Redang Island Escapade

Serene blue skies.
White warm sands with occasional touch from the hand of midas from the conflagrant sun's ray
Comforting breeze drifting on by from the crystal clear ocean, so transparent its looks like a large plains of glass. When the breeze gently touches your skin, you no longer have any anxiety or worries. All you'll ever want at that moment is sitting on the warm sand with an umbrella overhead, staring at the cool ocean. The tranquility is simply impeccable. Nothing could interrupt this moment of indulgence. It is most deeply treasured, especially after 10 hours of travelling by bus and ferry from the restless hustling city to a place i can call peace.

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Welcome to Redang Island.

The visit to this paradise has been a fantastic experience. Of course; many thanks to everybody that is involved in making it great. Friends whose company completely fill you with relaxation and fun, strangers who are eager to play beach games with anyone, resort employees who are eager to make your stay as enjoyable as possible, right to every babes in bikinis. I'm just being honest.

Its most sad though, that i actually brought my kite there and couldn't fly it because of the endless rain on the second day, instead spent my evening reading a book and learning to play mahjong. A game particularly favoured by chinese aunties of asian origins, its actually gambling. It seems more like a puzzle game, like multiplayer tetris or bejeweled. Because you actually have to look for about 4 or 5 sets of three cubes of the same pattern which could be a chinese character, numeric circles and other symbols.

I always loved the beach. The sand fascinates me. Shells fascinates me. Corals of all pattern and colour fascinates me. Whoa! baby sharks and big ass ugly fishes fascinates me for sure.

But the most fascinating thing of all,

the most attractive and seductive,

was the.......

o c e a n .

It more of the endless mysteries of the ocean.

If you have read 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea by Jules Verne', then you'll adore the sea more than you ever had before. Brilliant writing and inspirations from an english yachtman and prolific writer whose work created unimaginable wonders.

Snorkelling is the primary activity throughout the trip, what-can-i-say its a coral reef island.
I don't think i snorkeled so much in my life as a matter of fact! Just facing down at the sea bed looking at mostly dead corals really. The challenge was maintly to look for living corals and exotic living things like sea cucumber for example. Oh, we fed the fishes as well, you hold the bread and stretch your arms out generously and the fishes will come drilling the bread responsively and if you are unlucky; your fingers as well.

On the fine white sand, we joined other tourists playing beach volley ball and beach football. Three words: Tough, Fun, and Hilarious

We checked the reputable blue sand of Redang. What a crappy rubbish. I thought its going to be a large strech of bay in blue!. I got there and see people rubbing the sand with their feet eagerly, so eager, most of them were like dancing in a weird way. Someone yells in mandarin " i found it". That person puts his finger in the middle of the circle of attention, he rubs it lightly and gently. Oooooooo... Its a friggin 1 cm long and 2 mm wide strecth of blue sand!. Tragic! Talk about disappointment. Honesty, i wanted to bring home like a bottle of blue sand, but its totally not possible.

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The rising sun was yet to appear over the horizon to paint out the night sky. However, its great strength still shines on its approach as i wait sitting on a chair in the porch of an unoccupied cabin by the beach. The stubborn radiance wrestles with the dying moon for precedence. Its flaming gaze slowly lightens the purple blanket overhead. And the result is a beautiful sunrise. I continue to watch silently as Lye came with his camera and sit beside me; just staring. Soon, i decided to walk further down the beach to witness the sun hiding shyly behind a little island. I calmly hurry to see if i can improve my view of the fireball; nope i can't. Then, the rest came...

But of course, time rolls onwards. Night fades away and with it, the morning light is already moving in to replace it and it only means one thing; breakfast.

A meal awaits and a long journey home is most certain now.

I carry my bags and walks towards the ferry glad knowing that i bring home a piece of new experience.

-Fin-

The Discovery

Referring to my earlier post "The Rich Young Man", where the destination point brought me to a confusion about the Gift of God; Amazing Grace of Salvation against Protocols of a Christian. I remember those moments when it seems like a scam. A slow delegation of responsibility into your christian life as you understand more. From believe, to read and evangelise to many other more. Here is my discovery.


The answers have finally been revealed. Praise the Lord.

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I am to tell you, if you do adhere to those code of correct conduct just trying to earn a way to heaven. It ain't working. All that is done is making your religious. Being religious damn hell do not get you to heaven, = does not allow you the opportunity to spend eternity with Him.

Basically, salvation is a gift from God. Gift by definition is something that is bestowed voluntarily and without compensation. So its something that cannot be taken back. A gift! damnnit. So, God won't and do not take back salvation. However, it is possible to lose your salvation. The gift is given to you and it depends on how you handle it. You probably render the salvation void by stop believing. Stop believing in God, that is. Like if you start worshipping devils or something.

Kara brought the light to my cellgroup discussion when this issue was on the floor. Right after i finish illustrating my point. Without a second of silence, she took over and related to her experience back in some church she attended before. There, the people worship God and evangelise and knows the bible inside out, however, at their leisure time, they smoke, they visit pubs and clubs and erm you know~ sin. So she wrapped it up "It comes back to the foundation, where it is about our relationship with God. That is what that really matters. A relationship with God gives you strength, grace, favour, and many more. The greatest thing you should want from the relationship should be His Love. His Love is amazing in ways i don't know how to illustrate with mere words. Hold on to it mates.

I can see many Christians lives their life on rules, on commandments blindly. Do this, believe this, do that and you'll please God. What the heck?! If there's anything that I'm fed up with, its DeaD rules. Senseless Regulations. Codes. Curfews. Red tapes. Please fill out this form. Please sign your name on all three copies. Traffic laws, tax laws, draft laws. I'm being strangled by authoritarian bureaucracy. One of these days I'll show them. I'm fed up with their overbearing bungling. It's certainly true that government that governs least governs best. I demand the sound from the hammer of justice and the clashings of the bell of freedom. No more restraints and less difficult situations. But friends, take a look at Romans 13:1-10, especially the part where it concludes. into one rule. Just one rule, one tough and simple one. Not so tough though if you love not with your own love, but by the channeling of God's Love through you.


Love is the One law you need. And The Greatest Love comes from He who died for your sins.

Respect My Authorita!

I remember the word authority on my management notes just months ago, what i remember from the notes is simply, authority is different from responsibility. Authority cannot be delegated while responsibility can. Yadda yadda...

Don't you think that Life cannot exist without authority? Its just there at every level of existence. It lives at every level of life. It could be because authority is part of the very nature of God. God himself have the highest authority, so if we are to be Christ like, we need to know how to practice authority. So basically "Authority is Life. Get used to it!".

Of course i know how suck@$$ when we have to eat commands from higher authority, especially when we deem them to be incompetent or ridiculous. When you don't obey, punishment must be applied to set example to the others.

Courtesy of google image search

Eric Cartman--" Respect my authorita!" *Hits subject with stick

Fellowship & Fragile Relationships

In the past days since i last wrote, my earthly concern was mostly about my job. Trying to achieve sales, getting the promotions through the phoneline to the understanding of every customer i call. Every different customer i call, i have to relate differently for they have different need, came from different background, have different financial situation. At that point, i went one level deeper in my understanding of my second purpose of life, fellowship.

I thank the Lord for making sure i didn't skip the main service, where i hear Ps Lawrence spoke on Fellowship. It has opened my mind to understand people better, especially about how far someone achieved inspite of their hurt, and not how far more they still have to go in life. We tend to compare with everyone else in everything we do, if any of them appears to be incompetent, critism would be hurled. Everybody didnt start out fair in life, which means if we compare between ourself with other people, it is not valid. Imagine there is this running race, everybody starts at a different start point and has the same final point, the people nearer to the final would certainly have less difficulty in reaching the end, less effort required altogether. The competition is invalid. No further explaination provided.

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JobLife

Look at the nature of my job, overlook the goal that i try to achieve when i make a ring to each of these customers. I hope you see that every customer i called, from the very moment i said Hello, a relationship is formed; Friend to Friend, Educator to the uneducated, Provider to a receiver. Not just a goal orientated relationship; Sales agent to customer.

I enjoy educating my "new friends" about technology, things that i learn here~especially from the training on printing mechanisms. I would chat on, teaching them how to handle certain things, or if to non-savvys' i would advice them on how to create an email address.
Fulfilling the friend to friend, i experienced one particular call from a customer who actually called in looking for someone to talk to, that she may make a decision on what offer to take. Many times, i don't give a shit about HP, i just tell what i fell and know. By the way, whoever is reading, Hewlett Packard printers are really the best in the market but their camera suck-@$$ big time.

By the way, I have made countless friends from calling my list of people... and dislikes actually. Its not in my control, some customers are designed with the purpose only to piss sales agents on the phone.
In a lot of cases, these relationship are fragile. It takes a lot to keep it intact, in my working world it is inevitable to build and drop the relationship just like that. I miss the voice of those who purchases from me, their voice when they state their payment details. Lover-ly!

On a sidenote, i have once again witnessed the fragileness of relationship within my good friends lately. I have seen too many boy girl relationship alway result in despair, disappointment and resentment. Things could never go back like before, regardless of how the situation turn out to be. No one listens or even thinks before entering a relationship. People, heed me, think, feel and listen before you decide to be with someone. It'll help..... Don't regret later.

*especially to men, don't get in a relationship just to get in some pants.

Lol, Cheers