I can never understand

Thank you, dear readers, for your positive feedback. However, I am not really as smart or as wise as some of you have made me out to be. Even at three score minus 8, I am still learning everyday, and am still as fascinated with the mysteries of the universe as I was 45 years ago. Unless, God sends His angel down to explain to me, and with his wand, open up the blockages in my mind, I can never understand the following :-

1) Science, especially Physics and Chemistry are beyond my comprehension! Never
passed a single test in these two subjects in secondary school.!

2) Maths - can never stand numbers. Till today, this dream keeps coming back to me.
I dreamt that the following day I had a maths test, and horror upon horrors I
still could not remember a single maths formula!!

3) Modern gadgets. Customers want new handphones - for me I am
content with old ones. The less functions, the better! I know how to phone
call, sms, add new contact number, set the time and alarm. The rest of the
functions remain untouched. When I buy a fan for eg. I will always ask the
sales personnel to assemble the fan for me, because I cannot, just cannot
follow the manual instructions! Mental block!

4) How can some husbands and wives hate each
other so much till they end up killing one
another? The marriage vows seem so
archaic and distant.

I assisted my boss who was a divorce specialist. The horrendous stories make
actual cat fights seem mild in comparison! Perhaps this is why cynical me has
never walked down the aisle! I think I have more faith in my pet dogs! Thank you
very much.

5) Marriage is already such a headache or what the Nepalese like to say, "Tauko
dukil" or the Hokkien people say, "Tau tiah". As if married life is not
"tau tiah" enough, some people must add more complications by being emotionally
involved with another. The recent case of Liu Hong Mei's tyrsts with Leong Siew
Chor, the "perfect family man" is a classic example. Leong had cut up his
mistress into 7 parts. He claimed it was a suicide pact that went wrong.
Justice Tay in his judgement, effectively summarized the feelings of the masses
by his poem:-

THE SAVAGE ACT

This truly is a sad riddle,
How could anyone savagely strangle
And so unfeelingly mangle
the woman one had just cuddled?

- Justice Tay Yong Kwang


6) Why would people abuse poor innocent animals and little children? I once saw
a stray cat with a badly scalded upper body which was starting to heal. I
"meowed" to the cat, and thought it might run away; yet the poor creature still
walked towards me in a pathetic and trusting manner. I cried. People say that a
cat has nine lives and whoever ill treats a cat will have his just punishment.
Once I rescued a kitten from being drowned by a group of boys and gave them a
stern warning. My friend told me she was so worried the boys would beat me up.
I would have felt worse if I did nothing to help the cat... and the boys as well!

Why must people catch sharks only to slice off their fins and then throw the
wounded sharks into the ocean without a second thought? Ever cut your finger
and dip the tiny wound in salt water? Imagine the excruciating pain of the
sharks before they die! Why must restaurants be proud of their sharks fin soup?
To me, it seems alright if sharks are caught and eaten whole like other fish.
Do we have to sacrifice a whole shark just for its fins? Once I saw skinless
frogs jumping around in a tray in a wet market in Chinatown. I could not take
my meals the whole day, thinking of the poor frogs. I am not against people
eating what they crave. I am against the cruel ways in which these helpless
creatures are being killed. Isn't this the very reason why human beings are
afraid to die.? Haven't you heard people say, "It's ok to die immediately in
an accident! The worst is when you are neither dead nor alive and feel the pain
of the injury!" If the sharks and frogs could talk, would they not utter the
same words as human beings?"

7) Why is friendship and relationship even more fragile than a lovely china
procelain? You can do nine good things for a friend, but when you fail a friend
in one area, whoosh!..... your years of friendship just go down the drain!
Now I realise papa's wisdom when he constantly reminded us to be always grateful
to God and people, for gratitude puts us in the right perspective. Papa also
reminded us to be forgiving just as God has forgiven us. He coaxed us not to
bear grudges for they are like cancerous cells, slowly eating up our good cells,
crippling us from moving forward to do good.

8) Computers! Fascinating but complicated machines! I can understand why my
siblings have such great phobia of acquiring computer knowledge. My first
computer died a premature death, after it was left choking itself with dust,
human hairs and dog furs. Being the youngest aunty and closest in age with
my nephews and nieces, I tried to be groovy and allowed myself to be coaxed
into learning the computer for the sake of emailing my beloved relatives.
I have progressed from emailing to blogging! Not bad eh, for an old aunty of
52 years! I must thank so many people for helping me post pictures, set up,
etc. Namely Richard, Thanh, James, Chris, Dr. Raju, Win Nie, Alfred, Tyng, Thet
and my young students, Kang Jie and Ming Jie.

Now, I am smiling again because if this old aunty can learn to type on the computer, anyone also can. So take heart, my peers. You can do it too! Quick. Open yourself
to the fascinating world of internet! Anything you want to know can be found in the computer... even better than a dictionary or encyclopaedia!

I realise that even when I go six feet under, I can still not understand or learn about everything. Is this the reason why someone said, "Ignorance is bliss"? or
in Mandarin, "Sha ren yiu sha fu?" (The stupid people have stupid luck - direction translation.) Perhaps the more we know, the more we worry ?

It would be great if my readers can also share what perplexes them, and what answers they have found for themselves to combat the perplexities of life. Being uniquely made, we all have different peeves and outlook on life.

In conclusion, perhaps I should change my title to "I cannot understand" because maybe one day I will understand. For now I have decided not to try to understand everything! Just remain a simple, happy and optimistic person, counting our blesings and naming them one by one! We just have to do our best, and leave God to do the rest.

Gan Chau :-)