I still remember being envious of seniors leaving college a year back, about how they could finally leave what I used to call a hoosegow. However, one year later, I find myself feeling nostalgic at the thought of leaving the country. I actually miss college! (yes, even I can't believe I'm saying this!) I miss that secret ingredient of togetherness we shared when we were thrown into oblivion in that oil palm plantation. In that 2-year period, I discovered and learnt aspects of mankind; the fact that this world does not revolve around just me and that I just can't have everything the way I want it, the brutality of those judgmental and that no one can be trusted. But also, I realised the world isn't as bad as many believe it to be. I used to think everyone was like me-individualistic, self-centered and denigrative. Pretty much the 'I don't care what happens to the rest of the world, as long as I survive-survive
well that is' attitude. Thus, at the beginning, I despised the collectivisitic methods of college, its dogmatism and the egocentric behaviour of the administrators. But it was from the teamwork necessary in almost every activity we engaged in (except our assignments of course!) that I saw the goodness in others.
*sighs* I don't have much time left. So let's skip the emotional heap and adopt systematic presentation. In a nutshell,
(i) Every cloud has a silver lining-why remember the bad and forget the good? As all men and women have both testosterone and estrogen present, both good and bad characteristics are there in all of us to be discovered. As Buddhism encourages one never to denigrate others and aggrandise oneself, learn to believe that it is the goodness we should live on with, and it is that pearl in which we should shine. As I've said before, flush down our egocentric side.
(ii) You are what you believe yourself to be-shove aside your propensity to pay so much attention to what people think of you. This will only hinder your process of self-development. Believe in what YOU want to be, and strive to achieve it regardless of whether or not people think you can. If you like singing, by all means, get yourself on stage and start singing! That's what I did back at college, and tada! It didn't turn out too bad! My maths teacher got me to record the official Maths website song with a very good compatriot of mine!
(iii) Failure is inexistent-You only fail when you stop trying. Never, at any cost, give up. NEVER. Because when even you think you yourself have lost all hope, there's nothing left to get yourself moving once again. You pass everyday hoping that you didn't. Bear in mind that regardless of what position you take in this hierarchal society, YOU HAVE A PURPOSE. Fulfill this purpose. The world depends on it. As Paul Davies stressed in
The Goldilocks Enigma, all of us, I repeat, every single one of us, have a special place in the ticking of the Universe.
(iv) Aim for the stars-and..NO, don't think that it's alright even if you did fall. You won't fall to the moon. You fall to the dark, ether (scientifically wrong, just for literary purposes) space and drown in this organic compound. You shouldn't even THINK of failing. Believe in the Law of Attraction itself, because if you don't, practising it would be of no use. Believe it works, if not, the idea of attracting what you desire simply by thinking of it would be baseless. (Note: Apparently, this law of attraction has roots in quantum physics, but on this topic, we shall not elaborate.)
(v) Remember the first 4 under any circumstances. :)
Life is a bed of roses! Life is fair! It has been for me, at least. Many have told me that life isn't as idealistic as I think of it to be. But who cares, I'm the author of my book of life. I decide on what I want and do not want to think. I determine which path I shall traverse. And shall I suffer the consequences of my belief, I'll pull through the aftermaths by upholding my principles.
So, the time has come. Goodbye Malaysia :) *bah, I'll be back in 2 months anyway!*
