteem tends towards depression and negativity.

Unfortunately, many parents, afraid their kids get swollen headed, make remarks that affect the child’s self esteem.

‘Such a clever kid,’ a friend may remark.

“You’ve got to be kidding. He did so badly in his exams,” comes the reply.

That doesn’t to much for the boy’s self esteem does it?

‘Your daughter is so pretty,’ says a friend.

“No way. Look at that big mouth. So uncouth,” comes the reply from a   mom or dad who is worried the girl would end up vain and proud.

All those attempts at fostering humility may well backfire. The boy grows up thinking he’s stupid. The girl ends up thinking she’s ugly. Both grow up with low self esteem. 

Parents have a huge part to play in shaping their child’s self esteem.

So what do you do if you suffer from low self esteem?

For starters, give yourself a break. Stop knocking yourself down.

Write down all the things you have achieved.

Take up a hobby you love.

Go do something you always wanted to, but never got down to it.

Show yourself some love.