Carrying On…
The last couple of days have been quite a change for me. My project recently ended and I have been staffed in another new project and I've been spending the last couple of days trying to get used to the new environment....well it's not really new, my 1st project was actually in KLCC where I spent more than a year with the client and between that time and now, I was assigned to another project which I believe helped me grow my skills even further. And also the team dynamics in my previous project was really wonderful. I felt blessed to be in a team headed by a kind and considerate yet determined Project Manager and a bunch of easy-going and helpful and focused colleagues.
To me, just observing my manager navigate the ship during turbulent times and choppy seas ever so gracefully affirmed my believe that you can still be kind and yet be firm with your decisions. Many people think that in order to get what you want, you gotta be all tough and hard but my Project Manager, a softspoken man showed me otherwise and I was surprised at how close I was to him during our tenure at the project. We would talk mostly during lunch and catch up with each other as we walk to the carpark at the end of the day. He really inspired me to also be kind and gentle and yet to have that focus when dealing with people.
My new project....well there's really nothing much to say yet. I believe the new Manager is competent at what he does but he could certainly improve on his people skills, because how you portray yourself is very important when you are leading a team. Confidence and assurance, are among my top traits that I look for in leaders, apart of course from their competencies and knowledge.
Oh well, I just hope I can get by this project with not too much issues. But anyway, I have noticed in my life I have another Manager that overlooks everything, and He has always made sure that I come out safe, maybe sometimes with some bruises here and there, but He knows my threshold level and he knows what to give him and it is in these moments, I just have to place my trust in Him and completely have faith in His divine hands and plan.
More interesting posts will be coming along shortly 
2 posts at one go!
Dear friend,
Thank you for reading Uncanny Philosophy and following my thoughts and life throughout this time. I have returned home from my 2 weeks vacation trip in Europe. In my time over there, I got some opportunity to do some reflection and I managed to do some writing in the train while we moved from one country to another. It was a good break and writing on the train is quite a bonus. I'm sure you would have read all those stories on how you hear people doing works of creativity while on a train (i.e. reading books, pondering outside the glass window as the train passes by the outside country yard and the meadows).
Well I did do some reading (I managed to finish off Paolo Coelho's Veronika Decides to Die and Walter Kirn's Up in the Air) but at the same time, I did do some writing ; just general thought reflecting which amounted in two posts being produced here.
The first is about finding meaning in the ordinary where I just reflected on the course of my life during my train journey from Paris to Bern (Switzerland).
The 2nd one is on figuring out the Constant in our lives. I borrowed the title from an episode of Lost and I wrote this post toward the end of my stay where I found that my constant in life is actually my divine maker.
The 3rd post, also I had written during my stay in Paris, entitled "The Price we pay" was actually based on some of my experiences in Europe. Some situations had occur which made me sit down and think on the price we pay whenever we heed to a certain decision that we make in our life.
Both posts I hope will be interesting and will be able to inspire you in your own journey of life.
Happy reading
Cheers!
What is your constant?
Everyone has a constant in his or her life ; the constant is that very fundamental element that reminds the person of who he/she is, what the individual stands for, and it’s that constant that gives meaning to the individual’s whole being and existence. Think of the constant like the totem from the movie Inception, where the characters in the movie each need to develop a totem – a personalised item which only each person knows. The Totem is used to assure the characters in the movie that they’re in the real world and not in some layered dream state level.
Likewise in our own lives today, we too have such constants to remind us of what is real and important to us. I reflected on this during my Europe trip as I found solace and comfort in attending the mass. Although the trip was hectic during some days, I am glad I still managed to make room for my constant – our Lord and even though the masses I attended were not in English, I still felt welcomed and at home. I was with my constant – the One who has been with me all this while and it felt really renewing to attend it during the mornings. I would wake up at around 7.00 am and walk to the nearest church (there were plenty) while my travelling companions were still asleep.
In a way I welcomed this way of life – to start the day with Our Lord while others are still asleep. I felt it sort of gave me that space and time to just be alone with God, and to receive him in the Eucharist in the first thing in the morning was just a blessing in itself for me.
In the past whenever I am faced with challenges, like a desperate son, I would turn back to my Father, repent and be reunited with him. I guess you could say that part of me doing that is because of guilt – I didn’t want God’s punishment. But I realised that as time moved on, I became more and more interested in building a relationship with Him, not just from a needs-based relationship, but from a dynamic and accepting perspective. I wanted to BE WITH Him rather than just approach him in times of difficulty.
And over time, as I began adopting and habitually internalizing this concept and way of thinking about God, I realised that my relationship with God improved. He slowly became my rock, not just a rock for refuge, but a rock for me to live my life , a rock which has magnetic properties that guides and points my compass in the right direction. This Rock, over the years, through prayer, study and meditation (and lots of effort and grace) would eventually become my constant.
I have noted earlier that constants are there in our lives to give meaning and significance. Some people base their constant on their families, or their bank accounts or their careers. Whatever it is, it is so important to remember to have these constants in one’s life because without them, just as how a boat will float without proper anchorage, so would we as well, and the lack of having a proper footing in the ground has its consequences. It becomes scarier as you age.
It’s important to take the time and think for a moment what is that constant in your life and the process starts by first figuring out what matters to you most, just as how I discovered during my Euro trip, that ultimately, my constant, no matter how difficult or distracting the circumstances might be, will always and only rest in God.
"Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in thee.."
- Augustine of Hippo
