1 December 2014

Among all kinds of cooked eggs, I enjoy hard-boiled eggs most.  When we were in kindergarten, we used to have birthday parties every other weekends.  There would be whole cakes on the tables, tons of candies, and plates of red hard-boiled eggs. At the end of the party, each child would take home a goody bag with a little bit of everything.  The taste of the hard-boiled egg, when it is cold, stuck on my mind. Now when I eat one, childhood memories come back.

If I am not old and nostalgic, I must be gluttonous.  An egg begins a life (if I have not eaten it); hope and prosperity then follow.  To many believers, Christmas carries the same message: Christ sacrifices himself to give a new life to mankind.  But even when we are not the religious bunch, we see sacrifice everywhere: parents tightening their belts to save up for the family future, volunteers helping out those in need, passengers offering seats to others. In short, we pay it forward, so the loop of goodness can continue. 

A society prospers because of a collective effort. If each member pays it forward another step, fruit will be bigger and sweeter.  Our next generation must exceed our achievement, their next generation must exceed theirs for a society to develop. If it worked the other way around, damnation would result.  At the end of a year, I invite you to contemplate on what you have not done well, and how you would revise it and do the same job better next year.  This evaluation will become a stronger plan for you to implement next year.

Have a good holiday.

Anson Yang