The Five-Minute Writer - Day 10 - Replace a cliche

The author challenged us to replace a cliche! This is a tough exercise!!

flat as a pancake

> Flat as the money you get from Chinese New Year angbao

Good as gold

> Good as my mom

As hard to find as a needle in a haystack

> As hard to find as a coin in my brother’s bedroom (sorry bro!)

Hard as nails

> Hard as the horse’s tooth

The Five-Minute Writer - Day 9 - if only.. things would have been different and better

I came to Singapore for my bachelor’s degree, but I’ve been wanting to come here since I was 14. I really wanted to apply for the school-based scholarship or ASEAN scholarship to the secondary school here, but my dad did not let me go. I was really upset that time because it had been my source of motivation to study hard since I was secondary 1. However, when I got to come here, I think I didn’t regret losing the opportunity when I was 14. Though there were many reasons why things could have been better. I might have lost my Indonesian accent if I came here earlier. I might have got scholarship because my English would have been better. I might have got my PR earlier.

But no, I don’t regret.

Because if I came here earlier, I may have delayed my Sacrament of Confirmation like my other friends who came here since secondary school. I may have missed the important turning point in my life when I was 15. I may not have missed home so much since I was so independent since young.

Things would have been different and better, but I’m grateful with my current path.

The Five-Minute Writer-Day 8- A Turning Point

One of the most eventful turning point in my life was when I attended a youth retreat when I was 15. It was organized by the Carmelite and it had the charismatic spirit too. Since then, I joined a Charismatic cell group and I felt that it led me to have deeper desire to be close to God. I always found that this group was special because it required me to do a daily prayer of offering, it demanded weekly attendance in the cell group, it encouraged frequent confession and Rosary, and it did not only consist of personal sharing, but a structured spiritual formation. It was not just a group that had a monthly meeting. When I finally joined Legion of Mary, I was not surprised by the commitment it required because of this charismatic group and retreat.

The Five-Minute Writer - Day 7 - Describe an object

It’s my black step-tracker. I’m not sure how much I can describe it. It’s simple and the band is almost 2cm wide. I found it quite masculine and it doesn’t match my dress, but I really want to get the voucher from the steps-tracking so I keep wearing it. The screen is also black and it’s a little hard to tighten the band in such that it will detect my heart rate. There’s a circle button at the center of the bottom of the screen and I press it to switch from time mode to steps mode or to heart rate monitoring mode. The strap is often loosened and comes off from the thin band (?) that one of my students tell me many times,”Ms Ferninda, your watch! Your watch!”

The Five-Minute Writer - Day 6 - I’m not writing because ... (And a homework to rephrase it)

I’m not writing because I can’t find the write medium to write. I always see myself as a lover of hard copies, but book is bulky and I can’t always carry an additional notebook on top of my prayer journal and the book that I want to read. My laptop is slow and sometimes I give up just when I’m waiting for it to load. However, throughout this five-minute challenge, I found googledocs useful as I can write my ideas anywhere and my phone is definitely faster than my laptop. Now that I’m comfortable in just writing on googledocs and copy-pasting it on my blog using my phone, I hope my blog won’t be neglected anymore.

The Five-Minute Writer - Day 5 - Things to be happy about

Sight

Looking at the sun rays as I walk through the shortcut to my workplace. It sometimes does not feel like I’m in Singapore when I walk that path every morning

The colours created by the light going through the stain glasses in my parish

When Paul finally reached my place that morning of the wedding day and the first thing he said was,”We are almost late!”

Sound

Spotting the sound of koel

Taste

Eating MacDonalds French fries after a long day at work

Eating tortilla de patatas made by Paul!

(As you can see, I love potatoes)

Munching marshmallows dipped in melted dark chocolate

Touch

Squeezing Paul’s hand in the early morning as I’m half asleep

A hug from some students almost every morning as if I have not met them for ages

Smell

The smell of durian as I walk in unknown places

The Five-Minute Writer - Day 4 - One day with a superpower

Day 4 - How would you like to be invisible for a day?

If I were invisible for a day, I would like to visit my previous workplace. There were some students that I wanted to see, how they have grown and how they have become. I would also take a free airplane ride to my house in Indonesia and take a nap there. Oh well, an extra supernatural ability to teleport will be great and I think I need more than a day.