Mid-Autumn Festival

This festival was brought down from generation to generation from China. We of course in Malaysia, does not have four seasons. However, we still celebrate this festival by eating moon cake, which cost a bomb now a days and all sugar and calories, and playing lanterns.

When I was very young, to me, this festival was all about lanterns and playing with fire. Every year grandma would buy me and my sister a lantern each, just like the one above. We would parade around the neighborhood with the neighbors children showing of our brightly lid lantern.

Once we reach home, we would fill the whole balcony with small candles and lid them one by one. This is the time when we were allowed to play with fire. The next day we had fun scrapping the wax off the floor.

We do this for days until the actual day. Once it was over, on the last day, my sister and I would normally burned the lanterns so that next year we would get new lanterns. If not the existing lantern will be folded properly and kept for next year. We sure were cunning then.

My father-in-law made hubby a tin lantern when he was young. It comes with wheels too. He would cut vertical lines on the tin so that lights can appear on the outside when lid. Nothing fancy but D.I.Y lantern is priceless.

My sons however, when they were toddlers we got them plastic battery operated lanterns that comes with songs and blinking lights. Until they are much older and were allowed to play with fire, we brought them the paper lantern.

How time flies. All my nieces, nephews and my sons are all grown up and no one to play lantern around the house anymore. Now a days we just eat moon cakes and watch t.v on that day. Kinda missed those days, playing with fire, lid candles every where, make bonfire out of dry leaves and candles and sing songs and play games around it.

Those were the days. Thanks for reading and hope you have a great day.

Soup Kitchen

The other day we were all talking about Soup Kitchen in Malaysia. A temple in Kuala Lumpur had set up a Soup Kitchen and is expanding too, to other states through out Malaysia. One of my brother-in-law's church is coming up with Soup Kitchen too and they are asking for donation.

My other brother-in-law, however, don't really agree with this whole idea of feeding the homeless. He said, this would encourage more lazy folks to become homeless. Come to think of it, who, with the right frame of mind, would prefer to be homeless.

Sleeping in the streets with stray dogs, cats and rodents. No clean clothes to change into or place to take a good bath. Not knowing where or when the next meal will come from, if there is a next meal. The worst among all is, they totally lack self esteem, can't even face the world.

I don't think we have the right to look down on these folks. If given a chance to know every single one of them, I am sure they come with a terrible story that left them homeless.

I do agree that, there will be folks who will take advantages of these voluntary non-profit organization and enjoy those free food which are meant for those who really needed it most. Well, this should not be a discouragement to continue to help the homeless and the poor.

We who are lucky that always have more than enough to eat and wear, should be thankful and lend a helping hand to those who are less fortunate. I am always ready to donate food and clothes to the food bank and the needy.

We don't have to be rich to start donating. No matter how much you earn, I am sure you could at least spare a dollar or two for charity. To you, it is not much, but to the homeless, it is a big deal.

Thanks for reading and hope you start donating like me.

Upset Over Hair

One of my neighbor, female in her late forties, had straight long hair, waist length. She had never cut her hair any other style before since young. Now I have a few nieces who had not cut their hair any other way before too, and I was thinking if they would end up like my neighbor. Once you are older and the face bigger etc it don't look nice to have hairs like this.

Isn't it a bit boring to see yourself in the mirror everyday with the same hair style? It does to me, maybe because that is the nature of Aries, always trying out new stuffs. Hair grows back, for a healthy normal human being that is, and should not worry so much of giving oneself a new hair do.

One of my friend told me that her husband does not allow their daughter to cut her hair short. When she enter kindergarden, the principle told my friend that all her students are to wear their hair short, at most shoulder length. She and her hubby got so upset that they had a long talk with the principle.

Even some of the model on "Super Model" cried when they had a make over that involve their hair. Didn't anyone tell them that hair will grow and she can change it back to her old hairdo in no time?

Thanks for reading. Just find it amusing when people get upset over their hair, unless of course that due to some diseases, your hair could never grow back. Are your hairs your priority too?

My Cute Plant

This is not a huge vase. I took it from the aquarium. We had two glass rectangle shaped aquarium and hubby decided to get rid of one and in the aquarium he had all sorts of decorative ornament like this, kinda look like a broken jug with holes by the side for tiny fishes to swim through.

I took it, sealed the base and added a bit of soil and planted this in it. I watered it every day. Didn't expect it to live so long. It is over a year now and the plant seems to be healthy and growing well. I started it off as an experiment not sure if this plant count survive with such little soil.

Guess I do have green hands after all or maybe just lucky. I love gardening and planting all sorts of tiny plants into all sorts of stuffs like teapot, bird cage, basket etc. Normally I would convert all sorts of old utensils etc into pots. I prefer small pots and plants. That way I can put it on my table or on top of the aquarium or the the side of the fish pond. Lovely.

Thanks for visiting and happy gardening to you. Do share some of your gardening experience with me.