Greetings,
Despite many members taking off early for their year-end holidays, there were plenty of members keen on fitting in one more fun-filled, learning session before kicking-off 2014.
From unfortunate events unfolding for his beloved pet rabbit, Richard has learned not to take his responsibilities lightly. Sariza told a sad tale of spending three wasted hours on a dud date. Despite Stuart’s shameful secret being exposed (how can one not read a book in such a long time?!), he did have us asking ourselves about how happy we truly are living our everyday lives. Fen shared her delightful memorable painting experiences in France. Zainal shared his resolute ambitions of running in a marathon and not finishing 2nd last. After reflecting on his actions in the past year from partying to Toastmasters here and and there, Imran is looking forward to tying the knot with his fiance. Congratulations Zainal for taking home another best Table Topics award and cheers Table Topics speakers!
We live in a consumer world driven by beauty standards set by marketing and advertisements. Del reminded us how not to get so caught up in this relentless pursuit of ‘beauty’. We are all beautiful, we can all happily enjoy life. Listen to Jason Mraz for example, his music will put huge smiles on your faces. More importantly, never judge yourself according to those photoshopped standards on posters and billboards. As you smile in the mornings when you look in the mirror, tell yourself, ‘you complete me’.
Speaking of marketing and advertising, in our obsession with weight loss, we’ve all been lied to! ‘No pain, no gain’ is utter nonsense! We don’t have to spend endless hours tearing our muscles at the gym. Simple changes to our dietary routines can bring wonders to losing excess weight. Eat six ‘half meals’ instead of three of our usual ‘full meals’ each day. Fill you shopping baskets with fresh produce instead of cans and boxes. You organized your Competent Communication 2 speech well, Hidayati. Cheers for the advice!
Ong Yin’s family was dragged in a downward spiral after a family member was diagnosed with cancer. Drastic life changes were pursued. Treatments were sought from many doctors. Amidst the turmoil of conflicting advice from different doctors and clashes at home, the arduous journey so far has put life into a clearer perspective for Ong Yin. Whatever direction life leads her towards, she knows she can move forward. Ong Yin took us on a learning journey with were concise, vivid, and emotive words in her Competent Communication 4 speech.
Our role players maintained our momentum before the year-end holidays with their energy on top of giving honest and critical evaluations. Well done Naif for taking up the Table Topics Master role for the first time and well done Amran for evaluating Table Topics for the first time.
Happy holidays, homies!
Hazwan