That Certain Je Ne Sais Quoi....

I have just started my new semester at the Faculty on Monday. As it is still only the first week, we are still in the midst of sorting out our classes and dealing with the never ending registration issues. Despite the lesser number of attendees, it is still good to see all the familiar faces again and to know that we are still in the 'game'.

During one of the classes, I have been asked by friends on my plans for this semester. How many papers are you taking? How do you plan to prepare for this semester? How do you feel about passing your previous exam?

How do I feel? Relieved. Contented.

Absolutely ecstatic!! :)

My good friend Lea told me last semester, right before the final exams, " Noreane, kalau kite lepas yang ni, confirm kite boleh sampai ending" (Noreane, should we succeed in this attempt, we are confirmed to be able to reach till the end).

The previous semester had been challenging indeed, for both of us especially. We had personal issues to handle on top of the normal intricacies of life. Alhamdullilah, with our diligence, the sacrifices that we made plus the never ending support and prayers from family and friends and of course, not forgetting, god's will, we are still here today - to continue our journey.

This semester, I have the privilege of attending the class of the following professor. Up until yesterday, the only thing I that knew about him was of his reputation and through the articles written about him in blogs and newspaper. First appearances can be very deceiving indeed. At first glance he looked unapproachable. A private man. But all initial perception I had of him went out the window as soon as he started his lecture. Speaking pleasantly in a gentle voice, I was mesmerized by his humbleness, his ideologies and of his frankness. Plus, he is very, very polite.
He talks with such sincerity and from there I could see that he is someone who has a passion for knowledge and education. He believes that the goal, when it comes to studying, is not to produce results in a commercial sense, e.g. monetary value and recognition, but to study for the sole sake of studying itself. All of us, he said, are entitled to our rights, our equality and not just because of the differences in gender. As a human being, no one can give us our rights as we are borne with it, however rights can be taken away. We do not have to necessarily agree with each other. Differences in opinions and disputes is a good way to broaden our knowledge, however it is best done with sensitivity at mind and respectfully.

He also said failure is when you fall, you stay down.

It is a rare finding for me, to be able to find someone who in a way, echoes my thoughts which I nowadays keep it mostly to myself, due to many reasons. He has that 'certain something' which I highly respect and look up to. Some of the things he said affects me deeply. In a way, I was able to relate them to the experiences that I have gone throughout my short stint at adulthood.

I can see why many are awed by him. I think I will, most definitely, be joining the fan club soon enough. You don't need to use big, ambiguous words to send a message or to leave an impact. Bloody hell, throughout his lecture, I did not even take eyes of him and tried not to blink too much until my eyes dried out for fear that I will miss even a single sentence emitted from his lips. When our eyes met, I did not even break eye contact with him and I think, at times I may have scared him a little bit with my grim look. God, I sincerely hope my mouth was not hanging open as well ( apparently, I do a lot of 'that' these days. Sooo, not attractive!!Uurrrgghh ).

Pak Lang, my uncle, who is one of the nicest man I have ever known, once told me, " If you have nothing nice to say, then don't say it at all". On this matter, so far, all I have on the Prof is very good indeed.

I bought his book recently. He promised to sign it later for us as a momento.

Hmmm, I wonder, if it is possible to frame a book with nearly 800 pages and hang it on the wall??? ;)


"Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising every time we fall"
--
Confucius, 551-479 B.C.