Life & Faith

I have a couple of good friends, some that I can share things with. However, I do not have a best friend. Also, though I have many friends from different social circles whom I meet with occasionally, I don't have one particular close-knit group that I often hang out with. I have been wondering for years: Is it normal not to have a best friend at all, or a close-knit social circle? Is there anything wrong with me or my personality?

The final exam of a counselling course I teach involves my students analysing and proposing a plan of action for a hypothetical case. In addition to writing an essay to demonstrate their analytical skills, they do a role play.

Love is often associated with ideas of romance, roses, soft-focus pictures and gentle, kind words. Toughness, being stern and exacting, seem to be diametrically opposite. Yet many of us would have heard of “tough love”. What is it?

A scenario I sometimes use when training counsellors is one of a family in conflict over a daughter's wish to live with her boyfriend. After a year of living at home after returning from three years of study abroad, the daughter says her boyfriend from overseas is moving to Singapore to work and they plan to live together.

The proverb, "The apple does not fall far from the tree", speaks of the idea that we each carry something within us that is from our parents. It could be a physical characteristic (like our eye colour), a food allergy, or a personality trait (like being particular about cleanliness or having a quick temper).

As each new year begins, we may wish for different things. For some, it may be a promotion, finally getting to go for a dream holiday or finding that special someone with whom to spend the rest of their life.

Bob Dylan's folk song "The Times They Are a-Changin'" was released in 1964 but still speaks to the times we are living in. In the last three years, one big change we all had to adjust to was Covid-19.

On 8 September, Queen Elizabeth II passed on. The longest-reigning monarch of our time, she was a constant amidst all the changes of the past 70 years.

He came to see me wanting to work on his impatience and temper. When I asked my usual question of how he learned about me, he shared that it was through his wife.

In last month’s issue of Methodist Message, I shared about three men seeking to free themselves from the legacy of harsh parenting. In their childhood households, love and care was only shown, if at all, when they met parental expectations.

The similarities among three clients struck me recently. All three are men. All three are capable high achievers with respectable jobs. And all three have issues with managing their anger. Sadly, these issues have seen them lash out and hurt family members. Although one has shown flashes of his impatience to colleagues, their displays of […]

It has been a few months since Singapore shifted to “living with Covid” and treating it as endemic. Most restrictions for gatherings and dining have been lifted and more workers have returned to their workplaces. Food outlets and shopping malls are once again abuzz with customers. Traffic congestion and crowded MRT trains are becoming commonplace. […]