2016 New Year Resolutions

I'm not sure how to begin this entry. Should I start with "YAY" or "OMG". It's already a new year! The only change that I'd have to make is to start writing 2016 instead of 2015 on my papers. Other than that, I think everything else is pretty much the same as it was a couple days ago.

As 2015 comes to an end, my term as a Vice President of AIESEC Concordia is also ending (I mean, it has ended). Phew! What a year 2015 was! There were definitely a lot of changes, challenges, ups and downs (as usual), and growth. I've created the best memories so far with all the wonderful people who were/are still part of my life. I am forever grateful for everything that I have and experienced this year. I will make another post on the highlights of 2015 because this one is dedicated to my new year resolutions for 2016!

1. Create my own blog
2. Finish 1 book every month
3. Invite family to dinner 
4. Pay off my debt
5. Start using "Thank You" to replace "Sorry" 
6. Lose 25 lbs 

Love Earned or Free Love?

My friends and I had a very interesting discussion on love the other day and it got me thinking: the love we receive from others, is it supposed to be earned or given for free? 

We all experienced unrequited love at some point in our life and it sucks when the special someone does not feel the same. Of course, we all hope the love can be reciprocated and a happy ending, but life is not that easy (at least not for some). 

When we see something that we really like, the first thing that comes to our mind is "I want it. I want to own this." If we have the means, we will buy it. If we don't, we'll work hard to make sure we can buy it. We were always told, if you want something, you have to work hard for it because nothing comes for free. Well, people are not wrong...it's just that, this saying can apply to everything except for love. 

When it comes to love, it's not because you've worked hard that you will get it. You don't earn love. You don't and you can't say "I earned his/her love." When the other person doesn't feel the same way, it's about them, not about you. The person might not want to be in a relationship now or they are not ready, they were not looking for someone like you, or they just don't feel the same way and you can't force someone to share the same feelings. If you've tried your best and it still didn't work out, then it's not your problem. It wasn't because you weren't good enough or you didn't do enough. Your self-worth does not depend on the other person's view of you. 

Let's say you've put in all the effort, you've worked super hard and you do end up with that special person. You're very happy because you think you've earned it or you deserve it. But, how long will this relationship last? Or, how long will you be able to continue putting in the same amount of effort or more? 

I've seen some male friends who tried so hard to get (or to keep) the girl that they literally did everything they can to please them, but they also got tired in the long-run. So, after a couple months, or years, there might be less surprises or less effort putting in the relationship, and girls will start to question the guy's love. (Same for girls) 

These kind of relationships are not healthy, at least in my opinion. You should give love because you want to and not because you hope to get something in return. And love should come to you for free, without you having to do anything, but just by being yourself. 

Be yourself and that's enough. We do not need to prove anything to anyone and we do not need to please anyone (but God). 

Matthew 3: 17
"This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased."

We are God's children. He knows our worth and He loves us unconditionally, for free. You are enough for God. 

Mission Trip 2015: Guatemala (Part 1)

This summer I had the privilege to go on a short-term mission trip to Guatemala to serve God and the people in Magdalena. Those two weeks have been nothing but joyful, blessing, and live-changing. There are so much information that I would like to include here, and I’m not too sure how I’ll do that...but bear with me, it’s worth it. 

Volcano #1, #2

Volcano #3

So, our team of 13 people went to Antigua first for orientation and team bonding before we actually start working. The Montreal team and the Newfoundland team have only met once in March, so we didn’t really know each other too well. We all did the Myers Briggs and 11 of us were introverts, hence, our passivity. It was so difficult for everyone to share something in the group...*awkward* But, our leaders stepped in and we managed to work on that. 

They made us pick 5 words to describe our team, and we picked: Passive, Silent, Awkward, Discombobulated, and Selfish. 
Then, they made us pick another 5 words that we want our team to be, we picked: Engaged, Unified, Empathetic, Responsible, and Honest. We promised each other that we would work on those to achieve our goal, which was to “serve the community faithfully”. 

On Day 3, we finally went up the mountain to this village called “Magdalena Milpas Altas” with a population of around 9 800. 

The first thing I noticed wasn’t the poverty, but the smile on people’s face. There’s something different about their smile that’s very contagious, and warming. It just feels so genuine, sincere, and real. (those are synonyms but I hope you get what I’m trying to say)
-(I’ll post the pictures later)-

Once we got there, we got divided and went with our respective host family. I was with two other girls and we tried to communicate with our host family over dinner with the little Spanish that we knew. There were a lot of body language involved. Despite the language barrier, we bonded so well with our host family over the past two weeks. They showed us so much love. I enjoyed every moment spent with them (even if it’s just awkward silences). Curfew is at 9pm, so we pretty much just slept after dinner. 

"Shoes here, wedding there, LOVE everywhere"

Here it is...it's that period in life where your friends are starting to get married and moving into another stage of life. On July 4th, 2015, one of my closest friend, Yien, got married. I have been to weddings before, but those were more weddings of people that my mom knew. This is actually the first wedding of a friend whom I've known for over 10 years. It's a bit hard to believe that he's married now! Congratulations to the beautiful couple and I wish them all the best in life and may they be forever happy (and I'm looking forward to a baby sometime in the future :D ) 

Toronto 2013: ROM & Kensington Market

As I was on my way to Kensington Market after Casa Loma, this subway station caught my eye. I decided to get off at this "Museum" station and snap a few pictures. Since I had some time, I walked outside and guess what I found; the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM).

Toronto 2013: Casa Loma

After meeting Lena on Saturday, I realized that I still haven't post about my trip to Toronto in 2013 and I've taken a lot of pictures, which I should share. It feels like 2013 was not long ago but yet, it was. I'll try to remember as much as I can. Photography is one of the best medium to keep track of memories. I don't know what I would do without it! 

I have been to Toronto before with my family and friends, but we always went to the same places: Pacific Mall, Markham, and Chinatown. This time, I wanted to visit new ones as I had more free time. Before the trip, I did a lot of research on how to use Toronto's public transportation and where the famous touristic attractions are. I had my itinerary ready.

A Look Through 2014

Update May 31st 2015: I totally forgot that I still had this unfinished post from the beginning of the year. I decide to just post it. 



Can you believe another year has passed already? Where did time go? This year, I can finally say that I have no regrets.I really did what I wanted to do. I did not try to restrain myself from anything (even though my family might not have agreed with what I did). There are still a few days left before 2015, but I think I can conclude my year now. Let’s a have look at my resolutions from last year and see how well I did: 

Long Overdue Post

Here I am, sitting at Second Cup typing this entry out. It is nearly 5am. When was the last time I stayed up all night? I cannot recall. The reason why I’m still up is to finish my assignment for Wednesday. However, at this point, I think Microsoft Word needs a break. It refuses to open and keeps crashing every time I open it. Well, I will take that as a sign from God for me to take a break as well and type my feelings out, since I have not done that for quite some time. If I remember correctly, the last time I blogged was back at the beginning of year 2014. Now, it’s only a month and half away from 2015. So, what the hell happened in between? Mh, where should I start? So many things happened. 

I'm still alive!

Yes, I'm still alive! Main reason why I didn't blog for 2 months was my busy schedule. With 5 courses, time passes by so quickly. I mean, it's spring already! We are just a few weeks away from the end of semester and finals (which means summer also!)

Although this semester is gruelling and a bit stressful, it was still the best semester I've had yet. My teachers are wonderful and I actually learned a lot in all my classes; I joined Concordia's Christian Fellowship group and made new friends; I am able to talk and participate in class now (I was too shy to do so before .__. ), and made new friends. 

At the beginning of the year, I decided that I would join a club at Concordia. I end up choosing the Christian Fellowship as I wanted to study the Bible more (since I don't always go to Church). I never knew it would be this awesome. Everyone is just so nice. I don't have to worry about how I look or what I say because I know they will never criticize or judge me. It's always a good time with them. Last month, our group had a 25 hours retreat/gathering to study a scripture from the Bible (sleepover!) It was the first time for me to meet most of the people but it didn't take us long to become friends. We played board games until 2:30am. Breakfast was at 8am! During that 25 hours, we sang songs, played games, studied a scripture, made some reflection, cooked, went grocery shopping, etc. I haven't been surrounded with so many people and actually feel happy for a long time.  :) 

2014 New Year Resolutions!

My 2013 New Year Resolutions;

• Getting more than 80% in every courses, with a GPA > 3.00
• Meet new people, socialize more, got to get out of my comfort zone
• Finish old skin care products before buying new ones
• Use at least 50% of the make-up I bought
• Finish reading all the books before buying new ones
• Be able to play at least one song on the piano, guitar and ukulele
• Be more organized
• Cook for myself
• Sleep & wake-up earlier
• Keep up a spend/gain $ book
• 50$ to saving account every month
• Finish reading the Bible once
• Pray everyday
• Go to church? 
• Keep a 'happy' jar
• Be a better person/Stay positive

I'm looking at this list and it does not mean anything to me anymore. Whether I have accomplished them or not, it does not really matter now. My values and my mindset have changed over the year and certain things have changed also. Personally, I'm not proud of myself for what happened in the last 4-6 months. However, I'm not going to let the past hold me down.