This is very sad news indeed. The world has lost one of its exemplary members, and Australia one of its archetypal Aussie battler who makes good. In spite of his eccentric antics and sometimes audacious behavior, there are at least five things that I like about this great Aussie bloke:

(1) His Passion. This man absolutely oozes passion for what he believes in. If only everyone of us have half his enthusiasm and passion for what we believe and if only we pursue it half as fiercely as he seems to do, then this world would be a much better place. Heck, if I have pursued my blogging half as passionately as Irwin did his love for animals, then this blog would be a much better blog! Heh!

(2) His Humility. This guy was willing to ham it up for the audience just to make a point. But for all the cantankerous silliness he projected, he achieved his goal of instructing the world about nature, our environment and the need to look after this world of ours. He was also instrumental for exposing illegal trades in wildlife products, endearing himself (not) to thousands of opportunists who prey on people’s love for exotic items. He was also a very worthy Aussie ambassador although his incessant use of ’strine and Aussieisms (such as the ubiquitous “Crickey!”) can be irritating at times, especially to us Aussies who live away from our homeland - my kids sometimes had to tell their friends, “But we do not all speak like that!” - yet, he has helped to raise awareness of Australia’s beautiful nature, people and culture. Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 4% [?]

Technorati Tags: steve irwin

Just found out that Warren Buffett, the world’s second richest person, has decided to give an unprecendented nearly 85 per cent of his wealth (or about $31 billion) to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to sit in an audience where Bill Gates (note: by the way, what does it tell you about the company and how it treats its people, if you have to search through a couple of pages of biographical links before you locate their founder and chairman’s bio’s page?) talked candidly about his philanthropic work through this Foundation.

It was refreshing to hear a business executive, talk, at a business conference, about his vision of changing the world we live in, not with his products or services, but with his charitable foundation. He was passionately expounding on how their goals were to eradicate impoverishing diseases around the world and to transform communities and society through innovative eduation around the country, and he was doing so with the same boyish enthusiasm as he was only moments before that painting his vision of the brave new technological world that his corporation was helping to bring about. Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 14% [?]

Technorati Tags: Bill Gates, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, William Buffett, donation, philanthropy

Well, not really. But reading Blue Like Jazz (after only started reading the book over the weekend, I am now almost done with it) has sometimes been really uncomfortable. Like this morning. I picked up the book and read about Community. Miller described in the chapter how he hated to live with others because he is so full of himself.

As I read, his story reminds me of my own brokenness. I am in community. I live with my family. There is also a boarder in my house. I work with people around me, but oh how much I prefer to be by myself. Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 8% [?]

Technorati Tags: blue like jazz, donald miller, spirituality, loneliness, community, anger, relationships, fatherhood, prodigal son, father, grace

I have just gotten started reading Blue Like Jazz. I am not supposed to be reading this. Not like how I am doing anyway. I am supposed to be doing a million other things and it was supposed to be light reading. Like a couple pages a day. But I started the book a couple days ago, and now I find myself not being able to put it down. Well, I managed to yank myself from it long enough for some blog-diversion, if you know what I mean…

This guy talks about all the things that hit so close to my heart. He has already made me cry more than once (but then I cry easily and if you are a macho man with a stiff upper lip, I recommend it to you - I’ve heard that it’s good for the body and the soul), and he has made me laugh. Sometimes at the same time. But it’s different. I genuinely feel the sorrow and hillarity. At the same time. It is bizarre. I have shifted uneasily in my seat, and moaned and uttered unutterables under my breath, and sometimes over it. He is frustrating, irritating and inspiring all at the same time as he is enlightening.

He talks about Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 2% [?]

Technorati Tags: book, review, must read, blue like jazz, donald miller

Craig the Gastric Bypass Guru is offering $50 for the best idea for a Valentine’s day gift for his wife, Leslie. So, go over and help him out, and in the process, find out what others are suggesting. Even if you don’t need the dough, maybe you can get some ideas for your own V Day gift. Now, when exactly is Valentine’s day again?

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I received an email from a friend today. She is slowly losing her father to cancer and she is feeling exhausted from the pain and anguish of the suffering and impending loss. Her email reminded me of my own experiences with the loss of my own mom. My mom’s death devastated me, and left a mark in my psyche for a long time. In fact, as I re-read my earlier post, “Why did God let Mom die?” I bawled my eyes out again. I was surprised that the emotional onslaught was just as unrelenting and the pain of the memories was just as acute. I thought I had been healed from the trauma of the experience, but I guess one never really gets healed from such painful loss.

As my friend, a social scientist herself, walks through this dark and lonely valley of loss and losing, she finds herself questioning not just the incomprehensibility of the entire experience, but also the very fabric of the world we live in. She writes:

Going through such painful experiences made me question even more about the world we are living in. With all the social problems around us getting worse by the day, someone wrote to our local newspapers and said that social scientists, especially sociologists, have to do more work to make the world a better place. We, social scientists, have already voiced out what is wrong with the world, but is society willing to take up the challenge and follow our suggestions. For a start, materialism, selfishness and self-centeredness are the major factors contributing to most crimes and deviant behaviour. Are corrupted politicians willing to turn a new leaf? Are some professionals and businesses willing to charge with their conscience instead of thinking of making large profits all the time?

Read the rest of this entry »

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Read all about it here. A church that grew out of a little apartment in a small university town in Southern California is spreading like wild fire throughout the so-called “Southland.” They have a site in LA and one in North OC, and even have church plants in the Bay Area and the NYC area. They recently made some kinda headline in Relevant magazine. Now they have also gone over to Bangkok. Watch out world!

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The entire set of features, stories and galleries can be found here, culminated by the question, “After all the talk, will there be action?“

Of course the columnist is asking that of the local government and the authorities. While they do have a responsibility as elected officials to do something about the situation, perhaps some of us do not need to sit aside and ask the question, waiting for them to provide an answer. Perhaps some of us can do someting about providing the answer.

Perhaps we do not need for a disaster to hit before we get show the world what the church really means. Churches like this one are making positive steps in transforming the city (while they are not working directly in Skid Row (or maybe they are), they are working in places like Crenshaw High School, where they are teaching and resourcing kids to make a living legally, mentoring and showing that there are choices than joining a gang, selling drugs or doing other illegal activities).

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