30 & 31 January 2016

My lessons of gratitude today & yesterday:

• I'm grateful that I managed to complete most of my errands yesterday - from getting my clinical wear (with the help of camel) to my groceries (also with her help). My gosh haha it was strange because I always did things on my own and never really realized how much I didn't exactly 'take care' of myself until she pointed it out. So for that I am also extremely grateful to her. Oh well, I might have ended the day without cooking because of oil, but I found that hilarious. So I'm thankful for that moment of ridiculousness - if things always go according to plan, then where's the fun? hahaha
• Wow, it was pretty cold down in Innaloo today, the wind was so strong I was having trouble moving against it. It's funny because it's supposed to be summer, but I'm thankful for the coolness of Perth that I've missed for months. 
• And it rained yesterday and today! It's funny how it's raining so much despite it being summer right now. Maybe it's true that summer is already moving into fall. I am thankful when I see how vibrant the leaves are and how the birds seem to welcome me into a beautiful new day. I am thankful when I walk down the wooden path, tilting my head up as I breathe in the smell of incoming rain - hearing the susurration of the leaves, as if they were whispering a calming message to me.
• I feel comforted when I hear my medicine friend (the one in an LDR) tell me this: He's not looking for a fling but a wife. I resonated so much with this, and I think it really takes a mature perspective to firstly settle in this view and secondly to actually commit to it. I always feel as if I'm a few years older than my actual age inside of me, as if I have an old heart with a young body haha. I found myself agreeing with a lot of his points. I think it's really important for everyone to be able to be happy and grow on their own, and then make an even better choreography when they're together with someone who can complement them in their life goals.
• Just yesterday I saw another two amazing acts of Australians. The first was when a pregnant lady left her purse in the bus and the bus I just got on was already moving at least a few metres away from the last stop. The Australian dude yelled "hey stop the bus!" and he jumped off, running towards the lady and passed her the wallet. From the back of the bus, I could see the pregnant lady so overcome with gratefulness. Another one was when I walked by some of the homeless people... and I saw a different sight. There was this one lady who squatted next to the homeless person with a meal. I saw the steam rising from the burrito and I thought to myself... This world isn't that cold afterall.... the warmth is just hiding away. Afterall, a fire doesn't burn without fuel and people need to constantly keep it burning. These acts make me fuzzy inside and want to become a better person. If I have the spare change, I swear to myself that I will get one of these guys a meal they deserve. I've always wanted to do it, but I guess it takes a certain amount of courage to talk to someone who is culturally different from you. I need to learn how to radiate warmth to everyone, we are all humans, and only because it is what it means to be human. This is why I love the culture here more than in Singapore.
• I think the world is really beautiful. Today camel told me a haiku and I liked it so much I'm going to put it here: 

Walking this path
I choose one patch of sunlight
after another

•  I think there's just so much to be appreciated in nature - what more to say in the beauty of a being? Perhaps real appreciation can only be done in silence because it makes the heart skip a beat - it throws your mind into wonder - as if time could do nothing else but to freeze.
• Things can be tough, the mind can be in turmoil - but ultimately these things are just clouds that pass by ephemerally. They bring rain or storms and can sting a little, but that's totally fine because we are the skies that hold them. I'm grateful to these opportunities.