Ulu Bendul Rainforest, Malaysia in celebration of Earth Day

Equatorial rain forests, Earth's lungs. A mass of a multitude of giant trees that harbour so much life yet its so quite. Early in the 20th century our civilisations looked at the wild as places to tame with development. The human agenda then was to cull as much of the wild as possible, exploit as much of its seemingly inexhaustible wealth. Beat it down with cities, factories and agriculture; get rid of beasts that are dangerous to humans. We humans rule this planet and we were intent in being the masters of nature. 

Is nature humbling us now? We are products of nature. We can't go very far from it nor can we mess with its processes without dealing with troublesome consequences. We are realising that even if we don't live in forests anymore we need them more than ever. They are the silent manufacturers of the fresh air so vital to our survival. They provide us the atmospheric balance that make us take for granted that we are actually living in a comfortable blue-green bubble of life that is floating in the desolate and harsh environment of outer space. They are repositories of yet so much undiscovered variety that throws open the smorgasbord of potential inventions that can make our future exciting.

It is also the place we go for wonder and inspiration when we are tired of each other. Let's celebrate the wonder of Earth this Earth Day. Lets learn to leave nature alone. We need her more than she needs us.

Earth image courtesy of NASA: nasa.gov

Photos are from Ulu Bendul Permanent Reserve Forest, Kuala Pilah, Malaysia. A watershed that supplies water for hundreds of thousands of people downstream. Taken April 16, 2016. Original photos are 20MP @ 180 res. If you like a copy of the original seen in this post just send me an email (except of course the Earth pix).

All the best to SpaceX on the upcoming Falcon 9 launch

Falcon 9 CRS-8 poised for launch in 4 hours from Cape Canaveral. Photo courtesy NASA

Keeping my fingers crossed for the successful launch of Falcon 9 and the subsequent recovery of its booster rocket. The indomitable spirit of SpaceX to push forward quickly with the second launch after the Falcon 9 blow up in June last year is an inspiration. Space exploration is essential to our continued existence in the universe. From mining for resources to colonising planets and moons we are at the heels of the space age. Companies like SpaceX are the vanguard of this era with their idea of making travel into space more economical. The risk that they take with every launch is propelling us to an exciting extra planetary future. In a decade the world is going to need lots more aerospace specialists.

Celebrating Earth Day, April 22

We live in an amazing world that inspires wonder.

Where variety is its splendour.

We are but new arrivals

part of its grandeur

living off of its lushness.

Yet how often is it that we stop

to admire the simple beauty

of verdant valleys

and luscious life

that take us away from the madness of a civilisation

that could care less

about the magnificent mother

whose benevolence is beyond compare?

Not often enough!

It is time we take stock of the vestiges of nature around us and ponder on the significance of its survival to ours.

Photos are from Gasing Hill Educational forest in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. A vestige of nature that was hard fought by the residents of the city to preserve. Taken March 27, 2016. Original photos are 20MP @ 180 res. If you like a copy of the original seen in this post just send me an email.

The Extra Planetary Colonization Age Draws Nearer

November 23 2015 will be marked as a historic year for space travel. Blue Origin a company set to compete with SpaceX has done it. They landed a booster successfully on a target with the goal of reusing it. While this was a test flight and the rocket was nothing in size compared to SpaceX's Falcons, they proved the concept viable–which is to land the booster vertically on a designated point on earth with the intention of reusing it. I hope the two teams at Blue Origin and SpaceX have enough magnanimity to share their data. Undoubtedly the efforts of both these companies are going to set a new standard especially in lowering the cost of access into space. If both the cargo pod and the boosters of the rocket can be wholly or partially be reused the cost of sending satellites into space, let alone people will come down. That is good news for all of us as it means streaming wireless technology will expand rapidly. Kudos to Jeff Bezos founder of Blue Origin and Amazon.com and all the best to Elon Musk's SpaceX until their next launch.

Mars is the next Human frontier, lets save our fossil fuel for Mars climate change and not waste it damaging Earth.

6-Year-Olds' Wit

A 1^st grade school teacher had twenty-six students in her class. She presented each child in her classroom the 1st half of a well-known proverb and asked them to come up with the remainder of the proverb. It's hard to believe these were actually done by first graders. Their insight may surprise you. While reading, keep in mind that these are first-graders, 6-year-olds, because the last one is a classic! 

Love People and Use Things, not love things and use people

Did not want to lose this nice story that had been floating in email cyberspace. Not an unusual story but I liked the plug at the end which is the title of this post.

I am a mother of three (ages 14, 12, 3) and have recently completed my college  degree. The last  class I had to take was Sociology. The teacher  was absolutely inspiring with the qualities that I wish every human  being had been graced with. Her last  project of the term was called, 'Smile.'

The class was  asked to go out and smile at three people and document their  reactions. I am a very  friendly person and always smile at everyone and say hello anyway. So, I  thought this would be a piece of cake, literally.

Soon after we  were assigned the project, my husband, youngest son, and I went out to  McDonald's one crisp March morning. It was just  our way of sharing special playtime with our son. We were  standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone  around us began to back away, and then even my  husband did.

I did not  move an inch... an overwhelming feeling of panic welled up inside of me  as I turned to see why they had moved. As I turned  around I smelled a horrible 'dirty body' smell, and there standing  behind me were two poor homeless men. As I looked  down at the short gentleman, close to me, he was  'smiling'

His beautiful  sky blue eyes were full of God's Light as he searched for acceptance he said,  'Good day' as he counted the few coins he had been  clutching. The second  man fumbled with his hands as he stood behind his friend. I realized the  second man was mentally challenged and the blue-eyed gentleman was his  salvation. I held my tears as I stood there  with them.

The young lady at the counter  asked him what they wanted. He said, 'Coffee is all Miss'  because that was all they could afford. (If they wanted to sit in the  restaurant and warm up, they had to buy something. He just wanted to be  warm).

Then I really felt it - the  compulsion was so great I almost reached out and embraced the little man  with the blue eyes. That is when I noticed all eyes in the restaurant were set on me, judging my every action.

I smiled and asked the young lady  behind the counter to give me two more breakfast meals on a separate  tray. I then walked around the corner to  the table that the men had chosen as a resting spot I put the tray on  the table and laid my hand on the blue-eyed gentleman's cold  hand.

He looked up at me, with tears in  his eyes, and said, 'Thank you.'

I leaned over, began to pat his  hand and said, 'I did not do this for you. God is here working through  me to give you hope'

I started to cry as I walked away  to join my husband and son. When I sat down my husband smiled at me and  said, 'That is why God gave you to me, Honey, to give me  hope..'

We held hands for a moment and at  that time, we knew that only because of the Grace that we had been given  were we able to give.

We are not church goers, but we  are believers. That day showed me the pure Light  of God's sweet love. I returned to college, on the last  evening of class, with this story in hand. I turned in 'my project' and the  instructor read it. Then she looked up at me and said,  'Can I share this?'

I slowly nodded as she got the  attention of the class. She began to read and that is when  I knew that we as human beings and being part of God share this need to  heal people and to be healed.

In my own way I had touched the  people at McDonald's, my son,the instructor, and every soul that shared the classroom on the last night I spent as a  college student.

I graduated with one of the  biggest lessons I would ever learn:

UNCONDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE.

 Much love and compassion is sent to each and every person who may read this and learn how to


LOVE PEOPLE AND USE THINGS -


NOT LOVE THINGS AND USE PEOPLE.

Being Generous is Being Selfless

This story was circulating in emails in the days when email was the vogue. I had saved it because it inspires generosity. Nowadays I hear radio announcers advising young people to be generous by "paying for someone (random stranger) else's meal." It seems when you do something kind for someone you can feel good about yourself and put your kindness on Facebook and see how many people think you are a wonderful person. How shallow! First of all an act of kindness must go to someone in need and secondly it should be selfless–not as a selfish act to show off to your friends. Here is a story I saved from the days when emails were the vogue.

A nurse took a tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside. 
'Your son is here,' she said to the old man.
 She had to repeat the words several times before the patient's eyes opened, 

Heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack, he dimly saw the young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent.

He reached out his hand. The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones,
squeezing a message of love and encouragement.

 The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed. All through the night the young Marine sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength.  Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile. 
He refused. Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and of the night noises of the hospital - the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and moans of the other patients. 

Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his son all through the night.

 Along towards dawn, the old man died. The Marine released the now lifeless hand he had been holding and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, he waited.

 Finally, she returned. She started to offer words of sympathy, but the Marine interrupted her.

'Who was that man?' he asked.   
The nurse was startled, 'He was your father,' she answered.
'No, he wasn't,' the Marine replied. 'I never saw him before in my life..'
' Then why didn't you say something when I took you to him?'

' I knew right away there had been a mistake, but I also knew he needed his son, and his 
son just wasn't here. 
When I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son, 
knowing how much he needed me, I stayed.'


Tough Job Application Question

You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night, when you pass by a bus stop and you see three people waiting for the bus:

1. An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
2. An old friend who once saved your life.
3. The perfect partner you have been dreaming about and haven't seen for years.

Which one would you choose to offer a ride to, knowing that there could only be one passenger in your car?

This is a moral / ethical dilemma that was once actually used as part of a job application.. You could pick up the old lady, because she is going to die, and thus you should save her first. Or you could take the old friend because he once saved your life, and this would be the perfect chance to pay him back. However, you may never be able to find your perfect mate again.

The candidate who was hired (out of 200 applicants) had no trouble coming up with his answer. He simply answered: 'I would give the car keys to my old friend and let him take the lady to the hospital. I would stay behind and wait for the bus with the partner of my dreams.

How to find a missing watch-analogue

There once was a farmer who discovered that he had lost his watch in the barn. It was no ordinary watch because it had sentimental value for him. After searching high and low among the hay for a long while; he gave up and enlisted the help of a group of children playing outside the barn.

He promised them that the person who found it would be rewarded.

Hearing this, the children hurried inside the barn, went through and around the entire stack of hay but still could not find the watch. Just when the farmer was about to give up looking for his watch, a little boy went up to him and asked to be given another chance.

The farmer looked at him and thought, "Why not? After all, this kid looks sincere enough."

So the farmer sent the little boy back in the barn. After a while the little boy came out with the watch in his hand! The farmer was both happy and surprised and so he asked the boy how he succeeded where the rest had failed.

The boy replied, "I did nothing but sit on the ground and listen. In the silence, I heard the ticking of the watch and just looked for it in that direction."

Moral:

A peaceful mind can think better than a worked up mind. Allow a few minutes of silence to your mind every day, and see, how sharply it helps you to set your life the way you expect it to be...!

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