Beautiful tomato nestling on quail's eggs

Such a beautiful tomato grown in a small take away tupperware at my kitchen window for the last five months. Eaten with my mother's quail's eggs.

Homegrown food.

But not everything we eat can be grown at home.

Playing Safe

Is there such a thing as 'playing safe'?
Living your life not taking risks?
If you don't really try, you will never know.
In your 20s, just studying at university, you lay the foundations, build your basic skills and competencies for your intended vocation.
Do you think when you applied for architecture course, and you were accepted to study it, that you will become an architect?
And even if you did pass your course and started working, is it set for life that this will make you happy.
There is no prescription set for everyone.
No perfect formula set for a life of happiness.
You have to try new things to find out what you are about.

At my age, I know one thing that I am good at.
My character and self, I find is a very detailed person.
I am not very good at taking orders or following other people's route and ways.
I find my own way.
I am a late bloomer in things, in life.
But I have to do it first, whatever it is then I know for certain, for sure.
Even then it may take sometime before I finally understood fully.

Yes, I am not good at certain things.
I cannot be good at everything.

Raising your level

People going about their business, motion through life.

Why?
Why exist?

Comfortable with how they. Are they?

The reason for living.

To make yourself a better person, to serve God, to serve humanity. Raising your level, challenging yourself.

Tell it like it is

I loathe "lazy thinking". I mean, I could do that, be lazy to think and con people if I want to. But I was not raised that way and my religion did not teach me to sit on my laurels and let the world pass me by. Mind you, lazy thinkers could still be making lots of money and be way ahead of me in terms of earning and influence. But lazy thinkers would destroy the world if you let them run it. They are in for the short term gain, for quick glory and they would encourage mediocrity to reign supreme and allow for rehashing of old ideas and do not encourage new ideas to flourish.

 I have to say that I really admire Rafael Benitez. See link. Every journalist would either be emotional and self-serving when they recounted England's fate at losing in the quarter-finals of Euro 2012 yet again. See Lawton's piece and Wallace's piece for evidence of emotional writing. Then compare all three. I really like Joe Pepper's piece on Roy Hodgson posted by Chris Rowland in The Tomkin's Times. I don't know if you can open it here without subscription. Sorry about that.

All in all, it says it! The FA of England do not know what to do, fired Capello and appointed Hodgson and let him run the show. Well, that's enough for me to illustrate about what I think about "lazy-thinking" by comparing journalistic writings.

I know people are critical of me and I know the criticism. Be it from a well known practising architect to my office colleagues. I know what is important and I must dig in and focus hard and keep the vision on at all times. Rafa Benitez quoted a lot about "coaching" and "teaching them right so that they know and can apply for the rest of their lives".

I am in a position to teach them right and provide the learning that they could use for life. It says so in the Malaysian Qualification Framework (MQF) and Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MCA) - see link; Quote : The MQF has eight levels of qualifications in three national higher education sectors and is supported by lifelong education pathways. The sectors are (a) Skills; (b) Vocational and Technical; and (c) Academic. (link)

Quote: The European Commission defines lifelong learning as ‘all learning activities throughout life, with the aims of improving knowledge, skills and competence, within a personal, civic, social and or employment-related perspectives’. Lifelong learning is about providing a second chance to update basics skills and offering learning opportunities at more advanced levels. All this means that formal systems of provision need to be more open and flexible, so that such opportunities can be truly tailored to the needs of potential learners (ESAE, 2007).

How do you implement it in the studios?

I had a discussion with Kevin Mark Low the other day. His ideas were similar to what I had been thinking. About the importance of being original at everything we do.

ORIGINALITY IS WHAT WE SEEK

I will write more of these in my other blogs. Life is a Design Thesis and Contextural Design.

The Work

When I was 29 years old I read this book by Reshad Feild. He was narrating about a Sufi's journey and there was one idea that struck me and stayed with me until now.

A Sufi ( I never professed that I am one, though I am attracted to the notion) must do the Work, given to him or her by God. The talents and nature of a Sufi must be discovered and put to good use for the Work to be done. He could be a great facilitator, strategist, value-adder or composer. She could be a great manager, teacher or technician.

Whatever it is, once discovered it should be put to good use for humanity, mankind, community or at least family.

It should not be self-serving and short-termed. It should be life-long, visionary and sustainable.

I discovered my nature and talent even more so in the last year when I took a nine months break from the norm. I was discovering and implementing it earlier, even since 1997 when I started teaching at UM but I did not recognized it.

In life and doing the Work, it is important that you recognized your nature and talent. Often you need someone to identify it for you but if you don't realize it even if it's pointed out to you, then you will not be able to do the Work, and becomes to self-absorbed. That would be no good because what is your goal in that?

Without minding the impact of what you do to your community and humanity, you might be a destroyer rather than a builder.

Play safe

Playing safe is easy to do. Not much thinking needed, don't have to crack your brains. No need to face challenges.

No need to fight for what you believe in. No need to be misunderstood. Cozy life.

Play safe all your life, and you will realize you missed out on the best things in life.

Kindred Spirit

I was thinking about the phrase and idiom 'kindred spirit' which means: A kindred spirit is someone who feels and thinks the way you do.

I was thinking about it while looking at the small bonfire that was lit at my house compound. I think the word to define a small bunch of twigs and wood to make a little bonfire is kindling.

Somehow those two words/phrases got together and made me think about life, fire, passion and the belief to go and fulfill your heart's desire.

Add some more twigs and dry wood and you get a bigger fire.

To me those 'twigs and dry wood' are like friends who come into your life and with their desire and passion add to yours. That's why I feel life must be filled with beauty and the zest for it. I found friends that believe in the same things that I do, no matter their religious beliefs, cultural background and age.

Kindred spirits are around me, cloaking me in their warmth, making beautiful companionships possible.

Shapeless but bound

There are huge voids between the form, that got shapeless because maybe, the weather is too hot, or insects bored into and under the skin and laid eggs that makes you itch and burn.

Why did you let it? Let the form be sabotaged. In your haste and neglect to discover something profound you let go of your vigilance that served you well before.

This time you can never get it right and you can never get what you want even though you were really good at going for one thing but you knew, you will lose in the end.

Grasping void
Shapeless and only bound by your mind

Nothingness

Void
Empty
No more reason
To stay
Once love leaves
It becomes
Meaningless
Useless
Unfulfilled
Burdened
When love dies
Friendship is tasteless
Mere form
No life
Nothingness pervades

In the cold light of the day

Shivering alone
You wake up
To the cold morning light
The day gave form
To what was shapeless before
The lines and edges are now
Clearly seen
In the cold light of the day
The pain shapes and sharpen
What was blurred out before
Senses returned
Awakened in the new light