One hot Sunday morning. Halfway the 77K route of Last Sunday Ride. Check point #2. Feeling rather worn out from the scorching heat. I took refuge in a shaded curbside, sitting down, stretching my aching legs. Then I saw her. An elderly lady. I would say 60ish. Not a trace of fatigue on her face. She was standing up and talking with her friends. I stood up right away. Age is not important unless you are a cheese, a wine, or a scotch.
A long two hours service in a church. My mom kept asking me about the time. Marvin was completely lost outside his e-world (Sleep Over Rule #3 No iPad when we go out). He was shocked to see a 15 page long service rundown booklet. He kept asking me about which page we were on through out the entire service. Even I complained about the long closing speech from a church officials after the service. Maureen sat quietly next to my mom, reading the booklet, singing hymns she probably never heard, listening to whoever using a mike to talk ; she actually enjoyed the service! No whining, no pouting, no complaining, no evil plan. I was completely in awe! We should do church date more often Maureen!
One lovely Sunday morning in CFD. Feeling lovely to see lovely happy people out in the sun. A lovely family of three walking leisurely. Dad in the middle, Mom on his right side and a young girl on his left. The girl lovingly held her dad's left arm. Then I saw what was written on his t-shirt. So not lovely. Poor girl.
One lovely cloudy Thursday in a swimming pool. A boy in the pool doing laps of freestyles in the shorter length of the pool. I would say about 11-13 years old. His mom sat on a plastic chair right at the edge of the pool, using her mobile as a stopwatch. He stopped every two laps to catch his breath and to catch his mom's negative words about his timing. You should've seen his face. Cloudier than the day.
One lovely Friday afternoon in a supermarket. A mom and her toddler in front of a produce freezer. Round #1 "Cheese!" the boy pointing at some tiny but pricey cheese wrapped in a shiny bright red transparent paper. "You never eat it!" mom said. Round #2 "I waaaant that cheese!" the boy screamed. "But you never eat it. You didn't eat it last time, remember?" mom sounded like a broken record. Round #3 "I really want it," said the boy with teary eyes, on the verge of throwing a tantrum. "Promise me you eat it. Otherwise I'm not buying it again next time." He gave her no pinky promise but she gave in anyway and put the object of desire in the cart. He totally had her in the palm of his hand.
Bahagia itu habis latihan interval minum segelas kunyit & beras kencur sambil ngobrol bersama mba Sri dan para langganan jamunya. Topik hari ini Metro Mini. "Saya sih biar Metro Mini saya lawan. Enak saja hampir menabrak mobil saya. Saya cegat, saya turun dan saya labrak supir yang kurang ajar itu. Saya nggak takut. Pernah Metro Mini lain saya lempar pake botol air dari mobil dan bla bla bla," kata seorang ibu berperawakan mungil dengan nada berapi-api dan bersemangat menceritakan sepak terjangnya melawan Metro Mini di jalanan Jakarta yang kejam. "Saya sih lebih baik mengalah dari pada naik darah," jawab saya. Dalam hati tentu saja. Daripada dilempar gelas jamu? ;-)
I think most people would have problem to dance and sing your heart out in a public swimming pool. Except this guy I saw on a warm Sunday morning. He had a portable speaker on his pool lounge. An upbeat latino song was on. Barely audible for other people to hear but loud enough for him to hear from the edge of the pool. So there he was in the pool; dancing, whistling, singing out of tune, lip sync-ing, air drumming, air piano-ing having a time of his life without a care in the world. I couldn't help but smile.
One lovely early Friday morning. A high school on my left. An elderly gentleman stood right outside its entrance gate. He greeted all students with a handshake, an eye contact and a smile. What a pleasant way to start a day. Everytime you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing. Mother Theresa.
One long Tuesday afternoon in a cafe. Stuck in a writer's block. Words just could not come off my fingers. Everywhere I looked people were busy with their gadgets including me. Except this lovely lady. Two tables away from me. On her table were note books, stack of papers, soft pencil case full of pens, pencils and stuff. No gadget.
