My Weakness - Not Focussing Enough on Daily Issues

This comic by Tim Rickard crystallizes 90% of the problems are caused by poor focus. 

My one big weakness, apart from Dark Chocolate that is, is the fact that I tend to gloss over and not pay attention. My attention span is quite weak, and I tend to drift away if the conversation does not interest me or the topic is not in my area of expertise, like telecommunications or the latest current affair news in the region. 

I have decided to make it one of my resolutions to pay attention to the topics at hand and learn 5 things each day ; that way the brain gets its input and 'nutrition' to be stored for future use (I hope). 

Meanwhile, enjoy the comic strip, I do not own the rights to this, and it is a one -off ! 

Memorable Quote from Hammurabi

The Babylonian King Hammurabi is credited with this quote : "I know that superiors, commoners and slaves are not inherently different kinds of people. Be if we were to believe they are, it will enable us to create a stable and prosperous society."

Think about it for a while, this was the King who many millions of people, his subjects, historians and people who study history regard him as the King who created the system of Justice. His 282 Laws of Justice were the earliest recorded laws which gave people the sense of what was 'right', 'wrong', 'fair' and 'unfair'.

The Law which paraphrases the words : An Eye for an Eye.... is based on one of Hammurabi's 282 Laws.   

Shitoryu Free Sparring - an old video from the past

This video was taken sometime in 2011 with my friend and sparring mate, Looi Teck Kheong. The blocks and punches were held back and we were 'playing' for the cameras.

Not the best of sparring, as I am over the hill physically :)

Our Karate Club is now 21 years old but sadly, the attendance has dwindled to below 10, a sad reflection of the lack of interest in the martial arts and the rise of the more 'sexy' MMA and shorter impact aerobics which in my opinion lack culture and finesses. Rather they focus on the quickest and easiest way to condition the body.  

Hopefully I can post some more recent sparring videos in the near future. 

Raison Detre - Finding your Purpose

Yesterday I had a delightful evening discussing all manner of things with some good friends of mine from karate school, where I practice and sometimes teach.

The topic invariably moves after several rounds of beers and nice food in Chinatown to the meaning of life. We had Johnson explaining the Buddhist philosophies and Felipe on the Hindu teachings. I sat by silently, absorbing all that was going on with great interest. It dawned upon me that all religions have good values inherent in them. I  then recalled  the 5 tenets from this wonderful game changing book called Ikiigai by Ken Moji which in rough translation means the "reason for my existence" or Raison Detre  for the French speakers.  

Essentially Ken Moji's point is this : we are all searching for our Raison Detre, by learning and more importantly practicising these 5 values or Pathways, you will find your Ikiigai or Purpose in Life. Every person's Purpose will be different, and some may change during their life due to circumstances and unforseen events but such is the way life is :  

The 5 tenets I have learned and am trying to implement in my daily life are :

1. Start Small 
In any aspect or stage in your life. Take on bite sized challenges which you can do bit by bit by bit. As a personal anecdote, to date I have managed to run some full 10 marathons. When I decided to start, I could barely run 2.4 km (that was when I was 38 years old). So I gave myself a challenge and slowly I built up my stamina, from 2.4 to 3km, 4 km, 5 km and woke up early (5 am on most weekdays) and bit by bit, I improved my distance and stamina.

After 1 year of concentrated training, I could cover 21 km without much extra effort. (I was 39 years old then, still considered in my 'prime' of fitness. Then, I continued with the schedule as laid out by Runners World and ran 10km to 14 km every day for 5 days with 1 day rest. Saturdays were reserved for my long runs (16 to 20 kms), and I signed up for my first full marathon which was in Penang Malaysia 2003. 

So from the start when I gave up golf in 2000, till mid 2003, it was a full 2.5 years till I reached the fitness and confidence to run a full Marathon. I still have the certificate and medal as a  momento.  From then on I had the stamina base and body conditioning and was able to continue running a marathon each year till the year 2015 when I decided to take a break.

Start Small

2. Release Yourself 
Put your ego down in a box, do something which you enjoy, much as many people claim they enjoy work, the reality is that in the corporate world, the efforts are rewarded with money or salary and performance bonus and there are many boardroom and office politics. I interpret it as if you want to do something, make that something, is an activity which you personally love and can spend immeasurable time on it. I call it a body of work. Some example can be painting, writing (in my case), or even simple hobbies like gardening. 

Volunteering in social and religious organizations such as in  your church, temple or mosque is another excellent way of releasing yourself.

Release Yourself. 

3. Harmony and Sustainability  
Our mother Earth is hurting bad. Climate change caused by excessive greenhouse gases and the massive deforestation of the tropical rainforests in S.America, South East Asia is leading to a hotter and hotter Earth surface temperatures. We must find a way to create and embody harmony and sustainability for ourselves, such as our carbon footprint (I am guilty of that), recycling more (again I am guilty) and using less plastic (guilty as charged).

Every person must do his or her part to sustain our mother Earth. Achieving harnony is also another goal - with our family, relatives, friends neighbours and even strangers. 

The Japanese have mastered the art of graciousness in all situations. I think it is important to learn that trait.

  Go West - the Queen of Spain told Italian Christopher Columbus in late 15th century.

Harmony and Sustainability. 

4. Find Joy in doing small things. 
Another personal anecdote of mine. I sleep on a tatami bed. Its cooling and very functional, providing very good back support. Its high density foam is excellent for reinforcing the back. Every morning, I ensure I fold the duvet or bedspread well and place it folded in one corner. The tatami bed is nicely folded and pushed under the main bed. Neat.

I find joy in doing this simple act every day. It takes 5 to 10 minutes but I do enjoy making the bed !

Even when I am travelling, I actually tidy back the hotel bed, place the towels and litter in their proper places and containers. 

So, during the event of each and every day, any rotten or unfortunate, upsetting things will and often come my way, at the end of each day, no matter what had happened, I go home and see my made by myself tatami bed and duvet and I take comfort that at least 1 thing went right for me that day.  

Find Joy in Doing Small Things.

5, Be in the Here and Now.
This is Mindfulness 101. When we are eating, focus on the food, chewing, tasting, swallowing and digesting. Many people let their thoughts drift elsewhere most often looking at that handphone slash entertainment system. Many people become mindless zombies during their mealtimes, their commute to and from work or wherever they are going and at the end of the day, they just go home and crash out. One day slips to one week and the time just slips by. There will come a time when this feeling - ennui or a state of listlessness will set in, and then depression will follow.  

Mindfulness. Be Here and Now. Tomorrow Can Wait. Yesterday is Gone.

Have I found my Raison Detre ? Yes. Its personal and its a work in progress. Meanwhile I have found my little spot in the Universe and I am at peace.

Carpe Diem.    


  

Unforgettable Egypt Dec 2009

The ubiquitous camel by the Pyramids of Giza

My family made a year end trip, a 13 day trip to Egypt in 2009. To me, this was a game changer as to how I understood the way civilization was and after that trip, I came to realise that Mankind in is present form has been around for hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of years. 

The Pyramids of Giza were built sometime from 3000 BC to 1000 BC when Egypt was at the height of its political, military and economic power. To see the remnants of the death monuments as well as the many 'ships' which would transport the Pharoahs, their wives and their favourite eunuchs to the afterlife was something of a gamechanger for me. 

These early people had indepth knowlegdge in engineering technology, science, mathematics and astology some 5000 years ago ! Their artefacts and their monuments are just another testament to the rise and fall of the powerful nations past and present. 

Beside the Relief of Ramses II at Luxor Temple, 2009 

In the following posts I will show some of our pictures taken when we were in the cruise ship for 4 days starting from Luxor to Aswan, passing Kom Ombo. No other country to date can take away my fascination about the country of Egypt which I have visited only but once.   

Sapiens the Lecture - Prof Yuval Noah Harari

Why The Elderly are Venerated and Respected

It finally dawned upon me. I have met brilliant scientists, socio-economic specialists, gerontologist lecturers and people who have asked the brightest brains from Harvard to conduct a 70 year (yes 70 year) study of thousands of individuals and try to get a pattern as to why some people lived longer than others. The results were startling. I will try to put it down to a few key pointers.

1. People who lived happier, lived longer.

2. People who achieved happiness in old age actually generally were not top earners or   most powerful or most successful in their careers.

3. People who were generally happier had the best quality relationships with their spouses, their siblings,relatives and had a close circle of friends.

4. An acquaintence of mine from the School of Engineering at the National University of Singapore also spent some time in India trying to find out why some people lived till past their 100th birthday. He concluded after seeing a 104 year old headmaster of an orphanage who when he entered the orphanage had all the kiddies running up to him and hugging him giving him love and warmth 
  
5. People need a purpose for the greater good of their circle of influence. To be of use all the way to their dying day. 

In many Eastern societies the elderly are venerated and almost treated like Holy people.I always wondered why. Today I realise the reason why is because it is the opposite. Elderly people have their complete heuristic life experiences and wisdom well beyond comprehension of the younger people and they want to tell their stories and experiences in the hope that the young may learn and gain from their experiences.
  
They may not be mobile, or sometimes even confined to a wheelchair.

Celebrating my Uncle Vaithinathan's 100th birthday in 2015. 

He was first a schooltescher, then school principal, at 55 he became a barrister

at 75 he took to learning new languages and became an accomplised 

translator. He spoke and wrote 5 languages including Russian. 

Certainly a model for me. 

But they want to give their all. For in giving, they find a definite sense of purpose to stay on. Just a little while longer.  To help that one more person. If there is hesitation, we the younger ones should coax and cajole it out of them. To regale in their finest hours.

Love and Respect our Elderly. Understand that their physical and sometimes emotional 
attributes have faded and they may appear cranky, need to use the loo often 
(incontinence) and possibly even lose their trend of thought.

The Ravages of Time on a person's body can be merciless. However, they will want to share their  innermost feelings and experiences in the hope that they can still be of relevance to the people around them. Let them have their golden hours. For they will never ever walk this way again.  Soon, one day we will become the elderly and face the same circumstances as our fathers, mothers, uncles, aunts and all those who had gone before us did.

Carpe Diem.