Friday, April 27, 2007

Spelling Success

Success is a cultural obsession. A phenomenon that has taken the young and no-so-young-these-days by storm. In fact, the I-Want-To-Be-Successful-In-This-Lifetime Wave has clearly flooded (tsunami-ed, in fact) both the minds of the urban and rural dwellers of our time.


It's scary. It is. To me, at least.


You see, to me, success encompasses more than just having a herd of zeros running before the decimal point in my bank account. That's achieving financial success. But to be a success requires so much more than that.


Making a successful living and living a successful life are two very different notions. What is the point of earning all the money in the world but not having lived life? There is no point. Because, in actual fact, if you've got all the money in the world and nothing much else, well... you're actually nothing much at all.


Seems harsh and depressing, doesn't it?

I'm not being half-empty, guys. I'm being honest.


I want to be successful. Don't we all? I aspire to be much more than I am today. But the horizon of my dream goes so much further than the parameters that financial success has set for me. I want to be a success. And a success in every way possible, at that.


I want to be well read. I want to know a lot about a lot of things and a lot of people. I want to do great things in life. I want to do well at the workplace. I want to cultivate, manage and keep healthy friendships. I want to have a good family. I want to be a good daughter. I want to be a good partner. And I want to be a good friend. I want to do my ultimate best in living a life He can be proud of me for.


Yes, I want to do all that and more.

But right now, it's just words on a screen. To me and to you.
It's all just talk that can easily be forgotten, and easily be erased.

This isn't spelling success.
It isn't spelling success in anyway at all.


What matters is that when I die, the people I've crossed paths with tell others that I've done all I wanted to do. That's when I know, I've spelt success in MY terms, in the life I lived.

33 comments :

Anonymous said...

Many defined SUCCESS as the achievements to grab countless money, properties, positions, fame and others that are tangibles. To some perhaps it is security while living in a fragile world.

However some failed to grasp the idea that SUCCESS does not only consist of tangibles items but also on the intangibles items (relationship with the Heavenly Father and emotional relationship with others) that not even money can buy!

"What is the point a man gain the whole world but lost his very own soul!"

"Man shall not live by bread alone but by every Words that proceeds from the mouth of GOD!"

Amen!

JYJL said...

*stand up and clapping hands*

*weeping*

"... wah, what a speech.."

Jono said...

"Well done my good and faithful servant"

ITULAH success!

'mike. said...

i want to be successful! many people do not experience true success, because they are not willing to put in all their heart and pull thru it.

it's no joke, you know? the road to success is a long journey, but then of course, it's all depend on what kind of success the person is looking for.

as for me, to achieve financial success is crutial (to not work for ppl anymore, no debt, having passive income) then comes relationship (found the gal i love very much and vice versa). this is only one of them. they are many more of which of course i am too lazy to think now. haha.. it's 12.04am now.

Pam Song said...

ATTN: adhojlim
– True. My point exactly. Amen.


ATTN: jacob. y
– Haha.

*clapping along politely*


ATTN: Jono
– You said it.


ATTN: 'mike
– Hmmm. Yes, the road to success is long (and winding). But then again, the journey is so worth the destination. The day when you smell that success and take it all in, that's the day you know that you'd lived a life well lived. That's when everything counts.

Anonymous said...

S ...U....C....C....E....S....S ... did I spell it rite?? heheheh

anyways....

1st phase of success .. GRADUATE !!

2nd phase find a good paying job

3rd phase own a house and car

*note* finding a good wife and having a family can be anywhere between phases

of course ultimately .. God's calling in my life and raising my children to be God fearing ppl

Pam Song said...

Uh, I THNIK you got the speling rihgt. Succes, it is! =p

Hmmm. Uncle, you are overlooking everything I've said! Success isn't just about working towards material things! Your phases of success are all only centered on that goal! a bit the superficial, no? I mean, it's necessary. DEFINITELY. But... What I meant to get across in this post is that it's MORE than just a good job. It's more than just graduating. It's more than just being able to afford a car. See?

Think about it this way. Chase your dream job and lose the woman you want to marry. Or decide to purchase a really big expensive car and stop giving to God. Success is more than that, okay.

Anonymous said...

hmm ..perhaps i should have added .. my terms of success

Anonymous said...

and wei ... u didn't read the last line meh .. and it's not even in fine print .. both physical and spiritual success ok

Pam Song said...

But but but... Aren't your terms of success... like, superficial? Haha. Whoops. But true ma. It's very financially skewered.

And yes, I read your non-fine print ending. You left that to close! It wasn't even given a proper phase!!! Tsk tsk.

Anonymous said...

Dearest Pam,

Having you in my life is one of my successes because I have made it into the list of "PAM'S MOST FAVOURITE PEOPLE ON EARTH"!

Hugs,
Nisha

Anonymous said...

aiya ... it is the basic thing lah ... milestone u can say what in the physical realm ... i mean living ur live to the fullest according to God's plan is success what .. no need to elaborate much lah .. and teaching that to the next generation ... it's gonna be tough but success nevertheless

Pam Song said...

ATTN: Nisha
– Babe, you just made my day. It's been crummy so far. Sigh. I miss you.

Love,
pamsong


ATTN: zecount
– Haha. Covering up, I see.

Anonymous said...

When I was young (perhaps 1? years old), I thought success is just having outstanding academic achievements, reputable career and countless properties... The views were in fact shallow and self contained.

As I grew older, the Lord has unveiled my eyes to see SUCCESS in a very different way. As I choose to turn to Jesus and put HIM as the CORE OF MY LIFE...SUCCESS starts to follow me wherever I go...Of course it is not easy, but I am grateful that I am not alone at all! HE is always there watching over me at all times! HE is my ultimate provider!

Friends...our God are the Alpha & the Omega! We are indeed serving the God who is in control of everything and He is a Victorious God! If only we choose to follow Him whole heartedly, abide by His Words and honor Him in every trial, assuredly we will be blessed in everything that we do as according to the Heavenly Father's will. Thus SUCCESS shall not be far from us!

I have seen families after families are testifying the goodness of the Heavenly Father! Blessings after blessings follow them... Just like Joshua said: For me and my household, we shall serve the Lord!

So start serving the Lord in whatever capacity you have, and be prepared to experience His Goodness!

To God Be the Glory!

Cheers,

Adrian =)

Pam Song said...

You said it. Amen.

*blink blink*

Do you ALWAYS think this way or is it only on Tinki Talks?

Anonymous said...

Hmmm....I guess everybody experienced ups and downs in life...but I am grateful that I have many Christian brothers and sisters that are willing to chip out some of their time to encourage one and another....so I guess I am inspired to do the same thing over here...Hope that my craps do help and bless many souls....However the glory is not mine but JESUS!

Anonymous said...

Its not by might nor power but by the spirit of God, we shall be successful! To God be the Glory!

Adrian =)*winking*

Anonymous said...

bleh .. that's my story and i'm sticking with it

Pam Song said...

ATTN: adhojlim
– Hmmm. I'm a Christian but not EVERYTHING revolves around 'yes and amen', you know? For instance, I have friends who, let's say, I tell them, "Awww, it's such a beautiful day." Then they reply, "God made all things wonderful in His sight." You know? The kind of ppl who turn other non-believers off. Have you ever come across any of them? Well as for me, sometimes, it gets a little too much to take.

I don't know. Maybe I'm just not as holy-majoley. I just feel that sometimes, it's Science. Sure, Science that's moved by the hands of God but still... Science.


ATTN: zecount
– Haha. See! See! It's out of the bag. It's a STORY!!! Busted. And smooth. Keep to ONE tale. It's less risky. Lower risk of being found out. Haha.

Anonymous said...

Hehe...its not the outside that peoples really care the most....but it is the inside that counts!

See the benefits? So Christians just be Christians! There is no shame of carrying the cross! =)
Cheers,Adrian =)

Pam Song said...

Okay, dude. I don't mean to bring a cold shower but you so didn't answer my comment. I said nothing about insides vs. outsides. All I said was that sometimes, it just gets a little too much. It's the super holy facade that turns a lot of non-Christians off when they look at us.

And that aside, no, there is no shame in carrying the cross. I never said there was. But sometimes, it isn't about shame. It's about being considerate to others around you and their beliefs.

Anonymous said...

i'm not listening... lalalalala

Anonymous said...

Pam,

"It's about being considerate to others around you and their beliefs".

You hit the right note!

Thanks babe, I was starting to feel a little uncomfortable reading the comments for this blog post.

Nisha

Anonymous said...

No need to be feel offended at any way as I did not mentioned to whom I address it mah.....So no issue wat... Some of non Christian friends said that I am fanatic.. but guess what he became a Christian in the later stage and now a church planter!

So Christian just be Christians... I am sharing out of Love for the Christian brothers and sisters and it is not meant to offend any non believers...

I dont see any problem of sharing it on this blog unless you tell me not to next time...so I am off..=((

Anonymous said...

And when did I attack other beliefs..tell me?

Anonymous said...

adhojlim, I support you! There is no shame of carrying the cross! Others shall not mess with us! Care not others said. Siapa makan cili dialah rasa pedas!

Anonymous said...

Attention: ANONYMOUS..whoever you may be,

I also agree with you..."Siapa makan cili dialah rasa pedas", although sometimes "orang yang makan cili itu sudah biasa dengan benda-benda pedas", so it has no effect at all.

"Pandai-pandai tupai melompat, akhirnya jatuh ke tanah juga".

Cheers Mr. Peribahasa!

Pam Song said...

ATTN: zecount
– Don't come and lalala here. You're not holding the mic no more. Time to start speaking words. EXPLAIN YOURSELFFFF!


ATTN: Nisha
– No prob, dear. I know. I understand that whilst communicating, if one takes this approach, people (in this case non-Christians) tune out anyways. So the communication doesn't do nothing anymore. Preachy preachy in this arena isn't appropriate all the time. I mean, if I post about Christianity, then ok la. Cos it's a discussion topic. But personal religious views should jaga while commenting la.


ATTN: adhojlim
– I know you don't address your comments to anyone. But still. You know? BUT STILL! And heck, if you wanna convert someone, at least work on YOUR friends, you know?

I just feel that you're making my blog (or comment pages, rather) too religious already. As much as your God is my God, your views are a tad more... well, I wouldn't call it fanatical but I can see where your friend got the impression.

And you say it's sharing the love with Christian brothers and sisters. Well, hello, Nisha and I are Christians but we a bit muak di. Just lower it down a notch okay. Once in awhile okay la. Depending on the situation la. My other readers have commented with some of hostility, too.

p/s: We never said you attacked other beliefs. You assumed we did when we raised the issue up. Actually, it's OTHER Christians – US. Anyway, looks like you have a fan. Haha. Mr Peribahasa who's anonymous. Goodness knows which one this is already.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous: Thank you but you know what, some peoples are just way too considerate to consider themselves inconsiderate. So who is inconsiderate? Hahaha =) Cheers to you!

Pam:
Okay! You muak di! Okay! And I am hearing it from Pam Song! Am I forcing you? Any signs that I am forcing you?

Anonymous said...

Hmm.. forgot to add a smiley at the end of the message to Pam...otherwise she thinks that I am yelling at her...hahaha nah here.. the double smileys for you! =)=)

Pam Song said...

No, it's got nothing to do with you forcing me in anyway. The fact that the comments are here is point enough, don't you think? It's a comment in my blog of course I have to read, right? So what has forcing or not forcing have to do with anything?

Eh, try to find out who Mr Peribahasa is la! Since you two like so fren liddat.

Anonymous said...

Ok Pamie! Hostility was not the concept in this blog and it will never. So to those who agree with me.. hope that you are bless and those who are not...no offence.

and Anynonymous; reveal yourselflar? The Queen summons upon your apperance...hehe sounds very majesticler... can make movie di =P

Pam Song said...

Good good. Keep at it then.

Haha. Movie? Oh, you should have read some of our older posts. THOSE were really movie styled, man! Got sequence of events and all summore. Hmmm. I think it was Zecount, me, this guy called Caleb and another guy called Jin. Haha. Those were good times. Ask Zecount about it. I'm sure he remembers. Haha.

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