PHENOMENAL WOMAN

PHENOMENAL WOMAN
by Maya Angelou

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies
I'm not cute or built to suit a model's fashion size
But when I start to tell them
They think I'm telling lies.
I sayIt's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips
The stride of my steps
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
PhenomenallyPhenomenal woman
That's me.I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please
And to a man
The fellows stand orFall down on their knees
Then they swarm around me
A hive of honey bees.
I sayIt's the fire in my eyes
And the flash of my teeth
The swing of my waist
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
PhenomenallyPhenomenal woman
That's me.
Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I sayIt's in the arch of my back
The sun of my smile
The ride of my breasts
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman
PhenomenallyPhenomenal woman
That's me.Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I sayIt's in the click of my heels
The bend of my hair
The palm of my hand
The need for my care.
'Cause I'm a woman
PhenomenallyPhenomenal woman
That's me.

Words to Live By

As we grow up, we learn that even the one person
that wasn't supposed to ever let you down probably will.
You will have your heart broken probably more than once
and it's harder every time.
You'll break hearts too, so remember how it felt when yours was broken.
You'll fight with your best friend.
You'll blame a new love for things an old one did.
You'll cry because time is passing too fast,
and you'll eventually lose someone you love.
So take too many pictures, laugh too much,
and love like you've never been hurt because
every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back.

FRIENDSHIP

And a youth said, "Speak to us of Friendship."
Your friend is your needs answered.
He is your field which you sow with love and reap with thanksgiving.
And he is your board and your fireside.
For you come to him with your hunger, and you seek him for peace.
When your friend speaks his mind
you fear not the "nay" in your own mind, nor do you withhold the "ay."
And when he is silent your heart ceases not to listen to his heart;
For without words, in friendship, all thoughts, all desires,
all expectations are born and shared, with joy that is unacclaimed.
When you part from your friend, you grieve not;
For that which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence,
as the mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain.
And let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit.
For love that seeks aught but the disclosure of its own mystery
is not love but a net cast forth: and only the unprofitable is caught.
And let your best be for your friend.

-Khalil Gibran-

Suffering and Compassion

This is just my own thought.

Lately, there are a lot of events around me kept me thinking about the word suffering and the word compassion.
I was introduced with an area in west of Nairobi, Kenya called Kibera. Kibera is the largest urban slum in East Africa with more than 700,000 people. Most of its inhabitants live below the poverty line and the prevalence of adult HIV/AIDS infection is estimated at 25%.
Before that, I was introduced to the Redlight District of Sonagchi in Calcutta, India. There are more than 7,000 prostitues 'operate' in this area alone. Children who were borned in this area are the lowest of the pecking order and often ill-treated.

Many more places around the world bare the same sad stories.
Lately, hurricane Katrina wiped out basically the whole city of New Orleans, Louisiana. Thousands of people lost their home, their belonging and their family members.

Why there are so much suffering in this world? (to be continue.....)

Hidden Treasure just outside Madison

I've been living in Madison for the past 5- 6 years. But I always go to further places to find something 'cooler' because I thought there's nothing to see in Madison. Then my parents came to visit. I tried to find something that both my mom and dad will like. And close! They hate stucked in the car for more than 3 hours. They already having trouble stay in the car on the the way to Chicago.
Anyway, my roomate suggested Cave of the Mound. I thought... it will be such a tiny little cave that not even worth my money. So, since it's closer and cheaper than House on the Rock, we decided to check that place out.
To my surprise, the Cave of the Mound was impressive. I couldn't believe such beautiful cave even exist only half hour from Madison. My dad was impressed. My mom love the beautiful rocks and minerals. In short everybody, even my two roomates and myself enjoyed the trip.
So, like the old indonesian saying: Gajah di depan mata tak terlihat, semut di sebrang lautan tampak jelas... (You cannot see the elephant right in front of you, but you are sure about the ants across the sea..... or something like that).

Cultural Indifferences

Sometimes we think too much about cultural differences. About how one region has different tradition than the region next to it. How one country has totally different ways of looking on many thinks than another countries.

The fact is human is unique. But when it come to basic needs and principle, we're not that difference. We all want happiness, even though we have thousands of ways to express it. We want to love and be loved, even though we have so many ways to show it and to say it.

I went to my good friend's family this weekend. From the outside, we're so much different. She has blond hair, mine is jet black. Her skin is very fair, mine is dark. She's 5'10", I', 5'5". Her dream live is to live in Montana with horses and dog away from the crowd, I said... forget it. I'll go crazy living away from people. Mine is living in New York city surrounding by friends and family with so many fun places to go.

But amazingly, even though we were brought up in such a different environment (she grew up in a very small town in Pennsylvania, I grew up in a metropolitan city of Jakarta), we clicked right away (thanks to Starbucks). We're best buddies. She's like my sister. I can tell her anything. Our families amazingly similar. Her dad looks like my dad. They both had retired from the army. They both annoyingly over protected. I fit right away in her family. They are like mine now. I knew her cousins and her aunts and uncles. I bet if she's in Indonesia, she'll fit right in my family right away as well.

So, even though I am sometimes still stereotyping people who looks different than me, I make myself remember about the cultural indifferences. People in general want the same things.