Simply Beautiful!

"To see a world in a grain of sand
And heaven in a wild flower
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour."

-William Blake-

God's ways are mysterious , never meaningless. Simply beautiful.

Raindrops splattering and seeing a child skipping over a puddle, then returning and repeating that process. Simplicity and delight. Cambridge was like that for me - being able to sit by the river banks and feeding the ducks. At times even talking to those white, flat footed cuties. I remember taking joy in collecting breadcrumbs daily from Dave's kitchen when I put it my meal order for the day, and rushing to the river banks at Trinity Hall after classes..Oh, and the little dinky art studio just in the alleyway of Grafton Centre where I'd go just to look at ONE specific painting every week. Simplicity and delight.

What about London? There are plenty of safe havens, seriously. I have several spots. Spots I have not visited for a long time yet spots that bring back defining memories. Walking down the River Thames from London Bridge to Tower Hill or Limehouse, find this nice fruit organic shop next to this Michelin Star French Restaurant. Nooks and corners of brilliant architectural buildings both old and modern. The ambience's of folk guitars in Covent Garden and Waterloo. The Serpentine in South Kensington, Rose Garden at Regents Park and the plain serenity of Hampstead Heath. They all tell a story...a story of life, a story of culture, a story of politics.

But the best story telling place is in the Museums. Not bookstores. But Museums. Generations. History.People. Places. Dressing. Tools. Religion. Animals.

Museums have been a love of mine since a child. My sis especially would READ every single inscription on every display! So be warned if you guys ever come on family holidays with us. We'll spend a bulk of time at Museums. In Germany last March, my parents and I visited museums and churches in different townships because we saw the vast diversity in the way people lived. Pots and pans and costumes for battle though on its own seemed pretty ordinary and plain but studying it deeper it all tells a story - of the days of old. How then and now intercollide. The historical museums of course gives us the specific brief overview of the evolvement of the human race to today's post-modernity in the technological and intellect. But the impact of understanding is so much a lost art if we fail to see the artifacts all tell us a piece of the puzzle of life. Literature and Politics is also very much founded on things we see in the museums, how people fought for freedom and rights of many kinds. We see the intensity of wars. We see the discovery of modern technology. We see how people lived through their times and seasons, of peace and war, of poverty and abundance, of natural disasters and perfect skies, of dreams and ambitions, of decisions and mistakes made...

Ah...how I sometimes I wish I lived in those times...yet I dun really know how I'd survive without air-condition, a pillow and proper shoes! Talk about simplicity eh?

God's ways are mysterious, never meaningless.

With that, I made an active decision to spend my day in simplicity after my morning devotions. Off I went to grab myself an ice cream, walked down towards UCL and Russell Square, when I saw an advert....and decided to check it out..

That was half my Friday gone as I made my first trip to any museum since Germany - there was a anatomy medical exhibition for one day. The human body has always intrigued me. It was magical the first time I observed a brain surgery being done (my secret, thanks to someone who gave me the privilege!) This exhibition was one of the most informative I've been too. Better than the world renowned "Bodyworks" which I went to a few years back. Good way to spend my morning, stipulating my intellect and curiosity! I discovered that God is super in the little details, the joining of blood vessels, the nerves, the shape of organs and how to determine blood clots - and overall just the way He created every single part of our body. This visit to the museum showed me how precious each life is to God, crafted by Him. And, it has inspired me into using what I saw and learnt as one of the theme talks for a youth camp!! Yay..

I made Hainanese Chicken Rice that afternoon too before JL came, and such a delight grinding ginger. I miss cooking so much, especially experimenting new things. Boiled my own healthy veg soup too. Ahh..my first proper cooking meal since the rump steak in February!! Ok, so I should cook more..and not just cook for special occasions :)

Friday morning marked the start of a Simply Beautiful weekend, with kindred spirits and with friends (old and new). Haven't had so much refreshing fun in ages! It'll explain why I slept at 8ish and got up at 3ish (in case you're wondering why I'm blogging at this weird hour!)

Now, its time for me to go meet some people at the airport!

Simplicity and Delight.