Flabbergasted and disappointed

 

On 22 Nov, my flight to New Delhi was in the afternoon, In the morning I asked my co-worker Dr Mike Ong, if I could get some roses for my wife. (It was my usual practise to get her, her favourite colours whenever I go to a new place. Not easy as you have hand carry, with many staring. Some even had the audacity to say, "Oh for your girl friend"🤦🏽‍♂️). Mike looked surprised and and said "its not cheap here". " I need a peace offering bro", I retorted sheepishly. 🤣

Mike said he knew some florist about 30 mins away and so we walked. It was not an easy walk as we had to ascend a hill. Along the way, Mike said he needs to go to the bank and he will be back in a while. I waited for a while and since it was getting late, I decided to venture on my own to get the flowers.

Lo and behold, I found the florist without any help and exactly the colours I wanted. I was so overjoyed, not for me but for her. The florist wrapped it nicely and it was a good bargain. Mike was pleasantly surprised at what I got. And so was I.

But my joy was short-lived.

As I was checking in through the security checks, the Nepali officer grabbed the flowers and said, "flowers not allow to be taken out of Nepal". And he just threw it away. I was like...ahhh. Lost for words. I nearly lost my head. My heart sank. Almost wanted to shout at him but a small voice within reminded me the I am a foreigner here and "you don't want any trouble".

After all the trouble I had gone through, just to be mishandled by an insensitive person (I am tempted to use some crass superlatives here but I shall refrain).

I left the place feeling angry and dejected 😰 I texted my daughter Jessica and vented my frustration. "Awww papa, that’s so nice and thoughtful of you", was her reply. It was not consoling.💔

It's five days now after the incident, I'm still disappointed but not angry anymore. Jeya doesn't know. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Devotion - Psalms 44: 6-7 - Its God who gives the victory

Image
Psalms 44:6-7 - I put no trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame. Any soldier will know that the basic weapon of warfare, in those days, were the bow and sword. Without which no soldier will not venture into the battle field. Even the famed Goliath was geared in full battle order when he faced David with the stones and the sling. Isn't it a paradox then that David, one of the finest soldiers Israel had ever produced, proclaims that its not the bow and the sword that gives the victory. Its is the Lord, Jehovah, that gives the victory. I don't think David is trying to say that we should not prepare ourselves for warfare. His concern is that we recognize that ultimately its the Lord that gives the victory. A few things we need to remember: Human efforts are necessary in the God-man partnership Human efforts alone does not guarantee God intended results Recognize that its God that always gives u
Read more

25th Wedding Annivesary - Silver Jubilee

Image
11-1-11 - 25th Wedding Anniversary. Today my wife and I celebrate our Silver Jubilee, 25 years of being married together. How time flies. I look out of the window, the weather reminiscent of the day we got married. It was raining the whole day and so is today. How appropriate. Praise God for His faithfulness in our lives and for the blessings He has given us. Lam 3:22-23 - Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. It has been a wonderful journey. Yes there were disagreements, quarrels, desperation and even "fights" but through it all, our love has grown stronger for the Lord , for the family, for the ministry and for one another. Jeya has been the magnet that holds our family together. Almost three months in a year I am out of country for ministry and kids busy in school. But she has always been the inventory holder that keeps reminding of the things that needs to be done an
Read more

Fare-thee-well my friend, Rev James Ng - A tribute

Image
I t was with deep sadness that we bade farewell to another of God's General, Rev James Ng. But we don't grieve like the rest of the world because of the hope we have in Christ Jesus. We will meet him soon at the Master's feet. To me , he was more than a friend. A true brother in Christ. He was one of the pillars of our Missions work in Asia. A true missionary, teacher, philantrophist and servant with a devoted passion for His Master.  I met James in 2010, when he attended the Haggai Area Seminar, held in RELC. He was introduced to me by our dear friend, Sis Doreen Lim and her husband Dr Lim. Thereafter we became good friends and he became acquainted with our mission work. He was a regular on many of those trips. He preached and taught the Word to many church planters and congregations. It was not easy for him, with all his medical conditions. There were times when we had to travel long hours on the road, up the mountains, down the valleys, cross rivers, and stay in uncomfor
Read more