tizblessedlife :)

Today

Excerpts from Accept No Mediocre Life by David Foster:

"Procrastination feeds on the "someday" mentality. ... Someday I'll get serious about making my life count. Someday I'll take my life in God seriously. Someday prayer will become priority, and people will know I'm a force to be reckoned with... Someday I'll step up. Someday I'll be strong. Someday I'll slay those demons. Someday I'll stop saying, "Someday," and start saying, "Today," When you don't want to do something, any excuse will do."

"I remember one of my ethics professor asking, "How do you cook a frog?" Students looked at each other for answers. The teacher said, "To cook a frog alive, you place him in a pot of water at his favourite temperature. Start turning up the heat in small increments. The frog will sit still, adjusting to the rising temperature. Because of his ability to adapt to the hot water, he will be boiled alive before he thinks about jumping out" The application of this story was that we are just like that frog; we will adapt to the climate around us unless we resist. The mass of humanity tends to settle in the middle where mediocrity breeds best. Commitment cools. Vision leaks. Excellence tends to entropy, and energy defuses."

Good stuff huh? That's why I believe reading is important for personal growth.

Today I'll do something that'll make my life count.
Today I'll grab hold of the worthwhile opportunities that come my way.
Today I'll challenge myself to be stretched.
Today I'll have fun.
Today I'll trust God.
No more "someday". That "someday" may never come.

Just yesterday FL asked me to join her in an aquathlon. She'll swim and I'll run. I replied, "I am keen but scared leh." She said "You scared what. I'm swimming in the open sea, I should be the one that's scared." That's true huh. I'm just supposed to run on flat ground - what is so scary? Fear can be so crippling and irrational at times (oops most of the time, I mean). 5km. Wahaha. These couple of weeks, I was actually thinking of joining some 5km run someday.. then this opportunity came and I was afraid. Crazy. Anyway, I'm going for it. I've been running more consistently again since last week. 30-min jogs. Felt ok. I should be able to complete 5km, comfortably I hope. Stella, get ready those purple FBT shorts!! Yep, I'm gonna get gorgeous thighs. Yay!

I've also been corresponding with my field tutor and this led to another opportunity. We discuss ideas and I asked him what motivates him to be challenging of the status quo etc. Where did he get those guts from. I always wonder if I can be that brave, new blood in the field someday (See see? Someday again.) Ahaha. He opened up the opportunity to co-work on a research or study. Oh my goodness, did gold bars just drop from heaven?! Who'd think of working with a raw and inexperienced undergrad? I thought about it.. I'll go for it. Such opportunities are rare. This's a chance to do some work that'll impact the marketplace. Woohoo.. I remember talking with Jessie and Florence about collaborating in future on a research project. And have it published in a credible social science journal. By age 35. But it looks like it'll be sooner than I thought! I don't know where this will take me, but I'll not despise where I am. Everything starts small. I think the journey is important, maybe more so than the destination. Come on I'm already 21, but I'm also only 21 - I can be a bit more reckless in doing new things.

Watch out, world!

posted by Ling @ 12:23 PM