He was given the title of "Alexander the Great" for his swift and triumphant conquests in war but i think he deserve the title for the following life lesson that he offered before his death...

Alexander, after conquering many kingdoms, was returning home. On the
way, he fell ill and it took him to his death bed. With death staring
him in his face, Alexander realized how his conquests, his great army,
his sharp sword and all his wealth were of no consequence.

He now longed to reach home to see his mother's face and bid her his
last adieu. But, he had to accept the fact that his sinking health would
not permit Him to reach his distant homeland. So, The mighty conqueror
lay prostrate and pale, helplessly waiting to breathe his last. He
called his generals and said, "I will depart from this world soon, I
have three wishes, please carry them out without fail." With tears
flowing down Their cheeks, the generals agreed to abide by their king's
last wishes.

" My first desire is that," said Alexander, " My physicians alone must
carry my coffin." After a pause, he continued, " Secondly, I desire that
when my coffin is being carried to the grave, the path leading to the
graveyard be strewn with gold, silver and precious stones which I have
collected in my treasury." The king felt exhausted after saying this. He
took a minute's rest and continued. "My third and last wish is that both
my hands be kept dangling out of my coffin ."

The people who had gathered there wondered at the king's strange wishes.
But no one dare bring the question to their lips. Alexander's favorite
general kissed his hand and pressed them to his heart. " O king, we
assure you that your wishes will all be fulfilled. But tell us why do
you make such strange wishes?"

At this Alexander took a deep breath and said: " I would like the world
to know of the three lessons I have just learnt. I want my physicians to
carry my coffin because people should realize that no doctor can really
cure any body .They are powerless and cannot save a person from the
clutches of death. So let not people take life for granted. The second
wish of strewing gold, silver and other riches on the way to the
graveyard is to tell people that not even a fraction of gold will come
with me. I spent all my life earning riches but cannot take anything
with me. Let people realize that it is a sheer waste of time to chase
wealth.And about my third wish of having my hands dangling out of the
coffin, I wish people to know that I came empty handed into this world
and empty handed I go out of this world ."

With these words, the king closed his eyes. Soon he let death conquer
him and breathed his last. . . .

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my phone rang early in the morning.. it was a call from one of my students... he has a big teddy bear in his hands that he hopes to pass to his g.f for her birthday but he is too shy to carry it around the whole day before school closes... so he asked if he can deposit the bear in my car and retrieve it at the end of the day. i consented... :)

when school closed, he called again to ask for the bear... with his g.f following a distance away, thinking of the surprise that he is giving!? he thanked me for helping him and he volunteered to help me the next time when i need any favour from him :)

when he took the bear and passed it to her, he shyly wished her happy birthday and wish her "fast tall grow big - literal translation from chinese!" and she walked away in one direction and he in another... shy couple indeed but i felt sweetness for them although i never encourage relationships in sec sch cos students are generally not mature enough to know what is love all about... anyway, since they are together, i simply wish that they will build a positive relationship and help each other out in their studies.

today, some of the boys showed me a video of another girl and another boy acting intimately at the library (which is most inappropriate!)... and they asked and dared the boy (who gave the bear) if he has done that with his g.f... he did not reply and i knew that he will not do such a thing with his g.f... i stepped in to say that he is a gentleman... and i am proud of him for respecting his g.f and himself in keeping themselves proper in their relationship... it's kinda rare these days among young couples... I hope they will continue to keep it this way and their relationship will continue to grow and mature into a marriage! :)

Comment! (3) | Recommend! | Categories: life [t], lesson [t]

When you put in effort and you did not get what you have expected for your tests or exams, how should you react?

naturally, you will be disappointed, frustrated or discouraged about it... that's normal, that's human... but after all the negative feelings have subsided, what are you going to do about it? for some, they decided to give up and not try anymore... for some, they turn their disappointment into hatred and dont want to have anything to do with the subject anymore... to some, they humble themselves and possess the passion and drive to learn from their mistakes and improve on their understanding and fill up their pockets of holes in their knowledge... from there, they emerge stronger and rise on the next occasion to clinch the fruit that is worthy of their effort.. when we did not reap what we sow in the first round, NEVER give up! we are actually half way there towards excellence! the only sensible thing to do now is to know what went wrong and not to repeat the same mistakes again!

If it's carelessness and insufficient time to complete the paper, then it means a lack of practice... work harder and do more! in that way, you will become more familiar with your stuff and be able to understand questions more easily and correctly!

If you dont understand the questions asked, read once through to have a brief overview of the question. read again but do it sentence by sentence. extract out the key info in each sentence and write it down in point form or in simple equations what is given. finally, look at the last part of the question, which usually tell you what the question is asking for. compare what is available and what is required. think through if there is any concepts or equations or knowledge that can be used to link what is given in the question to what is required to be solved in the question. the more you have practiced and understand what you studied, the more options you have to solve the problem at hand! and many a time, think simple.. problems are not as complicated as you think!

end here with my all-time favourite story of the way of a champion :)

THE WAY OF A CHAMPION

“How much further to the waterfall?” the little boy asked.
“Up around the bend, champion,” the old man answered with a chuckle.
“That’s what you said last time, Paw-Paw.” The boy paused. “What’s a champion?”

The old man gazed down upon his grandson before answering.
“A champion is someone who believes they can win and who keeps on trying until they do,” he said.
“You mean champions don’t always win?” the boy queried.
“No, son. Champions don’t always win—but they believe that they can and eventually they do. Most champions lose many times before they win.”

“That sounds hard, Paw-Paw,” the boy remarked.
“Sometimes. You have to grow a champion muscle.” The old man pointed down the path. “Do you see that butterfly?”

“Yes, sir.”
“Where did it come from?”
“From a cocoon,” the boy replied. “You showed me that on the purple butterfly bush.”

“How did it get out?” the old man continued.
“It grew its wings and broke through.” The boy beamed.
“What happened when you helped one of the butterflies break through?” the old man prodded in a soft voice.

The boy’s face dropped. “Its wings weren’t strong enough and it fell to the ground where it died.”
“That’s right. In order to fly, butterflies need to first grow strong.” The old man placed his palm on the boy’s shoulder. “People are the same way. To be a champion, we have to become strong. Usually though, it’s not the actions that need to be strong—it’s the belief.”

”What do you mean, Paw-Paw?” the boy asked.
The old man stopped and bent down to eye level.
“Do you remember when you learned how to ride your bike?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Do you remember how you fell down?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Do you remember how you had cuts and scrapes and had to go get Band-Aids and even cried a few tears?”
“Yes, sir—but not that many,” the boy declared.
“Why did you keep getting up?” The old man pushed.
“Because I knew I could do it,” the boy stated. “If Sammy could do it, then I knew I could, too.”

“That’s right,” the old man nodded. “Sometimes you have to borrow somebody else’s belief until yours becomes strong enough that you don’t need it. You saw Sammy do it and you believed that if he could, so could you.” The old man grinned at the boy. “Was is that hard to get up after you fell?”

“No,” the boy barked.
“Of course not,” the old man affirmed. “It never is if you believe. Champions know that.”

The old man took the boy’s hand and began to stand.
The boy tugged on his finger and held him still. His brown eyes looked straight at the old man.
“I’m always going to be a champion, Paw-Paw,” the boy declared. “’Cause I can always get up.”
“Yes, you can,” the old man smiled. “Yes, you can.”

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