投稿成功！！

 I like writing. 

Whether I am good or not is another issue altogether.  =D

It has been so long I bother to write properly that many a times, words fail me.

*refuse to think that I'm lousy*

Blogging and writing properly are totally 2 different things, I've realised.

I have been learning Buddhism for the past 4-5 years. 

I attended a Buddhist school for about 1-2 years in my early twenties. I vaguely remember there are exams also. Hmm...don't really understand/recall what's happening then

I was flying so much then that lessons are often missed or attended in a half jet-lag state

I picked up learning the Dharma again 4 years ago, under the tutelage of a guru, and I think I finally understood the purpose of my learning. Hahaha! Better late than never.

Work at Tian Fen Lan has been so insane that sometimes I wonder why I do so many things at the same time. 

Won't it be great if I just focus on builiding my blogshop & totally nothing else? 

Yes, not even doing so much cooking & housework. =DD

Just one thing at a time, can?

 credits: The Ellen Show - One at a time, please

Nah, that would just be escapism.

Life is not just about work. It should never be.

If I ever give up learning something that I really like, I am DEAD certain I will wince in regret when I'm all old & wrinkly and seethe in envy at those ladies who have their lives in a perfect juggle.

I read when I'm having my meals alone at home. That's the only pocket of time I have, which I don't feel too guilty about putting aside TFL's work.

My home library, part of it.

That's showing 1 side of my home library. My bookshelves have sliding doors, so I am unable to snap a pic that shows both the left & right sides. But that snapshot already captures 80% of the Buddhist books/magazines/newspapers/publications I have accumulated over the years, some of which I painstakingly lugged back in my cargo when I flew to Malaysia, China & Taipei.

Books in China are so unbelievably cheap!

Can you spot that thick blue dictionary? It's Kang Xi Dictionary 康熙字典 in hanyu pinyin version that I bought for less than S$10 from Shanghai! 

I've got the original version (the yellow book beside the blue one), published in Hong Kong from Popular for S$39, before member's discount. 

This was the standard dictionary used in the 18th & 19th centuries, ordered to be complied by no other than the Kang Xi Emperor himself, hence its namesake.

The Kang Xi Dictionary I have

I can't understand a single word. 

Don't ask me why I buy.
Nor why I still keep it.

But, erm, it's very hard to find this in Singapore. Popular rarely stocks it.

The hanyu pinyin version I have gotten is so much easier on the eyes.

I have read about 30% of the books in my library so far. But my memory is short and I often forget quite a chunkful of important points that I feebly try to memorise. Plus, there are always new books & publications coming in. 

Aaaargh...

I need more gingko nuts.

I still hold on the tiny scrape of hope that one day, I will be good at it.

Don't tell me otherwise. I will refuse to believe. =P

Anyway, the REAL point of this entry is my first attempt at contributing an article to an international Buddhist publication was successful!!

HAPPINESS!!!

I wrote this article at my blog here on 7 Jan this year and upon some encouragement from my Husband & teacher, I emailed the article to the publication HQ in Canada after Chinese New Year.

The only reply I got is their acknowledgement of receipt.

No mention on whether I will know if the article gets published or if it is good enough in the first place.

I did secretly continue checking out the subsequent issues and felt that other articles are so well-written, mine will probably get 'e-thrashed' in the Bin folder. 

Hope was threw out of the window, after 1 month.

I tell myself that I can still write on my blog, regardless whether anyone reads or not.

At least, there's an outlet for me to write. 

Totally disregarding readers' preferences, self-consolation at its maximum. =P

1.5 month later, on Wednesday when I was having my dinner, I was reading all the other articles on that exact page, when the title "談條件" caught my eye.

I was thinking: "Eh, vaguely familiar..."

Then I saw "文 /  欣雨" and thought, "Eh, seems like someone I know."

Paused for 4-5 seconds to think & started reading the article.

And then...eureka! It is MY article!!! =DDD

Eyes brightened, heart pumped faster, threw down my rice spoon and grabbed the phone to make some frantic & excited calls. Haha!

It was the same feeling that I got when Tian Fen Lan received its very first bag order. =D

I'm thrilled, totally! And I want to continue writing & contributing!
And you will be the first one to read it here! Happy much? =DD

Metta,
欣雨 Xinyu