What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.

Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet...

-- Psalm 8:4-6

Went to the Bodyworks exhibit today with my family. It's a cool exhibit -- really amazing how all the bodies were preserved and plastinated to show every single detail, or other specimens showing just the network of arteries or nerves... the complexities and intricacies of human body are just so amazing.

The above quotation was actually the first quotation of a series throughout the exhibit, which was also cool. To me, it is no question that anyone who studies the sciences, including the creator, Gunther Von Hagens, can deny the any intelligent design.

Just amazing... go see the exhibit (even though it's $25 =p).

Until next time, this is Gladys Yam.

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called,
Wonderful Counseller, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
-- Isaiah 9:6

For unto us a child is bo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-orn!

We went to watch the Messiah on yesterday -- it was the first time I've watched a full performance of it! I thought the performance was great and it actually went by swifter than I expected [I'm not generally a huge fan of vocal classical music]. I thought the conductor, Jane Glover, was absolutely fabulous and the Toronto Mendelssohn choir did not disappoint (they didn't disappoint for Beethoven's ninth either), although perhaps I had somewhat depressed expectations after hearing a plethora of criticisms last year. ;)

As always, Kevin Bazzana's programme notes pack a lot of classical music trivia/facts and it was interesting to read about the controversies that Handel stirred by promoting the musical form of the oratorio [a musical setting of a religious subject intended for public entertainment outside the church]. I guess I just haven't thought much on church history to realize that the questions of "form" will never change... that the debate of what is "appropriate worship" will continue, as it has since 1743 and probably long before that too.

Janey also pointed out that the Messiah was performed back then around Easter as the Messiah concludes with the confidence in the resurrection of Christ.

As I mentioned, I'm not generally a huge fan of classical music, and it would be interesting to travel back in time to see if people really enjoyed melisma. Sometimes, I wonder if Handel thought it would just be amusing to succomb a bass or any of the other voices to see if they would still make sense in expressing the lines of Scripture while packing into that line a couple dozen of notes. =p

The Hallelujah chorus was actually felt anti-climactic to me, although it could have been because I was figuring out where we were at that point. =p Of course, it is only the conclusion of Part II, whereas the real conclusion -- at Part III packs the climax of the oratorio. I enjoyed that final chorus (as well as the "For unto us a Child is born" chorus -- my favourite Christmas verse!) very much:

Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, and hath redeemed us to God by His blood, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. Blessing and honour, glory and pow'r be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever. [Revelation V9 and 12-13]

Until next time, this is Gladys Yam.

Last stretch...

Thank God for getting me through these few weeks; I've just clocked more hours than usual (seriously -- I'm a slacker!) Last week of the year-end fieldwork on the larger client, but then I'm juggling a few others over the next couple of weeks. Sadly, our group is very busy with work this December; it seems to have gotten much busier compared to last year. And unfortunately, we cannot be busy with all of the *other* busy December / Christmas stuff.

But, I have enjoyed spending the long hours with the rest of the team... we will survive! Haha...

I'm happy that we had a pretty good time of sharing last night at fellowship; hopefully we were able to provoke some self-evaluation / reflection / or in general, thought in everyone in order to better understand our inner passions and hopes for the fellowship.

Anyway, just a quick update and to say that I'm alive; I didn't really move to Mississauga permanently. =p

Until next time, this is Gladys Yam.

Ahh.. swamped... swamped...

I guess it was no suprrise that after my trips, I would spent a lot of time catching up on work that I neglected while I was away. In any case, this December seems a lot busier than last year, especially with many client complications. I guess I also have to deal with a lot more clients than I did last year.

Sadly, the entire (extended) team has been living to work, and sadly, most of my discussions surround the status of my "work". Still, I do find the camaraderie comforting as we support each other during this busy time.

Biblical Interpretation has already come and gone! I thoroughly enjoyed the course -- all of the classes that I attended, anyway. I find it amazing to continually learn about the Bible and how to better appreciate and understand it. Of course, the starting of understanding is simply *faith*.

Looking forward to the end of this busyness... until next time, this is Gladys Yam.