Please click the arrow above for the music before reading this article.

I would love to share this touching and moving poem with you. I am sure it will have a significant impact on kids, parents and educators. Children are children, they deserve to be loved and respected no matter who they are and where they are. I hope this poem will serve as a wake up call, so people will stop bullying others and let them live life to the fullest.

that little girl who came to school with the clothes she wore the day before
instead of asking why.. you picked on her
the little girl who had to walk to school while others rode the bus
instead of asking why.. you picked on her
the little girl who had bruises and was dirty
instead of asking why.. you picked on her
the little girl who was always crying
instead of asking why.. you picked on her
the little girl who had unshaven legs while the other girls were shaving
instead of asking why.. you picked on her
the little girl who was hungry all the time and would sometimes beg
instead of asking why.. you picked on her
the little girl who didn’t celebrate holidays or participate in school functions
instead of asking why.. you picked on her
the little girl who was different in many ways
instead of asking why.. you picked on her
you spat on her
you called her names
that little girl was me
that little girl was longing for friendship and didn’t get it
that little girl needed a hug and was pushed away
that little girl had love in her heart to share with all but no one wanted it
that little girl was me
that little girl grew up in difficult times at home and at school
and instead of asking why.. you picked on her
this WOMEN has grown up now
however the little girl inside still crys
because her childhood was shattered
because instead of asking why.. you picked on her

Related article can be found at:

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/ExclusiveClassmates-Make-Amends-With-Bullied-Student-151966805.html

Escondido Classmates Make Amends With Bullied Student

I would like to share with you a remarkable short film – “The Last Knit.”
It was produced in Finland in 2005. Even though there is no dialogue in the film, it carries a deep and profound message. I call it the lesson of “letting go.”

The film starts with a woman who appears to be at a comfortable stage in her life.  The woman sits down on a chair and starts to knit a beautiful, colorful scarf. The scarf represents the power, fame and money that she is determined to achieve in life. As time passes, the more she accomplishes, the more ambitious she becomes. It would be easy for her to pick up her scissors to cut the string and stop knitting, but she pushes the scissors away from her. Being blinded by her obsession for achieving more, she continues to knit. By now, the scarf is so long that it has gone over the edge of a cliff. But the woman fails to realize that she herself is in danger of falling off that cliff because she is “attached” to the scarf.

As she races to knit more and more, she ends up running out of material. Still, she is reluctant to let go.  She risks her life by substituting her own hair for the yarn. Unable to stop knitting, she falls off the cliff. She finally realizes that she has to stop and let go so that she can survive. She then saves herself by using her own teeth to cut herself off from the scarf and free herself from this fatal situation.

Once she learns this valuable lesson, she quickly lets go of her knitting sticks and begins to treasure scissors. She understands that by using scissors wisely to cut off and let go of greed, she can have a new and better life.

Indeed, we can stop suffering by learning the lesson of letting go. By letting go, we can free ourselves from bondage and restriction. Our life can then be like a kite that flies high into the sky once it is released.

A blind beggar sat on the steps of a building with a sign saying “I’m blind, please help me”. Many people walked by, but only a few of them gave him money.

A lady walked by and saw the sign. She wrote something else in the back of the sign, then she put the sign back so that everyone who went by would see the new words.  After that, almost everyone who passed by gave the man money.

The blind man recognized her from her shoes that he touched before when the lady came back. He asked her what she wrote. She told him that she wrote down the same thing, but in different words. “It’s a beautiful day and I can’t see it.”

Should we be surprised that the second sign was more powerful? I do not think so. The first sign simply stated that the man was blind and he needed help, whereas the second one implied that people were luckier than him, because they were able to enjoy a beautiful day.

The second one reminded people to be grateful for what they have, and it brought out the sympathy toward the blind man. Consequently, as a result of this compassion that they are much more open and willing to give him the money.

Moral of the Story: Change your words and it will change your world.

Many years have passed; thousands of days gone by.
I told myself that I needed to write you a letter even though I had no place to send it.
But I could not bring myself to write.
Today, I will finally do it because it has been on my mind for too long.
Dear God, please help me.

I love you, Ming.
It seems unreal that you left us so long ago.
I still remember that you tried so hard to tell me something.
Nothing came out of your mouth, and you had no strength to write it on my palm.
I did not understand what you wanted to say to me at that time.
It wasn’t until a year later that I finally realized that what you wanted to tell me was:
“I love you.”

How I wish that I could have told you, “I love you, too.”
Oh, God! I love you wholeheartedly even until now.
I am so sorry that I did not tell you before your passing.
I was busy dealing with the hospital,
So that they would not give up on your treatment.

I remember vividly the day the director of the ICU came to see me.
Heartlessly, he announced that the hospital would stop your blood transfusions the next day.
As much as I tried to plead, beg and reason with him, he still would not budge an inch.
He said that you were going to die anyway,
That he did not want to waste anymore of the blood supply.
Yet he refused blood donations from our church members.

At that point, I knew I was dealing with a person who had no feelings.
To make matters worse, the hospital made one mistake after another.
A year before you were hospitalized, we had gone in for a check up.
But it wasn’t until a year later – after you were hospitalized – that we received the report that your blood was abnormal.
A report delayed due to the hospital’s negligence.
And when you were hospitalized, the doctor closed his eyes to the non-stop bleeding from you surgical wound.
And they made many more mistakes…
I could not hold in my anger any longer, so I told him:
“Doctors are not God. They are responsible for treating patients.”
He had no right to terminate a patient’s life.
If he stopped your blood transfusion,
You would die as a result.
I told him that I would consider him a murderer.

Following my forceful statements, he finally decided to give me three days before taking any action.
Our church offered a three-day fast; it seemed he dare not do anything during that period.
Thank God for giving me these precious 72 hours so I could fight this giant (hospital).

In and out of your room, I was too busy to call people to get help.
Sister Huang came to help and stay by your side.
I did not want to tell you the truth for fear it would upset you.
I wanted to do everything I could to get you a blood transfusion.
I swore to myself that I would not let them block the treatment you needed as long as I was still alive.
I just wanted to keep you alive with all my strength.
It was an uphill battle, but I wanted to fight until my last breath.

I remember that once, when you almost could not endure the pain anymore, you said
I was so cruel for not letting you go.
Oh, God! How could I live without you in this world?
I loved you so much that I wanted to keep you alive.

The ICU director felt my determination.
He sensed that this family would not give up without a fight.
He wanted to figure out whether we were able to go up against him.
He sent a doctor to watch me the next morning.
Facing him was this poor lady who had no energy left.
No strength. Only a desire for her husband to live.
Three hours later, this doctor left in embarrassment.
He told me that he believed I would get my wish.

God sent many angels to help us.
Did you know that, Ming?
Several white doves appeared at your hospital window during that time.
A friend helped to contact several Chinese newspapers about our story.
Our daughter sent out news releases to local newspapers.
Telephone calls inquiring about this story poured in to the hospital from all over.

Ming, I do not know whether you knew it or not.
The hospital could not handle the pressure from the media.
On the third day, the hospital gave in and sent me a formal letter to acknowledge
That they would continue to give you blood transfusions.
Dragging my tired body to your room, but retaining hope, I went back to your side.
It seemed that the fire of life was rekindled.
My long absent smile found its way back … again.
Just as I thought there was hope…
You slipped away quietly several hours later.

I could not understand what had happened.
Should I blame heaven or someone?
Why did God let me fight this battle if you could not live?
This took away my last precious time to be with you.
Oh, God! I could not understand why it ended like this.

All these years I was puzzled and confused.
I also could not let go of my regrets.
I wanted to write to ask for your forgiveness.
I was not able to be with you until the end.
I did not have the courage to write to you until now.
Now I am enlightened. Now I comprehend.
It is not that I wanted you to live on…
You wanted me to live on…

Going through this tough battle with the hospital,
I regained my spirit to fight… my spirit of life.
You wanted me to live and not give up.
You wanted me to love again.
You wanted to see me smile again and again.
You wanted me to live.

Ming, I love you!
Today, I finally realize your love for me is extremely deep.
I want to return my love to you.
I will live happily.
Today I received my first trophy for winning my dance competition.
It was then I was enlightened.
I will be the champion of life.
Do not worry, for your love has prepared me to walk on
This champion way of life!

Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford Commencement Address

I would like to share with you one of my favorite speeches here. It is the one Steve Jobs delivered in 2005 as the keynote speaker for the Stanford University’s graduation ceremonies. It is an immensely moving and inspiring address from one of the most successful business leaders in the world. The video is above, but the highlights of the speech for me are the following statements:

You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.

And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to
be priceless later on.

I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did.

I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.

Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.

Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other peoples thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary …

Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

“The Whole Earth Catalog” – Stewart Brand (from raynghm)

It’s the back cover of the last issue of the “Whole Earth” magazine Steve Jobs referred to in his speech.