5th July, 2008, Malcolm at Taylors

Malcolm checked in at Taylors today, 5/7/2008.
We arrived early but the place was already packed like sardines. Ratio: 1 student to about 5 stragglers (eg. mum, dad, grams, aunties, siblings, maid)

The JPA people were there to check on the paperwork (agreement, indemnity, bank accounts) and to deliver a briefing (the usual thing about study hard, need 80% every semester, don’t get married …). Like registering into a Chinese school, we were pleasantly surprised that the scholars were handed a pre-prepared envelope with detailed instructions and the keys to their accommodation units.

Apparently there is no such certificate called the International Canadian Pre-University Course (ICPU) at Taylors. They will prepare their students to take the Ontario Secondary School Diploma. Apparently the diploma is provincial but globally widely accepted.

Of the 140 odd JPA scholars to undergo the ICPU, only 6 had been selected for Veterinary medicine. They will have to study science for 2 years at degree level, get excellent results, before being streamed into Veterinary science. That’s a 4 year course for Veterinary Medicine, bringing the total to 6 years abroad. That’s a long time…. and word has it that there are only 6 places for international students in Canada. Go figure……

Then JPA did a boo-boo …. the collection of documents from the scholars were haphazardly and unsystematically done. Stacks of documents including agreements, medical forms, indemnity, statement of financial affairs, photographs, copies of NRIC, Bank account details etc were collected by volunteers without any offer or visible method of securing the stack. Most resorted to sticking their stack into the agreement booklet. Anyway most of the JPA scholars were subsequently called up during the briefing on their actual ICPU course by the Taylors director of studies and the whole thing was quite distracting.

Later, while the JPA scholars were herded into another briefing hall to be instructed in the do’s and don’ts of their accommodation, the guest stragglers were treated to catered buffet lunch courtesy of Taylors. We decided that bak-kut-teh nearby would be a more logical choice and hopped over to Asia Café. The surrounding hinterland is littered with food joints and so I don’t expect Malcolm to go hungry anytime during his stint in ICPU.

The Taylors’ people had buses to ferry students to their accommodation at Casa Subang, a spanking new condo complex situated behind Mydin, Giant and Summit USJ. How on earth can the student study what with such distractions like shopping centres …. Then again with shopping centres, comes food courts … maybe it is for the better.

We braved a drive rather than wait for the bus. Good decision as our unloading was speedy and we could park in the Mydin car-park. Later on those who opted to come by bus had to queue up just to see the insides of the lift…

Malcolm is now at A-19-2 Casa Subang. Block A, 19th Floor and unit 2. The unit has 4 rooms; 3 double rooms and 1 single. Malcolm is placed in the single. No worries that his snoring and his nocturnal letting off gas will bother anyone. The unit comes with Astro and micro-wave and a fridge. Internet access promised but not installed yet. From the sitting room one can see the Kesas toll plaza. His house mates are from all over: Butterworth, JB, Sg Petani, and 2 Malay boys ( one was from Jasin ) who have both since then disappeared from the unit.

We held a family prayer cleansing the room and unit, claiming Jesus’ blood of protection and sanctifying the unit for the use of GOD’s purpose in Malcolm’s life. That peace will prevail and that no principalities of evil can ever find a foothold there.


We came home to BP to a near empty house. With Malcolm away in Klang Valley, our strength is down to 60% BP while KL gets an upped 40%. I came home, walked into Malcolm’s room to return a couple of files and seeing his things still all over the place, stood there for a few long moments to let reality set in; that one more eaglet has flown the coop.


Mummy will miss him most as he is always the one who will spontaneously hug and kiss mummy and daddy all the time. Mum will miss his coming around sniffing her ; .. “ah, mum, you just came back from Carrefour .. I can smell it off your hair” or “you just had mamak food”. Amanda will also miss her master sejarah teacher, her personal chauffeur and the guy who will almost always do her bidding, if asked in a nice way....


Isa 40:31
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Psa 121:7-8
The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.


Go forth in the strength of the LORD, son, and win the world; for the LORD your GOD is with you.