Post 70 For one swallow does not make a spring
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. He said, "For one swallow does not make a spring, nor does one sunny day." A swallow is a bird which makes its appearance during spring and migrates to warmer places in winter. This proverb means that one event does not mean that others will follow.
One cannot draw a valid conclusion from one instance. For example winning one game does not mean that one will win the tournament; a good deed done by an unethical person may not make him virtuous. In another aspect, one should not be over-excited over one’s little success but to make sure of one’s continued accomplishment.
Winston Churchill said: “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” Our initial success in any endeavour should motivate us to strive further for a purposeful and continuous habit of success. Always remember that one swallow does not make a summer, nor does one sunny day.
23 November 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
The learning of dialects
Post 69 Mother-tongue
There was a piece of news in the Chinese daily saying that an expert in Hakka or Kejia dialect(客家方言) from Taiwan would be in Malaysia conducting Hakka lessons for young Malaysians who are from the Hakka clan in China. This is to ensure that the younger generation would not lose touch of their mother-tongue in a distant land.
Kejia dialect is one of the main sub-divisions of the Chinese language spoken widely in southern China by the Hakka people and their descendants throughout Taiwan, Southeast Asia and around the world.
John Milton (1608–1674) was the English poet in favour of elevating the status of English language and to phase off Latin which was an Italian language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Latin is deemed to be a very difficult language to learn.
Richard Mulcaster (1531-1611), the High Master of St Paul's School in 1596, started a movement in making English as the language of learning in the English-speaking world; his love for the language led him to say:
“I love Rome, but London better, I favour Italy, but England more, I honour Latin, but worship English.”
16 November 2010
(9 November 2010- on vacation)
There was a piece of news in the Chinese daily saying that an expert in Hakka or Kejia dialect(客家方言) from Taiwan would be in Malaysia conducting Hakka lessons for young Malaysians who are from the Hakka clan in China. This is to ensure that the younger generation would not lose touch of their mother-tongue in a distant land.
Kejia dialect is one of the main sub-divisions of the Chinese language spoken widely in southern China by the Hakka people and their descendants throughout Taiwan, Southeast Asia and around the world.
John Milton (1608–1674) was the English poet in favour of elevating the status of English language and to phase off Latin which was an Italian language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Latin is deemed to be a very difficult language to learn.
Richard Mulcaster (1531-1611), the High Master of St Paul's School in 1596, started a movement in making English as the language of learning in the English-speaking world; his love for the language led him to say:
“I love Rome, but London better, I favour Italy, but England more, I honour Latin, but worship English.”
16 November 2010
(9 November 2010- on vacation)
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Silly talks
Post 68 A fool telling about his dream
Sun Yun of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) wrote in his 'Random Talks' the following amusing story:
A rich family had a dull-witted son. One morning when he got out of his bed, with eyes still heavy with sleep, he saw a maid who had gone into the room to look for something. He then caught hold of her hand and asked, “Did you see me in your dream last night?” The maid was puzzled at his question and answered, “No, I didn’t.”
He was very angry and retorted at her, “I am very sure that I saw you in my dream. How dare you tell me such a lie?” He then rushed to his mother and, holding on to the hem of her mother’s coat, yelled, “The maid must be punished. I definitely saw her in my dream, and yet she denied it. She has the intention to cheat on her master. This is ridiculous!”
In reality there are many people in the society who are like the foolish son talking nonsense. They promise their followers the earth or the moon in order to get what they want, but often fail to keep those promises.
2 November 2010
Sun Yun of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) wrote in his 'Random Talks' the following amusing story:
A rich family had a dull-witted son. One morning when he got out of his bed, with eyes still heavy with sleep, he saw a maid who had gone into the room to look for something. He then caught hold of her hand and asked, “Did you see me in your dream last night?” The maid was puzzled at his question and answered, “No, I didn’t.”
He was very angry and retorted at her, “I am very sure that I saw you in my dream. How dare you tell me such a lie?” He then rushed to his mother and, holding on to the hem of her mother’s coat, yelled, “The maid must be punished. I definitely saw her in my dream, and yet she denied it. She has the intention to cheat on her master. This is ridiculous!”
In reality there are many people in the society who are like the foolish son talking nonsense. They promise their followers the earth or the moon in order to get what they want, but often fail to keep those promises.
2 November 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Manners makes a man or a woman
Post 67 Better good manners than good looks
Good manners encourages pleasant interpersonal relationships. Consideration for others, a polite smile, and a request instead of a demand, nearly always let one get better results. It is not only what one says and does but how one says and does things that matter. Good manners makes lasting impression out of a man or a woman.
There are rules of correct behavior which we must observe to show that we have manners. In public places like shopping malls, restaurants, hospitals, hotels, and airports, one should not make a nuisance of oneself by speaking loudly over one’s mobile phone, shouting at the top of one’s voice while engaging in a conversation, or squabbling over trifles.
The culture of a country can be reflected by the behaviour of its citizens. When people behave well at home, they will also manifest good manners wherever they go. It will be their habit to do so because they have been nurtured well. They will also be good ambassadors for the country when they go overseas as tourists or officials.
To be refined and courteous is to have self-respect.
26 October 2010
Good manners encourages pleasant interpersonal relationships. Consideration for others, a polite smile, and a request instead of a demand, nearly always let one get better results. It is not only what one says and does but how one says and does things that matter. Good manners makes lasting impression out of a man or a woman.
There are rules of correct behavior which we must observe to show that we have manners. In public places like shopping malls, restaurants, hospitals, hotels, and airports, one should not make a nuisance of oneself by speaking loudly over one’s mobile phone, shouting at the top of one’s voice while engaging in a conversation, or squabbling over trifles.
The culture of a country can be reflected by the behaviour of its citizens. When people behave well at home, they will also manifest good manners wherever they go. It will be their habit to do so because they have been nurtured well. They will also be good ambassadors for the country when they go overseas as tourists or officials.
To be refined and courteous is to have self-respect.
26 October 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Blame not others for one's failure
Post 66 A bad workman quarrels with his tools
A workman who quarrels with his tools is a bad workman. He would try to blame the tools instead of his lack of skills in doing a job well. It is like a bad dancer who blames the floor for being uneven. One should try to improve oneself and learn how to do the job right.
A Danish proverb says that ‘Blame is a lazy man’s wages.’ A bad workman who quarrels with his tools is lazy because he does not take the initiative to improve himself. He does not fix the problem. There is a quote which says that “If you blame others for your failures, do you credit them with your success?”
There is a Chinese saying which I heard it from an elderly woman. She told me that it was no use having many knives all over your body if none of them was sharp. A sharp one would have been of better use than all the blunt ones. She was implying that one should be an expert in a field of one’s choice.
Make no excuses. Sharpen your tool of living skills.
19 October 2010
A workman who quarrels with his tools is a bad workman. He would try to blame the tools instead of his lack of skills in doing a job well. It is like a bad dancer who blames the floor for being uneven. One should try to improve oneself and learn how to do the job right.
A Danish proverb says that ‘Blame is a lazy man’s wages.’ A bad workman who quarrels with his tools is lazy because he does not take the initiative to improve himself. He does not fix the problem. There is a quote which says that “If you blame others for your failures, do you credit them with your success?”
There is a Chinese saying which I heard it from an elderly woman. She told me that it was no use having many knives all over your body if none of them was sharp. A sharp one would have been of better use than all the blunt ones. She was implying that one should be an expert in a field of one’s choice.
Make no excuses. Sharpen your tool of living skills.
19 October 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Do not worry unnecessarily
Post 65 Live a life today
"And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years." - Abraham Lincoln
It is one's attitude towards life that matters. Indeed, optimists and pessimists look at life from a very different perspective. An optimist is seldom depressed whereas a pessimist expects something bad to happen.
There lived a man in the ancient state of Qi in China. He had a phobia that the sky might fall and the earth might cave in any time. He was so worried that he could neither eat nor sleep. He lived on borrowed troubles.
His friend told him that the sky was only a mass of gases and it would not fall. The earth was also only a mass of heaped soil and rocks where he could walk on. It would not cave in either. Having heard the explanation of his friend, the man of Qi finally was able to have peace of mind.
There is an English proverb of ”don't cross the bridge till you get to it" which advises one not to worry about things unnecessarily until they actually happen. One has enough trouble each day to worry about tomorrow. Hence, when one lives a life today, one focuses on what needs to be done to enrich the day.
Add life to your years. Let tomorrow be anxious of itself.
12 October 2010
"And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years." - Abraham Lincoln
It is one's attitude towards life that matters. Indeed, optimists and pessimists look at life from a very different perspective. An optimist is seldom depressed whereas a pessimist expects something bad to happen.
There lived a man in the ancient state of Qi in China. He had a phobia that the sky might fall and the earth might cave in any time. He was so worried that he could neither eat nor sleep. He lived on borrowed troubles.
His friend told him that the sky was only a mass of gases and it would not fall. The earth was also only a mass of heaped soil and rocks where he could walk on. It would not cave in either. Having heard the explanation of his friend, the man of Qi finally was able to have peace of mind.
There is an English proverb of ”don't cross the bridge till you get to it" which advises one not to worry about things unnecessarily until they actually happen. One has enough trouble each day to worry about tomorrow. Hence, when one lives a life today, one focuses on what needs to be done to enrich the day.
Add life to your years. Let tomorrow be anxious of itself.
12 October 2010
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
To solve a problem at source
Post 64 Let him who tied the bell on the tiger take it off
This Chinese proverb means whoever started the trouble should end it. One should not be more concerned with stopping the bickering than settling the issue. One must get at the root of a problem.
In ancient China, the King of the state of Zhao had a capable Prime Minister and a courageous General serving under him. The General was jealous of the Prime Minister. He told others that he had to risk his life to earn him the rank. The Prime Minister just wagged his tongues to hold a higher position than he. So the General was looking for an opportunity to shame the Prime Minister.
Th Prime Minister explained to his close aides that he could not be seen to be at enmity towards the General. The state would be attacked by its enemy if they were not united.
When the words were relayed to the General, he felt ashamed of himself. He then bared his back, shouldered a thorny stick, and went to apologise to the Prime Minister. The General wanted the Prime Minister to beat him with the thorny stick, but the latter refused. Instead, the two became close friends.
The General 'tied the bell on the tiger' and took it off.
5 October 2010
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