Flexible Work Hours

I was elated to read in the papers that experts say flexible work hours is the only way to ease traffic woes. I had formed the same conclusion a few months ago and mentioned it at a family dinner. I am blessed to be able to drive on most days. However, the traffic flow on most days is deplorable. On days when I have to utilise public transport, I am amazed that the situation is no better.  I spend at least two hours a day on the road, whether public or private transport is used.

In addition, I feel that flexible work hours would solve many societal problems. Working parents are not spending enough time with their children. When I arrive home from work at 6+ p.m., I am tired out. I try to spend time with my son, but what can be done in the short period of time before dinner is served?

Flexible work hours may also increase birth rates! I know of many couples who have been trying to conceive for a considerable period of time without success. Could it be that long fixed hours have exhausted our bodies?

I wish I could return home to my son much earlier every day. Maybe he would then be able to go to sleep at more earthly hours (He now sleeps at 11.30p.m.) and my body also can have a chance to recuperate.

I am so Proud of You

Jed received his report card yesterday and the teacher had written "jed's behavior is excellent. He is a positive role model for other children in his class." I thank God that he has behaved well in school and told him I was so proud of him:)

Into My Heart

J asked God to go into his heart on Monday (7 May). It was so touching. The entire prayer was as follows: Dear Jesus, please come into my heart so i will not be very scared of the dark."

Great Faith

This happened last year in August, and I would like to record the incident on this blog:

I was ill with a high fever and was not going to church that Sunday morning. J wanted to stay at home with me to look after me.

Me: J, if you want to stay at home today, you will have to play on your own. I have no energy and would probably be sleeping the whole day.

J: Mama, can I talk to you?

Me: Yes?

J: Last time, when I was in Sunday School, I learnt that when you you have no energy, God is your energy.

Amen!

Meimei

J has been talking about having a meimei for a long time. He would say things like "When I have a meimei, I would accompany her at the back during choir and when she is old enough, I will sing in the choir again." He would draw pictures of our family and include his meimei. Yesterday, he suddenly said, "Actually, I would like a didi and a meimei. I would only play with my didi because I don't play with girls."

I wonder when God would bless me with another bundle of joy. Every month, I would have to cope with momentary disappointment when my basal temperature plunges. I listen to sermons and claim for myself the blessings of Abraham. May the miracle take place soon.

New Job

I thank God for my new job which is 100 times less hectic than the old one. I rarely need to bring work home. Between April and August, I would only have 4 hours of tutorials. The 42 days of leave is gladly welcomed. I do have a lot of marking to do, but I have learnt a lot from doing that.

Not all is a bed of roses. There is the SFT (Student Feedback of Teaching). My department's average on it was 92% last year and I was wondering how that could be achieved. I dreamt twice that I fared badly. After the second dream, I told myself that I would not live with fear. I prayed for the peace of God and managed to go back to sleep. The other minor qualm is that the workplace is so far away. I have coped with that by listening to music or sermons while I drive.

Having said that, I am thankful that I am not too tired to spend time with J. I also look forward to taking leave and going on holidays with him.

Outpouring

There were so many emotions that arose due to interactions with J in the past weeks that I need an outlet and this is it - a spanking new blog.

Prayer of Faith

Firstly, I thank God for using J to remind me of the importance of prayer. Once as I was driving, I remarked that I was on the wrong lane. J was concerned and asked, "Mama, shall we pray?" Since then, he has often prayed when I lose my way whilst driving (which happens quite often due to a poor sense of direction). When parking lots are scarce, he would also suggest praying for a space.

Recently, we went on a family trip to Taiwan. J made a three-year-old friend called D. The following conversation took place between the two boys after they witnessed fireworks being released into the sky:

D: I am scared of fireworks.

J: Don't be scared. Just pray to Jesus.

D: How can you say that to me?

J: Jesus is very strong.

I was so touched upon hearing the conversation. May God preserve this child-like faith that J has and as he evangelises, may God use him mightily to reach out to others.

Helping Others

During the same trip, I went through a devotional with J. At the end of the devotional, the reader is challenged to offer help to someone. J went to his papa and asked if he needed help. When told that help was not needed, J replied, "Papa, when you need help, just call me and I will quickly run to you."

Facing Rejection

There were seven children on the Taiwan trip - three pairs of siblings + J. Most stuck to their own siblings, but on the third day, J made firm friends with D, whose sister also appeared to take to J. Later, another boy took to D and his sister soon followed suit. Towards the end of the trip, the last pair of sibling also showered D with attention.

The day before the trip ended, the seven children were at the back of the bus. J was the first there and D had gone to look for him, thus luring all the other children to the back of the bus. I was unaware of what was happening as the adults had decided to let the children converse and play on their own. When J abruptly appeared in front of us, I sensed something was wrong. He did not say anything and went back to join the children. A while later, he came to us again. This time, I walked to the back of the bus to find out what was happening. The older boys had surrounded D and refused to let J through. They complained that J had hit them and had climbed on D. A little bit of thinking led to my conclusion that all J wanted was to sit next to his friend D. When the other boys vied for that seat, J started hitting them. The older boys thought they were upholding justice by protecting Dasher from J. At the end of the whole saga, D said he did not want J to be his friend. Poor J burst into very miserable tears. I was on the verge of tears too. I think no one intended to be malicious, but J was experiencing his first rejection in the world.

We brought J aside and explained the situation to him. We told him that he should not have hit the older boys to get to D and that he should apologise. However, he was so hurt during the episode that he burst into loud sobs again when he saw the other children. I pray that J will have favour with God and men and that he will experience the blessings in Deut 28.

Only-Child Syndrome

During a church retreat recently, J was trying to play soccer with other children. Everyone was just running after the ball and whoever got to the ball first would kick it. J was amongst the youngest and could not easily reach the ball. When he did, he picked up the ball and ran. He was reprimanded by the older boys. In the end, he got frustrated and lamented that no one wanted to play with him. I had to explain the game to him and point out that everyone was just running after the ball. I guess he expected the ball to be deliberately handed to him like it would at home, since our games usually only involved him and one or two adults. I really pray for a second child.

Progress Report

Key:

VG - Very Good

G - Good

AV - Average

I - Improving

J's progress report from the childcare centre arrived two days ago. I went through it and was surprised that there were a number of Average. This time, for ability in Chinese, he was even rated I. Am I relieved that the centre did not use the ratings A to D, otherwise he would have received his first Ds even before turning four!

Upon closer scrutiny, I concurred with the teacher's rating for most of the items. However, he was only rated Good for recognising numbers and counting. He can recognise three-digit numbers by now and can also count up to 100 and these are in the Primary One Syllabus. The Husband says that as long as we know his academic abilities, we should not be too concerned about how the teacher rates it. I had to agree it was true, although at first I thought that the report book was one of his earliest documents recording his development and it should accurately reflect his ability.

I never would have imagined myself being so uptight about my child's progress report. It is a reminder to me to write kind and thoughtful remarks about my own pupils. I am also beginning to question if we should send him to a school with a Montessori-setting which stresses more on communication as we are helping him academically at home.

Dad, Mum

Yesterday, J suddenly called his papa "Dad". I was surprised and asked him why he did that. He looked at me cheekily and said, "Mum." I found the whole scenario amusing and wondered if he was attempting to be grown up, since the Husband and I addressed my in-laws as "Dad" and "Mum".

What is the Best Advice?

J's cousin A has been teasing J by threatening to pull down his pants. It frustrates J and he will say a long "No". I taught him to say "Don't do that!" firmly, then went on to teach him an alternative defense - to threaten to pull down A's pants back. The Husband frowned at my second advice. Indeed, when J heeded it, the two boys ran around the house after each other. The Husband then took matters in his hands and told J to firmly tell A not to pull down his pants. This worked today.

I just do not want J to be bullied and sometimes am stuck where the giving of advice is concerned. We usually tell him to turn the other cheek but I have seen malicious children bullying unscrupulously. I pray that God will grant J wisdom and favour and that I will also have the wisdom to advise him when needed.

Prayer

Lord, I commit J into your hands. He belongs to you. Help me bring him up in your ways. Help me be patient with J always.