How Much Is A Miracle??

A TRUE STORY

Tess was a precocious eight year old when she heard her Mom and Dad talking about her little brother, Andrew. All she knew was that he was very sick and they were completely out of money. They were moving to an apartment complex next month because Daddy didn't have the money for the doctor bills and their house.

Only a very costly surgery could save Andrew now and it was looking like there was no one to loan them the money. She heard Daddy say to her tearful Mother with whispered desperation, "Only a miracle can save him now."

Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place in the closet. She poured all of the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes. Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall's Drug Store with the big red Indian Chief sign above the door.

She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention but he was to busy at this moment. Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffing noise. Nothing. She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could muster. No good. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter. That did it!

"And what do you want?" the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. "I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven't seen in ages," he said without waiting for a reply to his question.

"Well, I want to talk to you about MY brother," Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone. "He's really, really sick... and I want to buy a miracle."

"I beg your pardon?" asked the pharmacist.

"His name is Andrew, and he has something bad growing inside of his head, and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?"

"We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry but I can't help you," the pharmacist said, softening a little.

"Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn't enough, I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it costs."

The pharmacist's brother was a well dressed man. He stooped down and asked the little girl, "What kind of a miracle does you brother need?"

"I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up. "I just know he's really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation. But, my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use my money."

"How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago.

"One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely audibly. "And it's all the money I have, but I can get some more if I need to.

"Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man. "A dollar and eleven cents -- the exact price of a miracle for little brothers." He took her money in one hand and with the other hand he grasped her mitten and said "Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let's see if I have the kind of miracle you need."

That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in neuro-surgery. The operation was completed without charge. And it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and doing well. Mom and Dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had led them to this place.

"That surgery," her Mom whispered, "was a real miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?"

Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost... one dollar and eleven cents... plus the faith of a little child.

The End.

In our lives, we never know how many miracles we need.

A miracle is not the suspension of natural law, but the operation of a higher law.

My Birthday

Happy Birthday ^-^
13/7/2007. It's my 19th birthday :-) No presents?? My presents are the wishes from my friends & family. Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes.

My birthday Cake :)

Peng Hoe & Rosalind's Wedding(07.07.07)

SATURDAY(07.07.07)

MORNING

Mr Ang Peng Hoe & Rosalind Tay's Wedding.
It's a nice date for a wedding :-) Congratulations to this couple ^^.

Venue of the wedding ceremony : THE ACTS CHURCH

Here is a picture of the couple at the entrance.

Nicely decorated wedding invitation card.

The ceremony started with Bridal Procession. As usual, a wedding march will be played but this time using a song called "Every Seasons" by Nichole Nordeman. Chris sang this song with her sweet voice with Ps. Alex playing on the keyboard with his "feeling" and me on the synthesizer to play the strings part.

Flower Girls :)

The ceremony continues with praise & worship lead by Jack Ling.

Musicians: Ps Alex, Joel Vijay, Nick Chin, Agnel Raj, & me.

Charly the saxophonist, The sax man.

Solemnization of Marriage.

And now, I present to you Mr Ang Peng Hoe & Rosalind Tay as husband and wife. The groom
may kiss the bride now :-)




The Bride with all the ladies in the God's house.

Mr & Mrs Ang's family - when two become one












James, The Groom, Me & Moses











Peng Hoe & Rosalind with the ACTS Blue

The Groom & Me.

It's MAKAN time....^^

NIGHT

Wedding Banquet at The Saujana Hotel, Kuala Lumpur.

Photo Session before the wedding banquet.

Aaron,Kenneth & Me

The wedding banquet started of with a duet singing performance by Ps Andy Yeoh & Jay Loh with Ps Alex on the keyboard. They were singing a song by Mercyme called I Can Only Imagine. I don't have the picture of them singing for the moment....
After finish singing, it's MAKAN time ^^

Piano Lessons

PIANO LESSONS

My name is Hondorf. I am a former elementary school music teacher from Des Moines, Iowa. I've always supplemented my income by teaching piano lessons--something I've done for over 30 years.

Over the years I found that children have many levels of musical ability. I've never had the pleasure of having a protégé, though I "musically challenged" pupils. One such student was Robby. Robby was 11 years old when his mother (a single Mom) dropped him off for his first piano lesson. I prefer that students (especially boys!) begin at an earlier age, which I explained to Robby. But Robby said that it had always been his mother's dream to hear him play the piano. So I took him as a student.

Well, Robby began with his piano lessons, and from the beginning I thought it was a hopeless endeavor. As much as Robby tried, he lacked the sense of tone and basic rhythm needed to excel. But he dutifully reviewed his scales and some elementary pieces that I require all my students to learn.

Over the months he tried and tried while I listened and cringed and tried to encourage him. At the end of each weekly lesson he always say, "My Mom's going to hear me play someday." But it seemed hopeless. He just did not have any inborn ability. I only knew his mother from a distance as she dropped Robby off or waited in her aged car to pick him up. She always waved and smiled but never stopped in.

Then one day Robby stopped coming to our lessons. I thought about calling but assumed, because of his lack of ability, that he had decided to pursue something else. I also was glad that he stopped coming. He was a bad advertisement for my teaching! Several weeks later I mailed to the student's homes a flyer on the upcoming recital. To my surprise Robby (who received a flyer) asked me if he could be in the recital. I told him that the recital was for current pupils and because he had dropped out he really did not qualify. He said that his Mom had been sick and unable to take him to piano lessons but he was still practicing. "Miss Hondorf...I've just got to play!" he insisted. I don't know what led me to allow him to play in the recital. Maybe it was his persistence, or maybe it was something inside of me saying that it would be all right.

The night for the recital came. The high school gymnasium was packed with parents, friends and relatives. I put Robby up last in the program before I was to come up and thank all the students and play a finishing piece. I thought that any damage he would do would come at the end of the program and I could always salvage his poor performance through my "curtain closer."

Well the recital went off without a hitch. The students had been practicing and it showed. Then Robby came up on stage. His clothes were wrinkled and his hair looked like he'd run an eggbeater through it. "Why didn't he dress up like the other students? " I thought. "Why didn't his mother at least make him comb his hair for this special night?" Robby pulled out the piano bench and he began. I was surprised when he announced that he had chosen Mozart's Concerto # 1 in C Major. I was not prepared for what I heard next. His fingers were light on the keys; they even danced nimbly on the ivories. He went from pianissimo to fortissimo ... from allegro to virtuoso. His suspended chords that Mozart demands were magnificent! Never had I heard Mozart played so well by a person his age. After six and a half minutes, he ended in a grand crescendo and everyone was on one’s feet in wild applause.

Overcome and in tears I ran up on stage and put my arms around Robby in joy. "I've never heard you play like that Robby! How'd you do it?" Through the microphone Robby explained: "Well Miss Hondorf... remember I told you my Mom was sick? Well, actually, she had cancer and passed away this morning. And well ... she was born deaf, so tonight was the first time she ever heard me play. I wanted to make it special."

There wasn't a dry eye in the house that evening. As the people from Social Services led Robby from the stage to be placed into foster care, I noticed that even their eyes were red and puffy and I thought to myself how much richer my life had been for taking Robby as my pupil. No, I've never had a protégé -- but that night I became a protégé..of Robby's. He was the teacher and I was the pupil. For it is he that taught me the meaning of perseverance and love, and believing in yourself, and maybe even taking a chance in someone and you don't know why.

This is especially meaningful to me since, after serving in Desert Storm, Robby was killed in the senseless bombing of the Alfred P.Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in April of 1995, where he was reportedly.... playing the piano.

And now, here’s a footnote to the story. We can all make a difference. We all have thousands of opportunities a day to help realize God's plan.