The days of youth,
Do not waste it away,
For you are only young once,
Take a leap of faith.
Be foolish and optimistic,
For no one blames the young for being idealistic.
Take chances, least you wonder what could have been,
Take chances not because its safe to do so,
But because you can afford to take those chances
The consequences might be heartbreaking,
But no one said it would be easy,
It would just mean that at one point in your life
You had the courage you never knew you had
While your young, you might not be as wise
But do not settle for experienced advice
Wisdom may serve you well
But naive hope will open doors for unbounded experiences
And maybe in that experiences itself
We would find the meaning to our lives
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Monday, March 14, 2011
The idealism of Ibrahim Gambari
Today I had a guest lecture for my foreign policy and diplomacy class. It was an honor and privilege to have been given the opportunity to listen to Mr. Ibrahim Gambari speak to a class of interested and hopeful political scientist.
Mr. Ibrahim Gambari is the United Nations Special Representative for Darfur. It his address to us, he was speaking about the foundations of the United Nations and his work and passion in pushing for the adherence of human rights around the world. Mr. Ibrahim was truly his own person. He spoke with such passion , grace and conviction for the rights of each and every human being that lives in this world.
Being political scientists and hailing from Singapore especially, my classmates were naturally very skeptical about the idea of advancing the adherence of human rights to the rest of the world. Singapore's foundation largely lies on pragmatism and feasibility. We can see this foundations as the cornerstones in which Singapore has engineered their policies which in my opinion is a noteworthy achievement considering the growth and development of Singapore thus far.
For anyone who have lived in Singapore long enough would be able to guess the kind of questions that my classmates would inevitably ask. This one question struck me the most and in turn lead me to write this up.
The question was : Is working on encouraging countries to adhere to the basic observation of human rights an idealistic one? Why does the UN work so hard to try and push for the observance of democratic principles and human rights when clearly most countries violate human rights all the time and usually are able get away with it.
Mr.Ibrahim responded by saying something that I will never forget for the rest of my life. His response reminded me on why I choose to major in political science and more specifically why I wanted to work for the United Nations.
" The whole foundation of the UN is an idealistic one. So what if countries still commit gross violation of human rights? Does it mean that we should stop trying and dismantle the UN? Should we just give up and watch as our fellow human beings are being tortured everyday without any reason?"
Idealism allows us to dream of a better future, there are two types of people in the world.Those who look at reality and say that it cannot be changed and the second group of people who looks at reality and tries to bend it to fit an idealistic dream. Mr. Ibrahim Gambari fits in the second category of people. Because he believes that the promotion of human rights is a endeavour worth pursuing DESPITE claims of it being idealistic. His commitment to the promotion of human rights is simply inspirational and he has been working on this endeavour for 21 years.
It is ideals that we should try to achieve. Of course we might fail and the road to realize that ideal is steep and difficult to attain. But it is in our interest to promote and propagate human rights adherence for this simple reason:
"Every violation of human rights to a person, is a violation to ourselves."
Nothing can be more poignant,potent , piercing about this statement. Mr.Ibrahim ended his talk by sharing a poem with us by Martin Niemoller which will remain with me always.
Mr. Ibrahim Gambari is the United Nations Special Representative for Darfur. It his address to us, he was speaking about the foundations of the United Nations and his work and passion in pushing for the adherence of human rights around the world. Mr. Ibrahim was truly his own person. He spoke with such passion , grace and conviction for the rights of each and every human being that lives in this world.
Being political scientists and hailing from Singapore especially, my classmates were naturally very skeptical about the idea of advancing the adherence of human rights to the rest of the world. Singapore's foundation largely lies on pragmatism and feasibility. We can see this foundations as the cornerstones in which Singapore has engineered their policies which in my opinion is a noteworthy achievement considering the growth and development of Singapore thus far.
For anyone who have lived in Singapore long enough would be able to guess the kind of questions that my classmates would inevitably ask. This one question struck me the most and in turn lead me to write this up.
The question was : Is working on encouraging countries to adhere to the basic observation of human rights an idealistic one? Why does the UN work so hard to try and push for the observance of democratic principles and human rights when clearly most countries violate human rights all the time and usually are able get away with it.
Mr.Ibrahim responded by saying something that I will never forget for the rest of my life. His response reminded me on why I choose to major in political science and more specifically why I wanted to work for the United Nations.
" The whole foundation of the UN is an idealistic one. So what if countries still commit gross violation of human rights? Does it mean that we should stop trying and dismantle the UN? Should we just give up and watch as our fellow human beings are being tortured everyday without any reason?"
Idealism allows us to dream of a better future, there are two types of people in the world.Those who look at reality and say that it cannot be changed and the second group of people who looks at reality and tries to bend it to fit an idealistic dream. Mr. Ibrahim Gambari fits in the second category of people. Because he believes that the promotion of human rights is a endeavour worth pursuing DESPITE claims of it being idealistic. His commitment to the promotion of human rights is simply inspirational and he has been working on this endeavour for 21 years.
It is ideals that we should try to achieve. Of course we might fail and the road to realize that ideal is steep and difficult to attain. But it is in our interest to promote and propagate human rights adherence for this simple reason:
"Every violation of human rights to a person, is a violation to ourselves."
Nothing can be more poignant,potent , piercing about this statement. Mr.Ibrahim ended his talk by sharing a poem with us by Martin Niemoller which will remain with me always.
" In Germany they came first for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time no one was left to speak up."
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Of rainbows
Live like you're dying.
This is one of the most memorable and widespread quotes of out time.
It is really easy to see why such a simple, ordinary and easy line carries so much weight.
The future is really not promised to anyone.
Sometimes it is easy to forget that we are not invincible.
Especially when we are in our youths, we conveniently forget that our time will soon come.
When we too will join our peers in remembering the days gone by.
So forget about living prudently.
We are only promised today
It is our duty to live as if it would be our last.
All I know is I do not want to have any regrets.
So whenever there is an urge in me to do something,
I will not hesitate to take a leap of faith,
Because you might just end up discovering a rainbow on the other side.
This is one of the most memorable and widespread quotes of out time.
It is really easy to see why such a simple, ordinary and easy line carries so much weight.
The future is really not promised to anyone.
Sometimes it is easy to forget that we are not invincible.
Especially when we are in our youths, we conveniently forget that our time will soon come.
When we too will join our peers in remembering the days gone by.
So forget about living prudently.
We are only promised today
It is our duty to live as if it would be our last.
All I know is I do not want to have any regrets.
So whenever there is an urge in me to do something,
I will not hesitate to take a leap of faith,
Monday, February 14, 2011
Valentine's Day
The idea of love and romance I suppose is a very appealing one. It gives you this sweeping sometimes seemingly irrational feeling of abundant , explosive joy albeit a momentarily one. To be more precise, just a mere 24 hours, a reason or rather an excuse to show affection, appreciation without risking being labeled as being to corny and cheesy.
It is hearting to know that people still value love and affection and all this mushy feelings to the point of dedicating a special day to profess love and adoration. It is really done out of the best intentions. We should make everyday Valentine's day because I believe it is important to let the people closest and dearest to us know how much they mean to us.
I am puzzled though by the recent comments by some parties in Malaysia about Valentine's day being 'haram' ,'sinful' and against Islam. I may not know the content of the Quran but I just can't wrap my mind around the idea that celebrating valentine's day is immoral for Muslims. I might seem ignorant of the teachings of the religion but in my humble opinion, I don't think God would be mad or would punish us for showing our love and affection to the people that we love in ways we deem fit. The way I see it, we are made to love and that in itself gives our life some semblance of meaning and purpose. More importantly if there is a specially dedicated day in which we would be reminded about the importance of demonstrating our love to the people that matter the most to us, we should and must embrace the underlying idea of Valentine's say. No matter how cliche or irksome it is to some of us.
Of course we can choose not to celebrate V day but we must never reject the value and importance showing and telling people that we care and love them. After all its not about lovers, it is about EVERY single person that means the world to us and Valentine's day is just an instrument in allowing us to do so.
It is the idea and purpose of Valentine's day that we must remember.
happy valentine's day peeps =)
It is hearting to know that people still value love and affection and all this mushy feelings to the point of dedicating a special day to profess love and adoration. It is really done out of the best intentions. We should make everyday Valentine's day because I believe it is important to let the people closest and dearest to us know how much they mean to us.
I am puzzled though by the recent comments by some parties in Malaysia about Valentine's day being 'haram' ,'sinful' and against Islam. I may not know the content of the Quran but I just can't wrap my mind around the idea that celebrating valentine's day is immoral for Muslims. I might seem ignorant of the teachings of the religion but in my humble opinion, I don't think God would be mad or would punish us for showing our love and affection to the people that we love in ways we deem fit. The way I see it, we are made to love and that in itself gives our life some semblance of meaning and purpose. More importantly if there is a specially dedicated day in which we would be reminded about the importance of demonstrating our love to the people that matter the most to us, we should and must embrace the underlying idea of Valentine's say. No matter how cliche or irksome it is to some of us.
Of course we can choose not to celebrate V day but we must never reject the value and importance showing and telling people that we care and love them. After all its not about lovers, it is about EVERY single person that means the world to us and Valentine's day is just an instrument in allowing us to do so.
It is the idea and purpose of Valentine's day that we must remember.
happy valentine's day peeps =)
Monday, January 17, 2011
Change
They say that the only constant in life is change. Everything is bound to change. I guess we all know that but somehow we hope that by trying to avoid thinking about it or acknowledging it , the painful change that is slowly creeping into our lives will go away. Perhaps change can be mitigated once we stop thinking about it.
Similar to the idea of mind over matter? You think that your circumstances have not change and that it's all in your mind. You hope and wish that maybe you are over-thinking it and that in reality and actuality things have not change to the point that it has become alien to you. At least that is what you hope it is.
But sooner or later like an incoming hurricane ,it hits you and all that you're left with is questions. Questions of why, what and most significantly how in the world did you allow such unrecognizable changes to happen to your life. A life in which you are supposed to be the master of your destiny. The captain of your world. The life in which you are given the wheel to steer. Any direction.Without limitation or restriction.
The outcome you get? is the realization that you are only human and it is difficult and sometimes even heart breaking because you can't steer life without changing it. And that sometimes conscious effort is needed to make changes for the best, for the future, for yourself and for the best of others, the people you care about the most. Knowing, with every single. inevitable change. the package of consequences which comes along is going to be filled with questions of 'what ifs' and the constant nagging at the back of your mind .Of things you should have done and things that you shouldn't have done. Just to make the changes that occurred bearable and also maybe to make sense of the dissonance that is heavily weighing on your psyche.
But I figured that's just the human condition. Perhaps change is needed for us to know what matters to us the most. Maybe it takes change to know who are the people that matter to you the most and maybe just maybe, If we are lucky enough we would be given a second chance to go back and relive those memories in which we were the most happiest. The most content. A chance to live again. To breath again and to experience the reckless abandon as a child would in the meadows. The things that we felt when we were kids before the recognition that we would not stay kids forever. Before we got to know that life is not always about pink cotton candies, funfair , carousel rides, rainbows and hop scotchs.
They say that the only constant in life is change. Everything is bound to change. I guess we all know that but somehow we hope that by trying to avoid thinking about it or acknowledging it , the painful change that is slowly creeping into our lives will go away. Perhaps change can be mitigated once we stop thinking about it.
Similar to the idea of mind over matter? You think that your circumstances have not change and that it's all in your mind. You hope and wish that maybe you are over-thinking it and that in reality and actuality things have not change to the point that it has become alien to you. At least that is what you hope it is.
But sooner or later like an incoming hurricane ,it hits you and all that you're left with is questions. Questions of why, what and most significantly how in the world did you allow such unrecognizable changes to happen to your life. A life in which you are supposed to be the master of your destiny. The captain of your world. The life in which you are given the wheel to steer. Any direction.Without limitation or restriction.
The outcome you get? is the realization that you are only human and it is difficult and sometimes even heart breaking because you can't steer life without changing it. And that sometimes conscious effort is needed to make changes for the best, for the future, for yourself and for the best of others, the people you care about the most. Knowing, with every single. inevitable change. the package of consequences which comes along is going to be filled with questions of 'what ifs' and the constant nagging at the back of your mind .Of things you should have done and things that you shouldn't have done. Just to make the changes that occurred bearable and also maybe to make sense of the dissonance that is heavily weighing on your psyche.
But I figured that's just the human condition. Perhaps change is needed for us to know what matters to us the most. Maybe it takes change to know who are the people that matter to you the most and maybe just maybe, If we are lucky enough we would be given a second chance to go back and relive those memories in which we were the most happiest. The most content. A chance to live again. To breath again and to experience the reckless abandon as a child would in the meadows. The things that we felt when we were kids before the recognition that we would not stay kids forever. Before we got to know that life is not always about pink cotton candies, funfair , carousel rides, rainbows and hop scotchs.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Passion
I have been living the campus life for the past one and the half years. Today i came back to that life after a blissful month of holidays. Then it all begins, all over again like a carousel. For the next 13 weeks this would be life.
I came back to Singapore and attended to the work I needed to get done. Whilst in the midst of doing all the work and discussing issues regarding our lives in hall I was reminded again why i do the work I do in hall.
The people I work with are so passionate about the work they do and it actually gives me hope. Hope that good people STILL do exist and that there are people,though not many who STILL cares about others and are willing to do everything they can to ensure that the community that they are involved in, gets the best out of their tenure and efforts.
Of course this would all be a naive assumption, but sometimes all we have to do is choose to believe in the goodness of people. Faith , that there are unselfish deeds and work and actions that people are capable of achieving and executing. I think we all need that little dosage of faith cause faith brings about hope. Besides I think that with all the negativity in the world, faith and hope will do our souls good because sometimes all you need is a little hope which enables us to keep trying and keep believing in the things that we are passionate about and perhaps most importantly to continue doing and pursuing our passions. Especially when the fruits of our labor is not growing nor showing any signs of growth.
I came back to Singapore and attended to the work I needed to get done. Whilst in the midst of doing all the work and discussing issues regarding our lives in hall I was reminded again why i do the work I do in hall.
The people I work with are so passionate about the work they do and it actually gives me hope. Hope that good people STILL do exist and that there are people,though not many who STILL cares about others and are willing to do everything they can to ensure that the community that they are involved in, gets the best out of their tenure and efforts.
Of course this would all be a naive assumption, but sometimes all we have to do is choose to believe in the goodness of people. Faith , that there are unselfish deeds and work and actions that people are capable of achieving and executing. I think we all need that little dosage of faith cause faith brings about hope. Besides I think that with all the negativity in the world, faith and hope will do our souls good because sometimes all you need is a little hope which enables us to keep trying and keep believing in the things that we are passionate about and perhaps most importantly to continue doing and pursuing our passions. Especially when the fruits of our labor is not growing nor showing any signs of growth.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
A day to go
It's amazing and strange at the same time , the feeling you get when the holidays are about to end and that you have to go back to routine and lead the life that you ought to live. Not because you actually enjoy it but because it's the safer choice.
Speaking about safer choices, a degree doesn't guarantee you anything anyway. You just end up being like everyone else. Qualified to get a job with a different range of pay that is... and that is SUPPOSE to make all the difference and add meaning to the tertiary education that everyone is fussing about. I just wonder if it really will matter at the end of the day.
Speaking about safer choices, a degree doesn't guarantee you anything anyway. You just end up being like everyone else. Qualified to get a job with a different range of pay that is... and that is SUPPOSE to make all the difference and add meaning to the tertiary education that everyone is fussing about. I just wonder if it really will matter at the end of the day.
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