The Beach

17 months 1 week. TD explored the beach at East Coast. Gong Gong suggested bringing TD to the beach. We were all so excited about it. Por Por went to check out four malls to buy a beach toy the evening before, but no avail - yeah how come Orchard malls no longer carry beach tools? haha. Luckily Daddy went to Ikea in the evening to buy some scoops and cups as a subsititute. Yes thats how much we care haha.

Apparently Gong Gong woke up at 4am and was very excited about how TD would react to the sand and sea too.

Anyhow, TD LOVES the Beach!! He was a bit apprehensive about the sand at first but soon got over it very quickly. He scooped sand into the red bucket and then poured it out and said 'empty' - his favourite word these days (He would intentionally take anything out in order to get it empty and then make his point that it is empty!).

When he first saw the waves, he held on tight to Daddy's hand, but he soon let go, took a step, and then two and then three and was kicking in the water as Daddy held on under TD's arms. He had a good half an hour in the sea, despite sea water going into his mouth and eyes, he kept wanting to go back into the sea water. That was a really fun first beach adventure for the whole family!

Many things happened in the month of August, but I don't think I want to write about it, as I want to let it go and move on with my life. I learnt a lot from the incident, about myself, and about her. Last night, as TD went to bed at 7:30pm, that gave me some nice time to read How to Practise by Dalai Lama... "being constantly aware of what you are doing with your body and your speech" is important. In summary,

self-awareness to refrain from physical and verbal actions that cause harm to others- this prepares a person to move beyond the repeated round of birth, aging, sickness and death (samsara)

restrain the mind from falling into selfishness

focus on wisdom and compassion

abandon the ten nonvirtues:

- Physical: killing, stealing, sexual misconduct

- Verbal: lying, divisive talk, harsh speech, senseless chatter

- Mental: coventousness, harmful intent, wrong views

small acts of compassion grant meaning and purpose to our lives

In difficult personal circumstances, the best recourse is to be as honest and sincere as possible. By responding harshly or selfishly, you simply make things worse. This is especially apparent in painful family situations. When you experience a difficult period, do your best to avoid behaviour that will add burden later on.

Under no circumstances should you lose hope. Hopelessness is a real cause of failure.