Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Mountain Climbing N Friendship


Mountain Climbing provides a unique opportunity to
foster relationship and build friendship.


Though trekkers may trek through the same path to get to the same destination,



( Click on picture above, to see a beautiful treks of a hill in Broga, Semenyih besides a Chinese temple. )


But how each of them trek through the journey, one will differs from the other.



( Click on the picture to see Broga Hill in Semenyih, Kajang Selangor )


True nature of relationship evolves and friendship is fostered, when people cross path with each other.


This is especially so during long trekking trip, that requires group members to solve the challenges over unexpected incidences that may happen in the jungles and mountains, some within the trekker's control and some outside the trekkers' control.

When people of different temperament, characters and thoughts comes together, and see things differently, as well as behaves differently, you can be quite sure to be shocked, and disbelief to know that the friend that we always see, has another side of them that we have never known at all.

To sum up, friendship is so tangible that you feel the warmth and the joy when sharing in tears and laughter.

Friendship can be view as intangible, just like the wind, once it has gone pass, you don't know how to find it back.





To carry on the mountain climbing journey, the trekkers sometime need to

...say sorry if you have to and when there is a need to, cry if that helps to release tension,

...stop crying you must, to move yourself forward, continue the trekking journey ahead.

Say forgive me to the person you hurt, and say i forgive you to the person who hurts you if that's what makes up of a friendship.

Its is no big deal if you get hurt, be real and trust again, little by little, get heal while passing through the journey, open your heart to someone who can help.

Unlearn any wrong, learn a new way to love, to cherish, and to appreciate so that the trekking journey will be pleasant along the way until everyone and you reach the destination.

The sun rises, the sun goes down, everyday,


( Click to see Sunrise in Broga Hill Semenyih )


But it is not everyday the sun rises, with a clear defined yolk.




The second, the minutes, and the hours still ticks away whether you like it or not.

Even if the sunrise is not beautiful, and the rain causes inconvenience.

whether you trek in jungle or in life, there will be another day call tomorrow, that we have exchange a day of our life with it.

I am just so convince that mountain climbing & trekking provides a unique opportunity to foster friendship.

Varieties, is what it is, making life more interesting and meaningful.

Mountain Climbing, Jungle Trekking N Progress

Sometimes I wonder how our physical body is made to withstand pressure.



Never attempt to climb any mountain or trek will means that we do not know the tolerance level we can withstand.

From a mere 1-2 KM mountain trek/day to a 25 KM of mountain trek/day, it means there is improvement.

Continue from there, we tried 1 night two days trek, follows with 3 days two nights trek, and after that 5 days 4 nights trek etc....to us it means progress.

Improvement and progress builds confidence.

After we have done the easy/relatively easy, or difficult/relatively difficult trek progressing one to the other, there should be no reason why a 12 to 17 days of trekking trip in Annapurna Circuit Treks, The Everest , or The Sikkim, Kanchenjunga and Gangtok, Himalayas that most our of friends talked about so much, O any mountains beyond in other continents is not imposible should we choose to head towards that directions and have the resources for it.

Whatever length of days in trekking, if we do not enjoy the journey, such as enjoying the nature, the plants and the flowers,



Click to see the wild fruit that looks like ' corn comb " found at the peak of Broga Hill, Semenyih


the insects and the crawlies and the animals, the buddies etc....etc....etc that trekking has offer and make something memorable.....

when you come back, our journal entry in trekking will be

I wake up in the morning, I start to trek,
in the evening I rest

The next day I start to trek,
in the evening I eat, rest and sleep

day after tomorrow, I start to trek,
.............tomorow i will wake up and trek..

day after it will be like that too.

Isn't this parallel with living life ?


Today I live life when i wake up in the morning, and night comes, I sleep, and tomorrow, I wake up again, and night I sleep................


Acknowledge the fact that progress and improvement will bring meaning to life, stop by to enjoy what the trek can offer, will be more interesting than just rushing through it just to get to the peak.

How boring it will be to trek through the jungle just to get to the peak without enjoying the journey.

worst if you are trekking through life in that way.

Mountain Climbing N Live Life With The Basic

Jungle trekking and mountain climbing was never our hobby or never part of our activities that we enjoy when we were young.

However, it's never too old to discover and never to late to learn for us.

We discover jungle trekking these recent few years because someone has invited us to one, and thereafter we discover more and more mountains which we have never heard before.

Our heart says

" hei....this is what we like doing and we enjoy

The nature
The fresh air,
The beautiful sceneries,
The naturals colors of life,
The flowers and the trees,
The flying clouds,
The rainbows,

The challenge,
The journey
The peak,
The friendship,
The teamwork,
and most of all, the inspiration and lessons learn that is so applicable to living a meaningful life.

We learn some precious lessons such as we live life with the very basic during mountain climbing.

The heavier the load you carry on your back, the more difficult trekking journey will be.

Packing appropiately, using the right camping & trekking equipments for trekking is rule number one when you go jungle trekking and mountain climbing.

No one should overpack and no one should underpack, because weight pull us down and out.

What a trekker needs is a healthy body to enjoy the journey, a conqeuror attitude until he/she reaches the destination.

Obtained this inspiration , i always remind myself and others, let's work to be healthy, and live a longer life so we will be able to enjoy the fruits of our labor, which we have put half a century of time in it.



Click on the picture to see trek in Broga Hill Semenyih

Isn't it true, what we need in life is simple, basic needs for survival.

Isn't that too much load that we could carry on our shoulder drag us down in life ?

Friday, May 8, 2009

Did Mary Pulled Weeds ? Part 2

Continue from.....Did Mary pulled weeds Part 1


We all grow up, leave home, get married and have children. The transformation from child to teenager to adult to wife to mother was never taught. We are just supposed to ‘do it’. The realisation of the change is always sudden.

As mothers, we are supposed to love the family emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually.

We are to give them all we have, grow with them and be the super woman that everyone expects of us.

I am sure that many if not most mothers have many times felt exhausted. physically, emotionally and mentally exhausted.

I do. How are we supposed to know what to do?

When I look back over the years, I recall so many mistakes and errors in raising a child, maintaining a home and providing advice.

I feel inadequate.


“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. “ Matthew 11:28-30 NIV

Our God is a good God.

At moments of such frustration and exhaustion, God has spoken to me and reminded me that He has a special calling for women.

When He called Mary to bear Jesus, the Son of God, He gave motherhood a special place.

As mundane as we feel our everyday is; waiting upon others, serving them with our hands and feet, seeming insignificant at times - God sees that servant heart in us.

I realised that Mary, mother of Jesus, chosen and highly favoured of God; had to raise Jesus and run a household.

Feed, bathe and clothe a growing Jesus. Bandage his knee when he fell whilst playing, remove the splinter from his finger when he was hurt helping in the carpentry workshop and many other motherly duties.

Cooking, cleaning and even worried sleepless nights. Yes, I can see that she would have also have had to pull the weeds from her garden.

I am blessed to be chosen by God; to be a mother.



Happy Mother’s Day.



Note from Agnes : Brenda was a nurse by profession.


Brenda said " I asked God for some flowers.........., He gave me a garden, some sunshine & some rain.........were weeds from Him I ask ??? "

" Some how, I have faith to trust that when seeds are planted, i need to have patience and His grace to experience every moment of those growth in that garden....."


God Bless You Winston, Brenda & Cassadra darling, I miss your fellowship.


Happy Mother's Day to all mothers,

The mothers who treks in mountains and jungles, and mothers who don't.

Mothers who, throughout some life experiences, developed tough muscles, and some not so tough,

As trekkers in life, God does give mothers a soft heart, doesn't He ?


Just as God gave Brenda a garden to learn through gardening, to make it into a beautiful part of her home, likewise God has given us a family, what and how we make out of it, we have lots to learn.... aren't we ?






Did Mary Pull Weeds? Part 1

Written by Brenda, married to Winston and mother of Cassandra.

They live on the outskirts of London. Aside from being experts at moving homes, they have also been through a process of home educating Cassandra.

My childhood was spent in a small town in North Borneo. Much has happened since. By the grace of God, I am now a global citizen. I have visited 193 cities in 28 countries. Since marrying, I have established 11 different homes in 5 different countries. I have even moved our entire home from one country to another, within 24 hours notice.

Yet, in the summer of 2006, after we had just moved in to our new home in Watford, England; I was staring at the mud patch that was called ‘my garden’. It was overgrown with weeds. Despite the many homes that we have stayed in, we had only been urban apartment dwellers and we had no experience or skill on how to manage a garden. Finally, I built up the determination to go out to pull the weeds. It took weeks! English weeds are evil!!

By the time I had finished, there were 10 full garden bags of pulled weeds. There were days that I ended up sitting on the mud/soil/earth/dirt whilst pulling out the weeds. It was painful and agonising.

I recalled that at that time, I questioned God about my life.

What is my destiny?

What is my calling?

Who am I?

What is the purpose of Him creating me?

What followed were streams – Streams of endless questions, tears and silence – and one conclusion.

Surely God has a plan for me.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13 NIV

He said so Himself in the Bible. Therefore my life can’t be just pulling out weeds, scrubbing

the floor and toilets and serving endless meals. I must be destined for more. But I don’t seem to do more.

It has been 3 years since my first weed clearing experience in the UK which I mentioned above. My garden has gone through much transformation and I am pleased with the gradual changes.

I have tulips, lavender, pansies, roses and even raspberries and grapes.


Picture courtesy of Brenda, my prayer partner before she relocated to UK.


Just last week, an old friend of mine whom I have known for 13 years surprised me when she told me how envious she was of me – that I seemed to ‘have it all’. I suppose she wasn’t there when my tears were rolling down my cheeks whilst pulling out the 10 bags of weeds. Would she have been envious of me then?


To be continued.......Part 2 Did Mary Pull Weeds.