As we approach the middle of the year, we interviewed one of our long-time members, sis Susan Ng. Read on to find out more about her and her walk(s) (in more than one sense of the word)!
Michelle:
Tell me more about yourself. What do you work as and what do you enjoy doing outside of work?
Susan:
I am currently a freelance Adult Educator. I have trained people from all walks of life who aspire to be a trainer at the workplace. I turned freelance when Chloe was 9 or 10 months old.
Michelle:
So you’re a trainer of trainers. What is one little known fact about you?
Susan:
That’s a tough question because most people in the church would have known me for decades and they would have already known about this. I find going for walks alone therapeutic as it allows me to tune in to nature to listen to the birds chirping (along the Green Corridor) or to the sound of waves (if I take the East Coast route) after having a stressful class the previous day. My favorite route is from East Coast Park to Gardens by the Bay. The furthest I have ever walked alone was from the car park after East Coast Hawker Centre to Gardens by the Bay and that took me 1 hour and 55 mins. My usual route is on the Green Corridor from my house at Queenstown to King Albert Park or to Labrador Park / Outram Park.
Michelle:
It is very nice and therapeutic to go on nature walks! I heard from my mum that you plan semi-regular walks which a growing group of church brethren participates in. How did this come about?
Susan:
It all started with Tingpei telling me about the Green Corridor and how she was curious as to how to get to it. One day, I had the opportunity to go on a walk from Bukit Timah to Commonwealth with my husband and his friends and I found it amazing that I could walk so far. He also showed me how to get to Labrador Park via the PCN and to Tanjong Pagar. Thereafter, I started my walks exploring other areas. After sharing with Tingpei about the walk I had taken, she was also interested to try the Green Corridor too. So, both of us decided to start a walk and I started ‘recruiting’ sisters in the church whom I either barely had a chance to talk to, or sisters who wanted to catch up with me over a meal or vice versa, but I was not able to meet so many people individually. So, I thought it would be a good idea if I were to get them to go on a walk together so that we could walk & talk along the way and have dinner at the end of the session.
Soon, by word of mouth, a few other members got to know about it and started to join us on an adhoc basis. That’s how our walking group entitled “Walking together@Eve” grew.
Michelle:
Wow! It is amazing to see how a small initiative blossomed and grew into a chance for different church members to get together and connect with one another. Hopefully this bulletin article also adds to the “word of mouth” effect. What would you say is your biggest takeaway from your work as a facilitator/adult educator?
Susan:
The fun part about my job is I get to train at different clients’ premises when I conduct a course on workplace learning. While you may have heard of conducting assessments online, my most unforgettable experience is to conduct an assessment onboard a flight to Bangkok for all the crew onboard. I assessed the crew on the way there and gave feedback on the return journey. When we arrived at Bangkok, I did not have to clear immigration but headed towards the departing gate. So, I literally ‘touched the wall’ and came back.
I suppose the biggest takeaway is I could use the knowledge/skills acquired through the course of my work, especially facilitation, and apply it back to teaching ladies class (be it face-to-face or online).
Michelle:
Moving on to the spiritual side of things, I understand that you have been with this church since you were young. When were you baptised and how did you come to be baptised?
Susan:
I was baptized on 16 Mar 1985 when I was still in secondary school. When I learnt that my brother, Chee Beng, was baptized, I saw a changed person. So, I told him I would like to go too and invited myself to church.😊 Sister Baby taught me for 3.5 months and I was baptized thereafter.
Michelle:
Indeed, good conduct can be a great source of inspiration and encouragement for others, and the best part is, you never know how much positive impact you can create on others. Looking back at your Christian journey thus far, what would you say are your highlights (and struggles if you are open to sharing)?
Susan:
Not too sure if it’s counted as a highlight, but it’s certainly a walk down memory lane. I can still recount clearly the Christian love, care and concern that I have received from sisters in the church after my conversion. I have always looked forward to Bible class for teenage girls on Sundays, cottage meetings @ bro Kwan’s house on alternate Tuesdays, Girls fellowship (once in a while among students from the teenage girls Bible class), student camp, Christian fellowship after personal work on a Saturday afternoon and library duty on Sunday afternoons. I am always thankful for the teenage girls Bible class teachers (sis Sew Hua, sis Kim Tian, sis Doreen, sis Julia) who taught me back then. Sadly, while I could still remember the names of the students in the teenage girls bible class (reference is to those who are converted before 1985), none remain with us except for sis Chee Ming.
As I rarely hung out with my school friends except to do school projects, my memories of church members are definitely stronger than my school friends.
Michelle:
Wow! Thanks for giving us more insight into what it was like back then! What is a Bible verse/passage that is close to your heart and why?
Susan:
Phil 4:6-7 - Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Few of us are strangers to anxiety and I am one who is easily anxious over many things, from being late for work, handling difficult learners, catching up with never ending assignments to mark & to give feedback on, lesson preparations, dwindling work assignments, having fallen short in many ways, things to be done and not done etc.
These two verses help me to remember that being anxious is the problem to be put off; Prayer is what I ought to practice and peace is the outcome promised by God.
This is the peace that Jesus promised, “not as the world gives” and it’s humanly unexplainable.
Michelle:
Any final comments/advice/encouragement that you would like to give?
Susan:
If you are in the midst of situations that you are anxious about, draw near to God in reverent, specific, thankful prayer. Attempt to put your full weight down on Him, and He will bear you up and give you His indescribable peace.