It was great on Saturday when Gareth and I had another father-son bonding time. Thanks to World Vision Malaysia for organizing the Fun Night Walk to raise funds for poor communities in Marjeyoun, South Lebanon.
The “Taman Arboretum” is a great place for an event like this. And it’s a first time for Gareth … and it’s been sooooo long since I’ve gone for a walk 🙂 There was mention during a speech of people whom are eye-ing to cut a chunk of the park and forest reserve for some expensive condos (which you and I know will benefit who!) This is so so sad … So, apart from highlighting the needs for those far away in South Lebanon, I appreciated the awareness raised right where we stood. We need to voice out our disatisfaction with such “efforts” merely for the benefit of a few. And as always it’s money related 🙁
Anyway, with that out of the way … both of us had a good time … starting with good free Milo that brought me back to school day memories. Then we sat down as others did their “Jazzercise” warm ups which was quite amusing as well as helpful.
Then off for the walk … which was much longer then I expected … I mean REALLY much longer. the extra challenge was I carried Gareth rotating hands for 99% of the journey. I tried to get him to walk but I failed. Nevertheless with the company of two friends Yew Khuen and Jo-ann who walked with us it made my suffering less painful. It was great to have conversations as I sqeezed every ounce of energy I could for the next step *grin* As I drove back later, I thought about how even harder it would have been if I had to walk and carry Gareth alone … ah. .. there another good illustration of the importance of friends during a hard journey…
Well, the following picture is Gareth’s 1% of glory running towards the finishing line… there were some cheers … more for him than the father who carried him most of the journey .. but that’s ok. I was proud of him anyway.
The next photo … is a miracle one time shot that just came out beautifully … the joy of passing the finishing line. They say that starting well is half of the battle won, well … I guess there’s some truth in that, the middle of the journey needed as much perseverance as the passion for starting. But I think finishing strong and finishing well is what we all desire and work towards in everything we do. I was delighted by all the photos here .. I’m proud of Gareth (for enduring the mosquitos … and running the final lap.), I’m quite happy with myself for surviving a pretty long journey and not complaining too much (*ha*), all in all I’m encouraged by the more than 200 participants who joined the walk, donated the funds, and simply had a good time … I was hoping more from our church community could have joined (it’s a pity many missed it – hopefully the next round), a handful still made it (I think we enjoyed the time there), and for Gareth and me … the bonus benefits we got was a wondeful, fun, and a good exercise time (tiring especially for me) and of course, just a chance to bump into some friends helped make it more worthwhile … I suppose lots of ingredients helps one to finish strong.
Gareth looks like a natural athlete, Sivin!! Maybe he’s ready to become Malaysia’s olympic decathlete?
I wonder, did any adult display the kind of joy Gareth did doing this walk? There is truly nothing like the joy of a child. I pray today that you and I , Sivin, will feel the joy as deeply as Gareth feels it naturally.