Accomplishments @ 25

Just like the past 24 years, my 25th birthday came and went. I decided to play it differently this year by spending it with a different group of friends in a different province. I wasn't too excited about it initially because I don't really hang out much with these friends, but they all really wanted to go to Montreal for the long weekend. The planning sucked tremendously because everyone had a different opinion about the cost expense and I just got really frustrated with how everything turned out. However, the Lord was gracious and things just automatically fell into place. There wasn't much to do in Montreal besides visiting popular tourist attractions such as the Notre-Dame Cathedral or eat at various restaurants. There definitely wasn't much to do in Mont Tremblant besides hiking up the ski slopes or eat at local bars. But the entire trip was really relaxing, which I desperately needed; in fact, relaxation is the theme of my summer this year. I need a break from the world. No work, no school, no anything that requires thinking. I'm so glad that my roommate/best friend was so considerate of my feelings as she made sure I was resting and relaxing properly. I am also glad that I got to know her and another friend better over the 8 hours of driving. Sometimes I just wonder how close we've gotten over the years despite not seeing each other on a consistent basis.

One of the things that was mentioned during our rides to various places was our accomplishments at the age of 25. I have actually been thinking about this for the past year and it often results to negative feelings. I honestly feel like I haven't accomplished anything, despite everyone around me saying I have accomplished alot. Besides passing highschool and getting two degrees, I really haven't done much in throughout the 25 years I have been on earth - at least nothing that is not education-related. I think my parents know how tired/stressed I am from schooling (and becoming the best of the best) that they really wanted me to go on vacation, so I am FOREVER grateful for this opportunity to rest (my parents literally told me to sleep, eat and repeat for four months).

I know I haven't accomplished what I want to have accomplished by this day and age, but I can't go back in time. So I am just going to plan and look forward to what's to come so I can come back to this topic next year and say that I have accomplished something other than school. To those who don't know yet, I am going to be doing another year of school (hope this is my last year!!! that is, if God doesn't tell me to do more school...uhh, I honestly have had enough) then I can actually move on to another stage of life and do something that I have been planning to do for a VERY long time......

This is my favourite picture from the road trip!

Ze Roomie!

I can't believe it is...

MARCH already! where did time go?!?! all I know is that I was completely burnt out in Feb from lesson planning and teaching and online schooling. This month is definitely going to be a month of lesson planning! (woot woot!) I am serious. Planning teaching planning teaching. This is what a teacher does all the time and I LOVE every minute of it. Sometimes I even get a little giggly when I think of activities/exercises for them to do... hehe.

Today was the last day of teaching at Dewey. I have been teaching 2-3 Chinese students at a pre-university/college school since Feb! This class was definitely challenging, but it was also exciting and fun! The kids were really funny and the fact that they understood the materials and were able to apply them in their lives just made me smile... REAL BIG. I don't know, but I really get this satisfaction whenever I see my students succeed.

One more month till school acceptances come out. I'm really looking forward to what the Lord has planned for me. Speech Path? Teacher's college? or is it finally time for Korea?! or maybe it is none of those things....Who knows. All I can do is wait patiently and see.

Have a blessed month, my friends!

P.S. Speaking of friends, I can't wait to see my bestest friends during March Break!

G'day! How u goin'?

I am really amazed how a simple question like "how are you doing?" or "what are you up t?o" can make my day! Not just that, but I feel super loved when people follow-up on what I said/told them several months ago. It makes me feel like people actually care about me.

So thank you to those who took the time to ask me "how I am doing", because your simple question really makes me happy for the rest of the day =)

I hope your day was just as great as mine =D

What's our relationship?

I don't know. Human interaction is confusing.

Memories

Many thoughts came into my mind when I went back to my old church today for my friend's wedding. I left that church 8 years ago due to some untold circumstances and I never went back to visit or even step foot in the church building since the day I decided to leave. I had no regrets because 1. I wasn't growing spiritually 2. I didn't really have a friend since they were mostly boys and everyone have been attending that church since they were a baby so I was always left out and had no spiritual support. And the fact that they are all from Brampton and I from Mississauga really distant our friendship 3. everyone had their own little cliques. I tried blending into the older crowd (3-5 years older), but they rejected me because again, I wasn't BORN into the church. I was out of their league. plain and simple. When I left that church, one of the concerns I had was that people looking down on me and my family. To no surprise, some people did. They said I was wrong for leaving the church. But what's the point of staying in the church if I am NOT spiritually growing? If they cared for me, they would advise me to leave. Anyway, their rejection towards me and family really caused us some tension to our friendships. We lost a few friends, but at the same time, gained new ones at the new church.

Despite the entire ordeal, there were 2 brothers whom I still talk to in this present day, never discriminated me in any way and I really appreciate them for caring for me. These brothers will always have a special in my heart because they accepted me for who I am when no one else did.

So today when I entered the church building for the very first time in 8 years, my heart could not stop pounding. There was just a rushing of thoughts going through my mind knowing that people would stare at me (& my family). But as soon as I stepped out of the car, a friend (whom I hardly talk to when I was still at the church) came towards us and warmly greeted us. He even gave me a friendly hug and a warm smile. Then as I walked to the sanctuary, many people greeted us and I could tell that they genuinely welcomed us back. There were many people whom I hardly talked to even while I was still there came up to my brother and I and asked us about our lives and what we've been up to. Weird but good. Things just happened to be completely opposite to what I was expecting. People STILL remembered our names. To be frank, I am no one special. I never served on the worship team. I was never in the popular crowd. But most importantly, I wasn't born into the church. I didn't grow up with these people. But many of them still remembered our names. I definitely shed a few tears while I was in the sanctuary, not because of the bride and groom, but because I felt a sense of warmth - like I haven't been home in a veryvery long time.

Another thing that touched my heart was seeing the people there all grown up. The babies are now elementary schoolers, middle schoolers are now university kids, university kids are now married and have kids. People in my parents' generation are older, wiser and have grandchildren. But the oldest of all, the English Pastor, is still the same. haha. Things like these make me realize that everyone is moving forward, for better or for worse, and that we should not look back or dwell on current situations. There is no time. But rather, we need to look forward to the things to come. With that said, I am SO happy that my friend got married today Who would've thought he would find a girl and get married on this day 8 years ago. 8 years ago, he had no degree, no job, no money....and definitely no girl ;) But today, he got everything. I can't wait until it is my turn to get married! I wonder what's going to be like...

After my August 8th Exam:

I've really been studying hard for this exam. I am currently at the point where I can't study anymore, but can't have fun yet because that might ruin my "study" mood. I am afraid that if I have too much fun before the exam, everything that I've learned will slip out of my head and I won't know anything for the exam. Impossible and absurb, I know, But that's just how I am. Besides, I can't really ENJOY my time of fun when I know that I'll be writing my exam soon.

So lately I've just been compiling a list of things to do once I am done with my exam and before I go to Vancouver.

- Greek lunch with my mother

- baking baking baking!!! (I have like 10 recipes that I want to try)

- cook!! (I have like 10 recipes that I want to try & not everything is Korea)

- Go to Koreatown for some snakes and lattes!! (I haven't played boardgames in SUCH A LONG TIME!!!)

- dinner/chillage with my lovely friends!!!!!!! (Thank you for waiting!!)

- norabang/karaoke!!

- eat buffets!!!

- find new bakeries in the GTA (I am currently in LOVE with bakeries. This item needs a separate post)

- SHOPPING!!!!! (even though homie E thinks I shop WAYY too much. But I am a girl so it is essential)

- SKYPE DATE with steph!

- food crawl....kensington market? chinatown? little italy?

- VANCOUVER + BANFF!!!

It's been awhile

There's just SO much going on in my life right now....been so busy! so much that my parents think I need to chill out and find just a day to relax.

It seems like I have no time for anything.....or more like.. there's always time for something....

EM retreat this long weekend. Please pray for safety, revival and relationships. I pray that my friendship/relationship with the sisters whom I will be rooming with will strengthen.

talk to you all later.

What's up with Priscilla?

It's really been awhile since I last updated in detail. I haven't really been great at keeping in touch with people because I've just been really busy with school, studying and all that jazz. But don't worry, I haven't forgotten you. I am gonna be social again.... haha. Anyway, I have meant to write a long entry about what God has been doing in my life for the past months, but I just needed some time to gather my thoughts and jot everything down. My "life in review" isn't all that interesting, so please treat this as a disclaimer....haha

Christmas 2010

This past Christmas holiday was one of the worst Christmas breaks I've ever had because I had to prepare for an exam that I had to write at the beginning of January. I had to limit my time with friends because of my studying schedule and it sucked big time. It sucked even more knowing that the final exam was closed book and that I had to memorize the entire textbook. Psych isn't really my thing; I like learning about it but I usually do horrible on tests/exams so that's why I needed to maximize my time for it. But anyway, it is done now! Thanks for all your prayers! The exam went really well =D=D

Despite spending a lot of my vacation time facing the textbook, I spent A LOT of time with my family (which is always awesome). And I also spent a bit of time with the roomie, which is kinda rare considering we're always SO busy during school months and holidays. It is really good that we got to talk to each other face-2-face, rather than just talking on msn and phone. It is really different. I am just glad that we got to catch-up =)

High school reunion 2010

Speaking of Christmas, one of the highlights of this holiday was going to our RHSS annual Christmas party. I don't know, but it felt really different this year. I went each year except one, but I gotta say that this year was one of the best?? I mean, past years have been really good, but this year it was really different. I am not sure if it was just the people (which would not make sense considering we had the same people last year just a smaller number this year), or a change of location or something, but it felt very home-y. It really brought back a lot of memories! I am guessing it is the lack of people that made it really good; I mean, these were the bunch of friends whom I suffered high school with, whom I ate lunch with, whom I played sandman (ohh memories!) with, whom I did a whole bunch of things with... so it was great just seeing them again and catch up. I guess with the lack of people we really got to talk and share in a circle and did alot of stuff together (like playing the piano, singing and taking a group photo), rather than splitting into tiny groups the entire night. There were certainly other people that I wanted to see who didn't come so hopefully I will be able to see them sometime this year! =D

Year in Review 2010

New Year's Resolution

At the end of 2009, my new year's resolution was to be able to hold my tongue (Proverbs 10:19). It was VERY hard for me to do because I can be blunt and rude at times. There were days when I just couldn't hold it in because I was just SO angry at the person ....and I usually feel ashamed afterwards. There were definitely improvements from year 2008 though, but I still need to learn. So for this year, the only resolution that I have is to do better - to do better than last year.

In General

In general, year 2010 just wasn't that good due to many factors. The only thing that was "happy" was maybe my graduation...or the family cruise(it was really fun!). Hopefully 2011 will be better....

School

In terms of school, I completed the two courses at Mac. whoohoo! One of things I hate about Mac is that they tend to always give me a heart attack! I wrote my exam a couple days before the break and then a week later, it said that I had failed the course (like literally F) on my transcript!!!!! Now I know this is ridiculous because I know I didn't fail the exam since all the marks were posted on the website; but what really made me upset was that it could affect the whole SLP application since I was in the middle of writing it. Many thoughts came into my head because the fail grade was cutting it really close and no one could do anything about it till AFTER the Christmas break.... ahhhh... It happened to my before for my other course too and it took them ONE WHOLE MONTH to change that stupid grade. But everything got sorted out in the end, and the mark was changed. Praise God.

SLP

Applications have been sent out. Now I just have to wait and see. I won't know the result till April. I have thoroughly thought over this issue of going into SLP. I would be super delighted if any of the schools accept me (considering they only accept a limited number of people each year) but I would still be happy if they reject me. I don't exactly know what I'll be doing if I don't get in....perhaps this is the year that I finally get to go to KOREA?! I dont know. I've been wanting to teach in Korea for the longest time but every time when I had the chance to apply, something would always come up. So ya, I am kinda excited to see what the Lord has in store for me this year. But in the meantime, I'll just be home-schooling.......ohh...

Honestly, it would be great if I could step away from the academic industry (HAHAHA) and start working, but... two extra years of schooling could get me a better job. Then again, that would mean that when I graduate, I'd be 25 years OLD! sooo ya.. I'll just have to follow what God wants me to do with my life =) Please pray for direction....

Major Things

wow. I haven't updated this in a long time. Nuthing much has happened to me, I am still the same.

Two weeks ago, my roommate Steph and I went to see the 1040movie screening by Jaeson Ma. The most interesting thing about this whole event was that it was Steph who initiated the whole thing. I knew about this 1040 screening last year and was actually planning to invite Steph to see it this year when they were reading advertising it. She was a step ahead of me and said that she really wanted to view the screening cuz it featured several Asian celebrities like MC Jin and Vanness Wu. Apparently she saw an advertisement when she was in Singapore this summer which I thought that was quite interesting....Out of all places, Singapore? But then again, Singapore is within the 1040 area!! Apparently the advertisements got her to watch several testimonies, one of which was Jaeson Ma. She told me that his testimony was just SO touching. I've shared my testimony with Steph and have been talking to her about the love of Christ since 3rd year university. She's literally surrounded by manymany Christians, but she's agnostic.

The event was held at Garden Korean Church in Toronto and man, was it JAM PACKED!! There were 2200 people in that tiny church and they even had to turn people away! The bad part about it was that we went there 15 minutes prior to the show and the main sanctuary was already full. We had to sit in the gym and it wasn't really good considering there were feedback and poles blocking the screen =(. The atmosphere just wasn't that good that night. The movie itself was great, truly inspiring and I just hope that it moved Steph's heart. She's really into Asian celebrities and so this 1040 screening was the perfect opportunity! she told me that she's really curious as to why so many artists in the past decade have turned to Christ.

The sermon started at 10pm and I just wish that it was earlier because I needed to go back to sauga. I really wanted to stay to hear what God had to say but we left =(

I don't exactly know what God's doing in her life but I know He's doing something. She's one of my bestest friends and it would suck if I don't see her in heaven one day. So I'll just continue to pray for her.

We had a guest speaker in SS yesterday. His presentation on his escape from the Khmer Rouge soldiers and the ability to forgive those who killed his family was really inspiring. The guy literally saw his family being killed by those cruel soldiers and he was still able to forgive them. How is this possible? Definitely not possible. Only by the grace of God.

The self-justification part of the presentation was where it got me. Many people in the past have done really bad things to me or have hurt me deeply, and it usually takes a lot of time and prayer for me to release my bitterness towards them and forgive. I don't think it is just me; it is just so natural for humans to be bitter and unforgiving sometimes. But all of a sudden, after listening to Reaska Himm's testimony, things like people saying hurtful things to me became REALLY small. I almost felt silly being mad at people for hurting me because my situations will NEVER compare to what Reaska had to go through. So I just pray that I will learn from him.

I am just so thankful that he could visit our church and share his experiences with us.

Busy Week

I kinda like this weather. Even though it is cold, I just LOVE sitting indoors with a cup of hot coffee working on my assignments.

But what a busy week I have this week:

Monday - school from 8:30-4pm
Tuesday - all day at Brock to talk to profs and clicians and meet up with old classmates
Wednesday - school and work
Thursday - stay home/at the library? ALL day working on assignments
Friday - school and work time
Weekend - school work.

Lots to do!! Need to really use my time wisely.

There's just SO much going on in my head....

Friends need to come home soon. Particularly those in Windsor, Korea and Vancouver. Missing you all <3<3 To those who are living in Toronto right now, I think I am going to come down to visit you soon.


On a side note: God's just been SO good to me.

Praise and Prayer

One of the things I love about fellowship is the opportunity to praise God and to pray for one another. I haven't really been feeling too good lately cuz some stuff has been bothering me. It bothered SO much that I wasn't able to sleep. I've been praying about it for the past 2 weeks, but things have just remained the same. It wasn't really a big thing, but I decided to share it with my mini-prayer group last Thursday because... that's what fellowship is for. It felt really good laying it out to my brothers and sisters so they could pray for me.
God is good! He answered our prayers! I felt ALOT better when I woke up on Sunday.

Games

I really like group games. It is interactive and fun. yay games! Funny how there's always a game that people play a lot each summer:

Summer 2010: Monopoly Deal (awesome game!!!!)
Summer 2009: Bang
Summer 2008: Settlers?
Summer 2007: ???


Friends are awesome!

Happy Times - Prelude

One of the things I love about life is spending time with people; whether it be with family or friends, I just looove spending quality time with them. I try to cherish every moment of it cuz I never know when it is gonna happen again. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why I love linguistics, the fact that language and communication is so crucial to our lives just amazes me. Over the years I've come to realize that I can't live without friends, family or just someone to there to listen/talk to. Yaa... God's always there and He promised to never leave me, but everyone needs a physical being for support. The bible says it so clearly in Genesis: God created Adam and various animals, but they couldn't communicate/understand each other and so God created Eve to accompany Adam. We have this innate ability to learn and communicate with others (Sidebar: Don't know if the SS kids are learning anything, but I am actually learning a lot when I prepare lessons! )

However, one of the weaknesses that I have is that I get too dependent/attached to people... that I get really depressed when they leave or when I don't get to see them anymore. It doesn't matter if I've known for 10 days or 10 years, I would still be sad if I know that I wouldn't be able to see them on a regular basis. Yes I eventually forget about them and life moves on, but still, it is the interaction between people that I miss. When 80% of my friends from church left a couple months ago, I was REALLY sad by it...

Every girl likes presents, but I'd rather trade material things for time. When Zoe decided to surprise me on my birthday this year, I felt extremely loved because they actually didn't mind wasting time on me. I mean, Who am I? I am nobody. I am not a popular person in the church and I am not anyone special. But they still wanted to spend time with me because they treat me like a sister no matter the circumstances. It certainly made me feel extremely touched that day.

Everyone has a story to tell; and it is only when we sit down and listen to them that we can find out what is happening in their lives. It is funny how God planned all this, I mean, with people leaving the church, I actually had the chance to talk to some people whom I was quite intimidated by. Yes, I had to get out of my comfort zone, open up myself (if you know me, this is actually VERY hard for me to do!) and tried to get to know them...but it is really the only way to get to know others and make new friends.

So I guess it is not a bad thing that a lot of my friends left, because it really forced me (in a good way) to get to know other people; some whom I've gotten really close with in the past couple of months.

Quick Update

I have really been keeping myself busy this summer. Prior to April, I was a bit worried that I wouldn't have anything to do other than the research thing and so I started finding stuff to do. But now, I think I am really overwhelmed by a lot of stuff. I am having loads of fun though! and time is moving alot faster!

I have been:

• swimming daily. 1-1.5K. It is really tiring. I am super out of shape and it doesn't help when swimmers around you can swim the butterfly. Someone please help me with my strokes, I don't think I am doing them properly.
• observing and finding volunteer positions. God's been faithful so I have been going to places
• school work! this major research paper is killing me. I have been putting off this thing for 8 days now...not good. I have also started this online course thing and it is taking alot of my time. But I hope that it will be useful in my future career
• Just doing things here and there.... fun stuff! =)
• thinking about going on vacation sometime this year....

There's alot more stuff going on in June, July and August! and I can't wait for things to unfold!

I really need to spend more time with friends.......relationships break apart when there's a lack of communication/interaction....scary =S

Wise?

It is true. The older you are, the wiser you are. Wise in the sense that you have more experiences in life and have probably made a lot more mistakes.

I really thank God for all the "old" people who gave me advices lately. They were really wise.

Happy Valentine's Day

So I've noticed on facebook that some people call this 'single awareness day' or S.A.D. What's so "sad" about it? I understand where people coming from, but... what I don't understand is why people think Valentine's day mean only spending the day with your lover. Just because you are single, doesn't mean people around you don't love you. I am sure friends and family have given you cookies, candies, cards or have even done nice things to you that made you feel loved.

Even though I am single, I absolutely LOVE this day. This is the day when I get to reflect on God's love for me. I know I should be doing this daily...or constantly, but this is one extra special day that I can feel extra loved by my God. All the blessings that he had bestowed upon me and His Cross for me because I am such a bad bad person, man, noone's love will EVER be greater than His. So who cares if you are single or not single, and who cares if the world hates you, God's love for you is UNCONDITIONAL and UNFAILING. So stop with this "I hate this day because I have no one to spend it with"

Something special always happen on Valentine's day. Two years ago, it was a snow day at mac so I got the spend time with my roomie. I don't remember what happened last year, but it was something good. Now this year, it is on the same day as Chinese New Year! Lots of food, lots of parties, and lots of loveeeeee from friends and family.


I LOVE Valentine's day! <3


Peace out.

I heart Toronto!

Last Friday was my second time taking the Go Train home. What I found interesting was that my second time 'round was better than the first. This time I decided to sit at the very top level of the train since my friend said it is more comfortable. When I got there, I immediately felt like I was on the airplane; perhaps it was because of the seats? I occupied all four seats so it was very spacious! I honestly felt like I was on the airplane on my way to Korea or something. hehe. Then, when I arrived at Union Station at the concourse thing, I felt like I was at the airport waiting for someone to pick me up. Haha....which was true because I was actually waiting for someone to pick me up. I think I am itching to go to Korea.

So I got to Union and met up with my friend Eric. We walked all the way to Church St. in the super cold weather to eat dinner at this restaurant called Hot House. The place is somewhat fancy and the food is aaaa-mazing!

This sausage penne was absolutely amazing. Lots of meat and fibre!!!

He ordered this pizza that no one could pronounce. It wasn't as good as my pasta though! haha.

This restaurant is a MUST-TRY. I honestly think food in downtown Toronto is amazing!!!! I think I am gonna move there when I "grow up". hehe.
After dinner, we walked around the area to search for dessert.... which I was not up for since I was super full from dinner. But eric wanted to get dessert so we walked around for a good half hour in the super cold, checking out his work place and burning off calories at the same time.

I am really glad that we got spend some time together. Eric is one of my bestest friends and I am really grateful that we got to share about our lives that day. He always gives me soo much encouragements and advice, and he always helps me with my problems. He's almost like my personal cheerleader!
What I find interesting with this friendship is that even though we only meet once a year, we never grow awkward with other. Thank God for online communication! And thank God for a great brother!


In conclusion, food in downtown Toronto is amazing!! you should all try "Hot House"!!!!!!

15 years later....

Have you ever wondered how your elementary school friends are doing?

Well, one night I decided to search up all my grade 3 classmates on facebook. One friend led me to another. haha. It's been 15 years since I last talked/associated with them.

Three of them are married. Another three have babies!!!!! Some look quite good -- I would have never imagined them turning out like that. Some looked exactly how I imagined. Some I believe had plastic surgery because I don't remember them looking like that. Some just remained the same but with a more mature face.

We will never reunite because I know many people have forgotten me since I only hung out in their class for a year and then I had to switch schools. But it is always nice to check up on them once in awhile.


Their pictures really made me reminisce the old times. 15 years ago, we played in the mud! Boys had cooties! 15 years later, people have their own families!!! Who would've thought......



Time sure flies.

I wonder what people will look like 15 years from now. We'd be....38! ( I really hope I won't be in school still.....haha)

Holiday is over! =(

I can't believe the holiday is over! But I have to say that I am well-rested and that I just can't wait to finish this term!

Over the holiday, I (not in any particular order):

• got to spend lots of time with family
• marked exams for 12 hours straight! plus entering marks into the system
• hung out with my TA/MA friends ( we had a Christmas party before everyone left for their respective country)
• thought about my research study (eeeek, I still gotta write that proposal that's due this Friday! yikes!)
• had many individual/one-on-one time with friends at coffee shops and random restaurants....
• hung out with my Mac friends and made new friends
• went to my highschool annual Christmas party (glad I went this year!)
• had a hotpot dinner with the 3 important highschool friends
• hung out with zoe for new years
• started watching a new taiwanese drama (I gotta admit, this is wayyyy better than the korean dramas! haha)
• learned how to bake from an amazing baker/chef (Amanda Li!)
• went to Pacific Mall on Christmas day (never again will I be doing that! the parking lot was PACKED!!!)
• went to the last of the year prayer meeting
• went downtown to meet up with a friend whom I only see ONCE A YEAR! (not joking!)
  
• went downtown and ate at Salad King! (best Thai restaurant ever!!!!)
• started reading a book

That's all I can remember for now. But praise God for all the above items! Sometimes I am amazed at how many friends I have since I am quite reserved and..... anti-social.

Look what Charis made! beautiful cupcakes! =)

Hotpot!

Chocolate fudge walnut cookies!biscottis made by A. Li and chocolate fudge cookies made my me (with help from A. Li)

A. Li also taught me how to make the easiest cookies! (white chocolate and butterscotch!)

The finished products!!! yummmmmy! =9

My amazing teacher and I. I promised to master the cookies!