What Christmas means to me...

Christmas is the time when I catch up with my friends... yes, thanks to this joyous and peaceful festive occasion... it creates time and space where I would sit down and start to remember friends... especially those whom I seldom in contact with... They could be

- friends whom I only 'call on' once/twice a year... could be my primary school friend (though very few in contact), my secondary school friends (yes, for a few, we progressed all the way till NIE! and now in the same profession!), my JC classmates... (oh yes, still searching for some of them... no luck from Facebook yet)... Oh yes, though we seldom in contact, but just want them to know... they're in my mind :D They are not forgotten :D Just to remind them... Hm... I'm still around... hahaha....

- people whom I met when I travel... eg. Megu from Japan, Teresa & Jone from Canada, and this time a few others whom we met in the recent trip (Mrs Lim, Susan & Daphne)... People from all walks of life... a wealth of experiences and perspectives...

- my counterparts in Bhutan! Though they don't really celebrate Christmas... but it gives me good reason to be in touch with them... to send warmth to them... the winter in Paro is really really very cold... Can see snow!

- my ex-colleauges and friends from the Ngee Ann family! Some of them have moved on... some have retired... some have migrated to other schools... some still there... They are not forgotten... They are part of my fond memories with the school :D

- like-minded people who would spend hours and late hours to bring about better livelihood to others... ok, you know who you are... :D Cheers!

and others... U are always in my mind...

... of course, it's also time to pause and send warm greetings to those around me too... yes, sometimes we are so busy... and also take for grant of people around me...

~~~~~~~~~so my annual ritual began this morning....

Forget since when... but started the habit of creating my own greeting cards... Oh yes, was inspired by the animated Mid-autumn festival card received from Mr Low many many years ago... though simple, but it triggered me to become more creative... of course, also add a personal touch to the things for others...

Nicely designed eCards are widely available... but personally, I prefer to come up with something original... yes, will always go back to my pool of photos (taken, usually during my trips) to pick a few nice ones... yes, something that I like... for people I care :D Well, I think what matters most... not the frequency (though it helps!), but the thought counts...

~ ~ o ~ ~ O ~ ~ o ~ ~

Received a couple of smses from friends... yes... Christmas greetings and wishes too... Am happy... because I'm remembered :D It's also a very nice feeling when friends responded to our greetings and wishes too... be it in the form of email, sms, picture, or words, or any form...

Got a few of them via email/internet...

One of them is Els... it's nice that she shared about her work as an Education Advisor, with the focus on Asia now... and at Afghanistan. Here's a picture she emailed over... Yes, that reminded us... that are the less fortunate ones... apart from feeling fortunate and appreciate what we have, perhaps we could do more...

Another one is a cute one... from Valerie, a girl who has worked hard to get to where she's today... well done and keep up with the spirit!