27 June 2007 Wednesday.
I separated from my campmates as we go on our separated ways home. My bus reached Bukit Batok Bus Interchange, and I took a walk into West Mall. A text came from a ORDed friend, saying he has a gift from Hong Kong for me. To stall time waiting for him to arrive home, I went into Bukit Batok Community Library and borrowed a few books quickly. 1 was copy writing, another resumes, a book for writing autobiography and one for writing journals.
[
Side story about my library fascination: My mum used to bring me to ang mo kio's library when I was young even though traveling time took at least 30 mins. (there was where I read about computer programming.) I was a librarian 3 years in my secondary school days. I spent countless time in Yishun library when it was built no more than 50m from my home! After O'levels while working, I made it a point to visit every branch of community library in Singapore - I believed covered almost everyone of them. NYP library was a place we inhabited during exams period, while some studied, some eyed for girls)
Trivial: Spelling and Languages are still one of my worst abilities! Some friends think I'm dyslexia.
]
The book that caught my attention, “Notes From Myself”, subtitled “A Guide to Creative Journal Writing” by “Anne Hazard Aldrich”.
My impressions reading the book, was it teaches you what is journal writing, the benefits and insights, and provides interesting notes and excerpts from other authors and journal writers. The book gives tips for writing, and also reasons to make you do so, and although journal writing would be a mile different with blogging, nevertheless its a read to make you reflect how you write.
Listening to the Morimur album while reading took my thoughts and feelings back and forth many places while I try to complete the book before the due date. Morimur album, btw, is recording done by Christoph Poppen and Hilliard Ensemble rendition of (a remixed) Bach’s Solo Violin Partita and Vocal Music. It has a modern idea, yet a very nice baroque, bach feel.
Back to the book, the last chapter made me reflect on the words of eleventh century scholastic Richard of St. Victor:
A man, who has not yet succeeded in seeing himself, raises his eyes in vain to see God. Let a man first understand the invisible things of himself before he presumes to stretch out to the invisible things of God…
for unless you can understand yourself, how can you try to understand those things which are above yourself.