• 23 Dec '09: Christmas Gathering with Mentees '0809

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091223-gathering.jpg

    The guys came... ate... caught up... first gathering of its kind. More to come in the future? :)

  • 11-15 Dec '09: Trip to Macau & Zhu Hai

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091211-macau.jpg

    Visited Macau with dear and my in-laws... a good respite! (:

  • 06 Dec '09: Singapore Marathon 2009

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091206-scsm.jpg

    Finally a marathon finisher! :)

  • 29 Nov '09: Swee Xiang & Ruth's Wedding

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091129-sweexiangruth.jpg

    Secondary school classmates for four years... now colleagues together and more importantly, brothers in Christ. Glad to see Swee Xiang tie the knot! :)

  • 28 Nov '09: Wei Lin's CO Performance

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091128-nypco.jpg

    Went with some of the guys to catch Wei Lin performing with the NYPCO... good stuff from the orchestra!

  • 26-28 Nov '09: Marraige Breakthrough Weekend

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091126-mbtw.jpg

    3D2N @ Pulai Springs (JB) - Good rest, good fellowship, good learning. :)

  • 25 Nov '09: Dear's Strawberry Cake/Kueh

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091125-strawberrykueh.jpg

    A super duper original delicacy!!! :D

  • 20 Nov '09: Commencement Dinner

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091120-dinner-darren.jpg

    The night came and went by... four years... hai. Haha... With Weilin (terribly wonderful helper) and Darren (terribly wonderful student).

  • 20 Nov '09: 4E1'09 Class Chalet @ Aloha Loyang

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091120-4e1chalet.jpg

    Went and stayed over at their chalet after my evening lesson... the one and only CSE EP class, the first and the last. Also the class that I find myself more attached with... ;)

  • 18 Nov '09: Chocolate Hazelnut Praline Cake

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091118-chochazelnutpralinecake.jpg

    Finally managed to make this... Didn't know that hazelnuts are that expensive here! Haha... but well, this is my best tasting cake yet!

  • 05 Nov '09: HCVB 'B' Div 2009-2010

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091105-hcvb.jpg

    Had the opportunity to catch the team in action against Sembawang Sec... Won in two sets! (:

  • 02 Nov '09: Dinner with HCI 1A'06

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091102-2adinner.jpg

    Blessed to be invited for a 'reunion' dinner of sort - how time flies!!

  • 23 Oct '09: Mentees Phototaking - Sec 4 IBP

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091023-ibp.jpg

    (Top - Clockwise from Left) Jonathan, Gordon, Darren, Jian Yang, Jordan, Hongwei, Wei Lun, Izumi, Zi Song, Shao Jie, Si Heng, Jun Yi, Yang Cheng & Jordy

  • 23 Oct '09: Mentees Phototaking - Ties That Bind

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091023-ttb.jpg

    Really glad to witness the growth of the peeps in this Service Learning group. (:

  • 23 Oct '09: Mentees Phototaking - Sec 3 & 4 CSE

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091023-cses3n4.jpg

    My Sec 3 & 4 mentees from the Centre for Scholastic Excellence

  • 23 Oct '09: Mentees Phototaking - Sec 4 CSE

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091023-cses4.jpg

    (L-R) Bryan, Shannon, Kelvin, Junxiong, Arnold & Yu Song

  • 23 Oct '09: Mentees Phototaking - Sec 3 CSE

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/091023-cses3.jpg

    (Top - Clockwise from Left) Zheng Ting, Zheng Jie, Max, Louis, Zhewei, Zhonghui & Tiet Ho

  • 21 Sep '09: Chocolate Banana Walnut Cake

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090921-chocbananacake.jpg

    My first attempt at baking a cake... tasted rather good! :P

  • 12 Sep '09: Dinner with "Ties That Bind"

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090912-ttbdinner.jpg

    Pleasantly surprised by their treat and gift... gladdens the heart to see how much they've grown through the project!

  • 08 Sep '09: 庆祝老三15岁生日

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090908-laosanbday.jpg

    认三儿已接近两年...看着他们成长,心总含有丝丝欣慰之感。

  • 29 Aug '09: Last Lesson with Dr. Harold Robers

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090829-ectacp.jpg

    The Constructive Psychotherapy framework is one that I'll be mindful of and use in my sessions... :)

  • 28 Aug '09: Cooking for Syahir, Eunice & Joseph

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090828-eunicejoesyahir.jpg

    Haven't met for some time... '5' asked to meet, decided upon a cook-in. Was a good time of chillin' and catching up. (:

  • 16 Aug '09: HCI IBP F1 '09

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090816-f1.jpg

    Taking a floor shot with the guys in F1. It really hasn't been the same as last year's batch, the interaction, make-up and all. They're a good bunch; hope to get to know them better with time.

  • 12 Aug '09: Celebrating Chenrui's 15th Birthday

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090812-chenruibday.jpg

    Our first birthday boy of the floor for this cycle! :)

  • 31 Jul '09: CSE IBP F1 Seniors Cookie Baking

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090731-cookiesf1.jpg

    Jonathan, Gordon, Izumi and Jianyang wanted to bake cookies to welcome the new batch of boarders in F1... gave them the chocolate macadmia cookie recipe - it turned out rather well!

  • 21 Jul '09: Baileys Cookies

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090721-cookiesbaileys.jpg

    Been wanting to try a cookie recipe with Baileys... finally managed to do so. Not bad for a start, managed to have a hint of the taste in each cookie. Hope to bake this again... with more taste!

  • 15 Jul '09: Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090715-cookiesearl.jpg

    First time trying out baking shortbread cookies... method's a little different. Turned out really well... personally liked the earl grey fragrance a lot!!

  • 10 Jul '09: Strawberry Tart

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090710-strawberrytart.jpg

    We got this recipe off Martha Stewart's magazine... accidentally flattened the crust to the first tart (sob) but the second one turned out well... and tasted well too!

  • 10 Jul '09: Cha Soba Dinner

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090710-dinnerdear.jpg

    Treated to cha soba and grilled vegetables for dinner! Thanks dear! :D

  • 05 Jul '09: "Ties That Bind" @ Hair For Hope

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090705-ttbhfh.jpg

  • 04 Jul '09: Celebrating Rebecca's 21st Birthday

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090704-rebeccabday.jpg

  • 04 Jul '09: HCI CSE Class Rep Outing

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090704-kbox.jpg

  • 27 Jun '09: Syahir's Exam Piece

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090627-syahir.jpg

  • 25 Jun '09: 庆祝阳城16岁生日

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090625-yangchengbday.jpg

  • 20 Jun '09: Fathers' Day Cook-In

    http://www.galvs.net/images/slideshow/090620-fathersday.jpg

June 2009 Entries
Thursday, 25 June 2009 · 7:33 PM

I'm currently waiting for lunch to be ready at the ARK Cafe with Dori my sister... thought it'll be a good time to drop an update and let the reader in a lil' on what's been going on. The ARK Cafe is located at Ann Siang Hill by the way... and it's opened by JJ Lin. It's funny sometimes to hear of Dori's stories of her personal encounters with him... haha. And the cafe's currently blasting Chris Tomlin's latest album! :)

Anyways, was at SGH with her earlier in the morning for her quarterly bone marrow test and check up. Dori has been responding well to the trial drug which she has been on for the past nine months... besides the initial reactions and hospitalisation last year, all's been alright thus far, the blood test results, bone marrow test results... thank God. :)

Marriage life has been sweet thus far... evident by my weight gain. Hahaha... nah. I was standing in the bus this morning on the way to the hospital when the thankfulness came once more... I guess there were many things that Char and I worked out during our courtship days that led to this rather good transition... and now that we're staying together, we find ourselves having more opportunities to be together, to do things together, to go out together... amidst all the family and friend gatherings... yay to that! :) There are things to work out still... like our sleeping patterns - Char cannot sleep too late into the night because she has to wake up early for work the next day while I find myself more productive work-wise in the wee hours... well, when two become one, we'll have to work out our schedules to become one bah. Some of my boys came by yesterday... it's heartening to see how they're rather at ease with one another. (:

Dad, mom, Char and I were in the same room last weekend when we returned to visit... I was doing my work on the comp while mom looked on in bed... Char was doing hers when dad started talking about his work... then she started replying to him. As I looked back... I'm really thankful how God so graciously allowed us to be favoured by our respective in-laws and sisters... in that as much as it means much to us, it's also a sign to us that it's a God-blessed union. Hahaha oh... I realised I'm in another season of having a smiley at the end of every paragraph! :P

A few more days and it's officially back to work... with the H1N1 situation, no one really knows if the home learning would occur for the first week... but regardless, Char and I are both making preparations. There are things to do that I've been putting off which I know I can no longer put off... and it's not because of inertia, but rather a little tinge of helplessness within me to know that it really isn't my cup of tea when it comes to event management. Well, shan't say much for now... just hoping that things will turn out okay eventually.

And yeah... I'll be shifting office soon. I've been in this student lounge type place the past year or so playing caretaker to the place for the boys... now management feels that it's not good for me to be isolated from the rest of the staff, and with the under-utilization of the place, they've decided to shut it down and move me to the staff room. I have to admit about the isolation part... think it isn't really healthy for an introvert... Mmm. So on one hand, while I'm looking forward to the prospect of being better integrated with my colleagues, I am aware of the loss of opportunity to interact with the boys who would pay a visit once in a while. Well... somehow I don't find it so hard to let go this time round. Some things... I finally found it easier to leave in God's hands then to constantly seek for the circumstance that I would want. :)

I must admit that there are times now and then when I actually ask myself if it's worth the energies to constantly step out of my comfort zones in my current job. I must confess that the temptation to fall back on the things that I've placed on my backburners are great - firstly would be the time freed up... and of course, the ability to better support the family in terms of finances... It's getting harder to remember the reason why I'm back here in the first place. Was taking the photo messages that my boys did for me for my birthday last month out of their frames yesterday morning... reading some of the messages again made me remember. Sometimes I don't know if they realise how powerful their words of encouragement can be... they are, at least to me. And the amazing thing is that some of the most meaningful ones came from those whom I don't have the privilege of time and situation to interact with them. One of them thanked me for the hard work and encouraged me to be the same for future batches to come... another one reflected on what I wrote to them before on relationships. Yeah, I write to them from time to time (to most, I would probably be just an online persona since I don't meet them in their classrooms) not knowing if any of them would actually remember any teenie bit of the things I write... well, apparently some, if not, one, did. :)

And yeah... haha. More than a teacher... more than I can ever think of...? That message was short... but I looked at it for a long time. :)

Haha yeah... I don't how the next half a year would be like... but if anything, I'll continue to learn to do as God says... and continue to live this life of thanksgiving along the way. I will be involved in a worship concert coming up in July... looking forward to seeing the Oops! Asia family! :)

Monday, 15 June 2009 · 11:14 PM
Filed under Introspection

Hello. (:

I've been away with Char for the past two weeks in Koh Samui for our honeymoon... probably won't get to post photos here due to time constraints, but for those who're linked in Facebook, you can check out the albums over there. I must say it'd been a good break of sort... but yeah, I've put on some weight. Quite terrible actually. Must try to get back in shape again! Haha...

It's been meeting after meeting right after we're back... tonight we caught the movie "Dance, Subaru!" together with our sisters and Char's parents at Orchard Cineleisure.

It's getting harder and harder for me to make new postings... cause time after time I've found nothing post"worthy" to write... or perhaps it's due to the limited time that I have to let my mind wander these days, nothing really hits me hard enough for me to write an entry on. I've got some afterthoughts after watching this manga-turned-movie... so I thought it'll be good to jot them down here.

In short, the movie depicts a girl (Subaru) with a passion for dancing... and how her perseverance paid off in spite of all the hardships and heartaches that she went through from young (loss of mother, brother, and a really good mentor and friend). Just two takeaways...:

Subaru's mentor who coached her from young refused to sign her up for a dance competition under her wing and be her dance coach even though that would mean losing her (shan't disclose too much lest it becomes spoiler)... her words hit home: "there's nothing left that I can teach her".

Letting go is never easy... and I realise that it's a fine line of being selfish or for the other party. Years ago, I didn't understand... but now I do. There are seasons when I'll be called into people's lives... and sometimes it's easy to be tempted to stretch the time beyond my expiry date because of the bonds forged. That's where I've to keep reminding myself that whereas the seasons may be gone, the bonds, Lord willing, would go on.

We had a rather late dinner at the BBQ Chicken outlet there thereafter... and as those afterthoughts twirled round and round my mind in the midst of eating and chatting with deardear, our sisters and my new set of parents, I just felt thankful... that how God has been so good all the while, in that He places wonderful people in my life through and through to encourage me on.

(:

Monday, 01 June 2009 · 9:16 AM
Filed under Introspection

I've just gone through the two biggest days of my life. Don't think I'll write long... but just to jot down the highlights.

29th May was filled with last minute packing and preparations for the wedding. There was so much to do and settle I thought I wouldn't be able to get the ample rest that everyone's asking me to have... but thank God, I managed to get to rest at about 10-ish. It was hard getting to sleep... partly because of the constant flow of smses that just kept coming in... and me having the tendency to read and reply to them... Haha. Managed to get 5 - 6 hours of sleep eventually.

I started 30th May pretty much on a blank state of mind... I guess I was quite overwhelmed by all the things that was to come... so my mind kind of went into autopilot mode? Haha... Deardear looked beautiful. :)

For all the things that happened, I could only thank God for making them happen, blessing Deardear and I with so many wonderful brothers, sisters and friends around us, most who went out of their way to ensure that the day's proceedings went well. The list of people whom we want to thank is very, very long.. and this wouldn't be the best of avenue for me to list them. We would probably spend time over our honeymoon to work them out. :) But seriously... we give thanks for the graciousness and love that our Heavenly Dad has shown us through the sacrificial love many others have showered upon our lives. :)

And yeah... am especially thankful to see so many of our students being a part of this very special occasion, both the helpers and the attendees. :)

We were going through the red packets when I came across one given by my student. The red packet contained a folded up piece of foolscap paper... on which was a note which he'd written for me. I almost teared la. Haha... I guess it wasn't so much of what he'd written for me, but it's a joy to see how they've slowly but surely learnt to express themselves and in doing so, benefitting themselves and others along the way. Yes... I am touched... and your writing didn't sux. ;)

Which brings me to 31st May 2009. The Integrated Boarding Programe held her last programme for the cycle - the IBP Family Day, which marked the end of the batch's stay in the programme. The guys presented some special items... let's just say that I am extremely thankful not to have missed them. It really has been a blessing to be part of this initiative, to have this kind of opportunity and environment to grow along with this bunch of wonderful youths... but more so, it would be a constant joy to see how they grow along in life and fulfill their life's calling in the future... and to have prodded along with them this leg of their journeys. Programmes may end, people may part... but just as how I've been in contact with some of the WEBs people, albeit not as frequent anymore, I hope that out of this batch of people there would be some whom I would be able to keep in long term contact.

And I hope that each day... that He would constantly tutor me to constantly look at life with a cheerful and thankful heart, no matter what the circumstances may be, good or bad, happy or sad.

Deardear and I prayed together this morning before heading down for breakfast... I don't really know how to explain this, but it makes me even more thankful that it happened, because I know that I definitely couldn't have done so by myself. :)

Haha okay the laptop battery's running low... shall return it to the staff and go back to the hotel room already. Till the next entry! ;)

FEATURED SONG
MY COMPOSITIONS (MP3 & CHORDS AVAILABLE)
  1. Come Reign In My Heart
  2. Jesus, Savior, My Redeemer
  3. Never Forget (Hwa Chong)
  4. Thank You My Friend
  5. When Words Are Not Enough
  6. 就算最后没有天堂
  7. 希望有一天
  8. 真心的感谢你,My Friend
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LATEST COMMENTS

Hey Zeppy, thanks! I've got quite a number which I'm finding time (probably in the future) to upload and make available.. thanks for dropping by and hope the songs encourages you on in your walk! (:

Galvin in Come Reign In My Heart

Thanks for sharing all your songs. I'm a newcomer to your site, and a fellow Singaporean believer with web design aspirations. Like this song a lot too! Hope to get to know you :)

zeppytoh in Come Reign In My Heart

hey oh man this song is nice :) praise the lord praise the lord :D

rachel in Come Reign In My Heart

Hi Kannan, so sorry for replying this late. I'm not quite sure about the rest, but St. Lukes generally takes care of patients well. When my mom was there, they rendered their services professionally and even helped her recover from a very bad state of bed sores. There's PT and OT available at the hospital as well. In fact, she'll be heading there for a few weeks this coming December as her caregiver returns home for a while.

Galvin in Day 96: NUH Ward 53 Bed 48

Hi Linda! I actually have some extra copies... you could get one from me if you don't mind a bought copy. If not you can contact Covenant Resource @ covenantresource@cefc.org.sg - I'm not sure if they post overseas. Cheers! :)

Galvin in Superstructure, Structures and Substructure
MESSAGE BOARD
MEMORIES IN MOTION

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Galvin Sng Minghui • 孙明辉 • Born in 1982 • God touched and changed his heart and life in 2001 • Constantly seeks to live the transformed life from the inside out • Married Charmaine Tan Mei En in 2009 • Works as an Education Programme Officer & Boarding Mentor in Hwa Chong Institution (High School) • Attends and serves in Covenant Evangelical Free Church • Aspires to inspire till he expires, though much work needs to be done • Apt in Web Design • Songwriter by Inspiration • Amateur in Writing • Counsellor by Training • INFJ/INFP • Can be rather quiet and withdrawn

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