To God Be The Glory

The month of October has been a good one for me. I celebrated my 49th birthday on the 8th Oct over a simple halal Western dinner at my favourite eating place, Seafarer.

This was followed by the English Language Teaching Materials Conference that was held at the Equatorial Hotel, Melaka. It being held in my home ground, I took the chance to present a paper 'Thank You For The Music' in which I shared with my audience how I used songs in my Form 4 English Language class. My thanks go to my friend, Mdm. Noorainun Anuar of the Melaka State Education Department, who arranged for my sponsorship to the Conference.

The icing on the cake at the end of last week was the news that I had been emplaced on DG52 scale. I was elated and after many anxious moments, finally got a faxed copy of my appointment letter from the Human Resource Ministry. I have to remind myself again and again to always stay humble and to give all glory to God. The promotion would not have been possible if not for divine providence and also my dear colleagues and friends who had seen me through thick and thin, from the time I submitted my form till the time I got my faxed copy of letter from Putrajaya (the Malaysian admin hub).

6th St. Theresian Line Dance Anniversary

One of the nicest bunch of ladies in Melaka town gather at the St. Theresa's Church along Jalan Gajah Berang every Monday from 5.30 to 7.00 p.m. to line dance under the tutelage of Mdm. Chin Siok Hoon. 11th Oct saw the ladies (and a few brave men) gather at the Melaka Peranakan Chinese Association to eat and line dance the night away.

The theme for this year's St. Theresian Line Dance Anniversary was fancy dress and you can see from the topmost and 2nd pictures that everyone made an effort to dress up. The young student in white shirt, turqoise skirt and tie is me - still under 18! In our midst, we had a (Somali) pirate, matchmaker, clowns, gypsies, Red Indians and even a rag doll, among others.

The 3rd picture shows the ladies lince dancing. The lady in red (she's in front - the tallest and dressed as a gypsy) is our teacher, Mdm. Chin. We students exasperate her each week because we forget the dance steps and even the dance names, all within the hour! Our common comment is : "Eh, what dance is this?????"

Next pic shows my dear husband Henry in action, dancing with Rosalind Leow. Henry brought the house down, dressed as a belly dancer who hailed from Istanbul! Even now, I have a good laugh whenever I see the photos of him on that night, swirling and twirling to the strains of 'Arabian Nights'.

In the fifth and final photo, everyone is trying to stomp each other's balloons in one of the games that we had. What a night of good clean fun! We are already looking forward to the next anniversary...

6 Oct 2008 Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri!

One of the best things about Hari Raya Aidilfitri is the amount and variety of food that greet me when I go to Raya open houses. This year was no different and believe me, by the 3rd day of Raya, I had piled on more fat and needed a new wardrobe to accommodate my rounder figure!

The one-week Raya break was a welcome one and when we went back to school on the 6th Oct which was a Monday, the Raya mood spilled over into the school.

Photos from the top:

1. Mr. Md. Taha Sarip, the School PTA Vice-chairman, giving away duit raya.

2. Siti Fairus Musa of Form 4K1, a seasoned performer, recited a poem about Raya.

3. Form 4K2 girls put up a sketch about a young man who forgets his roots when he marries a rich girl. The sketch had a good plot and a strong cast.

4. MGSS has got talent! Mr. Alias (left) and Mr. Azmi (right), both from the school support staff, belted Raya numbers and even did a joget. It was a good show from the veteran performers.

5. Everybody singing Raya songs. Nobody cared if they sang out of tune because it was a time to celebrate.