Clover

Four Leaf Clover

Aside from the Camellia, the Clover is another favorite motif at Pastel b. cards. The four-leaflet clover is a variation of the common three-leaf clover. According to superstition, four-leaf clovers bring good luck to those who find them. The rarity of the four-leaf variety probably explains it, because approximately only 1 in every 10,000 clovers has the four-leaflet form.

According to legend, each leaf of the clover is symbolic: the first is for hope, the second is for faith, the third is for love, and the fourth is for luck. Legend has it that if a lady hangs a four-leaf clover on her door, the next man to who comes in will become her husband. Believe it or not....

I have chosen the Clover as Gift Card motif coz I want the gifts to carry the connotation of the clover, which will bring hope, faith, love and luck to the giver and receiver alike.

It's all relative...

I heard an answer today that I find extremely amusing. It goes like this. A mom asks her two-year old, "how old are you?", to which the toddler replies, "two old".

The little boy's logic being he is two years old, and since he was asked "how old", he completed the answer as "two old". I was bawling with laughter after I heard the story, because what I heard was the toddler saying he was "too old", instead of "two old".

I think that the little boy has made a point and they are words of wisdom. Parents want their children to grow up fast and healthy. As teens, we can't wait to be grown up enough, so we could be free of our parents' grasp. As grown-ups, we feel embarrassed when we or our friends acted "childishly". Funnily enough, when we see a jovial granny, we would remark how "youthful" she looks or how she is still "young at heart".

The moral of the story is, should we put so much emphasis as we do now in our societal convention to growing up and lose all our childhood traits or remain a child at heart, to retain our curiosity and sense of wonderment in life. How old is "too old" then?

The Art of Doing Nothing

What has happened to leisure, lounging around, doing nothing and simply enjoying life as it is? With the protestant work ethic instilled in us for centuries, work is good and achievement is the ultimate goal in life. Leisure is reduced to being lazy and reserved for the privileged.

With so many distractions in life and endless chores, it is difficult to be still. We are always running off to get something done. Doing nothing is a waste of time or a luxury that most can't afford.

In the midst of this rat race, have we ever pondered the meaning of it all? Personally, life-changing decisions often come when there is time to reflect, to be still, to be grateful. The ah-ha moments don't come when we are busy, frustrated and stressed. It takes doing nothing, to savor the moment and simply "be". In our times, doing something, anything, has become the norm, and doing nothing has become an obsolete art.

Faith

"In the midst of winter, I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer." ~ Albert Camus

The times we invoke the power of prayer are usually in our hours of desperation, when we surrender to faith as the last resort. The times when we feel out of control are the scariest, because we have reached our limit and there is nothing more we could do. However, it is when we let go and "let God", that miracles happen.

Faith gives us strength and with this new found strength, we find courage to overcome our limits. In spite of the death of winter, we found an "invincible summer" in us. Humans are frail when we face seemingly insurmountable odds, but Faith, Hope and Love give us the strength to overcome the impossible. When the worst is over, we discover that we have become a bigger person. This is the best time to give thanks and pray that we continue to keep our faith and grow.

Books, Art, Coffee Inc.

The Baci Lounge is a concept bookstore located in Auckland, New Zealand, and is the brainstorm of Sharad Paul. Paul is foremost a surgeon in Auckland, but doubles as an author as well. "Baci" means "Kiss" in Italian, and he wanted the Baci Lounge to be a place where you can read leisurely with a good cup of coffee or wine.

The decor is inviting to young writers and book lovers alike. There are comfortable armchairs, tables and booths to read to your heart's delight. There is a wide range of books, with a section devoted to Indian literature, where Paul spent some years in. If you visit the site http://www.baci.co.nz/, you will find that a part of the profits will be dedicated to literacy programs. Beisdes being a cool place to hang out, you will be doing a good cause to promote literacy. What a double delight!!

Cat in the bag

The weather has been really strange this summer, raining almost every day. The rains we are talking about are not the soft pitter-patter on the window pane that lulls you to sleep ones. These are the mad cats-and-dogs-down-pours that no umbrella could brave.

I was caught without an umbrella one day and were I compact enough, this would be exactly what I'll have for a makeshift mackintosh. Tant pis, I was drenched from head to toe. I could even pour water out from my shoes....

Close to Heart

Today marks the 8th month of Kobe's passing. It was midnight of Novemeber 7, 2007 that Kobe has left us. He was only three and it was really sudden. I guess it was the dying young part and not knowing what has happened that makes it hard to have closure.

Kobe is a mini Yorkie. When he was 3 months old, he started having black outs and seizures. After taking him to many vets, we found out that he has a shunt. He had 2 major operations when he was one. It was a dangerous procedure because the shunt is very close to his major arteries. Moreover, the vet warned that Kobe might not wake up from the anaesthetics, since they need to heavily sedate him, but he only weighs 1.2kg.

The operation was successful and Kobe started to put on weight. His maximum weight was 1.92kg and all of us, including the vets are so happy to see his bright eyes and his oh so shiny button nose.

As Kobe got stronger and healthier, his personality started to bloom. He was a very sick puppy up till the surgery and the aftermath of nursing him back to health. Kobe now assumes the role of patrol guard and alpha male at home, though he is the smallest in build.

When everybody is ready for bed, Kobe would patrol the house and go to each room to see if everyone is ok. He would do a few rounds of this, and you could hear his tiny steps pattering across the floor. When he is totally satisfied that everything is in order, he would go to his "cave", heave a mighty sigh, and sleep.

Since Kobe is the last to sleep, he is a late riser. Dayee, the cockatoo, will yell for her food at 6:30 every morning. It never fails, even on weekends. When we start to stir, Ashley would follow us and keep meowing to tell us that she is really hungry and more than ready for her breakfast.

B-chan would still be snoring behind my bed, but when he hears us opening the fridge and making toast, he would come running. Kobe would still be in his cave and he would look out and watch the din. If he feels like having breakfast, he would come out. Usually he would make a U-turn and sleep some more.

When he emerges from his cave, the hair on his face would be flat on one side and his expression would always be "what's going on?" Like a lot of toy breeds, Kobe is picky about his food. We would try to give him food that he likes and not force him. Soon, he took a liking to boiled chicken breast. We are all too happy to see him eat by himself, because we had to force feed him when he was ill.

When he was recovering, we had to make a porridge like nutrient pack recommended by his vet. We had to use the syringe to feed him and he hates it. We hated it, too, because looking at it, it must tastes like glue. But back then, it's the only thing he could eat.

Kobe likes going out. We took him to the Peak a couple times and he would be running on the grass and his big ears would be flapping with his pink tongue out. What a happy smile. When we take regular walks in the neighborhood, everyone would greet him and B-chan, and Kobe would give his head, head, yeah, not hand, hand, to everyone who pats him. He would just put his little head on your palm and let you scratch his head and neck. The boys are loved by everyone.

The morning after that dreaded night, I went to the vet down the block to tell him that Kobe had passed away. He was limp when we were rushing to emergency in the taxi. Since we have been taking Kobe for check ups with the two vets regularly, they know of his condition. However, they were still very surprised by the suddenness of this, because Kobe has grown healthy. Everyone at the clinic was sad.

When we walked home slowly with B-chan, everyone asks us where Kobe is, and why we are not walking him. We told them that Kobe is not with us anymore. Everyone was shocked and saddened. We retold the story for many weeks as we bump into neighbors asking why Kobe is not walking with B-chan.

I believe that that Kobe, who is mini in size, but big in personality, has captured the hearts of many people. We have kept some hair of Kobe's along with all his clothes and toys. I still feel very sad remembering today is the eighth month of his passing and there is no closure still. I still don't know why he has left and when this hole in my heart will be patched. One thing I know is that Kobe will be in my heart for always.