Tuesday, May 30, 2006
memorial weekend part I
the week leading up to my graduation was just crazy.....many mishaps and discouraging incidents happened all at once so i was not in the mood to celebrate at all.
But god was still in control and we all; minus one, made it in one piece.
Here are some pictures; courtesy of maria and stewart.
i just learned the significance of these colors.
my purple gown= school color
blue hood= education major
(it dawned on me after reading jen post for her graduation that i noticed her hood color is also blue)
after graduation, we went to legion of honor.
it was rather windy and cold so we just sat in our cars and ate snacks except for this one picture.....
the girls at china beach
At night, my parents hosted a dinner for me at fontana’s.
my sweet parents!
canaan folks
more canaan folks
friends from l.a.
more friends!
i know this photo is over exposed... but i had to post it to prove that gracie really gave me a kiss!
more pics from graduation 06
that was just the beginning of my memorial day weekend....
but i want to say a big thanks to everyone that came and celebrated my graduation with me, especially those who live 500 miles away. =D
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
almost there....
two more weeks to the end of this school year for the preschool. so it means reports, profiles and everything is due by next tue., but since i only work part time, so i need to get these things ready for the parents by tomorrow. i've been working on these profile books in the last month, all 24 of them.... and as tired as i'm feeling right now yet it's rewarding to see the progress that these children had made since last year.
i asked one of the child today during assessment to point out one similar qualities between the "little people" i was holding. after much thought, he answered "they are both made by God!" it took me awhile to discern whether he passed that particular concept that i was looking for, but isn't that just too cute. =D
anyways... after tomorrow i'll get the long weekend to relax, and the best part is that my parents and some LA friends will be visiting! yay!
Thursday, May 18, 2006
cap and gown
went on campus today to pick up my cap and gown. i'll be wearing a purple gown with baby blue color hood =p woo-hoo! haha yes, i thought they were not such complimentary color.... but who cares.
and since there were no more extra free tickets left for the commencement i had to search on craigslist.... some ppl are really making a profit out of it...$40/per ticket??? shocking!!! that's kind of wrong don't you think?
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
tag
Tagged by bob
1. Four Jobs:
a. data entry for my dad's company in taiwan (just a summer thing)
b. cashier at a bookstore in college
c. teaching- infant/toddler
d. teaching- preschool
2. Four Things I Wish I Had Done Earlier In My Life:
a. live in a city (new york or england)
b. learn more languages
c. keep up with my piano lessons
d. speak up more often
3. Four Places I Have Lived:
a. taipei, taiwan
b. tokyo, japan
c. alameda, ca
d. los angeles, ca
4. Four Countries I Have Been To:
a. australia
b. norway
c. thailand
d. spain
5. Four Countries I Would Like to Visit:
a. italy(tuscany and coastal area)
b. israel
c. scotland
d. greece
6. Four of My Favorite Dishes:
a. dim sum (i like almost all of them)
b. sashimi (salmon or yellowtail)
c. hamburger
d. steak
7. Four Sites I Visit Daily:
a. gmail
b. yahoo
i don't surf on a daily basis unless i'm looking for something...
8. Four Software Applications I Cannot Live Without:
a. firefox
b. microsoft word
c. trillian
d. picasa
9. Four Things I'll Never Forget:
a. missions trip to jamaica in 1995
b. my fellowship group from cfc in berkeley
c. the day i rededicated my life to christ
d. growing up in taiwan and childhood memories with grandparents
10. I Tag....
a.
paulineb.
andreac.
jend.
jacob
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
barb wire fence
our community group watched the third session of Exposing the Matrix by andy stanley on freedom, and it really hit home for me. often times, i think of god as a strict asian father; no this, no that and it’s all about rules and what not to do. even though mentally i know it’s not true, but it sure could feel like that when god closes doors/keep distance from the things i think is good. andy stanley started the sermon by pointing out that our god is actually all about freedom and not rules. from the beginning, in genesis, after god created man and woman he gave them only ONE rule that is to not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. he gave that rule because he wanted to give man the freedom to choose to obey or disobey, and also to establish his authority over man. other than that one rule, adam and eve could enjoy anything and everything in the garden of eden. but later when adam and eve decided to disobey god they lost all the freedom that was there before. it was sin that caused men to loose freedom; they lost an intimate relationship with god and with one another and they are not free of shame and guilt after that . but it wasn’t god who took the freedom away, but sin.
later on in the sermon he also gave an illustration from his experience as a child. when he was about 9 or 10 years old, he and a bunch of his friends were walking in the woods. after awhile they noticed that on the other side of the barb wire was a field of green pasture. then they all thought why they should walk in the woods with all these bumps and rocks when they could be walking on an easier or nicer path on the other side. so they climbed over the barb wires and started walking on the green pasture. they could see a flock of bulls further out in the fields, but they didn’t think much of it. after a few minutes, they noticed those bulls were all coming closer toward them, so they panic and started running and of course the bulls began to chase after them as well. somehow, they managed to climb over the barb wire fence again and as they fell to the ground panting for air, he saw those bulls on the other side of the fence with their heads sticking out of the wire panting for air as well. at that moment, he realized that the same barb wire that he thought were preventing him from having something better became his salvation. his story painted a vivid picture for me and shed light into my current life situation. there are times i like to think that “grass is always greener on the other side.” or to think that my life would be better if this or that. perhaps i haven’t seen any bulls coming toward me and I complain about the fences that god placed in my life. but in reality i can trust that those fences are actually there to protect me and to give me more freedom.
lastly, andy stanley pointed out that the focus is not to “keep out” the fenced area, but to really know the fence maker. many christians struggled to follow god’s will in their life, because they don’t’ know who god is; rule without relationship = distrust which leads to rebellion. in other words, i don’t have to know why the fence is there but i want to know the one who put them there.
