the Rose and the Venus Flytrap

I one day had a very bad time at school and when I went home I tossed my school bag on the floor and just went up my to my room feeling like a bucket of manure had turned over right above my head. I won't go further in describing the feeling. I am sure you have had such a feeling. If you haven't had such a feeling - good on you because I can assure you, it is not a very nice feeling and you should not try it.

Anyway, while I was fuming in my room, my grandfather came up to my room to see if he could help the situation.

"What's wrong kiddo? Had a rough day at school eh?"

"Yea......"

"Not going to ask you what happened but I think I know your feeling of not being able to vent out all that frustration; the anger; the sense of absolute dissatisfaction! Tough eh?"

"Yea......."

"You see, the thing about feelings like these - it makes you feel miserable, feel down right horrible, tires you out. It makes you want to lash out at your enemy, maybe even punch him in the face really hard. Even I get these feelings every now and then, it's not easy to overcome such feelings."

I continued to listen.

"It's like.... hmmmmm... it's like having a Rose plant and Venus Flytrap in a same flower pot that resides inside me. The Rose...... ahhh.. the Rose... your grandmother adored me every time I bought her roses. Roses are red, beautiful and simply just so nice to look at. Kinda gives you the calming effect don't it? But the Venus Flytrap...... now that's a bad one. Vicious, unforgiving and by God it just eats up whatever insects that walk in between those carnivorous leaves. You study science right? What happens when you put two plants in the same flower pot?"

"Erm.... they fight for nutrients."

"That's absolutely right! It is always a struggle for me as well. The Rose and Venus Flytrap in the same flower pot that resides in me forever tries to dominate my spirit."

I listened intently and digested what he had said, and then I asked, "Which one wins?"

He looked at me with a smile, "The one I care for more."



~Path of Time~ by Micky Foo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License

more than just lost and found~

Leslie was on the way back home from work, taking the usual 20 minute walk from office back to his house. On that particular evening, it was slightly different walk. You see, Leslie had this funny lil' habit. As he walked home from work everyday, he'd count the tiles has he made his way home. The very few friends he has who are close to him say that Leslie found it soothing and it was a way to arrange his thoughts. Anyway, this particular evening as he counted the tiles he stumbled upon what looks like a wallet.

The wallet looked old. Wasn't very thick and probably even looked discoloured. Leslie would have normally walked past it. But somehow, this wallet caught his attention but he couldn't help but satisfy his curiosity and he eventually bent down to pick the wallet to his own surprise. Leslie was a life-goes-by sort of person, not concerned about anything else except for his usual routines that made him feel like himself.

As he picked it up, he was wondering about the contents of the wallet. Upon opening it, there were only five pieces of one dollar bills and a very well folded piece of note. Leslie didn't know what to make of it because the note was too short to be called a letter but too long to be a simple note. He didn't really want to read it because he felt it was violating the privacy of the owner but it was probably the only to find who the owner was because the wallet had no identification card whatsoever. Not even a credit card!

Upon reading the note, Leslie could conclude 2 things - 1. The sender was a woman named Jessie; 2. The recipient was Joseph. The note was written in a very nice, feminine, old fashion styled cursive handwriting. The words were a little faded but Leslie could still make out the words. The note expressed Jessie's love for Joseph but ended the note with a sad line saying she was probably never going to see him again because she had to leave for overseas to further her studies and was not sure when she would ever return.

In Leslie's mind, he could be certain about one thing - the note was something very dear to Joseph. The note was dated in 1959, 50 years ago!

Deep down, Leslie knew exactly how it felt to lose someone he loved so much due to such circumstances for his ex-girlfriend left him to further her studies abroad. Leslie then decided he was going to look for Joseph in order to give him back his wallet along with the note that he holds on to dearly.

The following day after work, Leslie started his search for Joseph. First stop was to pay the address written at the back of the note a visit. Leslie didn't know if it was a good idea, neither was he certain who would be living in that address, and he really didn't know what to expect.

Leslie walked up the pathway leading to the front door, rang the bell and waited. A young lady opened the door cautiously.

"Hi there, my name is Leslie, I don't mean any harm and I just want to find the owner of this wallet. In the wallet there is a note and I believe it was sent from this address by someone called Jessie," as Leslie handed her the note.

She took a look at the note, looked at Leslie and said, "Hmmmm.... Jessie was the owner of this house before I bought it about 5 years ago. If I am not mistaken she decided to place herself in a nursing home. I can't really remember, but I think the she's at St. Mary's Nursing Home."

Leslie thanked the young lady whose name he never got and went on his way home.

St. Mary's Nursing Home wasn't far from where he lived and he made a trip there the following day.

The nursing home was a well maintained place, with really nice landscaping that made the place brighter and more cheerful. There were many old folks in there, some walking around the greenery in the compound, some were playing chess among themselves, some were in a group having some form of private forum.

Leslie walked up to the nurse at the reception and asked to looked for Jessie.

"Looking for Jessie? Sure, let me take you to her room. It's rare for her to have a visitor. You are probably the first visitor in three years," said the nurse, as she led Leslie to her room.

When they arrived at Jessie's room, they found her knitting by the window sitting on a rocking chair.

The nurse greeted her, "Hi there Jessie! We have a visitor for you today."

Jessie turn around to greet her visitor, "Let me see..... You must be Leslie." and smiled.

Leslie was startled, "How did you know my name?"

Jessie chuckled and said, "Your name is written on your visitor pass hanging on your shirt's pocket. I may be old but I haven't completely lost it yet young man."

Leslie laughed..........

"Anyway Jessie, do you know anyone by the name of Joseph?"

Jessie's expression changed to a more sombre expression as she looked out the window and sighed, "Of course I know Joseph. Joseph Applebee I could never forget him; his blue eyes, high forehead, attractive smile. He was a tall, fine, handsome man with a personality to die for. It was really unfortunate my parents disagreed with my intentions to marry him and forced me to further my studies overseas to separate the both of us. Joseph was like the bee and I was like the honey. We loved each other to bits. Everytime we were together, it felt like we were on cloud nine!"

She took a long sigh and said, "I never got married. There was no one out there who could match up to Joseph."

Jessie and Leslie eventually talked for hours. Just before Leslie left, she asked him how she knew about Joseph. Leslie the explained to her about finding the wallet with the note she wrote to Joseph. With tears in her eyes, Jessie said, "If you ever find Joseph, please tell him I still love him and not once have I forgotten about him."

Leslie thanked her for her time and took his leave. As he walked into the elevator he took out the wallet and looked at it while he mumbled, "Applebee, Joseph Applebee. It's a lead."

Beside Leslie, a nurse in the elevator overheard Leslie and saw the wallet. "Hey! That's Mr. Applebee's wallet! How did you find it? Mr. Applebee has been trying to find that wallet for days. He always misplaces his wallet or loses it when he goes out on his own."

"Is he Joseph Applebee?" asked Leslie.

"Yup! That's him"

"Can I see him now? Is he still around in this nursing home?"

"Yes, I'll take you to where he usually sits and read his books. He's a really quiet guy. Doesn't mix around much."

The nurse took Leslie to Joseph and then said, "Mr. Applebee, this young lad here found your wallet."

Joseph grabbed hold of Leslie's hands and shook them with utmost gratitude.

"Thank you! Thank you! I have been searching for my wallet for days. Must have dropped it while taking the bus back here when I went out. How can I ever thank you?"

"Nah, don't worry about it Mr. Applebee. I knew it must have been important to you. But, I should inform you I went through your wallet in hope to find who the owner is and I also read the note in your wallet."

"You read it?"

"Yes. And..... and I believe I know where Jessie is."

Mr. Applebee had tears filled his eyes and asked, "You know where is she? You really do? Please, please, please take me to her! Or, or, or give me her number or something." He was literally begging to Leslie.

"I wonder how is she. I never got married or even saw anyone else after she left. I only ever wanted to be with her."

"Mr. Applebee, come with me," Leslie said.

Joseph and Leslie took the elevator to level 2 and both of them walked to Jessie's room where she was still facing the window looking at the setting sun while she knitted.

The nurse walked up to her and said, "Jessie," pointed towards Joseph at the entrance of her room, "Do you know this man?"

Jessie picked up her glasses and took a good look and covered her mouth with both of her hands. Tears rolling down her cheeks, "Oh my..... Joseph? Joseph? Is that really you?"

"Jessie, good lord. I never thought I would ever see you again!" tears rolling down his cheeks.

Both of them walked towards each other and held each others' hands almost as if they were trying to do a reality check to find out if they have gone senile and were dreaming.

Leslie and the nurse quietly backed away from the entrance and left those two together. The nurse and Leslie left the room with tears streaming down their cheeks.

The nurse clutched her hands together, looked up, and said, "God is truly great! God is great!"

About a month later, Leslie received a call from a nurse from the nurshing home. It was Joseph's and Jessie's wedding.

The wedding was beautiful one indeed. The nursing home management even sponsored the occasion. Joseph was in a tux, Jessie wore a beautiful pearl white dress and they made Leslie the best man. Joseph and Jessie were even given their own room in the nursing home.

If it was anything, it was a perfect ending to a candle of love that continued to burn on for nearly fifty years, waiting for the perfect lantern to compliment it.

It was a lost wallet that found love that was meant to be...............

How many times in our lifetime have we disregarded something we felt was insignificant or just too small to make up anything? A wallet with five pieces of one dollar bills and an old love note would have likely ended up in the dustbin. Some of us may have taken the money, then discard the wallet and the note in the nearest dustbin. You probably never thought it would have led to a reunion of a love affair of a lifetime.

A good majority of us are always waiting for the big thing, the big opportunity, the big chance - just that ONE big one. Far too often, in the midst of looking out for the big one, we let all the small things arounds us pass by unknowing to us the one BIG one might only come by after we add up the smaller things around us..........


~Path of Time~ by Micky Foo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License

assistance from a pair of tiny hands..........

Couple of weeks back I got a phone call from of friend of mine. He needed a baby sitter to just look after his kids while he and his wife go to work during the day. Not really to baby sit per say because there is a maid around, but just to be around in case of any emergency. Try getting me to change a baby's diapers and I'll show you the exact definition of the word "pandemonium".

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous during the first day on duty. After all, who wouldn't be if you have baby sitting credentials like me as described below, which are:
1. Absolutely NO experience in baby sitting;
2. generally bad with kids (last time a friend of mine once said, "when a kid sees you, the look on your face would automatically spell out the word 'scary'.";
3. no training whatsoever in childcare; BUT, a big BUT
4. able to carry a child.

On my first day, I was clueless of what to do. I really mean clueless - don't know where to start, don't know if the kids will accept me, most importantly - if the kids started crying, what am I supposed to do???????????

Putting everything else aside, I came in the morning, saw the kids and gave them a big happy smile! Then the only thing I could do thereafter was to see what reaction I get from the kids. Thankfully, the 2 year old girl smiled back and called me 'gor gor' (it's chinese for addressing someone older if you are a child). The 8 month old baby looked at me with eyes wide open and probably didn't know how to react probably not seeing a stranger like me before. But at least they didn't go running under the bed for their lives afraid of the Bogeyman. :D For my standards, I think I did really well for a start.

After a very long time, I now need to be a kid myself to be at the same wavelength with these two little ones. It was surprisingly not as easy at it seems trying to be in tune with the mind of kids, the innonence of the young ones, the carefree-ness.

I played puzzles with the girl, watched Barney with her (hey, I can even sing the songs off my head now!), tickle the baby boy and see him giggle, make-believe cooking. You'd be surprised how much of a gratifying feeling it can be when you find yourself giggling and having plain fun with the kids.

Eventually, after all the laughing and play time, they usually head for the bed to 'oi oi' (it's a pun for sleeping, mimicking the sound of a pig). Then I suddenly find the house as quiet as a library. Guess having kids around does add colour to a home.

Now, here comes the tricky part. When the little boy wakes up he needs to be carried otherwise he starts to cry. On the first day, when he woke up, he'd look left and right, and if doesn't see the maid he'd start to cry. There were times when the maid left him in the play-pen while she had to do some cooking or house cleaning, and he kept crying out for her. I could only watch in absolute cluelessness wondering why he was crying. I tried playing with him, making funny faces, none of which worked. After about a good half hour of trying, the maid tells me he needs to be carried when he wakes up.

Nevermind that, but that short experience showed me something, something I don't think I will forget in a long while. It was a rare demonstration of love and affection. While the little boy kept crying, his 2 year old sister would come to me, tug at my shirt and ask me, "gor gor, why is 'di di' (it's a chinese word for younger brother) crying?" and then she'll walk to him and try patting him on the back to calm him down.

When you are in tight spot and close to losing ideas on what to do to straighten things out, you sometimes find a helping hand from the least unexpected sources - like my case, it was assistance from a pair of tiny hands of a 2 year old. I don't think anyone taught her how to do that, but I guess natural instincts of an older sister just tells to do that.............



~Path of Time~ by Micky Foo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License

Datalite - protect your laptop while on the go!

Always on the go?
Running around town?
Carrying a laptop with you at the same time?
On top of the laptop, you have other documents and papers to carry?
I found the answer to the problems above. It's called - Datalite.

It's a hard case backpack that let's you carry your laptop and important stuff without damaging them! Pretty big too - I can fit in my laptop, laptop accessories and still space for my study notes. :)

You are probably thinking it will cost a lot. It really depends on your what your budget is. I got it for RM279, which I think is more than reasonable. After all, Deuter entry level backpack smaller than this one costs more than RM279.

In terms of comfort, definitely not like an average backpack. The back part of the bag is fitted with comfort foam so my back does not feel much discomfort. Definitely worth the money I paid for!

You can get it from your nearest Digital Mall!

P.S. - pardon the Guinness Draught bag tag I hung on my backpack..... hehehe

Losing a pen~

Old Jack has been working as typist of years. He was never once late to work and always typed to perfection. Fonts were always straight, errors kept to a minimum and everyone at work loved him. Old jack was helpful, friendly and always around if anyone in the company needed some form of help.

During the weekends, he devotes his time to the church to help the needy. Jack teaches the Sunday school, and help distribute food to the orphans who stay in the church orphanage.

At home he is caring father and a loving husband. He always put the needs of his family first. For years he had been saving money from his monthly salary to get a pen he really, really liked. It wasn't just any ordinary pen, it was a Mont Blanc fountain pen. Old Jack had kept a diary for many years ever since he was a school kid. He wanted the fountain pen more than anything else to continue writing his diary with.

Having saved for months, he finally bought himself the fountain pen. He took good care of it and always carried it with him in the pocket of his shirt. So much so that one day, while helping at the church to pack food stuff to be sent for a missionary trip to Africa, Jack lost his precious pen. Unfortunately, by the time Jack realised he lost his precious pen, it was too late because all the boxes had been sealed tight and were already on the way to Africa.

That night, Jack could not help but feel really down for the lost of his precious pen. In his frustration, he looked up into the sky from his room window and said, "God, I have never done anything to hurt anyone, I've done my best to help people and those around me. Why do you want to punish me by taking away my precious pen?"

As the week went by, during church service on a Sunday morning, a guest pastor was invited to deliver the week's sermon. That pastor was the pastor who was in Africa for the missionary service, the very service that require rations of which Jack was helping to pack a week ago. The pastor started his sermon, "God is great! God is really great! Our mission in Africa to spread the word of God has not ended and it will be a long mission. When we received your rations you all sent over, I could only thank God. But my sermon this morning isn't about the mission trip. It's about God and how God knows what our needs are. While on the trip, I prayed for God to provide me a pen so I could jot down notes. In the forest, there isn't a stationery shop I can go to to buy a pen. Praise God, the first crate I opened, I found a beautiful fountain pen! God is great!"

While the sermon went on, Jack sat at the back of the church and had tears rolling down his cheeks.......................


~Path of Time~ by Micky Foo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License

Follow your heart.......

The air outside was cold and dry. Frank stared out the window as he sat by the window of his room. "Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap" was the sound he heard as the rain drops bounced off the window in the quiet rented room of his, located by the slumps of the city.

Frank was thinking, he was thinking about his future. He recently lost his job in the production line when the economy took a turn for the worse. Frank is clueless about what the future holds for him. All his job applications have been rejected, and he lies at the very brink of poverty. Frank takes a look at his bank book, all that is left in his bank account is 50 Ringgit. He takes a good look at the bank book and gingerly puts it away into the drawer.

Frank lets out a long sigh of despair, "I never thought I would end up in this God forsaken state!"

Frank came from a village about 8 hours drive from where he is now. One year ago, he made the fateful trip to the city to seek better opportunities after 3 years of helping his father catching fishes at sea. He wanted to find out what it was to be working in the city. He wanted to know if it was anything like in the TV shows - men in dashing three piece suits, fashionable pretty women, social networking in the bars. Unfortunately for him, a diploma in the city only qualified him a factory job, with wages of 7 Ringgit per hour. With the wages, Frank always made saving provisions to be sent back to his village for his parents and little sister. Putting the savings to be sent back to his village above all else, it often left him with not much to spend for himself. Instant noodles were his staple diet and some litte extra went to buying an apple.

Every letter he sent back to his family always ended with, "I am doing fine here and please use the money I sent for yourselves and sis. Father needs a break from all the fishing. I love you all." The last thing Frank ever wanted to do was to go back to the village to deliver the bad news of his lost of employment.

The rain continued into the night. Frank did not want to think any further and just covered himself under the blanket to sleep. As he closed his eyes, he wept in despair.................

"Frank, Frank, Frank," he heard someone calling to him. Frank opened his eyes and saw a bright light, so bright that it made him winch. He found himself lying down in a place that is white, like being on a white plain. More perplexing to him was that he recalled he was supposed to be asleep in his rented room. He softly asked himself, "Where am I?"

"This is Utopia, Frank," said a voice.

Frank quickly got up upon hearing the voice. He looked left, looked right - nothing. There was no one around him at all yet he was certain he heard a voice.

"I am God, Frank."

"Does that mean I am dead?"

There was a chuckle, "No, Frank. You are very much alive. I can assure you."

"Why have you come to me now? I have been praying and asking for your help for years! You never once came to my rescue! Why now? Why??? You came to mock me and to see me in this horrible state?" There was anger and frustration in Frank's tone.

"I did not take the trouble to bring you here just to mock you. I brought you here to show you something that you have been overlooking for a while now."

"Overlooking? What do you mean 'overlooking'?"

"Look below you, Frank."

Frank looked below him and he saw his village. To be more accurate, he was floating above his house. He could see his father, mother and younger sister sleeping in the old wooden hut he onced lived in together with them.

As he watched them sleeping soundly, he suddenly felt warm stream of tears flowing down his cheeks.

"You missed them don't you, Frank?"

"Yes, I do. Yes, I do. It's been at least 5 years since I ever went back to visit them."

"Why don't you pay them a visit?"

"I can't go back the way I am. They expect more from me, not some loser."

"Whoever said that? Whoever said you had to go back to your village as a rich tycoon? Whoever judged you and called you a loser or a winner?"

Frank found he could not provide an answer to all the questions God just posed to him. He kept quiet.

"I know you send money back to your family every month on the very day your monthly wages is paid out to you. You always go to the bank at 3.30pm to send the money back to them. Most importantly, I know you miss them and desire to see them dearly, yet you fear that they may think you have been unsuccessful and a disgrace to them."

Frank just stared at the family hut as he floated in the air above the hut.

"Did you know your father always wanted you to take over his fishing business?"

"No, no.... He never told me anything about that. H never mentioned it to me before."

"He was supposed to talk to you about it but you left the village just before he wanted to talk to you about it."

"Why didn't he talk to me about it. I would have stayed in the village."

"He didn't want to pour a bucket of cold water over your head when you were so zealous about leaving the village for the 'real world'. Would any father want to do that to he is own child? I am sure you know the answer to that. Every night just before your father slept, he would pray to me asking me to watch over you and make sure you are safe in the city. In his heart, I could feel the sadness in him. Ever wondered what your father has been doing with the money you sent back to him?"

Frank was silent.

"Here, let me show you."

Frank was teleported into one of the rooms in his hut. Frank started crying when he saw what was in the room.

There were many tin cans stacked up together neatly on a shelf each with a label of how money was in each tin can. On a small table beside the shelf there was a note that said, "One more year for a new boat."

"That new boat, Frank. It's for you. Your father has been stashing up the money you sent back to get a new and better fishing boat for you. He has been quietly hoping that you would come back to your senses and stop chasing the city dream. He never once prayed asked me to bring you back from the city. Not once, Frank."

"But why?"

"He has always been telling himself that that's what you wanted and he should respect that. As a father he wants to support you and not pull you down. Even if it cost him his own wishes. Since the very day you left the village, he has not stopped worrying about you."

Frank remained silent. He didn't know what to say or how to react. He kept thinking about the time he kept insisting about how the city would offer him a better life. He just couldn't comprehend why his father kept silent about wanting him to take over the fishing business.

"It's because he loved you, Frank. The love of a parent knows no boundaries. He knew if he objected to your idea of leaving the village, you'd just end up hating him and still leave the village. It's because he loved you, he was able to let you go and face the harsh city life."

Frank kept silent for a while and then said, "What I am supposed to do now, God?"

"Listen to your heart, Frank. What does it tell you to do? I am sure you know the answer to that."

Frank put his hands over his chest and softly said, "My heart........? But.... but what would I know what my heart wants? Isn't it the same as what I want?"

"No, Frank.... it's different. Believe me, I have been around far, far, far longer than any man has been. From what I have seen so far, people tend to lie to themselves about what they truly want. your brain tells you one thing, your heart tells you another thing. Don't bother thinking about it because I know it for a fact. I am God, after all."

"What should I do, God?"

"Well, what does your heart says?"

"I........................."

Frank's eyes suddenly open and he finds himself staring into the ceiling of his room. He thinks to himself, "What the hell just happened? Did I actually visited my family with God last night?" He didn't have the answer to his questions but one thing he knew - his head was throbbing. It was simply too difficult to get up from bed and he simply decided to lie down for a while to let his head clear.

As he laid his head down, he somehow felt very comfortable deep down and he felt at peace with himself. Amidst the feeling of peace, he somehow knew he had to go back to his village to continue where he stopped off.

Frank packed his things on the afternoon itself when his head was no longer throbbing and headed for his village, his family, his home, the place he belonged to.

When he finally reached his home, he opened the door and he saw dinner readied. What surprised him was dinner was served with all his favourite dishes. While Frank kept staring at the dinner table, his mother walked out from the kitchen, "Frank? Frank? Is that you? Oh my God! Father, sister, come out! Frank is back!", she said in excitement as tears filled her eyes.

That night, the whole family had a long catch up conversation about what has happened over the years while Frank was gone. In between the conversation Frank asked his mother, "Mother, why did you cook up all my favourite dishes today? I didn't inform any of you I was coming back today." His mother responded, "Your father kept telling me he knew you were coming back and told me prepare your favourite dishes. I cooked your favourite dishes otherwise your father would have gone on and on about you coming back."

"How did you know I was coming back, Father?"

"Hmmmm....... I can't really explain it but, I could have sworn I felt your presence in our house last night while I was sleeping. Probably is God!", as he chuckled.

That night, while Frank was asleep, he once again appeared in Utopia.

"It was You, God. It really was You!"

"It was me, but only because you called upon me. One more thing, go on and check out the boat tomorrow," said the mysterious voice.

By the time Frank left Utopia, he realised he was already awake and it was morning. He quickly prepped himself and ran out of the hut to check out the boat. He saw his father in front of a brand new fishing boat with the name 'Fishing Frank' painted on both sides of the boat.

"How did you managed to get a new boat so soon, Father?"

"Your sister got a full scholarship for her studies. That freed up my savings I had for her studies and pulled with the money you sent back, we managed to get this beauty! God really answered all my prayers! You know, son. Throughout my life, I always did two things - living by faith and followed my heart of which I knew my faith guided. I guess, sometimes you just need to follow your heart and stop thinking too much. Thinking using your brains may not always get you the right way round, son. I never had much education, and always believe in God. God never answered all my prayers but I knew he always guided me toward the correct direction. You have a diploma which you got from your hardwork and I am definitely proud of you. I have never blamed you for wanting to leave the village. In fact, I believe it was His will for you to try something else before coming back here. At the end of the day, sometimes you need to try what your brains think you should and can do before you can follow your heart.............."

~Path of Time~ by Micky Foo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License.