Before The Bell Tolls...

It's day 205 of documenting 2025.

Today is the D-day!

My first graduation party as a teacher.

I'm at the venue...which is on the school ground outside the gate.

The event hasn't started yet.

And it's 11am on the dot.

A teacher said the teachers would probably leave after the party ended...by 8pm.

I was like what? 😲

Oh...hold on.

I'm being called to help with something.

I'll finish this post later...

(8 hours later...)

Yep! I'm back!

At home now...and I just had dinner.

It's 9:14 pm as I type this very sentence.

I got home an hour ago....which was pretty late.

Teachers had to clean up the place after the party ended by 7pm.

But it was worth it....as we all were duly compensated for our efforts.

How did the party go?

Much better than I expected.

There was a lot of dancing and munching...and shouting.

The parents were cajoled by the MC to appreciate each performance....as well as the teachers with some cha-ching 🤑

Although my long tummy skirt and crop top was a bit different from the gown style that most teachers wore, it was still a good look.

One that involved pictures 😁

It actually felt like celebrating with a family....as everyone cooperated and made the event a memorable one.

It didn't come without the stress tho...for the teachers.

We walked or stood most of the time and our legs hurt.

But like I said earlier, we were duly compensated.

All in all, the party was amazing 😍 

Okay, okay....

Enough about how today went.

Let's get into Highlights for today...and then I'll probably share a poem and a few thoughts.

365 Days With Self-discipline 

📌 On Treating Hate as an Exercise

"I have no time to quarrel, no time for regrets and no man can force me to stoop low enough to hate him."

Quote by Laurence Jones

This quote describes exactly what I believe about hating someone.

I just don't have time for it.

And I may dislike someone's behavior...but it never gets to hate.

Besides, it takes less effort like someone 🥰

Critics can get the best of even the world class top-performers with millions of fans.

Sadly, most of us have a tendency to focus more on a single instance of hatred than on a multitude of people expressing their love for ourselves or our work.

Fortunately, encountering hate can serve as a valuable exercise in building self-control. 

As Laurence Jones points out, it’s your choice as to whether you stoop low enough to radiate hate back, or ignore it and focus on something else that is more important.

When you meet with criticism, skepticism or sarcasm, receive it as an opportunity to practice self-control. 

Instead of responding to it, think of it as a minor annoyance that tests your patience. You have just “down-sized” it to a level where it’s just not worth your time or energy.

Just like you can practice restraint when you’re stuck in traffic, you can improve your self-control by disregarding hate. 

That way, you’ll get two benefits: you’ll improve your willpower and avoid ruining your mood by engaging in negative emotions.

Negative emotions will always ruin one's mood.

And I'm not saying you suppress when you're angry or embarrassed.....you have the permission to FEEL.

Don't let a negative emotion cross over to the next day, because if it does...then it becomes a problem.

A problem that can only be solved when you let go of it.

PS. I shared the whole note this around....and I'm sure you learned a thing or two 😉

Moving on...

Let me share a long poem and a few thoughts.

Before The Bell Tolls

How long have you delayed the sacred call

Postponed the hour, though time gave all it could?

Extensions granted, wasted in the stall,

Yet still you breathe. Do you not think you should?

The world you serve, the source from which you came,

Is not a playground for distracted minds.

God doesn't owe you mercy, wealth, or fame

Just fleeting breath, with meaning in its lines.

So focus now, as if it were your last.

Let every act be forged in full intent.

With justice in your grip, leave shameful pasts.

Let anger die, and selfish moods relent.

No need for grandeur, just a reverent pace

A soul unchained, a mind that walks in grace.

Too long you've bowed to whims that steal your fire,

Too long you've let false urgency conspire.

Why tremble at the tasks that lie ahead?

Why feast on fear and call it wisdom's bread?

You are not frail; you've simply been unled.

Now lead yourself, before you're cold and dead.

What kind of legacy will silence speak

When all your hours have vanished from the week?

Will echoes call you brave; or faint and weak?

Will heaven find you full, or lost and bleak?

This is the work: not climbing, but the still.

Not noise, but clarity. Not want, but will.

To pierce the veil of every cheap disguise

And meet your Maker with unclouded eyes.

Lemme give you something to think about.

If today was your last, would your choices honor the life you've been given…or waste it pretending you had more time?

I'll be honest...my answer to this the former.

Today, I was at a party.

It was a full experience...in that there was no time for any time-wasting activity like mindless scrolling or feeling sorry for myself.

I chose to be happy...and I forgot about the worries of yesterday.

So, my friend ☺️ 

The lesson today is this:

Live fully and put your heart in whatever good work you get your hands into.

Eventually, the rest of what you desire will usually follow.

What a good way to conclude today's post, isn't it?

Thanks for reading 🎀 

One more thing...

The poem I shared is one of the several poems I'm putting together...in a poetry collection I call, "Lanterns To The Lost".

When it's finished, I'll release it on my Selar store...in addition to the other amazing resources I already have there.

Check them out...and get them free.

I'm Duon Ada.

I'm documenting 2025,

And I'll see you tomorrow.

Ciao 💕