Thang Nguyen 555

Cultures on Collision Course

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With some short-term relief work in Asia/Africa and long stint in Telecom, Thang also earned a B.A. at Pennsylvania State University. M.A. in Communication at Wheaton Graduate School, M.A. in Cross-Cultural Communication at Gordon-Conwell Seminary, Boston. In addition, he earned a CELTA – classes taken in Hanoi for cultural re-immersion.

Tag: God

  • Reflections of my life

    ” I am changing everything” …Like Holden Caulfield, catcher in the Rye. “Oh I don’t want to die..”. The future that I once fret is my current present. “All my sorrows”….were for nothing. They said 90% of our worries didn’t materialize.  Yet we keep worrying. Like a plague. Dec 21st or 23rd (Mayan Calendar). Just…

  • On being a conduit

    Yesterday, I was at a funeral service . My friend’s Dad passed away. We are all conduits of common grace. Paying forward. Hold that door that has just been opened for you. A guy I know ran into his English teacher at that funeral after 30 years apart while I guy I met also found me online after…

  • Insights from the inside

    This could also be titled “Full Circle”. We act out that which triggered us from the inside. Stored up commands. Encoded instructions (like our own software version if you will). Years ago, we fled by barge.  FOB. Then when we reached safety, inside secured camp  boundaries, we started to fight our ways to survival: each man to…

  • Time as equalizer

    Presidential terms last four years.  Our life expectancy, used to be much less, now stands in the mid-70’s depends on the air quality near you. It’s an allotment. Non-negotiable. Except for a few variables e.g.unique gene pool, diet, exercise, stress level and accidents. Some people even wish they were dead.  If you drag on day in and day…

  • Failure as prereq

    Maybe it’s just me. But people I associate with don’t seem to do well these days. Sectors once thrived are now wiped out: telecom, housing and to some extent, publishing. HR at HP has been busy. We learn from failure. By turning it into seed of success. Success and failure leave a different taste in…

  • Empty space

    Void. Vacuum. Unfilled and unoccupied space. Plenty of them, within and without. So we fear its vastness. We try to fill it up with stuff. In the process, making ourselves mini-gods. Co-creators of space-filling. Bed, bath and beyond. Then give them away to Goodwill to make room for more empty space. Everyone got problems with fitting…

  • Trust again

    People with bad experiences go through various phases in recovery. Some need a lifetime. Others could trust again in no time. All depends how the mind plays tricks. If pain recedes deep into long-term memory, then it takes longer to process pain. Short or long-term memory, bad experiences stay. They surface on unsuspected occasion (Murphy’s Law).…

  • Get ready

    When seeing the opening act of mainly 60’s-looking folks, my young friend was about to dismiss them. I said “Hold it”. After all, the Rolling Stones still commanded a packed audience. So give them the benefit of the doubt. Turned out I had been right. Rare Earth, Cream, CCR and Eagles were all featured in that one…

  • Humble dreams

    Here at UVT, students wear chef uniforms to school. Dressed up for the part. They are to finish their last leg in Hospitality and Tourism at one of the Australian Universities. Humble dreams, yet tangible outcomes. I respect young people who knew what they want to be when they grow up/old. At their age, my family…

  • CWO – Chief Worshipping Officer

    On my first week as CEO at UVT – I met an issue none of the Business School in the US had equipped their students for: to bow or not to bow at the Fortune–God altar in the school lobby. It’s hard enough to know where the bathroom is – much less stumbling upon the…