He wanted a good life, but had forgotten that he had to be a good person first - not just to himself, but to others’ lives too. If not, of what good and how good could his life...

‘Fix me a drink’, he asked, again and again. Forgetting again and again, that he could it himself, that he needn’t bother someone else or disappoint himself with rejection, again and...

For whom the bell tolls? For the asker of this, at least, who hears it, who wonders this, and you, the reader too.

He didn’t like it that many books seem to be coded, heavily laden with technical and cultural terms. It made him feel inadequate, although he took some comfort that it means many writers are the inadequate too. It was only half his fault that he couldn’t understand them? The...

They say when you see yourself, it is time to die. But there is another way to see yourself, and another way to die - when you see yourself so clearly by reflection, that you decide to change for the better - to be reborn, without actual...

His blindness was no longer a weakness; but a strength, not because he overcame it, but because he accepted that he couldn’t, and yet made do best he can. It is a strength because even most who are not blind cannot accept such blindness, be it his or potentially theirs. They are...

Suspecting him to be the backstabber at first, the more he looked at him, the more he looked like one. Realising he was not the backstabber later, the more he looked at him, the less he looked like...

She made her jobscope so crystal clearly defined, that she hardly offered any help to colleagues beyond her obligations. Naturally, she was hardly offered any help by them beyond their...

His towering stacks of books all over the room was a sign of his great knowledge. But the toppling of them onto him, almost drowning him in a sea of words was a sign of his great lack of wisdom. He had enough knowledge for application but not enough wisdom to apply them - not even for storage...

Forgetting that death is eventual, that it can come all too sudden, he was contented that he was ‘completely healed’, that he had come across a ‘masterful’ healer, who could not even heal his own terminal ‘illness’ of...

She thought the idea of nudity was arbitrary and absurd. A girl who bares her top is considered naked, while a guy who bares his not really naked. Who decides who is more...

She realised she didn’t really like the iced lemon tea there, since the tea was often too sweet or the lemon too little. What she really liked was ‘going there for it’, not so much ‘it’...

There again after many years, but seeing instead an unfamiliar renovated place with strangers, he realised what he missed wasn’t the association’s headquarters, but his past associating with his past associates...

He wrote on the photograph he snapped: ‘Wished I was there’, for he was so occupied with capturing the perfect shot, that he didn’t really immerse in the scenery beyond the...

Thought after watching ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’: How do you really trust anyone, including yourself? If you are completely trustworthy, why are you not enlightened yet, totally aligned with truth? Obviously, there must be self-deceit going on to some extent! How do you really...

Question: Can I have your permission to forward your course notes to share with a friend? Answer: Sometimes, I’m afraid that those who don’t come to class imagine how the class is like just by looking at the notes, and decide the class is not interesting, and never come to class...

Question: A shelf above my desk gave way and broke my Bodhisattva image. Can I glue the pieces and continue to pay respect? Answer: I think this is a very powerful reminder of how life can be very unpredictable, and how we should treasure the moment without attachment. Yes, of course you can...

Sam & Sara #377 Sara: Does the hair on your arms keep you from the cold? Sam: I guess. Sara: Why guess? Sam: I can’t tell as they’ve always been there. Sara: They probably do… to some extent… I guess. Sam: Exactly! A calculated guess  at best is still...

Sam & Sara #376 Sam: Maybe it’s just symbolic. Maybe it means something more! Sara: What does it symbolise then? Sam: Then again… Maybe it’s not symbolic. Maybe it doesn’t mean anything more! Sara: Huh? Sam: Maybe it’s just what it is! Do you read too...

Sam & Sara #375 Sam: I’m worried about it. Sara: Can you do something about it? Sam: Yup… Sara: Why worry about it then? Just do it! What you can do something about is not a problem; unless you choose not to take any action.  [This'll be expanded & illustrated as a comic...