Happiness Is A Decision!

Every morning when I wake up, I will greet the good Lord, "Good morning, PAPA! This is the day you have made, and I will rejoice and be glad in it!"

Before I play any other pieces or scales on the violin, I will play hymns and praises to our Creator, for He is the miraculous living God who has restored my deafness. He is the One who has made it possible for me to finally realise my childhood dreams. I have learnt to play many hymns and praises on my own...mostly by ear. After the hymns, I will start practising the pieces that my violin teacher, Mr. Yan Yin Wing, had taught me during the previous lessons.

I have decided that whatever the outcome is for the day, I will be HAPPY! I will never allow circumstances or anyone to rob me of my joy! The other day, I waited for two hours for my clients. No problem! While waiting, I enjoyed reading the newspapers and my novel, "The Slumdog Millionaire". My clients were profusely apologetic, and were surprised by my cheerfulness. "Don't worry, I'm enjoying your lovely poolside and my novel", I assured them.

My beloved friend, Amu, phoned me and told me about a funny incident. Two of her friends had phoned to ask her if I was already married. They had seen me with an Indian man a couple of times.

"Huh! Choo is married.? I'm her best friend....how come I don't know ah?" asked Amu, trying somewhat hard to conceal her irritation.

I laughed and so did Amu.

"Choo, just because you speak Hindi and Tamil and you live in Little India and love Indian movies and culture, people conclude you've married an Indian."

"Amu, I thought the whole world knows I'm 55 and still blissfully single!" I laughed.

"Amu, if I do marry, I want to marry a man like my beloved papa, but papa is a man in a million! The population in Singapore is only about 4 to 5 million, and when we minus the children and the ladies, my chances of finding my ideal is one in a million!

Having lived on earth for five and a half decades, I am almost immuned to half truths and gossips. The truth will always prevail and we just have to be patient with man's weaknesses and imperfection. Having a sound sleep at night is of paramount importance and this can materialise only when our hearts are free of paranoia, worries, anger and unforgiveness. We realise we are so insignificant and helpless for to be a Christian means, "Christ, I am nothing".

When I just started to teach at River Valley High School, I realised I only had $9.80 in my pocket. I was still cheerful for I could walk to school from the then YWCA Hostel. My room and board had been paid for the month. However, little did I expect my Canadian friend, Dr. Chris Telfer, to turn up at my hostel. I spent $9.00 to buy her lunch and dinner, leaving me with 80 cents. Chris and I were laughing at the good old days in the University of Alberta and how we played tricks on some of our professors. As it was quite late, I walked Chris down the gentle slope of Fort Canning Road to her budget hotel at Bencoolen Street. I picked up a total of $51 along the way!!! Wow! Someone had dropped money for me to pick up! See, when we empty our pockets, there is room for God to fill them up again! Chris only finally realised how "poor" I was when I shared my testimony in a church in Penang. I had invited her to spend a few days in my hometown in Penang. I always feel rich because I have a great heavenly PAPA who even takes care of the wild birds and flowers that bloom for only a day. Have you noticed that the dainty wild flowers, yellow buttercups, are even more smooth, shining and golden than slabs of man-made butter? I have also noticed that most of the ravens are nicely-rounded!

Happiness is a decision! I have decided to be happy everyday, come rain or shine.! How about you?

Gan Chau