Atonement started with a simple idea, a simple plot till it blossomed into a quite complicated expression of meaningful thoughts. Some may not like the way the movie is filled with flashbacks, taking us back and forth through time. For some reason, I believed the movie cannot be put in any other way, so as to convey a message we often let slip from our minds. That is, how our mistakes can cause lifetime consequences and what we perceive to see is not necessarily the truth.

Give me 18th century any day, I simply love the way words are articulated and minds are being spoken out. Call me old fashioned, if you please. ^^ Filled with mysterious characters and passionate love, the narrator gives first hand collections of the past in such a twisted way but not to the extent it becomes even remotely unpleasant.

Even to this day, I carry with me only a vague picture of my childhood. Fragments of pink tutus and frilly dresses fill up these gaps and blanks I often sought out answers for. And this is what I've grown up treasure most. Funny how our past can sometimes shape our future.

Yes, I am no longer that little girl who goes 'Que Cera Cera'. I've now learnt that we do have a certain control (apart from God) over our destiny, not only to be decided by our parents, neither is it, by ignorance. I am a grown up lady not because I want to, but because of the pressure of time.

Oh pray, will I ever find my knight-in-shining-armor and lady-in-waiting?

I am certainly a sucker for romance, much to my disbelief! Now, now this has turned into an advertisement, a cry or rather an exclamation I'm afraid.

It is true that guys in our modern society are getting too caught up, even obsessed, with the complications of life without needing to take in a breath of how simple life can actually be. Everyday is a challenge, another competition to survive to see who is the 'fittest'. Expectation bars are set higher each day as fast as records are being broken.

On the other hand, girls are getting more and more difficult to please, each with their ever increasing long wish lists and less subtle hints, expecting guys to fulfill their every 'command'. They have lost their dignity, only to be highly, if not solely and entirely dependent on a man.

What happened to long-lasting marriages and unconditional relationships? No, no they fail miserably merely hanging on a thin thread of materialism. Love is no longer about giving and expecting nothing in return but being, more often than not, on the receiving end.

I remind you that this is not an insight on my superiority but only a GENERAL description of milk turning sour. Note: general.

Ah, where did I stop?
Yes, the world has taken a sudden turn, leaving us 'classics' behind with only fragments of our memories left to hold on to, and much less, hopes for the present and for the near future.

So much for the change in mindset =="

Itchy Hands and Legs

Yes, literally. Resultant from my un-spoken of... clumsiness. My year in Australia has certainly left me with scars I would remember for life. Well, hopefully in time they will fade away. By that, I meant those physical scars and not memories of my entire experience here.

I shall now provide details. I think the first one came from probably a week or so in me arriving in Australia. I sat down on a bed side table. And it broke. I can't imagine why on earth did I do that, probably thinking that the table would be able to withstand my weight. haha. How wrong was I! Well, as you would predict, it broke and the nail brushed against my thigh. Not just a scratch, but rather a deep cut. So there you have it, my first Australian-'injury'.

After that was a from a thorn of a plant which conveniently came into contact with my hand while I was passing by it. And with my cuts and blisters that I get on and off from my sandals and thongs. Before this, I accidentally rubbed my hand against a rock while jumping from one rock to the other in Wilson's Prom. Gold Coast was also not complete without a sore thigh from friction with water slides. And now, the latest addition to my collection: a minor burn on my hand from steam out of a boiling kettle. Not to mention my pimples on my face. To think that with the cleaner environment here would help clear skin breakouts ==" Now that everything is revealed out in the open, I think it's safe to say that I have suffered from the klutz-syndrome.

Petty stuff, you might think. But no, they would bring about long-lasting consequences. For instance, my hands and legs now itch so badly I find it difficult to sleep at night. Not with all the pas oozing out most of the time and with the irritation from the rash. Not forgetting the scars that will follow eventually.

Sometimes our life is like that. We will have to pay for our stupidity by facing the consequences of our mistakes. And out of those consequences, some would leave scars we would remember for life. All we have to do is to endure the outcomes to the best we can and hope that they would not come back to haunt us. During the time of suffering, we often try not to worsen the wound by not scratching it when it feels itchy. There are times when temptations brings us deeper into our problem until we feel that there is no way out and no saving grace. No turning back and since we're in it so deep, it doesn't hurt to go in deeper. And deeper. And deeper it goes till it leaves us with a scar to remind us of our foolishness. The scar enacted in our skin that we would be ashamed of forever.

But out of those scars, some would heal. Sometimes, it just takes time. And effort. Like a scar after a wound, if it is well taken care applied with medication, it will leave no distinct mark. Most of those times, the healing power of God intervened would speed up the healing process. All we have to do is surrender and believe.

I have taken for granted so many things in life. For not even thinking that such a small thing like this would be worthy of God's time and attention. Don't get me wrong, I would pray for some things in my life. But we often forget that we can entrust even the littlest of things because He is interested in every detail of our life. Not that we are not believing Him to do the greater things but because He cares. In every little thing we do.

After all that has happened, one thing is for sure: learn from our mistakes.

Not scarred for life,
LiSs