Life is short, Cut the crap...

The Psalm of 2010

marcuskhoo — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 09:26:55 +0000

Give thanks to the Lord for He is good
His love endures forever

To Him who is in my school with me
His love endures forever

Who gives me Inspiration to do my best
His love endures forever

Who gives me wisdom to deal with difficult students
His love endures forever

And teaches me the true meaning of perseverance and hard work
His love endures forever

Who reminds me of love in 1 Corinthians 13
His love endures forever

And truly gives GRACE for every trial
His love endures forever

Who gives me “sons” and “daughters” who never fail to teach me, the teacher
His love endures forever

And gives me moments of laughter

And also of tears
His love endures forever

To Him who shows me that dreams can come true
His love endures forever

Who also provides the means to make them so
His love endures forever

And always makes reunions sweet
His love endures forever

To Him who gives us moments to celebrate
His love endures forever

And friends to celebrate those moments with
His love endures forever

Who gives us company to climb the mountains
His love endures forever

And ensures that we do not give up
His love endures forever

Who rewards us with views from HIS point of view
His love endures forever

And even provides relief for the pain
His love endures forever

To Him who provides angels in our lives
His love endures forever

And gives us true friends
His love endures forever

He Who gives us common interests
His love endures forever

And also common dreams
His love endures forever

To Him who brings us home to our families
His love endures forever

And still gives us a home away from home
His love endures forever

Where provision is never lacking

And love always abounds
His love endures forever

Who gives us every reason to be grateful
His love endures forever

And reminds us to give 120% to our passion
His love endures forever

To Him who died for you and for me
His love endures forever

And has carried us through 2010
His love endures forever

To Him be all thanks and all glory
And may we still say in the coming years
HIS LOVE ENDURES FOREVER!

Grown Up Christmas List (Michael Buble)

marcuskhoo — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 09:47:41 +0000

Do you remember me?
I sat upon your knee
I wrote to you with childhood fantasies
Well, I’m all grown-up now
Can you still help somehow?
I’m not a child, but my start still can dream

So here’s my lifelong wish
My grown-up Christmas list
Not for myself, but for a world in need

No more lives torn apart
That wars would never start
And time would heal all hearts
Every man would have a friend
That right would always win
And love would never end
This is my grown-up Christmas list

As children we believed the grandest sight to see
Was something lovely wrapped beneath our tree
Well, heaven only knows that packages and bows
Can never heal a hurting human soul

No more lives torn apart
That wars would never start
And time would heal all hearts
And everyone would have a friend
And right would always win
And love would never end
This is my grown up christmas list

What is this illusion called the innocence of youth?
Maybe only in that blind belief can we ever find the truth

No more lives torn apart
That wars would never start
And time would heal our hearts
Every man would have a friend
That right would always win
And love would never end

This is my grown-up Christmas list
This is my only lifelong wish
This is my grown-up Christmas list

So Perasan

marcuskhoo — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 18:18:52 +0000

I was really doing nothing online, so I decided to be so perasan and start reading blog entries on the day of my birthday.

Lo, and behold, what should I find but my colleague’s blog, promoting a very interesting contest ON THE SAME DAY AS MY BIRTHDAY!

Wordless Wednesday – a contest where you have to guess what is she trying to say through a picture posted on a Wednesday, WITH NO WORDS. Hence, word-less.

Of course, the words will then spew out on Thursday with the explanation to the picture on Wednesday.

Wah, I tell you ah, this colleague of mine, I really respect her la. Got so much time to do all these interesting things in her blog. Siap-siap with widgets galore. Some more she just started blogging.

Me? So malu, super humble blog aje.

Anyway, should check out her blog, she’s got a lot of interesting insights into the Sabahan way of life. If you wanna know the Dusun language (derivative of it is Rungus), can also learn from her blog.

Plus, she’s really great to talk to in real life too!

*and let’s me finish up her keropok and sweets in the office, haha!*

Plus, me promoting her blog and her contest would just give me the 25 points I need, and also a step closer to her books (or RM 200, or BOTH?!?!?!) *drool*

It’s SO interesting what you find when you are just so perasan and you have nothing else to do.

Thanks, Belle for starting the contest on my birthday! Got extra birthday points ah?

I’ll Always Remember You – Miley Cyrus

marcuskhoo — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 16:49:23 +0000

I always knew this day would come

We’d be standing one by one

With our future in our hands

So many dreams, so many plans

I always knew after all these years

There’d be laughter, there’d be tears

But never thought I’d walk away

With so much joy but so much pain

And it’s so hard to say goodbye

But yesterday’s gone

We’ve got to keep moving on

I’m so thankful for the moments

So glad I got to know you

The times that we had

I’ll keep like a photograph

And hold you in my heart forever

I’ll always remember you

Another chapter in the book

Can’t go back but you can look

And there we are on every page

Memories I’ll always save

Up ahead on the open doors

Who knows what we’re heading towards

I wish you love, I wish you luck

For you the world just opens up

But it’s so hard to say goodbye

Everyday that we had

All the good, all the bad

I’ll keep them here inside

All the times that we shared

Every place, everywhere

You touched my life

Yet one day we’ll look back

We’ll smile and we’ll laugh

But right now we just cry

‘Cos it’s so hard to say goodbye

But yesterday’s gone

We’ve got to keep moving on

I’m so thankful for the moments

So glad I got to know you

The times that we had

I’ll keep like a photograph

And hold you in my heart forever

I’ll always remember you

I’ll always remember you

I realised how much this year’s students really meant to me.

This is the hardest part of teaching : letting go and saying goodbye.

Sayonara, Class of 2010.

*not really a fan of Miley Cyrus, but some of her songs resonate so well with life*

Sweet and Bitter

marcuskhoo — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 17:59:51 +0000

It’s the end of another school year.

Bitter and sweet.

Sweet?

Class trip!

This year, we had our class end year dinner at Restoran Pantai in Pitas, eating seafood, overlooking the sea at sunset.

It was super cool.

We spent some time at the beach and at Dataran Bengkoka before having dinner.

It rained at first so we had to take shelter at one of the small huts by the beach.

Tiring, but fun.

I’ll miss this class, they taught me lots this year, especially improving my teaching methods for Physics and Add Math.

*Disclaimer: All these students had written parental permissions, and no, we did not swim in the ocean, as regulated by the Ministry.*

Then…

We won the District Level Choral Speaking competition again this year!

I’m so proud of my students, their efforts really paid off.

We still have much to learn and improve if we want to make it far next year.

Dream dreams people!

***

Bitter?

Frankly speaking, I’ve felt that this year is the LONGEST year to pass.

Many, many problems with students, especially attitude and discipline.

Yet, I find myself wondering at a very weird happening last Sunday during our Sunday meets.

It was the last meeting of the year, and as usual we had a simple farewell service for the Form 5 students.

During the service, there was a slideshow (which I did) on the 5 years that they were here, specifically focusing on 2006 and 2010 (Form 1 and Form 5).

During that slideshow, I teared up (as expected, although I’m the one who created that slideshow) listening to the responses of the Form 5 students, but I still managed to hold it in.

Then when it was my turn to give the message, I was supposed to read from Phillipians 1 : 3 – 11. I started with verse 3:

“Aku mengucap syukur kepada Allahku setiap kali aku mengingat kamu…”

…and then I paused.

Maybe it has been a very long year, full of ups and downs with the Form 5s. Or it could be the recent reminder of the 5 years I have spent with them. It certainly was a long week, full of reports and never ending piles of work, lack of sleep, or tired from the class trip the day before. I don’t know what really caused it, but when I read that verse, I found myself unable to hold it in any longer.

And I wept. In front of all the students.

Talk about DRAMA! Trying to keep it together so that I could go on with my sharing (which was tough considering I sound like a blubbering criminal confessing to a crime!), but at the same time, reading every sentence knowing that this passage was especially dedicated to the Form 5s, the text really came alive at that moment.

Needless to say, some students were shocked. By the end of the reading, some were already in tears (more girls than guys, naturally), most of them were looking down (as if feeling guilty).

I’ll never know of course (and I don’t really need to know, I guess), what my students were thinking at that moment, heck, even through the whole message.

Many things I will not forget about my time in school. This will always be one of them.

I will miss this group of students. Despite feeling as if the year would never end, despite all the problems that they have caused, despite all the despair that they create in me about their studies, I find myself still in love with all of them, just like I did back in 2006, if not more.

Maybe that’s why I cried. Closing a chapter in our lives and saying goodbye to the people you love, and who love you back, knowing that things will be different the next time you see each other, is truly bittersweet.

2006:

2010:

“Aku mengucap syukur kepada Allahku setiap kali aku mengingat kamu. Dan setiap kali aku berdoa untuk kamu semua, aku selalu berdoa dengan sukacita. Aku mengucap syukur kepada Allahku karena persekutuanmu dalam Berita Injil mulai dari hari pertama sampai sekarang ini. Akan hal ini aku yakin sepenuhnya, yaitu Ia, yang memulai pekerjaan yang baik di antara kamu, akan meneruskannya sampai pada akhirnya pada hari Kristus Yesus. Memang sudahlah sepatutnya aku berpikir demikian akan kamu semua, sebab kamu ada di dalam hatiku, oleh karena kamu semua turut mendapat bagian dalam kasih karunia yang diberikan kepadaku, baik pada waktu aku dipenjarakan, maupun pada waktu aku membela dan meneguhkan Berita Injil. Sebab Allah adalah saksiku betapa aku dengan kasih mesra Kristus Yesus merindukan kamu sekalian.

Dan inilah doaku, semoga kasihmu makin melimpah dalam pengetahuan yang benar dan dalam segala macam pengertian, sehingga kamu dapat memilih apa yang baik, supaya kamu suci dan tak bercacat menjelang hari Kristus, penuh dengan buah kebenaran yang dikerjakan oleh Yesus Kristus untuk memuliakan dan memuji Allah.”

~Filipi 1 : 3 – 11~

Thanks for 5 wonderful years. You guys are worth it.