1st planting at St Theresa Convent

Yesterday, I planted my first fruit plant. The only plant, not sure it’s even call a plant, probably it’s just called spouting of green beans. Ha ha. Can you guess what I am planting?

Duh, of course can’t lah! It’s Dragon Fruit. With the help of one of the sisters, I prepared the soil and took a some dragon fruit seed with I kept from dinner the night before. I sprinkle the seeds around and was told to water it everyday. We have a few dragon fruit cactus here. We have both the red and the white ones. So far, we harvested 3 fruits. There are some more buds, hopefully it will flower. Sounds interesting right??

I always wonder why the sisters are so interested in garden under the hot sun. Forever digging, changing pots, watering, pulling here and there. It took me almost 4 months to understand a little more about the garden after questioning them and seeing results with my own eyes. I’m in love with the flowing process, especially cactus flowers that have only a one night life span. They will open and the next morning die. Realised it’s the same as for passion fruit flowers. And the excitement and fulfillment of seeing the plan flowering and becoming fruit is so wonderful. So, I decided to start small and slow, just to help myself appreciate nature a little more.

So the night before, my community cut open the 3rd dragon fruit and we shared. I asked if dragon fruit and be grown using the many seeds on the fruit. The sisters say yes, and I ask if I can try. My sister superior said, cccaaaaannnnn… I was so happy and I cut of a little from my share to keep for planting.

You know my dear friends, what is so special of these fruits is that they are constantly thinking of reproduction and they provide abundance of opportunities for germination. Take for example even before the bananas are ripen on the tree, 1-2 more anaks will be going. And just see the amount of seeds in the papaya, watermelon ….. imagine if every seed becomes a plant………..

And lastly, nature is really so much controlled by God. Some bear fruits, some just don’t even it’s well cared for.

1st cooking here at St Theresa Convent

On 10 June, I did my first solo cooking for 3 person. It was a good experience. Over here, the sisters cook whatever is available in the fridge. Unless really not enough, then we go to the little shop outside to buy.

So, as you can see, I cooked 3 dishes with rice. Firstly, it’s the fried eggs, some Kua fried with onions and garlic (the green dish at the back), crispy brown rice (ha ha, obviously it’s not well cooked) and chicken meat cooked with carrots.

Not bad right!! Tell you, I walked in and out the kitchen for at least 4 times because I couldn’t estimate how long I need to prepare or cook. Anyway, I manage to produce some food on the table.

My 2nd attempt was to cook for 5 paxs (2 meals). That was a challenge… I felt that I cannot be thrown there to cook for so many all by myself. So, few days before, I seek SOS help from another sister. She was nice to agree and even plan the dishes. So I prepared and cook the vegetables and she help me with the meat. She would teach me what to do with all the preparation and correct my way of cooking. I greatly appreciate that because it’s better to learn the correct way from the beginning.

So that’s my 2 attempts while the main cook was away. Now, I continue my job as a onion, garlic and potato peeler, with another glamorous duty as a dish washer.. hee hee.

Working in the kitchen is not about how glamorous it is, it’s really cooking with love for the community because I’m part of the community. So even I’m a dishwasher, I have to wash well…. but… the truth is all these are not my favourite things to do, so I had to struggle a little by forcing myself to do it well because I’m part of the community.

My body is not MINE

“I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me. The life I now live in this body I live in faith.” (Galatian 2:20)

I would like to share a little reflection I had on 2nd reading, 10th Ordinary Sunday, 13 June 2010.

I realized that I live now not for myself but for Christ and my community. When I’m not taking good care of myself, I’m just being irresponsible to Christ and my community.

That led me to recalled what I learnt about ‘the evil of self will’. Sometimes, being knowledgeable, being attentive is good but when pride enters, evil doings and thoughts will take place. When I allow pride to enter, I have destroyed this body that God had loan it to me.

Suddenly, I realized that my body is not mine! And therefore, if only I can love something that doesn’t belong to me, then I can love others.

Woh! I was overwhelmed.

So I took a break…… then I made another discovery.

I found myself over protecting my body from things that will not harm the soul…eg Dirtiness. It was scary cause, I was all along protecting from something that can be wash away easily. What cannot be so easily cleanse is the soul and not my physical body.

With that thought, I walked out of the house into the garden. Walking to and fro… and decided to go to the Jambu tree. So I stared at it for a long time, should I dirty myself and put in some effort to wrap the flowers (prevent bee from stinging) since this is the only tree I know what to do with the flower? Actually, it’s not a very dirty job, it’s just having to climb up the ladder, putting my hands and head into the branches of leaves, which I don’t like. Anyway, finally, I did it and I was happy.