My weekend
I had lots of good food this weekend! =) On Friday we had our house dinner and the pasta was yummy. On Saturday there was a girls' night out and we had banana splits! =P Hmm....haven't had ice-cream with so many kinds of toppings for a long long time....Tonight there was a turkey dinner served at my fellowship, and a cake for dessert too! Did I make you salivate? =P** What a high sugar weekend! As if I didn't have enough sugar, I am drinking "Ovaltine" right now (instead of coffee) so that I have the energy to study a little bit more! p(o^_^o)q
After fellowship, we went to a Christmas worship service organized by Queen's students. It was amazing. I told myself that I wouldn't give up the worship service for anything else...hehe...when it comes to worship, anatomy has to be placed lower on my priority list. There was a song during the worship that I haven't sung for a long time, and it's such a great reminder for me...
"...I sing for joy at the work of your hands
forever I'll love you forever I'll stand
Nothing compares to the promise I have in you."
I am sure most of you know this song...and it's such a great reminder for me that in the midst of my exams, my stress, my whining, I can hold onto so many promises in God. He promised me wisdom when I ask, He promised me love that no one can take away, He promised me strength to endure anything, He promised me hope and prosperity for my future, He promised me His wide open arms to lie on when I am tired and burdened...
In the midst of this exam craziness, do I have room for Him and His promises?
"Joy to the world, the Lord has come. Let earth receive the king...
...Let every heart prepare Him room..."
Can't fall asleep...
Tonight is one of the very unusual nights when I decided to go to bed early coz I didn't get much sleep the night before....the large amount of REM sleep that I had last night was preventing me from having a good night sleep. After I did my before-bedtime reading, I tried falling asleep but couldn't. Now, for those of you who know me well, you know that it is almost IMPOSSIBLE for me not to be able to fall asleep! I am the type who falls asleep the second that I hit the pillow. If I can't fall asleep in 10 minutes after lying down on my bed, it's VERY unusual. Tonight I was lying on my bed for more than 20 minutes...(haha...I know some of you are laughing)...but this is indeed a problem for me! =P I wonder: Am I too nervous about my Anatomy bell-ringer final? Is it because of the nap that I took earlier? Is it because of the cup of coffee that I had in the afternoon? Who knows....it maybe due to a combination of all factors....
I had lots of fun and good food tonight! =) My housemates and I went out for our first annual "house dinner" in a restaurant called Megalo's in downtown Kingston. It was pouring when we were walking there, and another steel support of my umbrella broke as a result of it flipping in the wind numerous times. I REALLY NEED TO GET A NEW UMBRELLA that can stand the strong wind in Kingston. Anyway, before the dinner, I was thinking of what I should get my housemates for a little Christmas/pre-exam treat. I ended up buying each of them a Kinder Surprise...which is something that I used to LOVE...and made a little personalized card for each of them. =)
This reminds me...there are many unopened Kinder Surprises in my life right now that God has given me. I have been praying and waiting...and sometimes I get so impatient that I wish I can just break open the chocolate coating and see what the surprise is...but there is no point breaking open the egg when God hasn't placed the surprise into the egg yet.
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1 Sometimes the waiting gets to me, but recently I have been reminded by one of the verses that a friend of mine uses as his E-mail signature...
"Faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1 By faith, I am sure that the surprises inside the eggs are going to be awesome, and I am certain that I will get my surprises in His time.
Essays and exams are no fun!
I am determined to finish my essay tonight...I told myself that I won't check E-mail until I am done my essay. What a cruel treatment to myself! =P This is working...I am not as distracted...and blogging is my only way of "venting" about this. =P For some reason it takes me so long to write an essay. I am not good at verbalizing my thoughts...ack...essays are no fun. I freak out about them before I actually start writing them.
I don't seem to do very well in exams as well. I just don't like the pressure associated with them. I am not very good at working under pressure. Boo....French exam tomorrow. This exam is actually not that bad, but I am FREAKING OUT about my anatomy bell-ringer exam next Tuesday. I have no clue how I am going to memorize all the stuff that I need to know....@_@
A fun day
How I wish to have a digital camera!!! I am such a picture person. I love to capture everything on my camera (except myself =P)...but it's going to cost me a lot with the film and the developing. So I always have to make TOUGH decisions whether to take a picture of something, and in the process of deciding I would miss a Kodak moment.
Today I went to the Santa Claus Parade in Kingston. It was
SO MUCH FUN! =) I wish I had gone to one in Toronto. It must have been so much MORE fun. Hmm...definitely my goal for next year! =P Anyway, below are the FUN things that I have seen today:
- a decorated fire truck with red ribbons and green garland wrapped around it
- Harley Davidson using a huge PINK PIG on their float with a train of motocycles following behind it
- a dog from a dog training school pooping right in front of us
causing
- spectators on the street to pay more attention to whether performers would step on the poop than the performers themselves
leading to
- "WATCH OUT" warnings given by spectators (including me =P)
- a band with Scottish BAGPIPE players
- kids in a cycling club who attempted (but failed) to ride their bike backwards
- various high school students shouting out cheers on their floats
- cute little girls dancing with batons
FUN EH??!! ^_^ OK...sign up sheet for next year's Santa Claus Parade will be up soon! =P
Wow...can't believe that I have been blogging everyday for the past few days, but I am sure this won't happen as the week goes by with a paper due, 2 exams, another 2 major exams the week after...@_@
A fun house
I am living with 3 housemates right now: a Christian caucasian (Samantha), a Muslim from Lybia (Abdalbast) and a Hindu from India (Ravikiran). We always joke about how this is an international house. Today, one of my housemates and I had so much fun baking cookies...hehe...^_^
The four of us get along very well. I thought I would post one of our "board conversations" (we have a board on the fridge where we write each other notes).
After many discussions about when and where we should have our "house dinner", Sam wrote:
Sam: "Executive decision: Dinner at 7pm on Friday, Nov.28."
Jacq: "Hey no fair! I didn't remember voting on our house executive. Someone took my spot! Oops...that wasn't very funny, sorry, but I tried! =P Hey Sam, do you want to go swimming around 4pm today?"
Sam: "Sorry Jacq, I have class until 4:30, and I have a meeting at 5:00. How about this weekend instead? I resign from the house executive position, and I nominate Jacq to be the house president."
Ravi: "What's happening?"
Abdu: "Ladies are always first. But for house president I have another opinion."
Sam: "So now Abdu wants to be house president as well. We need an election campaign between Abdu and Jacq."
Abdu: "Hi guys, if you elect me, I'll serve you free food and I'll have your essays done for you."
Sam: "Messy board says: Jacq please clean me!"
Jacq: "Hi crew! I am not running for house president anymore. I can't compete with Abdu. I don't have three "t"s in my name, and I don't write essays for other people. You know, I don't want people to get 20% in their essays. Yay! Abdu is the new president. To celebrate, our new house president will treat us dinner on Nov.28. He would like to thank us for our votes and support for the past 3 months."
I laugh so much in this house...(and I laugh a lot in general! ^_^) I thank God for such AWESOME and FUN housemates.
Some scattered experiences and thoughts
I attempted to return a CD to a friend yesterday, only to have found that the CD wasn't in the case...I had only brought the case of the CD, but not the CD itself! Haha....=P Funny how I do these things all the time! I wonder if my personal assistant can even help me with this! =P
I had an Indian dinner last night with my small group....Chicken Dharmska (?)...don't remember the exact spelling of the dish. It was like sweet and sour chicken with lots of spices added into it. It was really good...but I was so thirsty for the rest of the night.
Last night's ER episode was so gory...it had such a great "impact" on me that I dreamed about my friends in the context of last night's ER episode...not the best dream!!!
I had a swim yesterday...haven't done that in a month! I felt so out of shape...not that I am in shape right now! =P But it felt so good after the swim...=) I still wish that I can get a good massage though! =P
Just chatted with my dad on MSN. Hmm...not a very pleasant conversation. I don't know why it seems like they always think that their choices of things are better for me, even when the decision this time is about my clinical placement, which is something that I should be more knowledgeable about. It's not that I haven't done any research about it, and I asked experienced people about their opinions too. However, my choice is always not as good as theirs. And it's always better to follow their advice. Sometimes I just wish that I get more trust from my parents to make my own decisions, instead of always having them to tell me that my decision is bad.
I will be heading to a "Christmas Party" for my faculty soon. Hmm....don't know why, as I become "older", I don't like big crowds like this that much. I am just not fond of the going-around-surface-talk-type of interaction anymore. But since almost everyone in my class is going, I think I should go too. I probably won't stay until too late coz it's not as fun to talk to people when they are drunk. Hmm.....I am not really looking forward to this...hope it turns out OK.
Losing control
I had an interesting day today. I met a person who had her arm amputated. She's a great person, very nice, very easy to talk to, and she is very satisfied with her life despite of the loss of her arm. She is very independent, and she manages to do a lot of things on her own. She does all sorts of sports and is studying and working at the same time. We chatted for a long time, and she told me that she feels good about being independent, but she fears that one day she won't be, and she said that she would hate to depend on other people.
This is such a true fear for most of the people in the society now. Everyone wants to be in control. Once we lose control, we feel unsafe...this is one reason why being a Christian sounds so weird to non-believers. "To trust in God? To submit to His will? I don't want someone else to be in control of my life!" However, when I sit down and think about it, I am actually glad that I am not in control. What else can be better when the Creator of my life, who knows exactly what's the best for me, to be in control of my life?
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD , "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 Just like when I travel on a plane, I don't want to be in control coz I know nothing about operating a plane. I want an experienced pilot to be in control. It doesn't help if I go into the cockpit and start messing with all the colourful switches. This is the hardest part, and it's human nature to go into the cockpit and attempt to gain some sort of control. God is telling me at this point of my life: "Jacqueline, exit the cockpit, sit back and relax on the seat. I am in control. Don't worry, as long as I am in control, you will fly safely and reach your destination."
I'm giving you my heart, and all that is within
I lay it all down, for the sake of You my King
I'm giving you my dreams, I'm laying down my rights
I'm giving up my pride, for the promise of new life
And I surrender
All to You, all to You
I'm singing You this song, I'm waiting at the cross
And all the world holds dear, I count it all as loss
For the sake of knowing You, for the glory of Your name
To know the lasting joy, even sharing in your pain
And I surrender
All to You, all to You
Queen of embarrassment
If there is ever a competition on who can embarrass themselves the most, I will win the contest for sure! I am the QUEEN of getting myself embarrassed. Since you guys took the time to browse my blog page, I will share this experience with you. I trust that you won't go and spread this around. =P
Today during a break between my two classes, I went to buy a bottle of Fruitopia (strawberry and passion fruit mix...so good). The cashier told me that it was two bucks, so I went into my wallet and was about to pay her. I realized that I didn't have the twenty-dollar bill that I thought I had, and I ran out of coins! I only had around 70 cents with me!!! Ahhh.....FORTUNATELY, my classmate was right behind me and she was able to spot me for TWO BUCKS! =P That was close...but it wasn't the end of it.
Two weeks ago I got a coupon that I can buy a cup of tea from a tea shop on campus for 50 cents. Knowing that I had around 70 cents in my wallet, I said to myself, "Yeah I am safe. I can get the cup of tea no problem." I lined up, went to the front of the line, showed the cashier the coupon. The cashier went and prepared the cup of tea for me, but she wasn't sure how to do the billing. So she asked the person beside her how to do it. The other cashier turned to me and said, "Hmm...unfortunately this coupon has expired. It expired last week and you'll have to pay full price for the tea. I am sorry." The first cashier apologized...
"I'm sorry. I didn't know that the coupon had expired. The tea comes to $1.10."
"Oh....ehh.....I guess I'll have to come back for the tea. I don't have cash with me."
"Uh...it's only a dollar and ten cents."
"Yeah I know. I just happen to have run out of cash."
You can imagine how desperate I was to dig a hole for myself....haha.....but guess what? I actually went to a bank machine, took out money, went back to the shop and paid for my tea!
I am usually not that bad with money, it must have been all the stress that I was going through today....two presentations plus a Bible study that I had to lead...and there is more to come...I am sure I'll manage to embarrass myself again for the next couple of weeks....I can foresee my stress coming...
Technology--good AND bad
My grandma is so CUTE! =) I was talking to her for almost an hour on the phone...she lives in HK and I don't get to talk to her a lot. She took care of me until I was three, and we have always been very close. Talking to her was so much fun, but at the same time I realized how much my Chinese has deteriorated! I PAUSED in the middle of some sentences to translate English terms back to Chinese in my head...and those processes took longer than I thought they would! @_@ On this account, it's great that technology allows me to talk to my cute grandma who lives on the other side of the world! =)
However, technology also has the potential to create distance between people. Less people mail cards to people's homes now but choose to mail E-cards instead. I guess you can say that I am "outdated", but I still like receiving cards that I can touch way more than E-cards. Of course E-cards are nice too, but not as nice as REAL tangible cards.
Thanks to technology, I have totally misunderstood a good friend of mine. I found out today that I have misinterpreted the meaning of one of his E-mails...and I had been upset about his mail solely because I have misunderstood what he meant! Had it been him talking to me face to face, I wouldn't have misunderstood him. Sarcasm is just so hard to tell in E-mails since you can't here the other person's tone of voice.
Technology...it's GREAT but it's HORRIBLE too!
How whiny can I get?
What a windy day! I was almost blown off the road. I didn't even bother opening my umbrella coz it won't be of any use. My umbrella has already been broken from the last rainstorm we had in Kingston. =( I know I am whining, but I really hate this rainy weather. It's been like this for almost 3 weeks!!! Yes, yes, I know it's "LIQUID SUNSHINE", but I want REAL SUNSHINE!!! =) Please God?! =)
I have so much to do. Looking at my calendar scares me. How am I going to pull through the next few weeks? My debate paper....ahhh.....it's totally freaking me out. I have no idea what to write about, despite of the fact that I spent so much time doing research on it already. Social inclusiveness, government policies, community programs....ahh.....@_@
Anyone wants to teach me how to row a French "r"? Haha...I can't roll it properly and I have a French oral exam in 2 weeks.
OK....enough complaining....if I let myself continue, I still have stuff to complain about....a chair that I broke while sitting, my constant back pain, my poster presentation on Monday, lack of understanding from friends...the list can go on. But does complaining ever help? NO! What does the Bible teach me?
"I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:13 -->Yes, I will pull through the next few weeks, with God.
"If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." James 1:5 -->With God's wisdom, the debate project and poster presentation should be no problem. =)
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." Colossians 3:20 --> I will keep pracitising my "r", if I can't get it, I have tried my best. =)
Ultimately,
"...Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:39 --> Hehe...Jesus loves me no matter what! I am special! How nice! =)
Some scattered thoughts about my trip
The conference was GREAT!!! I am so glad that I went. The conference and the trip have left me with lots of things to think about...I've got some hard core thinking and praying to do!
The church where the conference was held, the Southeast Christian Church was HUGE!!! I mean HUGE...like a shopping mall. I have never seen such a big church in my life. A church with FOUR levels of ESCALATORS, a church with its own bookstore, postal service, gym, indoor track, cafeteria...I was completely blown away.
Our hosts served us well...REALLY WELL, we had an amazing dinner on saturday night with delicious appetizers, pork cutlets and desserts...definitely one of the best meals I've ever had. The house that we stayed in was a MANSION. It has a hot tub that we can use, and a "lake" in the "backyard". It's not really just a backyard because the property is 34 acres. The hospitality of the hosts touched me...the couple served us with the BEST that they had. (They let us stay there for free, and they didn't charge us for the dinners that they made for us.)
I didn't expect to be so surprised during the conference. I was surprised by how much need there is for medical professionals around the world, especially in 3rd world countries. In one of the plenary sessions, I was so touched that I couldn't stop crying...my tears just kept flowing non-stop. My future plans will be changed...and I need to make some major adjustments in my thinking. (If you want to know more about this, I will be more than happy to share more with you. Just give me a shout and let me know! ^_^)
Some issues that I thought I have dealt with a long time ago surfaced again...they caught me off guard! I am glad that there was a sister who was patiently listening to me about this tonight....and it's such a blessing to have someone there to listen to me when I needed it. =)
Thanks for reading lovely peeps! =) I just want to take this time to thank all of you for your friendships! =) It means a lot to me that you're making an effort to read my blog and find out what's been going on in my life. =) More thanks for peeps who take the time to comment on my blogs too! =) Love ya all!
Off I go...
I will be waking up bright and early at
3:45am tomorrow morning to head to Kentucky for a medical missions conference...its theme is "Motivating, Training And Equipping Global Health Care Servants". I am so excited...hehehe...I will definitely tell you all about it when I get back. Till then...take care lovely people! =) Have an AWESOME weekend! =)
P.S. Something very embarrassing happened to me today...AGAIN! Haha....don't I need an assistant! Position still open guys! =)
Position available: Jacqueline's personal assistant
Sometimes I am just AMAZED at how absent-minded I could be. >_< How can I possibly forget the fact that I have no travel documents with me here in Kingston before making a decision to go to a conference in the States? Man...I definitely need an "assistant" to help me with my absent-mindedness! Hahaha.....anyone wants to apply for this position? =P Please send your resume and a cover letter to absentminded_jacqueline@hotmail.com. (In case you're wondering, this E-mail address does NOT exist!)
Raking leaves
What a day! I spent the whole morning and afternoon raking leaves, cutting out massive weeds (and got burs on my shoes and clothes), vaccumming and sweeping the floor. I participated in a "Workday event" with the fellowship (Navigators) that I am attending, and we volunteered to help out at the New Day Pregnancy Centre in Kingston. We pretty much asked them what chores needed to be done and went in to do a whole day of work for them. This is a fundraising event for the Navs and therefore we are supposed to get our friends to support us in this event. So far I've got 3 sponsors, a total of 8 bucks. Haha...so pathetic, I prolly have to end up sponsoring myself. I just hate to ask people for money...it's so hard to do! @_@
It's funny how I got time to think while I was raking leaves on the lawn. I think I actually need some time to rake out leaves in my life too! It's just so easy to be absorbed into the busyness of life that I don't get a chance to look around and see what kind of thoughts, anger, hurt and fear I need to rake out of my life. If I don't take the time to rake leaves out of my way, sooner or later I would end up slipping or stumbling on my path because these "leaves" are in my way.
Raking leaves is not a fun job, but it needs to be done.
