Happy Fasting Day

It is time for me to start fasting and be more committed in daily prayers as today is Ash Wednesday.
The 40 days of Lent calling for acts of self-denial, soul searching, continuing faith in the gospel and Christian repentance begin today, Ash Wednesday, a day of fast and abstinence for Roman Catholics before Easter Sunday.
Since all of us are weighed down by sin, fasting is proposed to us as an instrument to restore friendship and to walk closer with God.
I as a Roman Catholic observe this Holy Ash Wednesday and will have my forehead crossed with ashes from burnt palm fronds from last year’s Palm Sunday when parish priests will remind the congregation of their mortality by quoting the Bible, "from dust thou art, to dust thou shalt return."
As the parish priest imposed the ashes on our foreheads, he will remind us "to turn away from sin and to be faithful to the gospel."
Beginning today, Christians are called upon to dwell on the penitential season of Lent, a fitting time to return to God by way of repentance, penance, and sacrifice in asking for forgiveness from the Lord.

A Prayer for Ash Wednesday

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, the all-holy one, who gives us life and all things. As we go about our lives, the press of our duties and activities often leads us to forget your presence and your love. We fall into sin and fail to live out the responsibilities that you have entrusted to those who were baptized into your Son.

In this holy season, help us to turn our minds and hearts back to you. Lead us into sincere repentance and renew our lives with your grace. Help us to remember that we are sinners, but even more, help us to remember your loving mercy.

As we live through this Ash Wednesday, may the crosses of ashes that mark our foreheads be a reminder to us and to those we meet that we belong to your Son. May our worship and prayer and penitence this day be sustained throughout these 40 days of Lent. Bring us refreshed and renewed to the celebration of Christ’s resurrection at Easter.

We ask this through your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

As I was alone

My daughter left home two weeks ago. I was down with fever, cough, sore throat and a mild asthma attack. I looked up for a doctor and was asked to put on antibiotics and medication to stop the cough and to relieve my asthma.
As I was staying alone at home, I caught the sight of an adorable praying mantis which flew into my house through the window panes. I brought it into my bedroom. It seems to have fellow feeling on me.
Oh, good grief! It came to accompany me during these silent, loneliest nights while I was sick on bed. I was lifted up by its presence. I spent a few nights dawdling with it. Look at the photos I have taken! Is it so adorable?
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Some Chinese Cuisines

Some Chinese Cuisines I had during my visit to China.
This is one of the dessert. The butter cream coated yam paste. The culinary art is awesome but the taste is so so...

What is this? It was served with porridge in hotel at Hangzhou. I was so curious, I thought it was a kind of edible escargot. I tried tapping with my spoon but it was soft. I got one and tried. Ceh, a kind of preserved veg called 'luo si cai'.

These are what we had for breakfast at most of the hotel in China.

A very famous cuisine in China ~ Salted water duck( 盐 水 鸭). Do you notice that the skin is still fledged? Yuk! Yuk!

I prefer roasted duck rather than salted water duck.

Hahaha, an erected "du ka"!

This fish from Xihu really tastes odd, it has the earthlike savour.

Sweet sour fish ~ more to Malaysian favour.

"Dong po rou" ~ succulent pork prepared in the clay pot is the favourite of our group.

Curry pork? Have you ever tried before? A lot leftover!

A pair of Yangcheng Lake Hairy Crabs ( 阳 澄 湖 大 闸 蟹)which cost rmb120. The tag marks the genuine crabs from Yangcheng Lake.
The hairy crabs in Yangcheng Lake near Shanghai are one of the most coveted Autumn delicacies for the Chinese. Since it was the beginning of winter, we were able to hunt for this delicacy. The hairy crabs are famous for the tender meat and tasty yolk (ovary and digestive glands). I devoured this pair. Wow, yummy! yummy!