The Ladder of Life

I believe life must always be forward looking. But as we look back in our past, there are things to gain as well.

There were once a couple who lived on the 80th floor of a building. They went camping one day and came back only to realize that the building is having an electric shortage and the lifts are not working. Although they are carrying a huge backpack, they are sweating all over and needed a shower so they decided that they will take the stair back home.

As they climbed the flight of stairs to the 20th floor, the husband told the wife. “Honey, I can’t take this anymore, it’s too tiring. Why don’t we leave our backpacks at the 20th floor and when the electricity come back, we can take to elevator back down here to retrieve our back pack!”. The wife replied: “You are so smart dear! Let’s do that”. And so, without that excess baggage, they climbed happily up the stairs again.

However, as they reach the 40th floor, they legs began to sore and grew tired. They are only half way there and there were 40 floors of stairs yet to go. They started arguing and blaming each other why didn’t they notice the memo about that electric shortage or blackout. They blamed each other for putting them through so much trouble.

They argued as they climb and they finally reach the 60th level. At that point, they were exhausted and didn’t even have the energy to argue anymore. They husband then state: “Let’s not argue or quarrel anymore. Why don’t we climb the rest of the stairs in peace and quiet?” The wife agreed and so they continue walking.

At long last, they reached the 80th floor. The wife then said: “Please quickly open the door, I’m exhausted!” The husband then said: “I thought the key was with you!?” Then they realized that they have left the key in the backpack on the 20th floor!

Some people say this story is liken to one’s life journey. From our birth to the age of 20, we are always living under the expectation of our parents and teachers, just like carrying the weights of a big backpack. After 20 years old, we will be able to let go of this baggage of responsibility and live with much freedom and happiness for the next 20 years. At 40, we then realize we have so much regrets and resentments. Our lives become unhappy or dissatisfied, and we start to blame the company we are working at, the government, everyone. At 60, we do not have much time left to live. We will then tell ourselves that we should just treasure what we have and live the remaining of our life at peace. At 80, it's the end of our life’s journey. As we look back at our lives, only did we realize that our dreams and passion were left behind at the age of 20, and were never achieved, just like those keys.

I will not follow the footsteps of this couple climbing the stairs. I will never let go of my dreams and ensure a life of no regrets. What about you?



It was just yesterday, that I turned 23. Merely on my verge of leaving the academic baggage, I have to embrace this new found freedom of employment. My dreams are clear to me as before, but its path now blurred by uncertainty and diffident. It is sad that the mere possibility of employment that I once despise is exciting me at this level. My standards is really going low huh?

Lost as I may, the will and believe remains that I, will take whatever means necessary, to get there. That is my birthday promise!

Inner strength

As I am looking back at my life, it is one that is full of irony, contradiction, but so far a fulfilling one. People might think that I am a believer of destiny and fate, as my blog name suggest, but those close to me knows better, I am the exact opposite.

I believe I had a rather mature mindset since I was really young. I have realistic dreams, passion, drive, motivation and discipline people my age never really care for. It kind of also explains my social awkwardness and inability to fit-in as I do not find that same kind of interest in people, as I still do now. From that loneliness, I learned to be financially savvy, strong and independent, requiring no support from others and even minimal from my parents. Yet life has a way of surprising you. Weird as I am in many ways, I am blessed to have many true and good friends around that really did not mind my little eccentricities. It shed a little light on how fun it could be with a group of really cool friends.

I also thought that I have everything planned out. I don’t believe in destiny, but rather everyone shape their own future. Every little effort, every small decision will forever change the course of our future and so determine the now. I always believed if you try hard enough, sacrifice enough, pay a price hefty enough, the impossible will become possible.

However, as I grow up, the once perfect dreams started to show its weakness. Things never were how they planned out to be, but that did not bother me. What bothers me is how little control we had over what decides our future sometimes. Even if you pay the price, the impossible still lays hanging in the hands of others, not yours. And that, annoys me. Just as I am right now, waiting for a job interview result and nothing I could do about it. Because this is not a contest of effort but compatibility.

Just as I enjoy the ironies in life, I guess life do enjoy playing irony on me too. I once learned independence and find joy in living alone, without much social obligations. But life ‘blessed’ me with good friends and happy times that I’ll never forget the rest of my life. And then leave me here alone again, pondering, remembering those happy times as only a memory now. In studies, I worked hard, I worked smart and I achieved above average results for my effort. Life shower me with compliments, appraisals, and expectations I did not ask for and yet test me with such difficult situation of even on moving on and getting a job, and yet, many others have moved on. Life like to give you hope as you are down and continue giving it until you finally embrace it and looking forward to the light at the end of tunnel of misery. And the life takes hope away from you and seal you back into that tunnel of complete darkness. How many more such pranks I can take in my life long journey I wonder.



Twisted as life maybe, and down as I am now, I believe one should never lose hope. Hope not given by others, but one that is genuinely burning inside you. In the darkest of time, hope is something you give yourself, and that is the true meaning of inner strength. And all I need is some inner strength to fight this war. Perhaps, we are all standing in the crossroads of destiny. There are pathways that we can choose in the crossroads and yet each has their destiny in place not within our power to control. That is how I see life as it is. Crossroads and crossroads of destiny weaved into a net of life. And one have to hold inner strength to make it through.



Yet, and this point of the road, how I wish that I could let go of all my strength, and to relive one of those memories that I so treasure. Oh! How much I am willing to give for those moments again. =S

The Bank Account

Irony is when people complain about a $16/hour wage rate and yet are willing to spend hours of waiting just to get a $10 discount. Irony is when people are willing to go 10 minutes away to save $2 bucks and that adds up to 12 bucks an hour which is below minimum wage. Irony is when someone spent 200 bucks but yet said they saved a lot.

Seriously, money is not all that important. But more often than not, people, and the society view it over-enthusiastically, yet in a very wrong way. Time, by far is a much more valuable commodity sometimes quoted as an equivalence of money, but not treasure as one.

Imagine there is a bank account that credits you account each morning with $86,400. It does not carry forward to the next day. Every evening, the bank deletes whatever part of the balance you failed to use during the day. What would you do? Draw out every cents, of course?

Each of us had such a bank. Its name is time. Every morning, it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes it off as lost, whatever you failed to invest to a good purpose. It carries over no balance. It allows no overdraft. Each day, it opens a new account for yo. Each night, it burns the remaining of the day. If you fail to use the day's deposits, the loss is yours.

You must live in the present on today's deposits. Invest it so as to get from it the utmost health, happiness and success. The clock is running. Make the most of today!

I had wrote off too many bad checks, but not anymore, never. If everyone could treat every second like its every dollar, nobody be unproductive or inefficient anymore. And in that sense, everyone is equally wealthy everyday. With this, i have spend 600bucks on this post! Whoever reads this, please appreciate, and PAY UP! =p

A Fresh Start and a Job-less Apple.

They say "live everyday like it's your last". But if so, no one in the world would be working. One should look in the mirror, and ask yourself if this is how one wants to lead his live for entirety. If the answer is no, then something must be done, we, must change.

Procrastination had gotten hold of me once again! Despite being extremely free, i have again failed to been productive as is keeping this blog updated. Maybe cause there is really nothing much to my life for now. Everything have become so boring to me as i started losing interest in thing. Everyone around me seem to be busy, getting on with their lives, worried, struggling but at least for something meaningful in their lives. While me, being stuck in some vortex of time, unable to move forward. I have been job-hunting for say less than 2 months and still, nothing promising have shown up my path, all seems bleak and lost. I am honored to be showered with advices, that i should not be eager to rush into jobs, hold out for the right position and jobs in my profession just take time to find. Stories or precedents laid before me that others spent much longer unemployment periods than me and some, still trying. Maybe to others it seems easy, to stay back, relax, chill and slowly get a job. But in fact, it's a much greater challenge to me than i were to go through extremely difficult test and stress from studies. This brain of mine rebels at stagnation and needs work. I've been far to unproductive and lazy that even i despite it. I need something new in my life, and i shall start by changing a little.

Besides me, i guess Apple, the definition of sleek design and gadgets of the 21st century is also, 'Jobless'! Steve Jobs, was a great individual that should be admired and it was a great loss. He was a mere college drop out, sacked from his own firm and yet he achieved many more than any top college graduates could have imagine. Many are inspired by him, thinking that the world has lost yet another legendary figure. However, people should stop mourning over this loss and learn that anyone could be a new legend of their own. The very path we walk now could be one that too lead to great success. He was no so far different from any of us that are then still naive and ignorance. He found his passion and pursued it without hesitation and falter. So can we!