Shake up the Happiness
I have to admit this post is stimulated by a highly narcissistic reason. I was chatting with Choobs (one of my secondary school long time best buds) on Whatsapp for about an hour unknowingly. And at the end of our conversation, she casually said she enjoyed reading my blog. :‘)
I will not lie. I have been intending to blog, but I had no compelling reason to. Nor did I have any specific topic to blog about anyway. I mean, I could’ve just shown you guys my sloth lifestyle as I sit in front of my MacBook from dusk till dawn in my PJs. Or, proclaim the things I ingest at every meal (which is a lot by the way). Oh how boring that would be!
Then there’s my Berlin and Paris trips that I have yet to blog about, but scrap that. I get so tired uploading all these pictures and telling you about a place which probably 900,000 other travel sites/blogs already do. So why not take a peak into my thoughts through my blog posts instead? (COOLER RIGHT hehe)
So anyway Black Friday just passed us by, and so did Thanksgiving Day. Both of which are highly Americanized and I don’t think anywhere/anyone else in the world celebrates these 2 days as extensively as the Americans. Not even in Europe, I can testify that! (maybe only UK? I’m not sure).
Thanksgiving – It’s a word that embodies so much emotions. Giving thanks can be expressed in numerous ways, to various people. And with each day as a gift from God, we indeed have lots to be thankful for.
Recently, I chanced upon one of my friend’s Facebook status, and she said:
“It’s moments like these I asked myself if I love what I’m doing right now? Every family events were missed, special occasions were missed etc Not forgetting seeing happy families and loving couples traveling together as you take your crew seat in front of them…. You wished you are seated at the passenger seat yourself as you look at them having fun and smiling to yourself. That pain, no one could understand… Every smile, there’s always heartbreak and tears. That heavy heart as we roll our luggages to the check-in counter, the control centre and leaving our loved ones behind. It just breaks my heart that some passengers just tries to be funny and make our lives difficult and of course there are good ones that makes our flights memorable. Having said that, life isn’t a bed of roses as you cannot get the best of both world and sacrifices definitely have to be made. We have to make every moment count and to treasure what we have. Tell your loved ones you love and miss them everyday because I just hate being away from my loved ones………..”
(Yeah and you guessed it right. She works as an Air Stewardess.)
When I read her post, it hit right home for me, since I will be spending Christmas this year without my family for the first time ever, in all 22 years of my existence. It’s heart wrenching to celebrate such a joyous occasion without family. It’s not easy to have to go to church filled with families all dressed up for mass, enjoying each others’ company while you sit there at the corner of the pew and feel invisible.
Christmas 2011
I guess the only consolation would be that FF is coming over to visit me during the Christmas season. But like I’ve always said, family has that special place in my heart that can never be replaced. :‘)
“You live longer once you realize that any time spent being unhappy is wasted.”
– Ruth E. Renkl
Since I’ve been told that I am someone who’s too solemn, I don’t wanna end this post off being all sappy and emotional. But I do wanna dedicate this post to all who have played a part some way or another in shaping who I am today. The journey has been enriching and with each passing day, I am learning, understanding, and appreciating the people/things that were placed in my life for a strategic reason. So if you are reading this, thank you. Our paths have miraculously crossed, and I’m sure the Big Man in heaven knows what he’s doing.
P.S. Remember to hug someone today and give thanks while you still can! :)