A Loss Nonetheless

(槟岛西南区22日讯)女教师悬梁了断生命！

一名停薪留职3年的钟灵教师刘慧心，今日清早不知何故在住家厨房门梁，以一条长布条悬梁自尽。

死者的一名女佣是于今早7时许与主人家婆到外早操返家后，一踏入厨房时，即发现女主人厨房门梁旁投缳。

随着本月17日芙蓉发生一宗教师自杀案件后，槟岛今日清早又再发生一名华裔女教师亲手了断自己珍贵的生命。

死者刘慧心，37岁，生前住在斯里尼蒙花园，育有一男一女，丈夫目前远在缅甸工作，儿子分别是9岁和3岁半。

据悉，死者原为槟城钟灵中学老师，后来相信是其夫婿于5月23日远赴缅甸工作，她为了要照顾2名孩子，而向教育局申请停薪留职3年。

林南萍：死前无异样

根据死者家婆林南萍（译音）在浮罗山背太平间向警方人员指出，死者死前并无异样，清早起来照常开车前往巴刹买菜。

她说，在出发前还询问其家婆是否需要替她购买物品。

于是，在其家婆交代她帮忙购买控制血压的药物之后，死者就独自驾车外出。

死者家婆说，其媳妇是在早上大约7时10分从巴刹回来，带回蔬菜及控制血压的药物，过后，她及女佣就个别先后步行至庭院做体操及晒衣，当她们于20分钟后返回住家时，先由女佣发现死者自缢。

过后，家婆也随着女佣高喊，寻求邻人的援助。

家婆惊吓过度晕倒

据了解，由于事发突然，其家婆相信是一时惊吓过度，也一度晕倒在场。

其家婆指出，死者生前并无任何病痛，只是曾经于上个星期六因为难以入眠，而到医院求诊。

巴六拜警方在接获投报后，赶往现场进行调查工作。死者遗体已送往浮罗太平间解剖。

谭匡智：教高三物理科　刘老师认真尽责

钟灵中学副校长谭匡智说，刘慧心老师因为要跟丈夫一起到缅甸，而向教育部申请3年无薪长假，并已获得教育部批准，假期在5月6日开始生效。他说，刘老师主要是教导高中三班级物理，是一名非常尽责的老师。

谭副校长说，就是当她要申请长假离开刚教职岗位，还是操心的为学校物色老师。他也说，刘老师是在2000年6月份开始，在钟灵任教，她教学认真，和其他同事相处愉快。他表示，老师们对她为何事想不开自尽感到惊讶万分。

同事深感惋惜　办事处愁云密布

“她是一名尽责、顾家的好老师，对于她的离去，我们百思不解。”

自刘慧心自缢噩讯传出后，钟灵国中教师办事处一片愁云密布，同事们都对此事议论纷纷，并对刘老师的离去表示惋惜，有些更望着刘老师生前的座位叹惜不已。

与刘老师共事已有4、5年的陈老师表示，刘慧心生前是高中2A班级任老师。

她说，刘老师生前性格较内向，加上忙于教学，因此鲜少与同事交谈。

她说，刘老师平时与同事交谈话题都是有关教学及教育孩子问题，并经常与老师们请教有关教育孩子的心得，这显示出她是一名非常尽责、顾家，关心孩子学业的好老师。

同事眼中　刘老师性格内向

“刘老师生前性格内向，就算在与她谈论心事时，都是环绕在教学及照顾孩子的话题上。”

在今年5月代替刘慧心的连老师表示，她是在钟灵中学实习期间认识刘老师。她说，由于刘老师生前居住在她家附近，因此她经常前去拜访刘老师，并与她谈有关教学及照顾孩子的问题。

她说，她最后一次与刘老师见面是5月杪，当时她是在学校假期前前往刘慧心住家向她领取物品，惟她并没有发现刘老师有任何异举。

“在刘老师的无薪假期间，我曾致电联络她，在与她电话交谈中，我并没有发现她有任何异样。”

她说，刘老师自丈夫调职国外后，与两个儿子及女佣一同生活，而她的丈夫则经常在缅甸及槟城两地来回奔波。

沈仁东指刘老师自缢　非教学压力造成

钟灵中学校长沈仁东透露，刘老师自缢并不是学校教学压力所造成。

他说，刘慧心因丈夫调职国外而向教育局申请3年无薪假期，并在申请获批准后自动寻找老师代课。

他说，刘老师生前是一名非常尽责、关心学生学业的老师。她在获悉无薪假获批准后，尽责地寻找一名以前曾在钟灵实习的老师，代替她的空缺，以免影响学生的学业。

沈校长表示，刘慧心的无薪假期是于今年5月6日开始生效。他相信刘老师是因其身为电子厂经理的丈夫调职缅甸，所以申请3年无薪假期，以跟随丈夫到缅甸。

他说，由于该校一向来都有老师面对类似情形，加上刘老师本身并无异常举动，因此并没有对刘老师的无薪假申请感到奇怪。

他说，刘老师是在2000年于理大教育系毕业后，前来该校当高中物理老师，至今已有5年光景，并表示她在教学及课外活动方面非常认真，并曾是华乐团的总顾问。

(Source : Kwong Wah Yit Poh, 22 June 2005 Night Edition)

Let's just say I was dumbstruck when I read the SMS See Tatt sent.
"Lau Hoey Sim committed suicide today at her house" (Slightly altered due to spelling errors)

2002 and 2003 were the years I was taught by her in Physics.

I have to admit while she wasn't the best teacher around, she was still better than a certain one who shares a surname with me.

At age 37, leaving behind a boy of 9 years and girl of 3 and a half years old, she chose the path many unfortunately take. As to why she chose this path, none know it as well as she does. Now the secret goes with her to the grave. Rumours abound about why she chose to leave this world of ours, and join our ancestors in the nether world. Personally, to me, dead men tell no tales.

I can't help feeling sad over this... whatever she may have done to us last time, we should forgive. There is no point in holding a grudge anymore.

May you rest in peace.

Requisecat in Pace

On Miracles (?) .....

Definition of Miracle:

1. An event that appears inexplicable by the laws of nature and so is held to be supernatural in origin or an act of God: “Miracles are spontaneous, they cannot be summoned, but come of themselves” (Katherine Anne Porter).
2. One that excites admiring awe.
3. A miracle play.

Source : Dictionary.com

Does one consider an A1 a miracle? Personally I do not, considering the Malaysian education system.

Been some time since I posted, so bear with me while I go chronogically backwards.

Today (Thursday) :
Not much interesting things, excect for Gary. Gary who you ask? No, not that lovable, huggable and cute Gary from 8TV. This Gary is the diametric from the 8TV Gary. This Gary is loud, obnoxious, and with some hints of arrogance.

With neither a knock nor a courteous peek, he stormed into our class, only to run into SE Hong teaching, which really irritated her, since this wasn't the first time he had interrupted her for the day. SE left the class and soon he reigned supreme. As if by cue, he put his files down and left for a toilet break, prompting an exodus(I actually think all of us were trying to avoid him). Some of them took a leisurely walk before returning, and this clearly peeved our Dear Gary off.

You could say I had already received warning that this guy was a nonsense talker (in my friend's words that is) but then I decided to give him a chance. 2 minutes into his self introduction and nonsensical drawings [e.g. fjch, $$, Career blah blah blah]. He began to show his weakness in the English Language. By jove, there were more errors that I lost track of, [a few examples can be seen at ST's blog], his greatest language faux pax was to use direct chinese translation into flowery language that when stripped, revealed the naked glory of this supposedly verbose speaker.

5 minutes in, and I began to tune out. He committed one such great error that I decided listening to him yak on his self achievements would be more detrimental to my IQ than anything else. This guy sure is damn arrogant, I quote, "When I graduate from university, I want my first month paycheque to be 5k SGD (11k MYR), with an increment of 15% annually. I want to have a 40k salary by the fourth year" Now as some of you would know, I like to analyse personalities through behaviours, and I interpreted this as extremely arrogant and overconfident. My reasoning : Earlier on he said he wanted to be entrepreneur, and later he spoke about his salary. I may not have formal business training, but I am well aware that there is no way that an upstart business can have a profit in a month. Heck, Microsoft took well over 15 years to become truly profitable. Even the examples our Dear Gary spoke of, Uncle Lim and Sim, even they took more than 10 years to get their businesses to become profitable.

My mind wandered after this and once in a while I caught a bit of what he was spewing, Sports Hypnosis, A1s, 30 marks in school exams and what nots. He was rather fortunate that it was 1.45 when he ended and not 1.25 where I would have given him a piece of my mind.

Wednesday :
Went to school, MUET came, had the wackiest assignment I have yet to see. SH Tan played an instrumental song which some of us recognised to be "Silence is Golden" and asked to compose lyrics for it. I expect at least half or more of the groups to present something weird, I know I am gonna. :P

Tuesday and Monday:
Nothing much. School Exam Results came out.

Holiday Week:
The first Friday I went to IDP Penang to enquire about IELTS and university application, there I was informed that there was a IELTS Crash Course (or in their words, Preparatory Course) to be held the following Monday to Thursday. I registered for it, and the exam on the 11th. Went through 4 days of classes with 3 hours each, and pratically was bored. It really wasn't helpful that I had a paranoid sitting on my left, and blubbering out mandarin half the time, but then anyone would be nervous if they were taking an exam barely 4 days away.

Saturday dawned and I went to IDP, took the exam, till about 2.30 pm in the afternoon. Took a nap, and went for Star Wars : Revenge of the Sith later in the day. Gurney traffic was at a crawl and parking was chaotic. By the time we managed to enter, the previews just ended, with the scrolling about to begin. It is unimaginable that in this society, that there are people who are unable to differentiate E05 with E11 . Some actually had the cheek to demand to see our ticket and claim it is their seat. Next time such a thing happens, I am gonna blow my top liao...

Actually I have to admit, nothing much was done during the holidays, I didn't even go through the 5 kg of university prospectuses (or prospectii, which one ? :P) that IDP gave me on Friday.