Birthday wishes

It’s good to be back after a short break and to enjoy a lovely lunch with two dear old friends. My birthday is coming up in a few days and they wanted to celebrate it with me

I was greeted with three beautiful stalks of pink bromeliads, from Yu Ling’s garden and a birthday card with wishes for good health and happiness. Sigh….. what more can a person want? Good old friends who remember your birthday with flowers, good wishes and a tasty lunch with longetivity
noodles ( a must for birthdays ) plus dim sum. ( literally translated as touch the heart )

We had steamed fish balls, yam pastries, sesame balls with sweet filling and pau filled with lin yung. The pau were shaped like bunnies,so very cute!

Companionship and trusty friends of long standing are a must in one’s life especially as one gets on in years. Sometimes it is only with bosom friends that you can share matters of the heart. Yu Ling and I go back a long way, ever since her daughter was a tiny baby in her arms and early next year she will be getting married. Time has gone past, like the water under the bridge flowing out to the sea. What has transpired is gone, never to return, so we should enjoy the present and happily anticipate the future.

Our children, once small, are now adults with their own lives, away from us but the precious bond of our friendship remains, to paint rainbows in our lives. I will have another one soon, in the form of line dancing, which Yu Ling has initiated at her home and I look forward to that.

I remember when I was a young teacher, fresh out of college, posted to teach in a convent school that had high walls enclosing it. No cars and no men were allowed to enter the grounds and the headmistress was a very intimidating Irish nun who wielded iron discipline and control over teachers and students. She didn’t believe in outdoor sports and I was given physical education (PE) classes to teach. She said I had to teach folk dancing and if I didn’t know how to dance, I had jolly well go and learn!

Luckily there were folk dancing classes in those days at the Royal Selangor Club in Kuala Lumpur during the weekends so faithfully I learned a few folk dances, largely Scottish and Irish and taught them to the girls in school during the week. So I’m looking forward to learning line dancing, beginning tomorrow afternoon.

Thank you my friends for a lovely lunch, good wishes and the beautiful flowers. You made my day!

Happy Father's Day

Tomorrow is Father’s Day and it will be celebrated world-wide to honour the man who brings home the bacon. Hotels & restaurants are cashing in with special menus, moms and kids are thinking of gifts for the head of the family to show their love and appreciation.

The dad of yesteryears was very different from the dad of today. Back then, the dad worked hard to put food on the table and he was the discipline master in the family. His word was practically law and woe betide the child that dared to disobey. He often kept his distance and his emotions were always in check. Neither did he talk much.

It was not done then, especially in traditional Asian society, for a father to hug his children
kid or young adult and his children didn’t confide matters of the heart in him. There was little closeness but the children nevertheless loved and respected him and to a certain extent feared him.

One would definitely not see a father in those days feeding a baby or carrying the baby’s nappy bag. That was considered the mum’s work.

However much has changed since those days. You can see fathers carrying their babies, feeding and changing their diapers, carrying the nappy bag and even the wife’s handbag, or pushing the pram, etc. Today’s fathers hug and kiss their children spontaneously; they are more friends than disciplinarians. You hardly see fathers who cane their children these days. Fathers are not bashful about hugging or kissing their daughters, child or young adult. The bonding and closeness are much in evidence.


However much has changed since those days. You can see fathers carrying their babies, feeding
and changing their diapers, carrying the nappy bag and even the wife’s handbag, or pushing the pram, etc. Modern day fathers play an active role in bringing up their children. There are even stay-at-home dads who cook
and clean and send the children to school while mums are the breadwinners. The role reversal is more acceptable these days. Women definitely welcome any help men can give at home, especially now that both parties have to work to bring home the bacon.

Indeed fathers take an active part on the home front and family is a priority on their list.

Women definitely welcome any help men can give at home,
especially now that both parties have to work to bring home the bacon.

To single fathers who are taking care of their children, kudos to you and here’s wishing every father a Happy and Blessed Father’s Day.

It's a Small World

Another rainbow was painted into my fabric of life this afternoon.

I was walking along the road looking for a taxi when one passed by so I waved and the driver stopped. I hurried to the taxi and got in, telling him where I wanted to go.

He turned around and looked at me. Then very politely, he asked me, “ Excuse me, you are Mrs Peggy Chan, aren’t you?”

Was I surprised!! “Yes, I am,” I replied, “how do you know me?”

His answer almost bowled me over! “You were my teacher in La Salle in 1982.”

Wow, it really is a small world. After that he regaled me with his experiences of the past twelve years in Kuala Lumpur, his promotion of Sabah to the German and Canadian tourists he transported in his taxi, etc., etc. However, he misses Sabah very much and he intends to return in a couple of years. Kuala Lumpur is very different from rural Sabah where people are still very friendly and there are no pronounced racial divides. It is very common to see people of different ethnic backgrounds sharing a table in a Chinese coffee shop. This is not often seen in Kuala Lumpur.

All too soon we arrived at my destination but meeting my ex-student was really wonderful. He spoke perfect English and I’m very proud of him. I was his English teacher all those years ago. Zulrushdy, you have done your school proud. He still has fond memories of Datuk Brother Charles O ’Leary, our former school principal. He said that on his next visit to Sabah he’s going to tell his friends how he met their Cikgu Peggy Chan and that her kampong is Jalan Imbi, right next to Bukit Bintang!!

The Essence of Happiness

Take time and pause. What are the things that make us happy?

Here are some findings from studies that have been made.

People who are married are happier than those who are not.
People who have religious beliefs are also happier than those who do not.


Who else are happy?

People who have sufficient sleep of 7 hours on average and who have friends and family.Those who are mentally and physically healthy and have a regular schedule to live by.

Oh yes, having extra money makes people happier too. However, the above ingredients are the true essence of happiness. Money just adds extra happiness.


However, if you have money but none of the above, you will have an empty and meaningless life unless you can put your money to good use. You can feel happy if you bring happiness to others.