I watched Fever Pitch the other day and the ultimate question that was raised from the sweet warm-hearted movie was this: "You give so much to your love/passion in life.  But does it love you back?"

The main character of Fever Pitch is a dude who’s an ardent fan of the non-performing Red Sox baseball team.  He never misses a game or even practice sessions.  To him, he has to be there because they ‘need’ him.  The crunch came when his girlfriend needed him to be with her on the day an important game was due and she asked that ultimate question.

It made me think, you know.  I’m a woman of many interests and loves.  It’s hard to count them on both sets of hands and toes.  I started asking myself if the time I invest in them is equivalent to what they reciprocate to me. 

For instance, my great love for Chek Hup.  Since discovering it about 7 years ago, I have never found another instant white coffee brand quite like it.  It was as natural as breathing to promote it to my friends.  Quite a number have professed a liking to it and persuaded others to join the growing bandwagon.  And the ultimate question was, do they love me back?  The answer is YES and YES!  Not that I expected anything in return for my devotion – but it does warm my heart to be appreciated for my loyalty :)

Chek Hup is the reason I pry myself out of bed every morning.  The mental image of me gripping a cup of soothing, hot tasty white coffee in front of my computer spurs me to get my behind to the office pronto. 

Friends may come and migrate away but Chek Hup remains.  Even if they are not sold in Carrefour, I know I can always get them at Giant or Aeon or selected Chinese pharmacies.  The more people I can convince to love Chek Hup, the more likely they will be churning out more coffee goodness from infinity to beyond.  If Linus of Peanuts has his security blanket, then I can have my Chek Hup.

So yeah, I’m devoted to Chek Hup because not because it rewards me but because it’s always there for me – come rain or shine or hailstorm.  I just need to remember to stock it up in advance to prevent panic attacks :P

Knowing the Languages of Love has helped a great deal in understanding others and myself better. There are 5 languages of love in general:

1. Words of Affirmation
2. Acts of Service
3. Quality Time
4. Receiving Gifts
5. Physical Touch

So, how does it help me in relating with others?

I learned that while my dad is not the type to exhibit affection by words or hugs, he has been showing love all along by doing things for the household. He takes care of my car like his own and offers to run errands for us. To make him happy, I learned to offer help and do my share of the housework.

My mom, on the other hand, loves to hear and give words of affirmation. She will tuck little notes of love under my door from time to time and always lets me know that she loves me. She treasures the poems and blog entries that I wrote about her. Incidentally, that was how dad got her to fall in love with him – he wrote pages of pages of love lorn letters to her when they were in a long-distance relationship.

Understanding how our loved ones perceive love will go a long way in enriching your relationships.  Find out what yours is by completing this quiz.

As a bonus, here’s a list of songs that you can play or sing to your loved ones depending on their language of love. Have fun and may it bring a zing to your relationship! A special thanks to Mr. McUser for helping me come up with most of them.


Songs That Would Make Their Hearts Go Zing:

Words of Affirmation – When You Tell Me That You Love Me (Diana Ross)
I Love You Always Forever (Donna Lewis), Say It Right (Nelly Furtado),
Tell Her About It (Billy Joel),

Acts of Service – Every Little Thing You Do (Westlife) I Go To
Extremes (Billy Joel), I’ll Be There (The Jackson 5), I’ll Stand By
You (The Pretenders), Take Good Care Of My Baby (Bobby Vee), What Can
I Do (The Corrs)


Quality Time – Spending My Time (Roxette) Come Fly With Me (Michael Buble)

Gifts – Diamonds Are Forever (Shirley Bassey)

Physical Touch – Touch My Body (Mariah Carey), When You Kiss Me (Shania
Twain), Besame Mucho (Andrea Bocelli) I Wanna Hold Your Hand (The
Beatles), Intimacy (The Corrs), Sealed With A Kiss (Agnetha Faltskog)

Songs You Should NOT Sing:

Words of Affirmation - When You Say Nothing At All (Ronan Keating) Hard To Say I’m Sorry (Peter Cetera), On And On And On (Abba)

Acts of Service - I Would Do Anything For Love But I Won’t Do That (Meatloaf)

Quality Time - Time To Say Goodbye (Andrea Bocelli & Sarah Brightman)

Gifts - Gimme Gimme Gimme (Abba), The Winner Takes It All (Abba),

Physical Touch - Stay Away (Nirvana) Kissing A Fool (Michael Buble)

Was catching up on my favourite blogs when I came across this lovely piece.  It is a tribute to a father who loved his step-daughter as one of his own.  Read it and be touched.

"Most people just take the father God gives them at birth. Not me.

God knew I needed a father I could touch to understand how much I am loved by Him. After all, a woman’s image of God is often a replica of her image of her earthly father. Since 1990, I’ve had a clearer image of God’s love because of my father.

I was nine, in 1989, when my mama met him. She loved him a lot. She asked if I loved him too. Until then, every man I had ever loved had gone away and left me and my
mama behind. I wanted my mama to have him. I wanted to love him, but I was afraid he’d leave her, so I wouldn’t let myself. After all, it was my father who had abandoned me after my parents divorced in 1987.

About a year later in July 1990, my mama married him, but I was still afraid to love him.

It took some time, but eventually, I learned to trust him. I asked him to become my father, legally. I was fourteen when on December 18, 1992, he stood before a judge, telling God and man that he chose me; that he wanted to be my father. I wanted that too.

It’s been over fifteen years since that day.

I didn’t know it then, but I was broken inside, when it came to understanding what it meant to have a father who loves me and really does want me to be his daughter. God knew that, and He always provides.

My father had been prepared, by God, to have a daughter. He wanted a daughter even though there hadn’t been a girl born into his family in many generations. God knew that he’d have a daughter and gave him the desire to be a little girl’s father. God gives us the desires of our hearts.

At times, I have felt forsaken, abandoned, and so alone that I couldn’t see the presence of anyone around me–even God, Himself. Thankfully, God put His skin on my father to help me learn to see Him when I feel alone.

As I have learned to trust him, I have trusted God more too. I’ve always known, in my head, that God wants to tuck me in at night, wipe away my tears, walk hand in hand with me, and be my Father. I can say that in the past fifteen years, I’ve been able to move that knowledge, slowly, from my head into my heart.

People
often say that it takes a “real man” to be a father. If you’re adopted, there’s more. Because it takes a VERY special kind of “real man” to be a father to someone else’s child.

I’m exceedingly grateful that I know a “VERY special kind of ‘real man’”. He’s more
than a father to me. He picked me to be his daughter.

His name is Dan Case, and I love him a lot."

–Sara Case, Fathers’ Day, 2008

By Dan: Even though I’d read this before—more than once—I will admit to shedding humble tears. I am so very blessed, and so thankful for God’s amazing restoration and grace in my life, that I’ve found it difficult to find words to express myself. If you know me, you know that anything that can shut me up so effectively is a mighty big deal.

I love you, Sara. Thanks for a wonderful Father’s Day–and for the privilege of being your father.

Source

I got some more diving gear today to add to my pink face mask and snorkel.  I got a pair of booties, pink fins and pink wet suit.  The booties were black simply because they don’t manufacture pink ones.

Lest you think I’ve gone all Xiaxue with her Princess Room, there are practical reasons behind the pink decision:

1. Easier identification: Pink is very noticeable under low visibility conditions underwater.  This is very handy for my dive master/diving buddy to locate me.  Not only will they see a diver moving from afar, they’ll know it’s unmistakeably me because hey, how many people would actually dare to colour-coordinate their scuba gear with pink?
2. No mix-up: While other popular (read: common) colours are dominating diving accesories chucked atop a boat, my pink fins, face mask and snorkel would stand out regally, making it impossible for someone to mistake my stuff for theirs.
3. Calming effects: According to research, some prisons use pink tones to diffuse aggressive behaviour.  Perhaps this will generate the same feel-good factor in aggressive marine animals such as triggerfish and predator sharks.