Fate's Funny Plan

“ You can’t connect the dots looking forward , you can only connect them looking backwards “ I finally realized the true significance of this powerful quote today . If you never try , you will never know what you are capable of .

 If you never ask , the answer is always no. Today was an unexpectedly interesting day Everything that happened today was sudden and totally unplanned , yet it’s this kind of experience that I am very grateful of .

The day started with a good vibe , with the hope and expectation that today will be a good day as it is the day where I will be going back to home for the first time after more than a month , probably the longest record of me being away from home yet . Nothing big , but for me , that’s something that I can be proud of .

However , the good vibe and expectations quickly went down the drain when a bad news get to me . You see , me and my friends ( 2 friends to be exact ) had participated in a contest called “Samsung AppStar “ ,which requires us to just submit ideas for an application . We were fortunate enough to make it into top 40 finalists and were called for an audition to present our ideas . Today is the day for our presentation .

Initially , we were supposed to present at 12 afternoon and my plan was to present at 12 , finishing it by 1 , and then go back to Penang by sitting the 4 pm bus . Everything was meticulously planned and prepared already , but more often than not , things doesn’t usually goes the way I planned smoothly . In fact , reality has a funny way of screwing everything up instantly and have another plan of its own. Today is the perfect example of just that .

So , we were supposed to be there by 10 , dressed in formal attire , started discussing about our game plan and etc. However , at 10 , one of my teammate , the only one with car who is supposed to fetch us go were still asleep . Fine then , as the presentation time was 12 pm , we still had 2 hours to go , so we waited and waited .

Sadly , things do not go our way and due to some unforeseen circumstances , I ended up just going for the presentation with just my one teammate by taxi . Upon our arrival there , we were hit with another tragic news that would utterly destroy my plan , that is we will be the 7^th group to present and the presentation will only start at 2 pm . Every presentation should last roughly around 10 – 15 minutes , which means that by the time we finish presenting , it will be around 3 + and definitely I will miss my 4 pm bus as I need to go back hostel to pack my stuff first.

With that in mind , me and my friend were about to give up , and so we went to have our lunch before going back . Nevertheless , I felt like it will be a complete waste of time and effort , after coming so far and went back empty handed , without even a chance to present . Therefore , we went and talked to the receptionist and asked if we can present earlier .

Thankfully , the receptionist was very sweet and understanding , and after talking to her boss , we were allowed to present first , even before the actual presentation time . At that time , there’s only one thing in my mind , that is the quote “ if you never ask , the answer will always be no “ .

We ended up presenting to 3 fabulous judges , Miss Lee Yvonne , Miss World Malaysia 2012 .and two other awesome CEOs , Mr Collin Hew and Mr Jason ( Mr Jason's the coolest judge ever ! ). The presentation went smoothly and by the time we finished presenting , it’s already 2.30 pm . However , the problem was far from over . It started raining , and the rain grew heavier all of a sudden . My heart sunk to the bottom instantly . The amount of uncertainties in my minds started increasing , and all the pessimistic “what if “ questions started to fill my minds too.

However , if there’s one lesson that I learnt through experience , it is this : When in doubt , keep going forward . Trust your instincts and take the risk to keep going forward , confident that somehow , things will end up being fine , even if you do not know what is going to happen .

With that in mind , I took the decision to go back today , not knowing whether or not I will make it in time for the 4 pm bus ( as the next bus after that is 8 pm , and I do not have transport to go back my home if I reach Penang at 12 ) . I could have took the safer alternative , to go back tomorrow . However,  that would defeat the purpose of going back as then I would have fewer days to spend at home .

Finally , everything ended up fine . I was never a stout believer of destiny and fate before , but now , I am starting to believe in it a bit , It might sound a bit clichéd , but as the old saying goes , “ when there’s a will , there’s a way “. If you really wanted something very badly, the environment , people or even the universe around you will conspire to help you to achieve it  somehow .

At last , I made it to the 4 pm bus and am currently heading back to my beloved hometown . The whole experience is very surreal , yet it feels like fate already knew what was in store for me . Sometimes I feel very blessed and gratified that I am able to be who I am today . I am thankful for every experiences that I went through , no matter how good or bad they are . I guess it’s just destiny’s way of guiding me to the predetermined path I am supposed to walk , by presenting me all the obstacles and challenges that came my way . I am truly grateful

Now , I guess there’s only one way for me to go , that is continue moving forward . Come what may , I know one day I will make it to the top , finally be able to achieve the sweet taste of success and happiness . For now , guess I will just have to enjoy the process ; ) .