Blog - August Overview

Hi Blog,

One day, every one of us will grow old. The youthful face we once admired will slowly change. Wrinkles will appear, hair will turn grey, our bodies will lose their strength, and eventually the mirror will reflect someone very different from the person we once knew.

If beauty is temporary... what remains when time takes it away?

As I thought about this, I realised something that I wish I had understood when I was younger. If my happiness depends on being good-looking, then time is my greatest enemy because it will eventually take that away. But if my happiness is rooted in the person I try to become—being kind, sincere, compassionate, with integrity—and in the lives I touch—then time cannot easily steal those things. In fact, they often become even more beautiful with age, just like plants as they grow.

That doesn't mean I will never have moments of insecurity again. There will probably still be days when I compare myself with others or wonder what life might have been if I had been born differently. But those thoughts no longer have the same power over me. They are simply passing clouds, while my values have become the mountains beneath them. I cannot choose the face I was born with, but every day I can choose the heart I am becoming.

1st Aug 2026 - Spiderman The Whole Day
(Click here to read more)

2nd Aug 2026 - Finding The Rock Garden
(Click here to read more)

3rd Aug 2026 - Honestly... While swimming, I kept thinking about the sold Spidey suit. I felt a bit lost after selling it... I know I did it on impulse, out of anger and a loss of direction... But I think... I will focus on what I have now... I will honour the remaining Spidey suits by cosplaying in them more. Somehow, the pair of goggles gives me some idea... I will resolve the blind issue for glasses wearers like me.

4th Aug 2026 - How can I slim down when there are celebrations and food at my workplace? I understand that I might be a people pleaser, accepting the food rather than refusing it. I tend to consider how others might feel, and I just hope everyone can be happy; hence, it's called 'Happy Birthday.'

5th Aug 2026 - Finally! This evening's sky is bright and perfect for jogging. I shouldn't hesitate and should quickly dress for a run. Now I'm looking at my blue trisuit... It seems I have four or five blue trisuits! I guess it will become my iconic colour for working out.

Perhaps that is the answer I have been searching for all these years. I may never be the tallest person, the most handsome man, or the one who captures everyone's attention. But if I can leave behind kindness instead of pride, hope instead of discouragement, and love instead of judgement, then perhaps I have lived a life far more meaningful than beauty alone could ever offer. Maybe the mirror was never meant to tell me who I am. Maybe my character always has.

Jeff

Hiking - Finding The Rock Garden

Good morning, Blog,

It's Sunday! Unlike the previous weekends, which were either stormy or busy, today I want to visit a place to properly register the route. If you missed my visit to Rock Garden (2025), you can check it out.

It's perfect weather for hiking because it won't rain; the ground will remain dry, and the place will be bright.

I plan to visit Rock Gardens to familiarise myself with the route so I can revisit it in the future. I hope I can find my way in.

Personal - Spiderman The Whole Day

Hi Blog,

On the first day of August, I decided to try something crazy by agreeing to cosplay as Spiderman for PFACSG to help the Bone Marrow Donor Programme at Anchorvale Village, and to try out my newly purchased suit, which I couldn't zip up. You may read more in this post - Spiderman Costume from Unibuyplus (Feb 2026)

My last birthday treat was with LC, my secondary school classmate, and I shared with her all of my cosplay, work-related, and relationship updates before I went on my program, which lasted the entire day. Thanks for the treat!

Speaking of the program - I will be volunteering at noon as Spiderman, then travelling down to Shaw Lido to watch the new movie "Spiderman: Brand New Day" with a group of Spideys. What a day!

Blog - July Overview

Hi Blog,

As I reflected on all these thoughts, I realised something deeper. Perhaps my struggle was never truly about wanting to be handsome, taller, or more attractive. Those were simply the things I believed would bring me closer to something else — the feeling of being wanted, chosen, and desired.

Maybe we do not long for beauty itself. Maybe we long for what we think beauty can give us.

After spending much of my life single, I have often wondered if things would have been different had I looked better. Would I have received more attention? More opportunities? Would someone have looked at me differently? These thoughts still visit me from time to time. Not because I dislike who I am today, but because there remains a small part of me that wishes to know what it feels like to be desired by another person.

Yet as the years pass, I have also come to understand that attraction alone cannot carry a relationship through life. Good looks may capture attention, but they cannot guarantee kindness, loyalty, understanding, or companionship. Beauty may open a door, but it is character that decides whether someone stays. The older I grow, the more I appreciate thoughtful hearts, genuine souls, and people who make others feel safe to be themselves.

Blog - 47th Birthday The Man I Didn't Become

Hi Blog,

Happy Birthday to me! I came across one of my blog posts that I usually write during my birth month, reflecting on my own growth. If you missed those, here are a few: 46th Birthday Reflection (2025), A Reflection on Life, Love, and Self-Worth (2024), My 42nd Birthday (2021), My 41st Birthday (2020), Happy Birthday to me (2019), Happy Birthday 2018 (2018), Happy Birthday to Me (2017) and Jia You, Jeff (2017). This post is quite mundane; it serves as a personal reflection and is not intended for those who don't care to read. You may exit.

I create a self-portrait by starting with a point, then using one continuous line, and finishing with another point. This artwork symbolises the idea that a journey includes not just individual points or line segments, but the entire experience as a whole. I don't try to erase mistakes; instead, I've learned to accept that the line may wobble, overlap, and sometimes stray off course. Despite this, I continue moving forward until it ultimately represents me.

There were many "points" in my drawing. The point where I struggled with my appearance, the point where I questioned my worthiness, the point where I felt judged, the point where I believed society only rewarded good-looking people, the point where I started cosplaying, and the point where I tried to stand up again. If someone looked at any one of those isolation points, they might misunderstand the whole story. But when connected, they form a line that tells the story of my journey toward seeing things differently. This line isn't straight; it curves, loops, and sometimes overlaps itself. At times, it seems uncertain. And that's exactly how growth feels. Years later, we look back and realise, "No... I was actually drawing the picture."