A Story on Generosity

Late one evening, an old woman, dressed in dirty and torn clothes, came to a town. She came first to a rich man's house and knocked on his door. When the door was opened, the old woman asked for some food and drink and a place to rest the night.

"What a dirty old woman!" said the rich man. "We have nothing to give you, for times are hard and what we have we must save for ourselves. Go away, and don't come back."

The old lady begged the rich man to give her some water at least, for she was very tired and thirsty, but the door was slammed shut in her face.

She came next to a poor man's house. When the door was opened, the old woman asked for some food and drink and a place to rest the night.

"Certainly, old mother!" said the poor man. "We do not have much, for we are poor and have five children, but whatever we have you are welcome to take as much as you need."

And so speaking, the poor man and his wife sat the old woman down at the table, set a steaming bowl of food before her, and after dinner, gave her their bed while they shared a room with their children.

The next morning, the poor man and his family woke up to find the old woman gone, but a letter was left on the bed where she had slept. The letter read:

"Where the rich man had much to spare but little heart to give, you had little but gave much. From now on, whatever you do will prosper, and all blessings will be upon your family."

And indeed, from then on, the poor man's harvest was always plentiful, and his family always had enough to eat and plenty to spare. They always made sure to help other folks who were poor or in need, and this included the rich man's family, who had lost their riches overnight and were reduced to begging on the streets.

Questions for discussion
1. Was the rich man generous? Did he give the old woman what she needed? What did he say?
2. Was the poor man like the rich man? Did he give the old woman what she needed or more? What could he have done instead?
3. Is it better to give or to keep everything for yourself? Why?
4. When was the last time you gave something to someone else without asking for anything in return? Give an example.
5. Give an example of how we can give to others who are poor and needy.

SPARKS

I signed up to be a parent volunteer in Ray's school and was assigned to SPARKS (School Parents Are Reinventing Kids' Skills).

SPARKS is a supplementary programme facilitated by PVs for pupils in P1. It happens during the one hour of Contact Time, when the teachers and principal have their weekly meeting.

How SPARKS began
Long long ago (8 years), some parent volunteers were very surprised to find the P1 and P3 children running round and round in the hot sun during contact time. All the teachers were in the meeting and the school was left to only the prefects to keep in order. So they suggested conducting a programme where parent volunteers take charge of the classes and teach them life skills and values through different elements of education.

And so SPARKS was born. VOICE (I'm not sure what it stands for) is the programme for the P3 classes, it is more structured and PVs have to go for some training.

Because I had to look after Ruvie, I couldn't go for SPARKS during the first term. However, I managed to coax him to attend to Nursery at Ray's old kindy, so now I have some free time to do SPARKS. I began in the 2nd term.

It is fun, although at first I got rather overwhelmed when dealing with 6- and 7-year-olds who are as yet unfamiliar with self-discipline and patience. Usually there are 2 PVs attached to a fixed class, but there was one lesson where, due to shortage of staff, I was on my own with my class. I'd almost lost my voice by the end of that SPARKS lesson.

By the end of this term, my class has come to know me better, and I can remember at least half of their names. I think it's got a lot to do with understanding the other party's capabilities and character, and adjusting of expectations. I'm also helping the management team in organising activities for the next term.

I think if schedules permit next year, I will continue to volunteer for SPARKS. It's sad that half of the PVs are volunteering to get their child into the school the next year, and out of the regulars, a few are not-so-regular. Of course, everyone has their commitments, as do I, but I've learnt that having a permanent teacher attached to a class is really more beneficial than changing the teacher at every lesson. Much like caring for a young baby.

Here's to the next term of SPARKS.

Meatballs

I was hunting for a better meatball recipe after my first batch failed (quite some time ago), and after browsing a few on Allrecipes, here's my final. These are absolutely scrumplicious!

Ingredients:
1 kg ground beef (or substitute half pork)
2 cups bread crumbs
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 red onion, finely minced
3 - 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
Salt and pepper to taste
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup water
Butter for frying

Method:
In a large bowl, mix beef, bread crumbs, cheese, onion, garlic, salt and pepper, before adding eggs to incorporate. Add water, mix well. Form meat mixture into balls slightly smaller than golf balls, about 50 balls.
Over med-high heat, melt butter in a wok or frying pan. Brown balls in batches, remove with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Let cool, then split into batches and store in freezer.
To reheat, set oven to 180 deg C and bake balls 10 - 15min.