Pre-Christmas VOLUNTEER WORK

Celebrate Christmas in a more meaningful way by taking part in our Pre-Christmas Volunteer Work. Spread the joy of the season to the old folks at Ming Fai Caritas Center. We are looking for volunteers who can sing, dance, tell a story and play games with the old folks.

For details, please call Yoyette (2853 0054)

Date: Dec 20-22 (Sunday to Tuesday)

Time: 9:30 AM- 4:00PM

Place: Ming Fai Caritas

Orientation Meetings: Dec 5 and Dec 19 (5:00 PM)
Wahn Tihng Study Center

On-site visit: Dec 19 (10:30 AM)

Before Christmas is Advent

The air is cooler and its hard to believe Christmas is just a month away...time flies indeed! Well, as you may know, there is Christmas and there is Advent, the time to help us prepare better for the big feast which is Christmas. Advent comes from the latin root ad-venio which means "to come to". It starts usually around the Sunday closest to the feast of St. Andrew (Nov. 30) and runs for four Sundays afterwards, getting closer to Christmas day, the birthday of Jesus Christ.

To mark the four Sundays of Advent, Christian tradition has made use of an "advent wreath" as a reminder that Christmas is fast approaching. Not everyone knows how to make it, so we are going to have a hands-on class on:

HOW TO MAKE AN ADVENT WREATH
November 28, Saturday
5:00-6:30 PM
MOP 40 (includes materials to make your wreath)

Please call by Thursday, Nov. 26 to confirm your attendance ( Belen 2853 0054)

Movie Review Resolutions

We had a great time watching "Fireproof" last October 10 and even had a more wonderful time discussing the film. We analyzed the message, the director's style, the background details that made the movie more meaningful and interesting.

One of the things we considered is that there are good films and there are waste-your-time films, meaning its not worth watching them. The problem is if you don't have a guide, you only find out they're trash after you've watched them. Well, we know how helpful it is to have a good movie review guide ready at hand when you need it, so we're passing it you. Hope it comes in handy! And as always, since this blog is meant for feedback, exchange of views, comments, etc., do share your movie review experiences with us!

MOVIE REVIEW GUIDE

ANNUAL RETREAT

The closed retreat FOR 2009 will be held in Wahn Tihng from
SEPT 30 (7:30 PM) to OCTOBER 3 (5:00 pm).
It will be in Cantonese. Please confirm your attendance by phone or send us an email.

MUSIC APPRECIATION (October 17 Cultural Get-together)

Who doesn't like music? I'm sure you love to listen to music and would be interested to learn more about what goes into music. We've invited a speaker who will bring in her own compositions (yes! she writes her own music) and will speak to us about MUSIC APPRECIATION.

October 17, 2009 (Saturday)
5:00-6:30 PM
Wahn Tihng Study Center

Movie Review

For all movie lovers out there, you are all invited to join our
2nd movie review session
this
October 10 (Saturday) from 5:00-7:30 PM.

We will watch, discuss and exchange opinions regarding the movie
"FireProof".
Fee is MOP 25 includes dinner.

See you at the movies!

WANT TO SAVE MONEY?

Want to learn how to save money and see your money grow?
Get some smart and valuable tips from

Ms. LUISA MAN of AMCM
as she speaks to us about

"Personal Financial Management".

There's nothing to lose by joining us, so come and learn!
Date: September 19, Saturday
Time: 5:00-6:30 PM
Place: Wahn Tihng Study Center
Flat I First Floor Gam Luhng Gok Building
75 Calcada da Vitoria
Telephone: 2853 0054

GOOD LUCK TO THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR!

Its back to school and time to hit the books again! Wishing all our student friends a wonderful school year ahead. Aim high!

Just to remind you that the study room of the Center can be used daily from 9:00 AM to 7:30 PM for individual study time and discussion groups. Please call for bookings. Telephone 28 530054.

Youthcom 2009 Macau Farewell party

(For more photos, click here)

Last August 23, we had the farewell party for the old folks of Ming Fai. We had snacks with them and showed them the short film above. We heard some laughs as they reacted in seeing themselves projected on the screen. We invited a couple, Mr. and Mrs. Jeng to perform some Chinese songs and it was wonderful seeing some of the old folks humming along.

Afterwards, it was games time! We played toy guns, basketball and bowling with them. All were winners and were awarded small gifts that they could take with them.

The director of Ming Fai, Julia Lam, spent the afternoon with us and gave a thank you card to East Asian Educational Association, the organizer of our service project. She also gave each volunteer a souvenir from Ming Fai: a portable spoon and fork and chopsticks set in an elegant case with the Caritas logo. There were also a couple of staff who assisted us in making sure the party went smoothly. They were a big help indeed!

HALFWAY HOUSE

Its Thursday, Aug 20 and we are halfway through our volunteer service project in Ming Fai Caritas Center. It has been quite a challenge for all of the volunteers...making friends with the elderly, getting them to join the games, making all the beautiful decorations by hand...Yet, we all agree that it has been a most meaningful and enjoyable way to spend the summer.


Its not over yet, but we want to take the time to show you some photos of these past few days.
Here is Ada and Helen teaching two of the enthusiastic old folks how to make their own friendship bracelets. We all admired how fast their hands were in twisting the strings!


Our farewell party will be on Sunday and our planned theme is "Mini Olympics". Looking forward to it!

SHOW YOU CARE!

We couldn't make it to the Philippines for the annual summer volunteer service project, but nothing can stop us from having one right here in Macau.

Show you care and join us for YOUTHCOM 2009 Macau! We tied-up with Caritas Macau and the venue will be in the Lar de Cuidados "Sol Nascente" Da Areia Preta.



Dates: August 17- 21 (9:30 AM to 4:00 PM)

Join us for the Orientation Meeting on August 8 and 15 respectively (5:00 PM)
Call Peggy or Yoyette at 2853 0054 for details.

Leaders in the making

It was a well-spent Sunday afternoon ... In 2 hours, we learned so much about how to be good leaders thanks to the mentorship of Ms. Gloria Ma. The participants were from different backgrounds: high school, incoming college and university students, university graduate and professionals.

The first part of the seminar was getting-to-know one another. Each participant had the chance to share something about herself, interests, hobbies, etc. Afterwards, to break the ice, we played a game which was quite unique: we had to arrange ourselves by order of birth dates but without using words. We had to use non-verbal gestures to communicate with one another which month of the year we were born. All were quick to resort to using the hands to indicate which month she was born, except for one, who took a while to realize what everybody was doing! Well, with everyone warmed up, Gloria started with the lecture proper.

On the white board, she spelled out the words "L-E-A-D-E-R-S-H-I-P". As she gave her lecture, she mentioned what each of the letters stood for.

L stands for "LOVE"
E stands for "ENCOURAGEMENT"
A stands for "ACTION"
D stands for "DRIVE"
E stands for "EXAMPLE"
R stands for "RELATIONSHIP"
S stands for "SUPPORTIVE"
H stands for "HUMILITY"
I stands for "INCENTIVE"
P stands for "PRIORITY"




Catch-phrases from her talk were the following:

"You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving."
"You will never find time for anything. You have to make time for it."

Well, hope you can join us in our next activities and like us, learn a lot from it.

What it takes to be a LEADER

Bring out the best in you...discover your potential to be a leader...learn to work with others and bring out the best in them...

Do these phrases mean something to you? If yes, then join us and the volunteers of Project: Brave Kids (this year's volunteer service project) for an afternoon of "self-discovery". Our speaker will be Ms. Gloria Ma, the HR Director of Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

July 5, Sunday
4:00 PM

Great night, great friends, beautiful Philippines!

At around 5 PM, the doorbell started to ring continuously for about 3 times. "Hi!" "Are you here for the International Night?"" Yes." And the newly-arrived would be ushered into the kitchen for the first part of the Philippine International Night: the cooking demonstration.

Ate Endy was Cook/Presenter for the evening. The menu for the activity were the all-time favorites: Pancit Canton (which was especially requested by Cris after she tasted it last year in the Tacloban Service Project), Chicken and Pork Adobo, Green Mango Salad with Sauteed Shrimp Paste (or bagoong), Fish Crackers with Vinegar and Garlic Dip and of course...Halo-Halo for dessert! Cris, Maggie, Amy, another Maggie and Wendy took turns slicing the carrots and the cabbage while Angie deveined the shrimps. Jenny lined the baskets with banana leaves and Susy helped out with the halo-halo ingredients...all 7 of them! Just below, we see Cris peeling the green mangoes and Wendy anxiously waiting for her turn.



















We took time preparing the dishes,there was little time left for the cultural get-together. Dayenne prepared a presentation about the Philippines. We also watched a promotional music video hightlighting the different scenic spots of the Philippines with famous Philippine artists singing in the background. Peggy brought this video with her after her vacation in Manila. We had such a great time...see you all again in our next International Night!

Philippines International Night

This month we will be re-discovering the Philippines once again through our International Night. This country in southeast asia composed of 7,000 islands has so much to offer...get to know about the fascinating culture, the friendly people, the varied landscapes, the food and much more! Join us for a cooking session, presentation and get-together with locals on May 30 (Saturday) from 5:00-7:30 PM. Give us a call for confirmations and head count! Fee: MOP 30 (includes dinner)Telephone 2853 0054

Sign up to be a volunteer!

Summer is coming soon....We all want to relax from school, have some fun, perhaps earn some extra income and learn new skills. After all, summer vacation would truly be a waste of time if we don't make the most of it, right?

Well, we are offering you a chance to spend part of your summer in the most educational, meaningful and fun-filled way: be a volunteer! This year, Wahn Tihng Study Center is organizing YouthCom 2009. YouthCom stands for Youth for the Community, an annual volunteer service project aimed at forming young women leaders by means of service work to needy communities. This year, we will be working with a Philippines-based foundation called Project: Brave Kids (www.projectbravekids.org), a group helping poor families with cancer-stricken children. We will be helping out in the following way:

- teach kids English and Maths, Arts and Crafts and Music
- teaching mothers livelihood projects that will help add to their income
- teach short courses on personal development for children and parents
- build a "learn and play corner" containing books and eductional toys in the
hospital

There's a lot of work to be done, so if you have what it takes to be a volunteer, JOIN US!
You can contact Jenny, Dayenne or Yoyette at 2853 0054 for details or send us an email.

HAPPY EASTER!

Wishing all of you a Happy Easter!

Bella, the Movie

Join us for our MOVIE REVIEW...
featuring the 2006 hit

"BELLA"


April 18 (Saturday)
5:00 - 7:30 pm,
Fee: MOP20 (with dinner)

Let's analyze, discuss and have fun!

Give us a call (2853 0054) !

ANGOLA International Night

Angola, a country rich in natural resources right in the southwestern coast of the African continent.

The national flag of Angola (left)

It was a delight learning dishes from Angola like Pipis, Moamba, Canja, tapioca dessert and much more. Our guest speaker and cook, Mercedes, taught us how to make these dishes. For some of us, it was our first time to see ingredients like tapioca flour and canned sauces from palm fruit. The cooking experience was one of a kind! Dessert! Mixing tapioca flour

Moamba



Light moments during Dayenne's powerpoint presentation

During the get-together, Mercedes told us how it was like growing up in Angola and having to leave it when unrest and civil war broke out. Although she is Portuguese, leaving Angola to go back to Portugal was like leaving one's home and entering a totally new world. In telling us about the people of Angola, among other things, she explained that for them, movements of the body are part of expressing oneself. Even children who are learning to walk already begin dancing!

Thanks Mercedes for sharing your time, your memories and your wonderful cooking! And thanks to you we know more about Angola and its people.

Meaningful discussions on LOVE

It was wonderful to see many smiling faces leaving the get-together we had last February 21 (Saturday). We had talked about an issue very close to everyone's heart: love. And it was nice to have come out from that talk reassured about the importance of holding on to the good principles that we have learned, learning from the mistakes of the others and coming out stronger and more resolved to be mature women with our heads over our hearts.

Our speaker, Gloria Ma, started the talk by asking the participants how they spent the past Valentine's Day. The participants shared their experiences, not only on how they spent Valentine's Day, but also how they manage dating with school work. One girl commented how she and her boyfriend try to encourage one another to study harder, often competing with one another who will get the better grades. After this warming up moment, the talk on Love and Relationships commenced. The following is a summary of the contents of the talk:

True love and chastity 真愛與貞潔

Real love between a man and a woman should be expressed through endless genuine care, mutual respect and concern for the other's well being over and above one's own selfishness. Often, we think that love is the quantity or quality of material or sense satisfaction that the other person is able to give us. The person loves me more if he gives me more things or makes me always feel good. Unknowingly, we are thinking more of ourselves ("what can I get from the other person?") more than thinking of the other person ("what can I give to the other person?").

There are many manifestations of love, according to the type of relationship (family, friends, etc.), the proximity or closeness (acquaintance, close friends, boyfriends, husband). With all those we truly love, the requirement that real love demands of giving oneself selflessly always holds. Yet, the way we show our love matters a lot. There is the suitable way for every occasion and circumstance. In the relationship between girlfriend and boyfriend, there should be mutual respect. Saving the gift of sex until marriage brings freedom, joy and true romance without regret. Quoting a illustration from a renowned author on chastity, the speaker told us how illogical it would be to use one's wedding gown (all white and clean) to mop up spilled coffee. This is how it is when we don't preserve our chastity for marriage. True love teaches us to wait and true love is made strong by patience, sacrifice and self control.