Before the hands of the clock struck 12, turning 1st Jan 2006 into a past memory, a very pleasant surprise came by.
The long-disappeared ring dropped out of a file holding recycled papers as I sat down to jot some details over some plans I have. I have taken the ring out before I went to China for a short course last Nov but came back to find the ring missing.
I searched high and low for any sign of it, but stopped short of flipping through the file as the part on moving house took most of my thoughts away. I dredged my failing memory banks to recall where I left the ring. Drawers were thrown wide open, pockets emptied, books flipped but NO ring.
Out of pure luck, it fell out and it is safely back on my hand once more. *smiles* I guess this is the best surprise I have for years.
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I did a draft yesterday before the year finished off, but threw it into the cyberspace garbage bin as it lacked originality. Was thinking of collating a pile of statistics for my faithful readers but decided otherwise. *beams*
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If I remembered right, 2005 New Year celebrations were called off due to the then-recent tsunami which took place on Dec 26.
Some friends asked of my well-being after the tsunami strucked, as I was doing the SG-Australia route. I was then in Fremantle, Australia and only got to know the disaster struck over the shortwave radiowaves which I listened in then much later.
In the blink of an eye, a year has passed on. Somehow, our mind play tricks on us.
When we were in primary and secondary schools, we were only interested in the holidays to come.
When we were in the army, we were only counting down to when we can be discharged.
When we were up to our neck into studies (higher learning institutions), we looked forward to
-time with our "steads"
-term breaks
-graduation
Now that we are in the work force, we crane out necks to see when we can take leave for a breather from our hectic work schedule.
Of course, those of us who have moved on to parenthood, you probably look forward you do not have to carry the barrage of items with your child. (Ok... it might not be entirely true, but it is a fact that resonates in your feelings, is it not?)
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Point taken. The next year will soon be onto us again. Trust me, every year has a 1st Jan. It does not bother me if I do not celebrate with the millions of people out in the world.
To me, the New Year and most of the public holidays are but another day to live fruitfully. Indeed, there are many who lie on the deathbed realising that they do not wish to die as they have too many things they loved; words they have not said; letters they have not penned... the list goes on.
Man is a recalcitrant procrastinator. Often we take our loved ones for granted.
Men, hardly speak a word of 'I love you' once they have married their girlfriends.
Women, forget how to be loving to their husbands and end up nagging at their husbands who learned and preached 'deafness' as a quality developed after marriage.
The lists of what-nots is not exhaustive... If I continue to rattle off here, I probably have to brew caffenie-laced Ipoh white coffee to continue on.
Call me a cynic. The new year or whatever, even my birthday, signifies little to me. We have but one day less after our so-called 'enjoyment' dies down.
I have learnt much during the last year. But there is more to be learnt. Until I draw my last breath, my learning will not be complete.I think it is time
to face yourself again.
Then again,
it is always time. - Unknown
We learn something everyday; for the newly weds, they learn how to live together as a family; for the students, it is the endless stream of knowledge to equip them for their future; for the working generation, we learn how to survive in all circumstances.
Last but not least, I wish all a fruitful new year to come.
2 comments:
Celebration of New Year need not be celebration going on but rather, it's a well wishes session to people close to us; friends, family and loved ones. Agreed on the significant of 1st Jan of each year or even on birthday, but many of us always use this time of the year to start afresh, achieve goals, etc. Maybe it's because it's a NEW year, OLD stuffs aside or just a time easier to remember. Hi! New Year is also a great selling point for many corporations - "Want to have a slimmer you? Start on this New Year!"
To effect a change, the use of the 'new year' as a marker is merely a formality for many.
Changes can be effected anytime; it all boils down to WHEN you want to do it.
As said in another post of mine, Man is a relcalitrant procrastinator. How often than not, we leave things to the last min and not get down to clear the issue once and for all.
Of course we are talking about humans here. So the indecision or albeit procrastination is often too late for any early changes.
How often we have come across people or even ourselves saying
'Aiya... SHOULD have done it before' after incidents/accidents happen.
When an unexpected pregnancy happens, the unprepared couple would say: 'aiya.. should have use condom/ pill lah!'
Point said.
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