Fruitful year

It is difficult to say goodbye. But we do not have control over time. Thus the moment has come to bid goodbye to the beautiful year 2013 and give a warm welcome to the year 2014.

As I look back, I feel satisfied. It was a fulfilling year for me. This year brought me good learning opportunities as well as fun-filled activities.

The year began with the wonderful trip to Fujairah and coastal areas of Sharjah. I learnt about the Emirati traditions and the efforts made by the government to preserve the heritage. This trip was a mixture of thrill, excitement and learning experience.

Another breathtaking moment came when I toured Sharjah on a seaplane. It was awesome. I had a bird’s eye view of Sharjah’s landmarks as the seaplane flew at a relatively low height. I also got a chance to have a closer look at Sharjah’s landmarks from a different angle when I joined thousands of people in the National Day Maritime Parade.

The year will always remain special to me because I got the opportunity to meet three internationally acclaimed personalities. Each of them is an icon in his chosen field.

Meeting the famous Indian author Chetan Bhagat was a thrilling experience. Since I love to read and write, he inspired me a lot. He was kind enough to not only share a few tips on writing but also gave his autograph and posed with me for a photo, which is an asset for me.

An evening with the King of Ghazals Ghulam Ali was like a dream come true. Classical Urdu poetry in his mellifluous voice has been favourite of my father and grandfather, who is a well-known poet in India. What inspired me most was his undiminished energy and vigour. Despite being in his seventies, he kept on singing for hours.

Another lifetime opportunity came to me when I met the former President of India APJ Abdul Kalam, popularly known as the Missile Man of India. I was floored by his humbleness. I was among the few fortunate people who attended the seminar where he shared a few writing tips, which I hope will improve my skills.

I know I can’t go back to those times again. But hope the coming year will be full of better opportunities.

Happy New Year!

(Published in The Gulf Today on December 28, 2013)     

Fun with words

Tongue twister is an important medium of fun. But there are other important advantages of the funny tongue twisters. It helps in clear speech and proper pronunciation.

This is what I recently learnt in my school. One day during recess, we decided to hold a competition of tongue twisters.

One of the classmates said, “I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!”

“Judges make writers write writs right,” said another.

“She saw Sherif’s shoes on the sofa. But was she so sure she saw Sherif’s shoes on the sofa?” came next.

Then came the difficult ones. “I saw Susie sitting in a shoe shine shop. Where she sits she shines, and where she shines she sits,” said one of my classmates.

Another pronounced even more difficult one, “How can a clam cram in a clean cream can?”

Thus everyone began to say one tongue twister after another, which seemed to be more difficult than the previous one. It was fun and everyone was enjoying.

We were so engrossed that we couldn’t realise when the bell rang and the teacher entered the classroom. We all were dumb-struck and wondered what will happen next.

But to our surprise, she said, “You all can continue with your tongue twisters.”

Then, she explained. “Do you know why I allowed you? It is because tongue twisters help us in clear speech and proper pronunciation. Tongue twisters not only teach proper pronunciation but also add fun, interest and humour.”

So let’s follow Mr. Tongue Twister who tried to train his tongue to twist and turn, and twit an twat, to learn the letter “T”.
(Published in The Gulf Today on December 21, 2013)    

Be natural

Is it true that in the coming generations everything will be so advanced that a robot can go to the past or future, perform special tasks, solve problems just with the help of gadgets and act like Superman?

I was thinking about it after recently watching the cartoon series “Doraemon”. I was very surprised when it showed that Doraemon, a robotic cat from the future, helps a boy with all his problems and grants his request just with the gadgets present in his four-dimensional pocket.

After watching a few episodes of the cartoon series, I started pondering the possibilities in real life. Is it possible to do anything in real life just like the boy in the series was doing with the help of Doraemon?

He could change the weather whenever he wanted to with Doraemon’s help. If he and Doraemon wanted to go somewhere quickly, they could just get the “Go Anywhere Door.”

 As soon as they would open the door and step out, they would reach the destination. They could even fly and walk in air using the gadgets. They could do everything.

Recently in the school, my friends and I were discussing this cartoon. One of my friends shared, “If only I had Doraemon, I would ask him for a pencil which would start writing the correct answers as soon as I put it on the answer sheet. I don’t need to learn anything for exam.”

Another friend said, “If I had Doraemon I would ask for his gadget to make me invisible whenever I wanted. And then I could do whatever I wished.”

If we get such robots, it would be fun for everyone. But at the same time, I thought that if everyone had this, the world would be upside down. If one would do something, the other person might do the opposite.

Thus I have realised that we should be natural and use our capabilities to make the world a better place.

(Published in The Gulf Today on December 14, 2013)     

For love of the UAE

On Dec.2, 2013, the United Arab Emirates celebrated its 42nd National Day. Like every year, on this National Day too, I was excited to join the celebrations.

Every country has a different way of marking important occasions in their history. People in the UAE are most creative. I noticed that to celebrate the UAE’s National Day, they had organised many family activities and festive performances, including shows, children’s attractions, parades and much more.

But the most surprising was to see a rare way of celebration. It was new to me thus I was all excited to join them. We were going for a Maritime Parade.

Hundreds of people who wanted to participate in the parade gathered at Sharjah Aquarium along with their families and friends. We sat on one of the traditional boats that were lined up along the coast. The boats were almost full. As soon as everyone settled down, the trip started.

We toured almost the whole of Sharjah. We went from the famous Sharjah Aquarium to Al Qasba then to the Corniche and all the way till the Flag Island before returning to the point we started the parade. Although it was a long journey, I enjoyed it a lot.

Every one of us had a great time although a lot of people had come to celebrate this occasion. Whether Emiratis or expats, children or adults everyone was having a great time. A music band of boy scouts and a group of local folk singers travelling in separate boats kept on performing throughout. There were other groups who kept singing traditional songs while a few girls were dancing on the boats.

But I felt the true spirit of the Union when our boat came closer to the people who were singing the UAE’s national anthem.

It was a wonderful day. I wished this kind of celebration occur every year so we get a chance to share our love for the UAE with everyone.

(Published in The Gulf Today on December 7, 2013)    

Precious thoughts

Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s latest book,  Flashes of Thought, is quite inspiring. It also teaches moral values and gives us information about future plans of the UAE government.

I was going through a chapter, “Time management” when I came through the line “Time is like a flowing river: you can never step in the same water twice.”

As soon as I finished the chapter, many incidents sprung to my mind that supported his views.

Once I visited a friend to discuss a project. But I was surprised when she asked me to join her in playing a video game. To my astonishment, she said, “What is the hurry?”

I returned home then, but remained tense as the next day was the submission day. I decided never to waste time again.

Again just before our half yearly exams, when our teacher was absent, many girls in my class made good use of the time by practising questions, others were just playing or chattering.

Recently on our way back home, a tyre of the school bus got punctured. Everyone started screaming except a few girls. I noticed, some of the girls took out their books and began completing their homework. They knew how to use their time well.

I admire visionary leader Sheikh Mohammed who also wrote in his book  Flashes of Thought,   “”Some see the year equivalent to 365 days. Well, I say that a year is equal to the days that you have invested in yourself. Manage your time, know your priorities, enjoy life and leave your mark, and most importantly never allow anyone to steal your time – for by doing that they would steal your life.”

(Published in The Gulf Today on November 30, 2013)