It is what it is.

07/10/2020 10:25 a.m.

I think at this time and age, people are slowly becoming increasingly disenchanted by humanity. At the end of the day, we can all be sharing and talking about the worldly issues that are happening all around the globe but you question the act of slacktivism. It is, in fact, a new word to me as I am typing this down. I was trying to find a word for it and I chanced upon this term. 

"The United Nations defines slacktivism as when people 'support a cause by performing simple measures' but are not necessarily 'engaged or devoted to making a change.' Other frequently used terms are ‘clicktivism’ or ‘arm-chair activism’. 

Basically, slacktivism is a way to voice your opinion about a certain cause without taking to the streets or risking your neck. It’s the viral hashtag you’re retweeting. The pink ribbon on your shirt. The rainbow-coloured frame on your Facebook picture. The ‘Save The Turtles’-petition you signed last week." (Citizen Lab, 2020)

Activism should take time and effort. 

When the Black Lives Matter movement started, it struck a chord in my heart. I knew and I was aware of the prejudice and discrimination the Black people in America endured throughout the years and I educated myself even more after the movement took off. I learned more about slave traders and systemic racism, which were topics that I was unfamiliar with. I played my part, I shared, I liked and I strike conversations up with the people around me to raise awareness and to really at the end of the day, motivating others to educate and learn more about the entire issue. But I question myself deeply am I doing enough?

Am I doing enough? The next question is what more can I do. It gets a bit brain-wrecking because there is just so much I can do, being in a position like that. A small-town girl in Singapore. Slacktivism. 

"We know that our Facebook like won’t actually feed a hungry child. And that chronic diseases don’t take into account how many viral hashtags condemn their existence. In the end, we still have to put our money where our mouth is." (Citizen Lab, 2020)

I think at the end of the day, on a more personal level, one needs to be actively educating oneself of all the issues and learn to empathize. Taking the initiative to do so is a win for humanity and for all of us in the long run. Learn how to empathize, practise being empathetic and make the effort to be empathetic. Empathy can be inculcated and it can be learned. It will be good and beneficial for all of us earthlings at the end of the world.  

In my entire lifetime, I was and I still am deeply concerned about some major issues that I find myself always gravitating back towards at random points in my life. As I grow older, I have more autonomy and freedom to really fight for what I think is right and fight by taking action. Taking action is really partaking and contributing to the systems which are driving certain changes in the right direction in these realms. Hence, straightforwardly, the next question I should be asking myself is how to take action? Because clearly, actions speak so much louder than words. 

There is so much in the world to fight for and words are so damn easy to say. I just turned 19, and my average life expectancy is 83.99 years (2020). I have 64.99 years to bring about changes that matter to me and to the world. If I were to put things into perspective, changes take a lot of time and effort, especially when mindsets and attitudes are involved. When I die, I want to see change, I want to be pioneering these changes and take things into my own hand. If not now, then when. I am scared of doing certain things and joining certain movements abroad, but I think what I really need to straighten out within me, to what extent am I able to push myself to, to bring about the changes that matter to me. 

L’Oréal Brandstorm 2020

06/25/2020 02:47 p.m.

This year's theme for L’Oréal Brandstorm 2020 is to build a plastic-less future in the beauty industry. I tuned into the L’Oréal Brandstorm 2020 finals live stream. I was so happy when I heard Nicolas Hieronimus, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer, in charge of Divisions say that leaders like L’Oréal have a part to play to transform the world. Beauty is able to transform the world and it has to start somewhere. 

It was extremely exciting to hear from all the finalists share their ideas and their visions of a plastic-less future for L’Oréal. Using new and advanced technology to reduce L’Oréal usage of plastic and to effectively tackle other issues such as the massive waste production of orange peels from orange juice companies. Alternative resources are used and sourced to replace the use of plastic such as biodegradable carbon boxes, rice paper sachets, brown algae and seaweed.

Listening to them really got me thinking about all the unchartered waters and unexplored territories that are out there. Suddenly, being crazy doesn't seem that crazy anymore. In fact, being crazy is the new norm. Sustainability is receiving a lot of attention and I love how times are changing. If I were to imagine more and more leaders choosing to prioritise sustainability, diversity and ethics, the world will be really changing things up for good. 

I am hopeful for the future. And I am glad that I am hopeful. 

Cheers to hope, peace and love. 

Settle down

05/23/2020 09:23 p.m.

I finally settled my heart down. And by that, what I mean is that I stopped thinking about all the unforeseeable things that might happen to me in the future. Ironic because you technically cannot predict what you cannot predict. But that is exactly what we are capable of, isn't it? A brilliant mind to think about all sorts of "pathways" that we could choose to take in our entire lifetime.

Thinking is good. Not overthinking though. 

This brings me back to settling down. Fortunately, I am no longer overthinking these few weeks. I am pretty sure that it will come back and haunt me. But, I have learnt to commend myself for even the smallest achievements. I am proud of myself for always trying to re-charge my own emotional battery when it is less than 10%, no matter how hard it seems. I decided to trust myself, trust my plans and trust my own instincts. I decided to take heart and have faith in myself. I decided to invest in and bet on myself. 

I gave myself time to work on myself because I am definitely not someone who can work without a plan in general. But I don't think that means coming up with an insane number of plans from A to Z. But I believe it is more of coming up with a realistic number of plans that I will definitely stick with in the long run. Not plans that are flimsy or are ever-changing based on my mood because that will just worsen my anxiety. However, this does not mean that the plans are rigid, there must definitely be a certain degree of flexibility. 

After that was done, fixing my mentality was next. I told myself and I am still telling myself that that was it. I just need to trust what I came up with because I know exactly what is best for myself and what I am capable of. This self-confidence might crumble on bad days, which is why on good days, it is important to strengthen the foundation, fix it and brace it. 

I need to focus on getting better than the previous versions of myself before I can do anything else. (Note: not about comparing yourself with other people, but with yourself)

The question for all of us currently is  "do we have what it takes?", but the question for the future us will definitely be "is the world ready for us?". And that is on positivity and confidence. 

Hope you find some comfort (motivation?) reading this and for sure, you ain't alone in the journey you are in. While you are all sad, moody and emotional, remember to look up and around. There are people looking out for you and there are people there for you. Don't be too blindsided by what you are experiencing to forget all the blessings and all the good things you have. 

Forever a work in progress,

Work hard, Stay Humble.

xoxo, Hui

When the world Sleeps

05/14/2020 06:13 p.m.

You see, the thing is the world never sleeps. When the night falls, I like to peer out of my window to look at the quiet night sky, imagining what someone else would be doing at the other side of the earth at the exact same moment. I imagine that someone to be a he or a she, an artist, an actor, a singer, a counsellor,  a lady boss, a soldier, a diver or an athlete... I imagine what would happen to me 5 years from now, a fresh graduate, just out of university. Where will I be? The exact, same place where I spent more than half of my life or somewhere out there? Will I be able to be the change I hope to see the world? Will I be able to take on the world, the way I want exactly? Will I be able to leave my mark? Will people be able to remember my name for the right reasons when I pass on?

Everyone has 86400 seconds every single day and when the time runs out, we cannot get it back anymore. We cannot buy it back, we cannot do anything to get it back. There is this movie I watched a long time ago, it is called About Time (2013), written and directed by Richard Curtis. What the main character, Tim Lake said near the end of the movie is this and I quote: "The truth is, I now don't travel back at all. Not even for the day. I just try to live every day as if I've deliberately come back to this one day to enjoy it as if it was the full final day of my extraordinary, ordinary life." He lived every day like it is his last.

Meanwhile, there is me. Stressing about all the things you can possibly stress in the world when I know for sure, that nothing, nothing will change even if I stress about it. Learning how not to stress about the things I cannot control is an art. There are 7.8 billion people in the world as of May 2020 and there are bound to be people who are better than you but the main point is to not compare. This quote rounds it up perfectly: "Don't compare your life to others. There's no comparison between the sun and the moon because they shine when it's their time." It is just not the time yet, what I can do is to work hard, stay humble and have an overwhelming amount of faith and belief in this process, in my process. When that happens, you are investing in yourself and in your future.

Every minute you spend wishing you had someone else's life is a minute spent wasting yours. ~ Aditya Bhavsar 

Be Confident. Too many days are wasted comparing ourselves to others and wishing to be something we aren't. Everybody has their own strengths and weaknesses, and it is only when you accept everything you are and everything you aren't that you will truly succeed in life. ~ Ritu Ghatourey

Do not compare yourself to others. You have a unique destiny and mission that only you can accomplish. ~ Mariane Pearl

As embarrassed as I am, I am guilty of spending an unhealthy amount of time, every once and then, comparing myself with the people around me. Circuit breaker makes everything worse because I am left with so much time to think negatively and so much time to insult the medals around my neck and the effort I put in everything because I am using others as my benchmark. But, that is not good. I know that deep down within me and that I know for sure. Fixing my mindset is important because I will end up impeding myself, and that is just pathetic. I am not going to put myself under duress to change, instead, I am going to take it easy. I will remind myself consistently until it is ingrained in me. It is a process and it is worth it because what comes out of all of this is my mental health.


Focus on yourself and nothing else because your mindset is precious and matters.

Always a work in progress,
xoxo, Hui

Truth

05/04/2020 02:11 p.m.

This circuit breaker has been testing my limits to a whole new level. It opened up raw and real emotions, which are things I really do not want to deal with currently. My emotions overwhelm me on new levels and sometimes, they are just too much for me to handle. Circuit breaker took away something so precious to me and probably to everyone out there in the world. The right to be free. The right to do whatever hell you want to do. And to a certain extent, the right to define your own truth.

For someone whose life is so intertwined with sports, this circuit breaker is really taking a toll on my physical and mental health. I miss the feeling of running around my neighborhood. Working from home can be a dream come true for many and for me, definitely to a certain extent. But the stress that comes from not only work but life, in general, is taking over me and thoughts are flooding into my mind like a broken dam. For me, running tucks all of that away. When you run or do sports in general, there is only one thing and only one thing in your head: to push on to run or to score. Your mind takes a break from everything you are dealing with at the moment. While I am exploring other ways for me to deal with stress, I will continue to try to stay afloat in this quicksand for now.

Undoubtedly, this is an issue only the privileged would have. Everyone is privileged to a certain extent but whether we recognize it is another story by itself. But, that should not mean that the issues we are facing are not validated. Everyone is dealing with their own problems and issues which I feel that it would be unfair to compare. The problems that you might be facing may seem trivial to some, but they are important to you and so be it. The obstacles that you face in life cannot and should not be judged by others because it is your own inner battle with your own inner demons. This, by itself, is extremely personal and close to your heart. By trivializing someone else's issues destroys the person more than you might think. If you think that by telling someone that there are people out there in the world who are having it worse than you is going to help, think again.

I am guilty of saying things like "what is so hard?" and or "I don't get why is he/she so affected by it". What I am really doing is defining the truth for them. The truth to me is that it is not that hard and he/she should definitely not be affected by it but that is my truth. Not theirs. I fail to remember that they are dealing with their own inner battles with their own inner demons.

So, I don't think I should have judged all the people who were affected by the bubble tea shops closing because to them, their love for bubble tea is probably equivalent to my love for sports. For all we know, there are those who seek comfort and solace from drinking bubble tea. There are those who use bubble tea to cope with their stress.

Always a work in progress.
xoxo, Hui

A book for myself

04/12/2020 09:45 p.m.

We gave I-can't-remember-how-much to the school to hold a prom for our batch. Before the prom commenced, all of us were given a solid, eco-friendly notebook and a pen that were bought using the leftover amount of money each of us paid because the cost of prom went below the initial budget provided. That was back in 2017. And that notebook? I decided to compile lessons, quotes, poems, favourite paragraphs and/or sentences, parts of speeches said by people who inspire me. Oprah Winfrey, Taylor Swift, Rupi Kaur, Don Miguel Ruiz, just to name a few.

This book became my go-to-helpline whenever I faced obstacles, whenever I needed reminders, whenever I needed a change in perspective. Reading through it and at the same time, adding more into the collection get rids of all irrational and errant thoughts, gives me a peace of mind and most importantly, refuels me to allow me to continue to grind forward.

There were countless times I turned to this book. This book of wisdom. This book of lessons. This book of advice. I thank those people who shared their stories for the whole world to see, to hear, to learn. Without experiencing what they had experienced, I am able to learn through the accounts of what happened to them. Without experiencing the hell they went through, without experiencing the rollercoaster ride they sat through, without experiencing the darkest and seemingly endless abyss that fell into.

This is the power of communication and story-telling in this day and age. 

Vulnerabilities they bared, in hopes of saving the grace of the next generation.

I thank the-2017-me for setting my mind on compiling all of these nuggets of wisdom I came across. This book is one of my most treasured possessions. I cannot imagine living without it. It saw me through my highest and lowest. This book guided my thought processes and shaped the person I am today. I am someone who cannot settle less for myself. I am someone who would do my best in whatever I believe and support in. I am someone who is still and always will be a work in progress. 

To you, who is currently reading this right now, if you want to start becoming more independent mentally, having a book of wisdom will help. It helped me. Back then, whenever I am in the darkest place ever, it takes a lot of effort from those around me to try to pull me out. At the end of the day, it was time and myself who successfully dragged me out of my own head. It drains people around you and it drains yourself. To have a book to turn to whenever you hit a rock or a wall, it lifts you up and it serves as a constant reminder for yourself that there is hope and you can get through this. All of this.

Work hard, Stay humble.
xoxo, Hui 

Travelling around the World

04/11/2020 01:47 p.m.

I grew up watching the classic movie: Around the world in 80 days, which was what seems like an elusive dream. Travelling, by itself, was something unattainable back when I was young. Not because we could not afford it, but it was not a priority, neither was it a necessity. As I grew older, I had more and more opportunities to travel out of my abode. There was that packing my own luggage for the first time, there was that flying across the horizons for the first time, there was that being welcomed into new territory in a completely different language. But there was also that feeling as though whatever I am seeing was not real for the first time, there was that wanting to stay here forever for the first time, there was that dream to travel around the world in 80 days for the first time.

Travelling to me, became a dream, became something I want to do in the future. Amidst all the uncertainties in life, this became clearer and clearer to me that this was something I want to do certainly, for sure. 

I went to Phuket, Thailand once with my family in 2017 and again with my class in 2019. Let me just say that despite going to the same country, to the same province, but I had two completely different experiences. The trip in 2017 bonded my family, and we became closer together as we forged memories in a different land. The trip in 2019 completely blew my mind. That 5 days I had with my friends could safely be assumed to be the best 5 days I ever had in 2019. The sky, the ocean, the sand, the sun, the moon, the stars, the people, the life. IF I could hold it all in the palm of my hands all over again, I would take it all in, without a doubt. I enjoyed the unexpected peace among the passionate shoutings of hawkers in the night market. I enjoyed the serenity of the sound of waves crashing onto the white sandy beach. The rhythmic percussion of the waves hitting all so gently onto the barnacle-encrusted dead, bleached coral reefs. I enjoyed the salty kisses of the ocean as I sat near the edge of the boat while allowing the cool draught of air to comb my errant strands of hair behind, giving me an undisturbed full and wholesome view of the faraway, never-ending seamounts. Beyond all of that, I enjoyed swimming/scuba diving in the endless, watching the underwater parade and that was as far as Finding Nemo can be a reality to me. I had a whale of my time, or should I say a dolphin of my time, when the entire boat of us was blessed by the sightings of dolphins, not one, but four of them. 

These will be memories that I will hold on for a lifetime. 

Undoubtedly, this was that trip that really changed the way I think. To be able to travel is a blessing and I would deem it as a necessity because you can truly learn so much more by travelling, or if not staying for a period of time at a different country. Not everyone is able to do that, but if I can and have the opportunity to work outside my home ground, I would, a hundred per cent, take it on. 

I am not scared and I do not need to be. 

Be fearless, be bold.

Work hard, stay humble. 

Rookie for life, 

xoxo, Hui