Happy (belated) Fathers' Day

Ya, ya, i know it's kinda late and fathers' day was last Sunday, i was at a NoGAPS (National Gathering Of Pharmacy Students) camp that time and ya, life has been very busy lately.

Here's a speech i wrote for a public speaking competition I had in April this year. This speech is dedicated to my dearest dad and mum (especially dad coz it's fathers' day ma..hehe). I love you mum and dad. :)

I am contestant no 10, my name is Chai Hung Jen. The topic of my speech tonight is

Adversity or Opportunity

Brothers and sisters, imagine in the dark and narrow, long and winding roads with only one headlamp of an old bicycle shinning through 26-mile journey in the wee hours. How do you feel?

Every day, rain or shine, he never failed to pedal his way to quench his thirst for knowledge.

Years passed, he became the youngest headmaster of at times.

Adversity never exists in his vocabulary, but only opportunity. He is none other than my dearest father.

One day, my dad said this to me while I was a little child, “Jen, adversity is never and should never be an excuse to stop us from succeeding our life.” Those words kept ringing in my head since then.

I was taught to be independent since the tender age of 4.

I was taught to go to kindergarten by the school bus on my own.

I was taught to solve my own problems and make my own decisions since young.

My dad always made it a point to come home every weekend to shower us his unconditional love.

My dad is not a millionaire to provide us with endless cash, but he provides us with endless knowledge, endless care and endless love.

My dad intentionally gave me nothing because he believes that if a parent gives a child everything, this will kill a child’s hunger for success.

Only with a strong desire to succeed, one will work towards it no matter how tough the journey may be. With a strong will to succeed, when the going gets tough, the tough gets going.

Like our famous inventor, Thomas Edison put it, “In the middle of difficulty lays opportunity.” As long as we are willing to take on the challenge, every moment can be seized as opportunity to succeed.

Helen Keller, blind and deaf at tender age, mastered Braille against all odds. She altered the world’s perceptions of the disabled. She remapped the boundaries of sight and sense.

Brothers and sisters, with my dad and Helen Keller as my mentors, I am inspired to achieve all that I am truly capable. Adversities can never be my excuses from developing my full potential. Life's battles don't always go to the stronger man, but a man who think he can."

Brothers and sisters, let us march towards our quest for success despite of adversities; let us never, never, never wallow in adversities; let us turn adversities into our stepping stones for greatness.

Sadhu, sadhu, sadhu.

p.s: Special thanks to my mentors Bro Stanley Cham and Bro Gavin for editing my speech. :)