Diary

          This week I read a very interesting book called Steal Like an artist .I liked the book because it simplifies the idea of success. It mainly tangles the subject of creativity. The book is displayed as 10 rules. 10 roles that you have to fallow in order to produce a creative work .The book answered a lot of questions I had.it also left me questioning new things. That is the best thing a book could leave you with knowledge and questions.

        When I was praying earlier today, I started thinking of my life and  how much I achieved up to now. How much a 20 year old should be achieving. Many thoughts passed my mind before I remembered I am praying. After I was through, rambling thoughts and memories went through my head again. Then I asked myself what started this in the first place. I realized it was nothing. My body was praying and my mind was not interested.  My mind was not by any chance involved, so it looked for a getaway...perhaps because it forgot the meanings behind a prayer. Maybe because I was not conscious to what I was saying because I was anxious to go back to the real life forgetting that a) it is only the way to the real immortal life and b) mainly my prayers is what going to get there. How much did I pray? I started thinking. The result of multiplying 5 prayers by(10 years at least) would equal a big number I am sure. But was I really there in every single one of them? I hope so.

         My family and I had a barbecue last night and we had a lot of fun. The weather could not be better; it wasn't cold, but it was very refreshing. I had a midterm to study for, yet I decided that for once I’m going to be “cool”. At first, I was planning to study while the food gets ready, but I ended up volunteering to do most of the work. It was really a nice meal with a good company. I realized last night that it has been a while since we had some quality time as a family.

         I did very well in my presentation for my poetry course today. It was one of those things that you keep worrying about until it’s over. It was a group work and I hated that and I’m still surprised that it went well. A lot of things went wrong for instance, the girl that volunteered to do our outline sheet and give it to the teacher apparently did know what an outline is and instead of handing an outline she handed our whole research. The projector also didn't work. We had to use our teacher’s small projector that was really not that useful because the images we wanted to display weren't clear. Despite that we managed to make our subject clear and to be kind of interesting for the twenty minutes we had. When we finished we thought our teacher would start making her comments as usual, but that didn't happen .when were through the students clapped for us and that teacher nodded and said “yes, they deserve that. I have nothing to criticize”. I felt relieved, after that, and very happy about the full mark.

           Though the vacation ended two day ago, I already feel like I need another one. Past two days were nerve racing because I was doing a lot of tasks I couldn’t do in the break. Instead of leaving us to relax in our vacationer witch is the point of the break; our teachers gave us loads of work to do. I managed to make a good use of the past week by having fun and doing the most important tasks. That wasn’t enough unfortunately. I am barely getting enough sleep those days.

          I was watching a video of one of my favorite lecturers Sheikh Ahmed Deedat earlier today. As always, I found the lecture full of information. The title was” What is Wisdom?” he mentioned many stories and provided his statements with logical reasons. One of my favorite parts is when he told the story of a lecture he attended where the lecturer said, “If you memories half a dozen of deferent verses from the Quran with their meaning, you will shine in any gathering”. He explained saying that Allah’s words will be your weapon to defend yourself from any point of view and it will hold you in a good state. I felt that I was being addressed. I realized the importance of knowing the meaning of Quran in order to use it as a weapon. From now on, with the willing of Allah, I am planning to study the meanings of the verses I memorize. 

           I sympathize with some people because no matter strong or even rude they act you know they have problems and you can feel their weakness. In collage, while I was chatting with a friend at the side of the hall today, one girl who had her hair shorter than my brother’s was walking towards us. There was plenty of space, yet she rudely bumped into my friend and then looked back at her and said loudly “do I have to tell to go away!”. Some people have to make a scene and have an odd hair cut or a weird look to get attention. Some people are not privileged to have good parents and some have a very hard life. For this reason, we should never be judgmental.  

            Our maid is going back to her home after two years in Saudi Arabia. She went shopping yesterday for gifts and for things she need. In the mall, some of the things didn’t suite her taste and some didn’t suit her budget. We all tried to help her as much as we could. I gave her three of my dresses that I wore only once. Not one of those times I wore them I felt as happy as I was when I gave them to her. Sometimes you think you’re doing someone a favor, but it is really you who’s receiving it.

             A nice touch from my college, this week, was honoring the collages distinguished students. I was among honored students along with a few of my friends. A nicer touch was inviting our mothers. I had a very good time showing my mom the places I love, the places I eat, the places I read and how cold is the whole place is! In addition, we were entertained by the acting and the rhymes performed.For that, I thank my college.

         Our maid is suffering from a pain in her back. Therefore, we try to help her out as much as we can. My mom asked her if we are giving her too much work, but she answered that that’s not the case. Then she started telling us her tragic story.

        When she was young in her twenties, her husband left home. Therefore, she had to provide four children on her own. Their condition was very bad. She had to work very hard to feed her children. Unfortunately, her job was carrying building materials from one place to another for a very cheap price. “The distance was not short “she told us.

       

        At the end of the day, all what she got is barely enough food for the family. After work, she goes to a baker in her way home and bays bread. She told us that by the time she gets home, her children are starving. She lets them eat and if there is anything left she would eat.

      The misery does not end hear, she does not know where her husband went or if he will ever return. She cannot get a divorce or marry another man. The years went by; she started to feel the pain that her work caused. She decided to change her work and become a maid, yet that backache never disappeared.

       We felt very sorry for her and tried to give her only tasks suitable for her condition.  It is true that behind every person a story and behind every story a lesson. A lesson that I learned is that if we are in a position of power, we should be considerate. We should know what our servants suffer from and what their needs are.

                   My brother somehow convinced me to download the stupidest game I ever played “fun run”. It is not fun at all. It just gets you addicted and playing nonstop. After a while you realize that you look stupid holding you cellphone in front of your eyes 24 hours. My sister asked me what kind of a game

is it? I didn’t know how to explain it. It’s kind of a race, it’s also a battle, and you can buy things if you collect enough money. I am not sure why I am still playing this game, but I am sure that am delete the app before my finals arrive.

                Some of my colleagues and I started a study group for Poetry subject. The girls in the group are the hardest working students in each section.  Our gathering is really beneficial. It is fun as well. The more we discuss about a certain thing the more it’s easy to remember. We also share notes and materials because sometimes a section is given information and other sections are not, which is one of the reasons we formed this group. I enjoy my time so much because our subject is something that I love but when attending lectures and studying for exams, it becomes associated with stress and exhaustion. I am really glad I joined this group and I hope we collaborate in later years as well.


















It is really frustrating how our Health Education course is a chaos. First we begin taking this course after 5 weeks of the beginning of the semester. secondly, we had only one midterm out of thirty and the part included was too long. Not only that but questions in the exam were in parts we did not study. The leader of our section told us to study part of the hand out based on what she heard from the girls because the teacher did not answer her emails. 

Furthermore, a few lectures after the midterm our teacher told us that the curriculum have been changed by the department and the hand out we studied is useless now. Instead, she gave us a larger hand out. We asked for a quiz or anything that could help us, but the teacher said that she is teaching 200 girls and that is just impossible. I do not know who to blame, but I know such things should not happen. It is really getting harder and harder to get high marks.

I do not think I am easy to influence, but I was so influenced by Sir Kin Robinson’s Ted talk that I might drop college. In this talk, Robinson was simply saying that creativity is as important as literacy. Yet, education institutions tend to educate students out of their creativity. They are graduating them only to have one function which is to be

university professors . He also criticized that many students do not enter the field they love because it is stigmatized. He also mentioned that all around the world science is regarded highly important while arts and humanities are inferior. I learn something and I get inspired in every talk I watch of him. This is why I am planning to read his books in the summer.

Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY