Come to me with assurance as moonlight on a stream.
Come back my LOVE and wipe my tears away.
O memory, of hope, LOVE of long ago years has not faded
Come to me MY LOVE, even if only in a dream........
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
My heart goes out to the maids........
The Plight of the Indonesian Maids.
In most developed nations domestic help are a luxury and a privilege of the elite few. Strict labour laws, expensive rates and a general respect towards manual labour ensures that the maids are not exploited. The same is however not true for Singapore. Maids are not only affordable and in demand but exploited by the agencies and employers equally.The dilemma of a maid begins with her nationality and inability to speak English. This keeps her salary low. But worse than that, most of these maid have to give their salaries to the agents for up to 9 months. Difficult to imagine but, sadly, true. Their lower educational levels also works against them. This makes them less attractive to better paying employers, like expats. Other maid (eg from Philippines) are better educated and interact with other maids on their days off. This ensures that they will not be as easily exploited as compared to the Indonesians. Poor treatment of the maids often incites them to commit crimes. Long working hours, constant scolding, no pay for many months and no holidays builds up pressure and stress to make them snap.. Some of the girls are also very young, much younger than what their passport says. Most employers also do not care about the cultural and religious background of these maids, which may make it difficult for them to perform certain tasks such as ordering Muslim maids to cook pork and taking them to church. Many are not given proper food and not allowed to practice their religion. While many employers do treat their maids well, several others who do not. Every working individual has the right to leisure.So, why should it be any different for the maids? If giving the day off is not possible then what about half a day every week. Just something to look forward to in their lives. In fact the best would be if the community centers, maid employment agencies, mosques, churches or some government institution, could start some free classes for them (English language, sewing, reading for those who are illiterate). A familiar thing between all Indonesian maids is their hair. Most are very short, whereas maids from Philippines, Sri Lanka or India maintain different lengths.
During Hari Raya ( end of the Fasting month for Muslims), I was at the hairdressers. An employer dropped her maid there for a haircut. I was shocked to see that her hair was already short like a boys cut so later I asked the hairdresser who I know for many years that " Is the employer serious about having her hair cut even more ? " and she answered " Yes, what to do". The maid looked so sad and I was helpless and could not do a thing. Instead of paying for a haircut which was not needed, if the employer had given the maid the money as a token for the happy occasion, it would have been such a good gesture and made the maid also happy. The employer's "hygiene reasons" bordered on the absurd. People don't realize that these girls are poverty stricken in their own country. They have little choice but to leave their families and come to a strange country and strange people to work for and we must try and understand them better. We must not accept this kind of treatment, as it is inhumane and can be considered as a violation of basic human rights. The maids should have the same rights as other Singapore residents and should not be treated like second-class citizens.
In most developed nations domestic help are a luxury and a privilege of the elite few. Strict labour laws, expensive rates and a general respect towards manual labour ensures that the maids are not exploited. The same is however not true for Singapore. Maids are not only affordable and in demand but exploited by the agencies and employers equally.The dilemma of a maid begins with her nationality and inability to speak English. This keeps her salary low. But worse than that, most of these maid have to give their salaries to the agents for up to 9 months. Difficult to imagine but, sadly, true. Their lower educational levels also works against them. This makes them less attractive to better paying employers, like expats. Other maid (eg from Philippines) are better educated and interact with other maids on their days off. This ensures that they will not be as easily exploited as compared to the Indonesians. Poor treatment of the maids often incites them to commit crimes. Long working hours, constant scolding, no pay for many months and no holidays builds up pressure and stress to make them snap.. Some of the girls are also very young, much younger than what their passport says. Most employers also do not care about the cultural and religious background of these maids, which may make it difficult for them to perform certain tasks such as ordering Muslim maids to cook pork and taking them to church. Many are not given proper food and not allowed to practice their religion. While many employers do treat their maids well, several others who do not. Every working individual has the right to leisure.So, why should it be any different for the maids? If giving the day off is not possible then what about half a day every week. Just something to look forward to in their lives. In fact the best would be if the community centers, maid employment agencies, mosques, churches or some government institution, could start some free classes for them (English language, sewing, reading for those who are illiterate). A familiar thing between all Indonesian maids is their hair. Most are very short, whereas maids from Philippines, Sri Lanka or India maintain different lengths.
During Hari Raya ( end of the Fasting month for Muslims), I was at the hairdressers. An employer dropped her maid there for a haircut. I was shocked to see that her hair was already short like a boys cut so later I asked the hairdresser who I know for many years that " Is the employer serious about having her hair cut even more ? " and she answered " Yes, what to do". The maid looked so sad and I was helpless and could not do a thing. Instead of paying for a haircut which was not needed, if the employer had given the maid the money as a token for the happy occasion, it would have been such a good gesture and made the maid also happy. The employer's "hygiene reasons" bordered on the absurd. People don't realize that these girls are poverty stricken in their own country. They have little choice but to leave their families and come to a strange country and strange people to work for and we must try and understand them better. We must not accept this kind of treatment, as it is inhumane and can be considered as a violation of basic human rights. The maids should have the same rights as other Singapore residents and should not be treated like second-class citizens.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Pain
I nursed it in my heart while it lived, In joy I was alone so I grieved alone and no one cared.
I shut my eyes not wanting to face the truth, pretending that everything would be fine.
But in my heart I felt the pain and the loneliness and realized that I would always be ALONE till the day that I die.
And the only reason that kept me alive and going is my faith in God.
I shut my eyes not wanting to face the truth, pretending that everything would be fine.
But in my heart I felt the pain and the loneliness and realized that I would always be ALONE till the day that I die.
And the only reason that kept me alive and going is my faith in God.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Sayings
Smiles & Tears
If times are hard & you feel blue, Think of others, worrying too....Just because your Trials are many, dont think the rest of us havent any........Life is made up of Smiles & Tears & though to us it seems one sided, trouble is pretty well divided......If we look into every Heart, we will find that each one has its part and those who travel FORTUNES road, sometimes carry the biggest load.
--------------------------
"Follow your Soul and not your Mind, your Soul that answers to the Truth. Not your mind that leaps at APPEARANCES."Sri Aurobindo
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Our Real Being is not the Intellect, nor the Aesthetic, Ethical or Thinking mind, but the DIVINITY within.Sri Aurobindo ---------------------------
If times are hard & you feel blue, Think of others, worrying too....Just because your Trials are many, dont think the rest of us havent any........Life is made up of Smiles & Tears & though to us it seems one sided, trouble is pretty well divided......If we look into every Heart, we will find that each one has its part and those who travel FORTUNES road, sometimes carry the biggest load.
--------------------------
"Follow your Soul and not your Mind, your Soul that answers to the Truth. Not your mind that leaps at APPEARANCES."Sri Aurobindo
------------------------
Our Real Being is not the Intellect, nor the Aesthetic, Ethical or Thinking mind, but the DIVINITY within.Sri Aurobindo ---------------------------
For all the parents who spoil their children.
A taste of bitter fruit.
Sheltering a child from the consequences of his own actions now could help to create an IMMATURE ADULT later. One of the prime objectives during pre adolescent years is to teach the child that actions lead to consequences, and yet this connection is often interrupted . A 10 year old STEALS candy from a store and he /she is caught and released to his / her parents, and nothing happens. A 15 year old TAKES the keys to the family car and the parents pay the fine for driving without a Licence. All through childhood such loving parents in their MISGUIDED efforts to shield the child from pain have stood between his / her ACTIONS and the natural consequences that flow from them. It is possible under these circumstances for a young man or woman to enter adulthood not really knowing that life can bite.He / She may become a grown up adolescent CONSTANTLY NEEDING his/her parents to bail him/ her out of trouble. So how does one break this scenario?By linking actions to consequences. If Jane carelessly loses her lunch money, she just may have to skip a meal. If Jack misses his school bus because he was wasting time, he may have to walk a mile or two to school.Now, obviously its easy to carry this principal too far or to be too harsh. But a taste of BITTER FRUIT that IRRESPONSIBILITY brings can teach a child VALUABLE LESSONS THAT MAY BE USEFUL LATER ON. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sheltering a child from the consequences of his own actions now could help to create an IMMATURE ADULT later. One of the prime objectives during pre adolescent years is to teach the child that actions lead to consequences, and yet this connection is often interrupted . A 10 year old STEALS candy from a store and he /she is caught and released to his / her parents, and nothing happens. A 15 year old TAKES the keys to the family car and the parents pay the fine for driving without a Licence. All through childhood such loving parents in their MISGUIDED efforts to shield the child from pain have stood between his / her ACTIONS and the natural consequences that flow from them. It is possible under these circumstances for a young man or woman to enter adulthood not really knowing that life can bite.He / She may become a grown up adolescent CONSTANTLY NEEDING his/her parents to bail him/ her out of trouble. So how does one break this scenario?By linking actions to consequences. If Jane carelessly loses her lunch money, she just may have to skip a meal. If Jack misses his school bus because he was wasting time, he may have to walk a mile or two to school.Now, obviously its easy to carry this principal too far or to be too harsh. But a taste of BITTER FRUIT that IRRESPONSIBILITY brings can teach a child VALUABLE LESSONS THAT MAY BE USEFUL LATER ON. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Invitation
It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing. It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dream, for the adventure of being alive. It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon... I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shrivelled and closed from fear of further pain. I want to know if you can sit with pain mine or your own without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it. I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic,remember the limitations of being human. It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself. If you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. If you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy. I want to know if you can see Beauty even when it is not pretty every day. And if you can source your own life from its presence. I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine and still stand at the edge of the lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, "Yes." It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair weary and bruised to the bone and do what needs to be done to feed the children. It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the centre of the fire with me and not shrink back. It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
With God by your side
you never have to be ALONE...
Sometimes life sends us changes we've never contemplated,
problems we'd just as soon do without, and inconveniences that we'd rather not have to deal with,
it can feel as if we are wandering in a barren desert.
Its during these " desert " experiences of our lives
that God,in all his faithfulness,
opens up His heart.
He quenches our thirsty souls, revives our parched hearts, and leads us to a higher place where PEACE, JOY and LOVE will be ours FOREVER......
YOU WILL NEVER WALK ALONE.........
Sometimes life sends us changes we've never contemplated,
problems we'd just as soon do without, and inconveniences that we'd rather not have to deal with,
it can feel as if we are wandering in a barren desert.
Its during these " desert " experiences of our lives
that God,in all his faithfulness,
opens up His heart.
He quenches our thirsty souls, revives our parched hearts, and leads us to a higher place where PEACE, JOY and LOVE will be ours FOREVER......
YOU WILL NEVER WALK ALONE.........
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
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