Recently, a close friend reminded me that Love is the most valuable resource in the world and that without Love, there would not be compassion. Without compassion, the children at CPS and St Joseph would not have experienced what a Lantern Party organized by WeCare feels like, my friend commented. That comment left a wide grin on my face and I went home pondering over what was said. True, we all need love just like a fish needs water. With love in our lives, we are empowered beyond belief. Love is the very essence and core of our being. It is the energy that sustains who and what we are. Many times people only recognize love in its emotional form but love can be given or received in physical, emotional or mental forms.
To love others takes effort, and in some cases this can be very hard work. Ideally, we should also be able to love people who we don't particularly like or find attractive. This is not as unreasonable as it may sound, if we understand that love is not just a feeling, but it is expressed when we do something for another person that benefits their spiritual and emotional growth, which in turn helps them realize their full human potential. This kind of love is exactly what we observed at the St Joseph Home. The caregivers at the Home are “extraordinary people” who have chosen to volunteer their time to care for these children. Most importantly, they have showered their “unconditional love” unto these children simply by loving, supporting and accepting them unconditionally.
We, on the other hand are merely trying to do our part in building a caring and loving society.
With that in mind and to coincide with the “Lantern Festival” that falls on the 15th day of the Chinese eighth month, my friends and I decided to bring the festival to the children at the St Joseph Home. After weeks of preparation, we head off to St Joseph on 17th of September. The preparation part was easy. The difficult part was carrying the programmes thru the night and hoping that the children will have lots of fun and enjoy themselves. Fortunately for us, we achieved our objectives that night.
The first game we played was “Paper Dance”. The children got ecstatic each time the music stops but at the same time, they wanted to continue dancing because they find it hilarious and fun. So, we have a whole garden full of little children dancing and prancing around as were the adults, including a toddler who was having as much fun as the children. Then when the music stops everyone jumped onto their newspaper and stood still while trying their best not to wobble and fall. Looking around, the children had big wide eyes and huge grins on their faces. It was then that we realized that these children were truly enjoying themselves. So what we could see as doing an ordinary deed is given “magic status” by these young children.
That nite, the “Ricky Martins” and “Michael Jacksons” of Penang came alive accompanied by the loud music blasting in the background. Some of the children were dancing rhythmically while others simply swayed their hips and shake their butts to the music. My friends and I spent most of the evening laughing and cheering at the many antics displayed by our “little performers” and at the end, prizes were given out to the top 3 “performers”.
A significant difference between a child’s “mind” and an adult’s “mind” came to light when we played “Dress-Up” with the children. Armed with coloured papers, magic inks, tapes, make-up kits and a pair of scissors, the children’s creativity came to life with them busily and happily designing and dressing their “models”.….. At the end of the game, we have Superman, Kings, Princesses and many other characters up on stage for a parade. The only idea we, 5 adrenalin charged adults could come up with is to dress our “mannequin” as a Sexy Bimbo with BIG BOOBS …. Notice the BIG difference in terms of “Creativity” here!!!
Screams, giggles, laughter and thunderous claps filled the air everytime a “model” sashay down the catwalk. The “models” look stunningly beautiful and it felt like watching an episode of MTV Fashion on ASTRO.
We ended the party with a Lantern parade and the children displaying their strong vocals before we bade our GOOD NIGHTS. Hmm, I noticed that a couple of the children have very outstanding voices and who knows, we may have a future “Malaysian Idol” right here at St Joseph ….. : )
Truly, caring for a child is not an easy task but imagine caring for more than 50 children ranging from the age of 5 to 17. Spending a few hours playing with 57 children has left me completely drained of energy and my entire body felt like a BLOG of Jelly!! JELLY because the moment my body touched my Dreamland bed, it just go completely WOBBLY all over and I slept thru the night like a baby. The next morning, I woke up with a sense of relief knowing that the party ended well although there were a couple of glitches along the way. All in, I enjoyed myself and I believe the children felt the same. Indeed, I feel happy knowing that we brought cheer, laughter and happiness to 57 less fortunate children the night before. It is an accomplishment and an experience that I will always look back on with satisfaction.
Go to here for more photos.
Special thanks to,
Contributors
Cheah Chin Hong; Cheah Seok Eng; Chew Hooi Nee; Chionh Hai Pin; Ch'ng Ooi Yang; Chuah Phiak Hooi; Fong Hoe Kheang; Foo Yean Teng; Gooi Chien Hoong; Gooi Mong Ling; Gooi Tze Ling; Jack Lim; Jovie & Jordon Tan; Julie; Kang Guat Chuan; Ken Khoo; Khaw Hooi Hooi; Khaw Kheng Lean; Lau Bee Pheng; Lee Choon Ewe; Leong Mei Leng; Lim Ghee Hooi; Mei Xuan Meow; Natalie Chow; Nelson Chuah Ban Lee; Ng Chian Chiew; Oon Hooi Khee; Oon Yee Mun; Oon Yit Moon; Serene & Terence Ng; Simon Tay; Tan Saw Gaik; Tan Chuan Hock; Tan Soun Sim; Tan Su Ping; Tan Suan Bee; Teoh Hooi Nee; Yap Huey Shan; Yeoh Swee Hoon
Sponsors
Eunice, Elvin & Eric Yeoh; Koay Saw Hong; Koay Saw Hoon; Lau C Hun; Lena Oh; Lim Pein Ling; Mdm. Lim Kim Lang; Ong Tze En; Tan Hock Chye; Tham Wei Wei
St Joseph Home
10000 Penang Road
Penang, Malaysia
Tel : 6-04-2635418
