The Japanese are not only showing their hardiness and resilience in good times, they are also showing these exceptional characteristics in the worst of times in one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded which also spawned a deadly tsunami that slammed into the small island nation, leaving a huge swath of devastation in its wake. They have also shown their abilities to bloom beautifully and gracefully just like the Vanda Miss Joaquim. The recent calamity did not put the affected areas into a state of chaos and in fact the Japanese has remained calm in handling and facing the situation; they have given all of us a very valuable lesson.

It can be challenging enough for some to maintain their composures during good times, not to mention during times like what the Japanese are going through now. They have not only continue to display an air of gracefully in their daily lives but have also extended their hands to others who are affected.

Many have truly risen to the occasion as a report by Associated Press. I am truly touched to read all the stories of people going beyond their own sufferings to make life better for others.

A lesson on “initiative” from Students in Karakuwa, who are bringing buckets of water from the school swimming pool to give survivors the dignity of a proper flush. Another lesson on unconditional sharing: “For a long time, in the countryside, even if you didn’t have enough for yourself, you shared with others,” said Noriko Sasaki, 63.

In another article by Hiroko Yoda in cnngo.com, she wrote:

Everywhere I go, I see people helping and encouraging each other, even total strangers. The outpouring of support and sympathy, especially in a metropolis filled with people who normally keep to themselves, has been astounding.

At my local supermarkets, prices have been lowered to help customers, who politely line up and pay without panic or complaint.

Hiroko also reported that in a broadcast interview with students by NHK, one of the students said, “We want to tell everyone living in shelters like us to stay strong,” and another said, “We’ll rebuild Japan together.” These are words from junior high schoolers, many of whom have yet to make contact with their families.

Lastly in the report by Associated Press, the Japanese has taught me the most valuable lesson on Gratitude:

At the school in Karakuwa, 43-year-old Emi Yoshida reads a book, still wearing the same clothes she had on the day the tsunami roared into town. She has not showered in a week and longs for a bed. Still, she is grateful for the comfort the community has provided her and her two sons.

As I reflected in the quietness of my room, many images flashed through my minds; images of babies, smiling children, elderlies and faces … faces whom I do not know and yet they seem to be just like the faces of my friends.

It dawned upon me that these images of babies, they could have been the images of our babies. These images of smiling children could have been my smiling niece and nephews, giggling as they tried to climb up to the lap of their uncle. These images of elderlies could have been our grandparents and parents. Last but not least, these images of familiar faces could have been our best friends, friends and working associates. It could simply be the images of people whom we hold dearly and closely in our heart … it could be images of you and I.

In that moment of quiet reflection, I realised there is no Singaporean, American, British, Indian, Chinese or Japanese etc; there is only human being of one united race on Planet Earth.

Symphony of Love is making a special request from you to continue to send prayer and positive wishes of Loving Kindness and compassionate to our friends in Japan and for those of you who are able to help out financially, below are some ways:

1. Singaporeans may make a cash, cheque or SMS donation to the Singapore Red Cross for victims of this disaster.

For walk-in donations, the Singapore Red Cross is open from 9.30am to 9pm from Mondays to Fridays, and from 9.30am to 6pm on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.

For cheque donations, cheques should be made payable to the “Singapore Red Cross Society”.

Donors may also donate via their mobile phones to 75772. For every SMS, S$50 will be donated to the “Japan Disaster” fund.

2. For American, you can make direct donation to American Red Cross.

Resources related to the crisis in Japan and ways to help, from Google.

From Yahoo

The girl was crying and asking the man, “Why am I different from others?” And the man replied, “Why…do you have to be like others.” The video is about a deaf girl learning to play the violin; impossible it may seem. However, as the man said in the video, music is a visible things, close your eyes. You will see.”

And yet, it is exciting to get out of bed. I would love a cup of hot chocolate to start the rainy day, watching the raindrops falling from the sky, the ripples they create when they fall into a pool of water, the sound of the raindrops beating against the window and last but not least, the freshness and sweetness in the air.

For me, it has been the most exciting 4 months and with a lot of changes. What I observed or experienced was a challenge would follow every change. At first the challenge would appear insurmountable and that is because we do not have the capability yet to overcome it. Or rather, what I will say is, “We thought we do not have the capability to overcome it.” However, the truth of the matter is, “We will not be given a challenge too big for us!” This is what I believe and this is what I use to remind myself constantly.

Just as we might continue to focus on the challenge and some will view it as problem; we must remind ourselves to focus on finding the solution. We may not have direct control to the challenge, but we always have the Power to choose what we want to focus on. Use that Power which is given to you and which cost you nothing. Because frankly speaking, if we do not use that Power given to us, someone else would be using the Power given to him/her to choose for us. Just as the quotation from the movie The Astronaut Farmer, “You better know what you want to do before somebody know it for you.” So we better start using that Power given to us before somebody use his/hers on us.

And finally after we overcome the challenge, we grow. With every challenge, there is a great potential for us to grow and to become a better person. Not only that, we are automatically ready for bigger changes and challenges in life. This simple reason of growth makes change ever exciting for me!

What we really must do is Embracing Changes and Challenges and this journey call life will surely be an exciting and memorable one!