Light It Up: CHC Candlelight Service 2009

In continuation of tradition, City Harvest Church (Singapore) held its annual candlelight service during the weekend before Christmas, on 20 December 2009 at Singapore Expo.

Senior pastor Kong Hee shared a simple but resounding sermon on the five things about God we should know — that God is wonderful, He is our Counselor, our Prince of Peace, the Mighty God and finally, the Everlasting Father. He also talked about lives changed by the intervening power of God, and capped the sermon with an altar call.

When the lights dimmed, the flame that was lit on stage passed on to the congregation, each member holding a candle in a cardboard wax holder. Soon, the whole hall was illuminated with tiny amber glows. It was a captivating sight that aptly underscored the message of Christmas — that One was born in the midst of darkness to lead the way. The service ended with the singing of carols and exchange of greetings, in anticipation of the upcoming Christmas Day.

PHOTOS: Geoffery Chow, Michael Chan and Daniel Poh

That weekend also saw the return of Kong’s wife, Sun, an international pop artist who has been based in the United States for the last few years. She was back for a long-awaited, week-long Christmas reunion with her family.

O School Recital: The Language of a Generation

Three months of practice culminated in an evening of groove at the annual O School Recital, held at the Republic Cultural Centre on 13 December 2009. The recital aimed to showcase the talents of about 250 handpicked students from the O School performing arts center.

The evening kicked off in high gear with an energetic B-boy number that wowed the crowd with fancy footwork, spins, turns and freezes. The other 14 performances spanned genres of street jazz, hip hop, popping (involving jerky moves) and reggae. While most of the dances were slickly executed such that they belied the dancers’ lack of professional experience, the best-received performances were those that incorporated comical touches into their repertoire. A new dance style, waacking (a ’70s dance style focusing on dynamic arm movements), was also introduced at this year’s recital.

The costumes were equally varied, ranging from baggy sweatshirts to metallic leggings, some vampy and some Goth, but all inspired. One group even performed semi-blindfolded in see-through gauze. Full-time dance instructor Gin Lam, 24, said, “Throughout the years, we’ve seen the students’ skills and techniques improve, but beyond that we also want to see them grow in terms of crowd interaction.”

Cheering the dancers on was a 1,000-strong turnout of mostly youth, which also included celebrities Patricia Mok and Nat Ho, who had previously collaborated with O School for the President’s Star Charity show in October. “It was very inspiring seeing the performances, especially for us entertainers, as we know the value of dance in our everyday work,” said Mok. Another supporter, Elaine Wong, 57, a nurse, who was there to watch her daughter perform, said, “Watching these young people having such fun while pursuing their passion makes me feel young myself.”

About three quarters of O School’s enrolment comprise polytechnic students, with the rest being working adults. On the more difficult aspects of the rehearsals, Andee Chua, 19, a Year 3 polytechnic student said, “One of the most challenging aspects was definitely working together as a whole team, but that’s the beauty of it all — it’s always a team effort, never an individual one.” Awards were also presented for four categories — Most Improved Dancer, Most Loyal Dancer, Best Female Dancer and Best Male Dancer.

PHOTOS: Albert Soh

The night ended with a series of performances from none other than the O Crew — a group of 15 elite dancers from the school, 10 of whom are instructors themselves. Delivering one of the standout solo performances of the night was freelance dance instructor Benedict Koh, 26, who fused popping dance moves with hip hop music instead of the more conventional ’70s funk numbers.

Said Kenny Low, director of the four-year-old O School, “O School is about bringing street dance to the masses and creating a platform where dancers from different institutes can gather,” What’s in the pipeline? Having secured the rights to Dance Delight (a major street dance competition held annually in Paris, New York and Japan, among others), it looks like O School will be hosting the biggest dance competition this part of the world in the coming year.

Christmas: A Time of Giving

Apart from decking the halls with lights and Christmas trees, receiving presents and having good food, Christmas is also a time of giving, sharing and celebrating the kindness of the human spirit.

On 5 December, a group of volunteers visited Bright Hill Evergreen Home at 21 Senja Road. In prepping for the Christmas spirit, the team played games, caroled and brought gifts for the elderly at the nursing home. With the tunes of traditional Christmas carols and mandarin oldies by artistes such as Deng Li Jun, the atmosphere began to lighten up. The normal quiet Saturday transformed into a joyful afternoon of singing and celebration.

With the many charity organizations in Singapore, it is easy to forget the volunteer work that people do. Not in this case. The event, spearheaded by Dorothy Ng, started off as an independent effort of a group of people passionate to help make a difference in the lives of the less fortunate. With this determination, the team sent out request letters to different homes, without any representations from any corporate organizations and called for the help of many volunteers through their basic social network. To date, the team has already frequented many homes and aims to extend their outreach. However, they are not without purpose.

PHOTOS: Dorothy Ng

In contributing to the society, Ng and her team hope to help volunteers establish a sense of self-worth and motivation for themselves, living out the idea of feeling encouraged by being an encouragement. In the phenomenon of rising rates of people affected by depression, our community needs to learn to share the vision that by adding joy to someone’s lives, we may be able to find our own purpose. What is more meaningful is that the spirit of giving is expressed during the season of Christmas.

The Big Screen: The Princess and the Frog

Get out the popcorn! I’m going to curl in bed with The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast for old times sake. Disney’s retelling of the children’s classic The Princess and the Frog was a cosy reminder of my childhood. Catchy Broadway tunes, 2D characters, and of a course, a Princess, a Prince and a happily ever after.

But times have changed since Happily Ever Afters came along, and Disney is going with the flow as well. Princesses no longer lie around waiting for their Prince to come give them a kiss (remember Sleeping Beauty?) and they no longer have fairy godmothers to save them. Now they’re hard-working ladies who think for themselves.

Tiana, a waitress at a beat-up restaurant is working to fulfill her father’s dream of buying a dilapidated building and converting it into a restaurant. She finally gets her wish when her best friend Charlotte (the town’s local Paris Hilton) holds a giant party to welcome a Prince and hires Tiana to cater.

Sadly she is outbid and finds out she needs more money to get her building. Meanwhile, said Prince — who longs for freedom from being royalty — gets caught by the local Shadowman, who, in a catchy song and dance, proclaims he has friends on the other side to help him take over the town. He turns Prince Naveen into a frog and turns the Prince’s butler into the Prince instead.

The frog prince, who is desperate to find a Princess who will kiss him and turn him back, hops into Charlotte’s room and thinks Tiana, who has changed into her Princess costume, is the Princess and puckers up. Surprise! Tiana is turned into a frog instead.

Both go on an adventure through the rich New Orleans bayou to find Mama Odie, a Cajun voodoo lady, to turn them back. And like all Disney films, they pick up two companions, a trumpet-tooting alligator and a Cajun firefly who’s in love with a star. And as all Disney tales go, frog and frog fall in love, while singing, of course.

Tiana is charming as Disney’s new Princess. The first ever African-American Princess has the spark of a real woman who works hard for what she wants. She gives us working girls out there hope that there might be a happily ever after even for the most pessimistic of females. This Princess is able to charm little girls into looking up to her. In one particular scene where Tiana is tempted to give the Shadowman his magical talisman, one little girl in the cinema screamed out “No! No! Don’t give it to him!” amidst chuckles from the adults.

The magic of this Disney film isn’t just in the storybook cliches, but it’s also in the rich New Orleans settings where the bayou is rich in jazz, the Blues and delicious gumbo. The Cajun accent is hilarious as well and gives more heart to the film.

Without a doubt, this movie isn’t just for the kids, but serves as a great reminder on why heart-warming, 2D, family films will never die.

Rating:

Singapore SMEs Invest $2b In China Eco-Park

A CONSORTIUM of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) recently broke new ground for the private sector in Singapore. These SMEs are pumping an estimated US$1.5 billion (approximately S$2 billion) into developing an eco-park in Hangzhou, China. Past efforts of such scale in China have been undertaken by the Singapore government or government-linked companies, but never solely by private companies.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed on 24 November, between the consortium, called Cleantech Partners Pte Ltd and the Hangzhou municipal government to jointly master-plan, develop and promote the Hangzhou-Singapore Eco-Park (HSEP). The 500 mu (about 35ha) HSEP will comprise commercial and retail buildings, service apartments and eventually, residential buildings and light industrial zones.

The HSEP aims to have at least half its energy use derived from renewable sources and will be utilizing green strategies for water management, waste and by-product exchanges, transportation and green buildings to enhance the competitiveness of businesses located within the park.

Steven Lim, chief executive officer of RSTN Consulting Pte Ltd, who is also the chairman of the consortium explained that the potential of entering into the green business in China is immense, because Chinese President Hu Jintao recently announced that China will play its part in combating climate change by significantly reducing its carbon emissions by 2020.

Hangzhou was chosen as a suitable location for several reasons. Situated a mere 180km southwest of economic epicenter Shanghai, Hangzhou is one of the most renowned and prosperous cities in China. One of the seven ancient capitals of China, Hangzhou is rich in historical and cultural heritage. Well-known for its iconic West Lake, Hangzhou also boasts beautiful scenery.

PHOTOS: Yuan Wenling

The city is home to some 56 universities, including Zhejiang University, one of the top-rated universities in China, resulting in a highly educated population. Hangzhou-ans are reported to have the highest happiness index across China.

Lim concluded that ultimately, the Cleantech aims to “build an eco-park that is iconic for Singapore, setting a standard for future SMEs and even government-linked companies when they enter the Chinese market.”

Chong’s Yummy Favorites: Ayam Penyet at Sri Bistari

Ayam penyet

Being lovers of all things fried and spicy, it’s really no surprise Singaporeans have taken an instant liking to the Indonesian ayam penyet. Not to mention how it bears certain similarities to perennially popular Hainanese chicken rice but laced with a fiery Indonesian attitude — a formula for predictable success here.

As it usually is with all popular dishes, ayam penyet stalls have been popping up en masse all over Singapore, and we find it our imperative to sift out the best from the dry and tasteless ones.

We love that the one at Sri Bistari Changi Village makes the cut with us. Despite the unavoidable queue that trademarks all popular Singaporean food stalls, the fragrant and fluffy (though we’re guessing hardly authentically Indonesian) Hainanese chicken rice, the accompanying MSG-yummy soup and stinging sweet sambal chilli made us most happy in the belly indeed. The chicken was wonderfully tender and well-seasoned, and tasted even better with a heap of the spicy but flavorful sambal chilli.

Just don’t try this without stocking up a good round of iced drinks and tissues at your table. Things could get ugly.

Overall Rating:

As told to Elizabeth Low

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