國外生活

其實一切並不如表面那麼美好........

當你在自己國家生活到25歲，有著高薪收入的工作和優渥的家庭，要放棄一切投入到另一個國家(尤其是比自己國家先進的國家) 並不是那麼容易....
首先，你的競爭力會因為語言的關係降低.... 再來就是文化融合和駕馭與人溝通和互動的能力會不如從前... 雖然你還是有先天的優勢，就是你祖國的語言和文化，可是我爸爸有教，人到了其他國家，不能老是待在自己的圈圈，要想辦法跨出去... 那才是真成功...

"成功"...這兩個字，跟著我這未完的一輩子，家庭教育 + 個性使然，我總是想要突破，想要激發自己的潛力，追尋自己尚未擁有的joy... 就這樣，我放下了一切，投入了未知的加拿大生活，因為我相信我可以... 漸漸的，我發現，自己並不是那樣的堅強，也不是那樣的全能，有時候，我只想要來碗拉麵，或跟好友去KTV唱個通宵，新朋友得來不易，交到了也總是不如自己從小長大的老朋友... 老公的家人非常完美，但也總是不如自己不是那麼完美的親人...

生在國外，不管你怎麼做，人生似乎總是少了那麼一些... 唯一能安慰自己的，就是老公的好，老公的體貼和兩人的默契，這些都是無可取代，也難得可貴的.... 所以這樣就要放棄自己其他的一切？並不! 我坦承，自己來加拿大，並不是全為了老公，也為了挑戰，為了證明自己的能力，也為了能讓我的家人更以我為榮... 就這樣的賤個性，讓我必須承受一切，也讓我老公愛我那麼深...  本來很想移民的妹妹，從我身上學到什麼才是priority... 跟外國男友分手，在台灣找了份穩定的工作... 或許，這就是我的命運，只希望自己在台灣的家人與朋友在我缺席的日子裡一切安好...

So it's 2013. We made through 2012.12.21 and got the chance to make another New Year's wish or set up another New Year's resolution for year- 2013.

That's when I decided that my 2013 would be a healthier year. When life starts to get busy, I stopped to care about my diet.
Here is the chance to pick up what I have missed, while I still have a chance. :)

So there it goes, my new year resolution:
One new recipe per week + New veggie exploration! 

I hope it will be a better year for everyone and for me and my family.
Happy New Year and have fun cooking!

Worth a picture

A Japanese student recently added me as a friend on facebook. I got to see her photos that she took with other students in the school and pictures she took during her 30 weeks of stay in Ottawa.

Through her pictures, I saw what the students are really like outside of school and what Ottawa is like in their eyes. Some of the photos remind me of  my sister, Vivian's pictures in New Zealand when she went there for a year with her working holiday visa. Everything was interesting and so special! The students stay with each other and know friends quickly and have lots activities from time to time. They go out to drink to interesting places, do things and have a group picture taken in front of Parliament Hill... Through their eyes, everything is fresh and interesting!

Even though I lived in four different countries, I found I always take what's around me for granted easily. I guess it's just one of the nature of humanity. I never knew that going to Parliament Hill is such a great thing and I never knew that you can have so much fun in the War Museum. (seriously, it's about WAR....)

I do miss the students. They came and they left. It kinda reminds me of the time when we lived in Taiwan and China. All of our friends are with high mobility. Everybody moves around, including us. When you are just there for temporary, there's a bigger chance that you would treasure the time there more.

That shouldn't be the case! It shouldn't. We should treasure everything around us even it's not just for temporary. To live like that, you will find the world is much appreciable or tolerable. What may even be better, you will find everything around you is more memorable, worth a picture even...in Asian's logic anyways ;)

So live at the moment and treasure things and people around you. Look around carefully with gratitude,  because somewhere between your house and work, there is an interesting place worth you to stop and take a picture... with your eyes. :)

'My business is to create'

Sometimes we forgot how we fell in love at the first place, what caused the chemistry at that moment, and who we were at that time.

We want our other half to be happy until one day we realize we are not. Most of time, that's the day we realized we were forced to compromise, to sacrifice, to change for our love. 

I am becoming so unhappy and unsatisfied with my life because all I can remember is what I lost, what I can't get, what I could've got. The truth is, I forgot all the other things, and the most important thing is, I forgot to stop thinking about myself and remembering the content I can feel when my love is happy. I used to make my husband the happiest man of the world and believe me, it's not hard at all. He is one of the easiest to be happy guy I've ever met. All I need to do is to be myself and he will laugh and look at me with his smile and said 'oh, honey, I love you...' He meant it. I know it. When you meet your love of life, you just know. There is nothing of the world can replace that and that person. 

Although one day, you realize just love may not be enough. Life keeps you busy and brings you different kinds of worries and problems. There are always something up ahead waiting for you, alone or not. At least, I still have my husband who is the best and the only person of the world that I want to spend my every minute with until the day he or I die. 

Even if life sometimes is not going to the direction as you expected or wanted, you still have your love standing right beside you to support and love you no matter what. 

I can be happy and I should be. It's only fool if I can't see how happy I am and how wonderful my life can be. I should never limit myself or look down on myself. If I do, then I can not see myself through the eyes of my love when we first met. 

I am happy with what I have. I may always want more but I know at least there's someone who is always there for me to support me to pursue whatever I want. And nothing on the earth is more valuable than that. 

-----See, I don't worry about you remembering me... it's that girl on the road you keep forgetting... 'My business is to create!' It doesn't even matter what you do. ---by Gerry from the movie 'P.S. I love you'

只是記錄...

When you woke up earlier than usual one morning or when you happen to run into a long lost friend or just accidentally click on one you-are-not-sure-who facebook friend's profile...

you suddenly realized...

Life isn't the same anymore. Life has been changed, just when you are busy to live. 

We are all trying to find the balance between looking back and living at the moment. 

Somebody, lives at the moment too much while someone keeps looking back and ignores what's happening in front of their faces. 

Life is full of choices, not excuses.

Remember that when you say 'but' next time.  

On the road

The other day, I wrote on my blog saying sometimes that I don't know the answer, I just have to believe it...

Lately I've been thinking about a career change... Since life in Canada isn't as easy as I thought and the time I'm away from program management is getting a bit too long to go back. Instead of sitting in front of a desk doing something I don't like, not as good at or not getting as much pay, maybe it's a good chance for me to finally do something I like to do and could be good at!

By doing so, going back to school to prepare myself in the career change will be the next step.

It's never easy to change or start a new page. However, when you still have chance to do so, then your life isn't so bad.

Choices are there, I just need to make my mind and decide, and never regret.

After all, life is full of possibilities and surprises while you are learning.

Share this video with all of you to remind us what we love about traveling:

We like it because we are learning :)

sometimes...

Sometimes, I don't know the answer.... I just have to believe...