Jessie, a young primary school girl from Selangor asked her father, "daddy, who is the richest man in the world, today?" "Em, I think it's Bill Gates, my dear," answered Jonathan, her father. "Ha ha, you're wrong. Its Carlos Slim Helu, a Mexican telecommunication tycoon. I just read an article about him in today's publication of the Star!" From this scenario, we can conclude that reading does widen one's knowledge regardless of age. In a recent survey conducted by one of the local daily, it is stated that the popularity of reading among the Malaysian community especially teenagers has been reducing gradually over the decades. However, to revive the reading habit among our loved ones, the Ministry of Education has published the benefits one would enjoy by reading.
We cannot deny the fact that reading would definitely improve one's knowledge. We can emend our general knowledge by reading the local dailies, encyclopedia, newsletters and may other reading materials. If we constantly read, we will be educated on all varsities of subjects, be it history, politics, sports, religions, businesses and other pivotal issues. It is never too late to read. Anyone can grab the newspapers instantly and read if he or she wishes to widen their general knowledge. For instance, the famous television series, "Are you smarter than A Fifth Grader", clearly depicts on how well educated the young ones are.
If we question our English Language teacher on the ways to improve the proficiency of our language, the obvious reply would be reading. We cannot deny the fact that reading is one of the prime ways to improve the fluency and competency of any language be it English, Malay, Mandarin, Tamil and others. Reading would be also emend the grammar and the sentence structures in our verbal as well as our written communication. As such, we can avoid wasting hundreds of ringgits attending courses in language centres such as Cambridge to improve the proficiency of our English language. Besides, by improving the command of English language, it would be easier for we to continue our tertiary education in world renowned universities such as Oxford, Cambridge and Howard. Everyone should understand that it would be impossible to pursue our undergraduate studies without obtaining good grades in our local examination such as SPM. The only way to pass our examination would be to read extensively and to have good understanding of our lessons. This clearly indicates the importance of reading.
Not withstanding, reading will educate one's self on the latest issues that is happening in the country. The prime example is reading the local daily. By reading the local dailies such as The Star, Berita Harian, News Straits Time and Mandarin as well as Tamil dailies, we will know the latest cabinet line-up issues about National Reconciliation, and other political issues. It also enabled us to discover the happenings in the music industry, entertainment and also the natural disaster, precarious maladies and civil wars which would prevent us from visiting such areas.
Apart from that, reading holy scriptures such as bible, Quran, Bhagarad Gita and other religious books, we can learn and practise the religious principals that would strengthen us to resist the temptations of our evil desires to ensure a safe and a peaceful environment. It also enables us to respect those from other religions which is essential to promote unity in our multiracial and multi religious nation. In addition, reading also helps us to motivate ourselves. When we are frustrated and demotivated by failures, we can read motivational books written by motivational gurus such as Bob Practor, Anthony Robbins and local authors as well. Reading these materials would help us to identify our hidden talents and inspire us to overcome our failure to excel in our lives.
In a nutshell, no one can judge the benefits of reading. It is only up to an individual to make full use of the habit of reading to improve the quality of his of her life. Thus, every responsible individual in our nation should start reading to stay competitive in today's era of globalisation where people are judged by their knowledge which brings wealth and fame. If not, achieving the goals of vision 2020 would become an herculean task. Remember, knowledge is wealth. Let's not procrastinate in just opening a book to read.
2013年9月19日星期四
2013年9月12日星期四
Sympathy
"She was behaving as if she was the best in the entire universe. It's all your fault, May! You should have defeated her but you didn't, only God knows why!" I stood speechless for a moment and I uttered, "she did her best, she deserve it", I confessed. I was trying to defend Jessie but my attempts were futile as my best friend Tina was telling the truth. No amount of cajoling would keep her quiet. I remembered the day which had influenced my thoughts and my acts.
It was a salubrious afternoon, the shrill ringing of the school bell pierced through the air signalling the end of English lesson. "Class, that's all for today. May and Jessie, don't forget that your contest is just around the corner. This contest is crucial for both of you, be prepared!" Miss Lee said before she left. Although I felt hurt initially, I knew the competition rivalry was setting into her.
I started ballet when I was four years old and it became my life ever since then. With the Almighty's blessings, I started to excel in ballet as I was victorious in most of the competition that I participated. However, things became challenging when Jessie moved into my school. Jessie who had been the state champion for Penang ballet competition for four continuous years made me to burn the midnight oil to retain my title of being the Selangor state champion for the last three years. Although, she had a good reputation in the world of ballet, in my school she was least preferred by the students. She was considered to be a very arrogant and a self centered girl as she never really associated with everyone. She just kept herself to a few girls who were from wealthy families as she was from a very wealthy family as well. Nevertheless she was quite famous, in fact very famous among the boys as she was super pretty. As a matter of fact, a few girls including me were jealous over her. She had a pair of sparkling azure blue eyes, with fluttering eyelashes, aquiline nose, thin rosy lips which was complemented by her milky hue complexion. Her lustrous brunette hair and her shapely body gave her all the reasons to be proud and snobbish.
It was the first time Jessie and I would be competing for the Selangor state's championship. She was very confident that she would emerge as champion as she though she was better than me. Not wanting to be over confident, I was practising day and night two weeks before the competition. Two days before the competition after my training session, I walked to my father's clinic as my ballet training centre was only a stone's throw away from my father's clinic. It was then I saw Jessie walking out from my father's clinic. I could no approach her as she never saw me and left before my arrive.
Feeling anxious I held on to my patience and waited for my father to attend to his patients. Then, I asked my father about Jessie's presence. I was shocked when my father said that she was going to be blind very soon as she was suffering from glaucoma. When I asked him whether she knew about her disability, he said she doesn't know as her parents did not want to reveal her disability to her as they wanted her to be happy as long as she could enjoy her vision. My father who was a well known ophthamologist said she would be blind within the next three months. A melancholic mood took control of me and my eyes glistered with tears.
Eventually the big day arrived and my parents accompanied me to the hall. My parents knew it was going to be another day of glory for me. I could see many other parents congratulating my parents as they were confident of my victory. It was then Jessie walked in with her parents which caught both my father's and my attention. I ran to my parents and told them everything about Jessie. They were flabbergasted. The bell rang and the emcee called Jessie to the stage. She performed well but my parents and my ballet teacher knew she was no match for my graceful movements. All the other contestants performed well but they were no match for Jessie. She was rather swollen with pride. I knew I was the only one who could humble her pride an I had made my decision.
As my name was called, I stepped onto the stage which was accompanied by a great applause from the audience and my well wishes. The melodious music started and I looked at my teacher who was smiling encouragingly at me. I felt guilty. As I dance, the smile disappeared from my teacher's face as she wondered why I made so many unforced error. When I had finished dancing, there was a polite applause which I had never received in the past three years. Then I walked to the backstage where all the ballerinas were waiting anxiously. They were apprehensive but I stayed calm. When the results were announced, Jessie was declared the winner and I was the runner up. Although, I felt sad, I rejoiced when I saw Jessie and her family were celebrating her victory. Tears sprang from my eyes but I controlled myself. My father came up to me and gave me a hug which I was not expecting. "Honey, you have been so strong to make such a heart breaking sacrifice. She was not the champion but you made her one. I am really proud of you my dear. Today, you are a champion in God's eyes." I felt an immerse relieve and comfort and I realised that every word he said was true.
It was a salubrious afternoon, the shrill ringing of the school bell pierced through the air signalling the end of English lesson. "Class, that's all for today. May and Jessie, don't forget that your contest is just around the corner. This contest is crucial for both of you, be prepared!" Miss Lee said before she left. Although I felt hurt initially, I knew the competition rivalry was setting into her.
I started ballet when I was four years old and it became my life ever since then. With the Almighty's blessings, I started to excel in ballet as I was victorious in most of the competition that I participated. However, things became challenging when Jessie moved into my school. Jessie who had been the state champion for Penang ballet competition for four continuous years made me to burn the midnight oil to retain my title of being the Selangor state champion for the last three years. Although, she had a good reputation in the world of ballet, in my school she was least preferred by the students. She was considered to be a very arrogant and a self centered girl as she never really associated with everyone. She just kept herself to a few girls who were from wealthy families as she was from a very wealthy family as well. Nevertheless she was quite famous, in fact very famous among the boys as she was super pretty. As a matter of fact, a few girls including me were jealous over her. She had a pair of sparkling azure blue eyes, with fluttering eyelashes, aquiline nose, thin rosy lips which was complemented by her milky hue complexion. Her lustrous brunette hair and her shapely body gave her all the reasons to be proud and snobbish.
It was the first time Jessie and I would be competing for the Selangor state's championship. She was very confident that she would emerge as champion as she though she was better than me. Not wanting to be over confident, I was practising day and night two weeks before the competition. Two days before the competition after my training session, I walked to my father's clinic as my ballet training centre was only a stone's throw away from my father's clinic. It was then I saw Jessie walking out from my father's clinic. I could no approach her as she never saw me and left before my arrive.
Feeling anxious I held on to my patience and waited for my father to attend to his patients. Then, I asked my father about Jessie's presence. I was shocked when my father said that she was going to be blind very soon as she was suffering from glaucoma. When I asked him whether she knew about her disability, he said she doesn't know as her parents did not want to reveal her disability to her as they wanted her to be happy as long as she could enjoy her vision. My father who was a well known ophthamologist said she would be blind within the next three months. A melancholic mood took control of me and my eyes glistered with tears.
Eventually the big day arrived and my parents accompanied me to the hall. My parents knew it was going to be another day of glory for me. I could see many other parents congratulating my parents as they were confident of my victory. It was then Jessie walked in with her parents which caught both my father's and my attention. I ran to my parents and told them everything about Jessie. They were flabbergasted. The bell rang and the emcee called Jessie to the stage. She performed well but my parents and my ballet teacher knew she was no match for my graceful movements. All the other contestants performed well but they were no match for Jessie. She was rather swollen with pride. I knew I was the only one who could humble her pride an I had made my decision.
As my name was called, I stepped onto the stage which was accompanied by a great applause from the audience and my well wishes. The melodious music started and I looked at my teacher who was smiling encouragingly at me. I felt guilty. As I dance, the smile disappeared from my teacher's face as she wondered why I made so many unforced error. When I had finished dancing, there was a polite applause which I had never received in the past three years. Then I walked to the backstage where all the ballerinas were waiting anxiously. They were apprehensive but I stayed calm. When the results were announced, Jessie was declared the winner and I was the runner up. Although, I felt sad, I rejoiced when I saw Jessie and her family were celebrating her victory. Tears sprang from my eyes but I controlled myself. My father came up to me and gave me a hug which I was not expecting. "Honey, you have been so strong to make such a heart breaking sacrifice. She was not the champion but you made her one. I am really proud of you my dear. Today, you are a champion in God's eyes." I felt an immerse relieve and comfort and I realised that every word he said was true.
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