Tsunami

2 natural disasters happened on 30 September 2009. A tsunami in Samoa that left nearly 200 people dead, and an earthquake measuring 7.9 at Padang, Indonesia that left over 100 people dead. Very tragic indeed.

The tremors were even felt in Malaysia and Singapore. I felt quite nervous on that day, and was reminded of the tsunami that happened in 2004 where 270,000 people died.

Tsunamis have always fascinated me. When I was about 10 years old, I read a National Geographic book about Tsunamis. At that time, no tsunami had occured in my lifetime (yet). All I saw were drawings of how a tsunami would look like and how it would strike. The rest was left to my imagination. It was all an amazing legend to me.... until.... it happened in 2004.

I couldn't believe it. I was awestruck, completely stunned, shocked beyond words. I sat staring at the tv in disbelief watching the same footage over and over again, for days in a row. A tsunami had happened in my lifetime, and it took a quarter of a million lives.

Even now, I still watch tsunami videos on youtube, because to me, its the 'king' of all natural disasters. Its a natural disaster of indescribable proportions.

I also found out that many animals (who were free to run) had escaped the tsunami alive, because their natural instincts had led them to higher ground before disaster struck.

It is extremely sad to hear of people who lost their family members in the tsunamis. As I watched tv, I could feel the complete brokenness of a mother who told of how she lost 4 children in the Samoan tsunami. My heart and prayers go out to all the victims. May they find hope and peace in our God.

Worshipping Together

Hubby bought a clavinova for my birthday and its been keeping me occupied and happy the past 2 weeks! I love being able to practise more often now and I'm trying to improve in my playing techniques.

HH and I have begun worshipping together quite frequently with him on the guitar and me on the piano. I really enjoy it. We're both still quite amateurish in our playing, but I believe we'll improve in time :)

At times when I feel down emotionally, I will plonk myself at the piano and just play a few songs. I don't sing most of the time (I always stop when it comes to the high notes because my voice can't reach it), I'll just sing 'in my heart' and I'll feel God's peace enveloping me. Worshipping God reminds me that God is always greater than any circumstance I may be facing and that He will take care of things for me.

Worshipping God brings me closer to Him.

Worship the LORD your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you, and none will miscarry or be barren in your land. I will give you a full life span. Exodus 23:24-26

Stuff I love

I've been surfing the internet for nice home deco ideas and I came across some really lovely pictures. Just thought I'd share some of them :)

What a great collection of dog pictures! :)

Totally not possible to have this at my house but isn't it fantastic! I could spend all day in a place like this...

I love this colour scheme. White + beige + red/fuchsia/pink hues.

The Misadventures of Me

I've been having a series of misadventures at home since I got married. This morning I put 2 slices of bread in the toaster, then I went off to water the plants. I spent some time looking at the plants and when I got back to my toaster the bread was burnt. I had to make another 2 slices.

2 weeks ago I decided to vacuum the house. The vacuum cleaner was making strange noises but I decided to continue vacuuming. Suddenly, smoke started coming out of it and the noises sounded like little eruptions. I panicked and switched it off.. but fumes were still coming out of it. The house stank of vacuum fumes after that and I had to air the whole house and spray air freshener all over the place.

I think I'll wait a little while more before taking the blender out of the box....

My Garden

I've been rather interested in plants since I moved into my new house because I think plants make a home really nice and cosy. I've also been largely influenced by my mum and my friend Stephanie because they both go to nurseries a lot and put much effort into their gardens. As a result, they have really beautiful and healthy plants.

Since I can't keep pets in the apartment (besides the guppy fishes), I've channeled some attention to my plants.

Here are some pictures I took this morning :)

Stephanie gave me this from her own garden :) I'm glad its still alive!!

This was one of the first plants my mum gave HH and I, I love how it looks when the sun shines on it. The colours are so vibrant!

I bought this last week for RM5 and it seems to be quite easy to care for :)

Bought this a few days ago, a new flower seems to bloom every 2 days.
I'm quite fascinated with this plant... recommended by Steph. When the man at the nursery told us a new flower blooms everyday, I thought he was joking. But he's quite correct, I can practically see the flower bloom in the mornings.

Rediscovering me

Marriage has changed my lifestyle a little. Hubby's alarm rings at 7am from Monday to Saturday, and my alarm rings at 7:20am on Sundays. When he travels, the alarm rings at 4:30am! I never used to hear the alarm clock ring except on Sundays! So no more waking up at 9am on weekdays. Its not a bad thing though... Now I get to spend some time reading the Bible and praying before I rush off to work (as opposed to praying in the car during my singlehood). Plus, I have time to feed the fish, water the plants and make myself a simple breakfast. Marriage is good for my self-disclipline.

I have discovered that I enjoy housework - ironing, cleaning, cooking, shopping for household things. Maybe its because I got married in my 30s and have been too comfortable the past many years. There are so many things I want to learn! I have a new interest in looking for recipes online and I seem to be spending a lot more time in supermarkets. Not only that, I have started to have an eye for all sorts of cooking utensils. I have transformed into a housewife overnight!

3 Weeks Later...

I haven't written for a long time! Need to backtrack a little now. I got married (finally) on 2 August. On my wedding day, I felt like I was in a dream or floating in the sky because of all the fuss going on around me. I've never had so much make-up in my life... or worn such a long and heavy dress... had fresh flowers in my hair.... and walked down the aisle with a veil covering my face and lots of people cheering! It really felt like I had gone to heaven....

Emotionally, it was a lot to handle. I felt really touched when I was walking down the aisle holding my dad's arm, but I fought back the tears because I knew many cameras were snapping away and I don't like pictures of myself crying. I kept telling myself to smile and not be so 'emo' :)

I felt really happy to have Hoi Hian wait for me at the end of the aisle, we've gotten so comfortable with each other that I know he's the one I want to spend my life with. We have so much do accomplish together and I know this is the beginning of an exciting journey.

I'm really grateful to God for blessing us with our families and friends... each of them have added to the spectrum of beautiful colours in our lives.