Is Life Meaningful For You?

Life could well be mundane if you have not found your purpose and meaning. Each day you wake up and go through pretty much the same routine until you hit the sack again at night, day in, day out.

"Hope of Life" by Charmaine

Thankfully, there are the weekends and public holiday breaks as well as special occasions like birthdays and weddings plus refreshing experiences such as overseas travel, training courses and hobbies to pursue. 

You could well be diligently improving your capabilities, charting your career progression, generating good returns on your investment and maybe even expanding your businesses. But, is that all there is to life? 

The following excerpt from the Book of Ecclesiastes conveys to us how meaningless life may appear:-

"These are the words of the Teacher, King David’s son, who ruled in Jerusalem.

“Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless!”

What do people get for all their hard work under the sun? 

Generations come and generations go, but the earth never changes. 

The sun rises and the sun sets, then hurries around to rise again. 

The wind blows south, and then turns north. Around and around it goes, blowing in circles. Rivers run into the sea, but the sea is never full. Then the water returns again to the rivers and flows out again to the sea. 

Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content.

History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new." -- Ecclesiastes 1: 1 - 9 (NLT)

Indeed if you see life only within the boundaries of this world ("under the sun") and your lifespan, life will not be very meaningful. 

Let the following expository sermon by Pastor Benny Ho enlighten you on how to find your Master, Mission and Meaning.  

Click here for [Ecclesiastes] Is Life Worth Living? | Benny Ho

Also, the following testimony will encourage to stay strong and go through your difficult season until you have developed fortitude and find your breakthrough in doing life with God as your Lord of all.

Click here for There Is A Work That Lasts For Eternity: Entrepreneur Jourdan Kamal

Thank you for reading Daily Refreshing.

SG Food Culture: Soon Lee Stew Beef

It has been a while since I stopped by Soon Lee Stew Beef at Alexandra Village ("AV") Food Centre for some familiar tender beef and tendon served in a fire-pot.

Back when I was still in junior college, AV was a hot lunch spot for my classmates and I, and Soon Lee Stew Beef was one of my favourite haunt. Mr Edwin Tan Han Poh has been helming it now for the past few decades ever since his mother had passed on.

The flame below the claypot did a great job of keeping the stew piping hot. I was pleased with the portion of beef and tendon which were super generous indeed for SGD 8.00 while the rice costs SGD 0.70. For sharing with your makan kakis (meal buddies), you could order the SGD 10.00 or SGD 12.00 servings.

The meat was tender, top-notch flavourful, not salty and melted in my mouth. Yes, it was a familiar taste but even better than my previous experience some years ago as the meat was tastier with a smoother texture and not skewed by tinge of saltiness this time round. It is still the best beef stew ever for me.

While I sat down to partake my meal, Mr Edwin Tan asked whether I would like a bowl of soup and I was glad to take up his offer. My friend, that bowl of soup went really well with the soup and rice; never turn down what a chef recommends.

I am thankful and happy that Mr Edwin Tan has kept the legacy of Soon Lee Stew Beef and garnered recognition in the process. Besides stew beef, you can also order beef soup, herbal mutton soup and vegetables in oyster sauce.

May Soon Lee Stew Beef continue to attain further accolades and gain more followers as more people discover it and come to Alexandra Village Food Centre to enjoy their heritage food.

Thank you for reading Daily Refreshing.

Rose Romance at Flower Dome (2 to 30 June 2024)

The current display of Turkish roses happening at Flower Dome from 2nd to 30th June 2024 is a collaboration between Gardens by the Bay and the Embassy of Türkiye to Singapore.

As extracted from the blurb at Gardens by the Bay website:-

"Embark on a fragrant journey through Turkish history, where the rose reigns supreme as the queen of flowers through the history of perfume extraction.

Journey through time and culture where the influence of Greeks and Romans have shaped the cultural landscape of Türkiye, come to the fore. See the majestic white travertine terraces of Pamukkale, wander through the ancient ruins of the thermal spa Hierapolis, and marvel at classical architectural elements from Sagalassos, including Hellenistic columns and Roman fountains."  

Here are some snapshots to nudge you to take a walk and smell the roses which might well get you all fired up to visit Türkiye and hop on to a hot air balloon tour while you are there.

Click here to find out more on the happenings at Gardens by the Bay.

Trust that the roses have refreshed you. Thank you for coming by to read Daily Refreshing.

Food Culture: Yong Tau Foo

Yong Tau Foo is one of the local food that you can find in Singapore at hawker centres, food courts and kopi tiams (coffee shops). 

The staples are vegetables (such as bitter gourd and brinjal) and variations of bean curds stuffed with pork or fish meat paste. Other items on the menu are vegetables per se, cuttlefish, tempeh, potato, fish maw, fish balls, yam, et cetera.

These items are served with rice, noodles, bee hoon or chee cheong fun in clear soup, laksa gravy or tom yam soup.

Here is a sample from Ah Chew's Yong Tau Foo.

Yong Tau Foo in clear soup

Click here for Leslie and Lisa uncovers the Yong Tau Foo story

Click here for Red Sea Homemade Yong Tau Foo - handmade fresh every morning 

Click here for The ‘Magic’ of Making Hakka Yong Tau Fu by Hand