** year olds

You know when you’re sitting with your friends and you wish you’d get to be a kid again…

When you’re a kid and your biggest worry was deciding what to do the next weekend. When your biggest fear was the fear of your friend finding the place you’re hiding in when playing hide and seek. When the question that you had the hardest time finding an answer for was a simple homework question?

Sounds pretty fun when you picture yourself back at that age.. But I discovered lately that it’s not so much fun living with it.

For the past couple of days my two little cousins Dana (11 years old) and Abdulrahman (9 years old) have been staying with us while their mother is attending a conference in London. They go perfectly with my 10 year old sister.

For the past couple of days I have observed how little kids can turn a simple game to an actual WAR!

Let me show you what I mean with the following scene that has been repeating EVERYDAY!:

I was sitting peacefully in my room studying for my math exam… All of a sudden I hear a small army’s running footsteps:

“Aaaaaaaaaahhhhh!!!!!!!”

“Hahahahahaha”

“Ruuunnn he’s cominnggggggg!!!!!!!!”

“goo goo goooooooooooo!”

*BAM!!!!!!!!*

(silence)…………….

“Hahahahahahahahaha”

“Go goooo!!!”

…………….

I step out of my room slowly to observe what I can only call a mini-war between the 3 kids. Yes.. 3 little human beings enjoying a not so peaceful game of ….. Well I still didn’t figure out what the game was exactly. They just ran as fast as they could, and Abdulrahman (he was a minority seeing as he was the only boy and the youngest) would try to catch up and hit them. When he does succeed in achieving his strongly aimed for goal, the roles get switched. Leena and Dana get to chase Abdulrahman all the way to hit him back. And this goes on for a loooog long time.

They always hog the TV with Turkish series that I am sick of.

They finish all the chips and candy we have stored (I cant find decent junk food to study properly!).

They take my guitar without asking for permission and they mess up the tuning.

When I take my guitar from them, they use my Guitar Hero without asking me for other purposes than actually playing the game! (Often it would be imitating Hannah Montana… A new enemy of mine..)

They play with my turtle (Shelly) by giving her “fake roller coaster rides” (sorry Shelly).
They never stop running, screaming… and they never stop asking for favors.

Don’t get me wrong, although I’m not too fond of the things my cousins and little sister are doing, I really like kids! but apparently not them…

Thank god I’ve lived through about 4 days… Just a couple of more and I’m free!

The following are quotes that I now believe in:

* “Any kid will run any errand for you if you ask at bedtime.” (I got tired of ordering them to sleep, so I just used them to help me clean the turtle tank)

* “You can learn many things from children.  How much patience you have, for instance.”  ~Franklin P. Jones (True dat!)

 

Have you ever went through situations like these? Where you found out that kids can be not so adorable?

Week #1

I discovered something… When you talk to a senior, no matter what subject you’re talking about, that person most likely won’t be concentrating on whatever you’re saying. I am a senior, and I can tell you that we’re thinking too much. And no, believe me it’s not always a good thing.

It’s 11:48 pm… and it’s past my bedtime! Yet I still can’t sleep… 3 words… College application process. In my previous post The C word I was complaining about getting accepted into colleges, but I haven’t really been through the application process. Well, right now I’m going through it, and let me tell you: it’s not fun. I spent half the time worrying and thinking, and the other half staring at a list of what I should be doing.

My booksmarks “Or if you’re an internet explorer user: my favorites” have been converted from links such as (YouTube, Facebook, Hotmail, Zamzar audio converter -for converting music-)… To: (Collegeboard.com, ets.org, commonapp.org, www.ucas.ac.uk, US News Univ Rankings…)      It’s an invasion

This is my first weekend, and until now I haven’t talked to someone that actually used the words “our first weekend” and “fun” in the same sentence. It even shows on our faces! A friend of mine (that is also going through the process) just told me that she met 2 graduates from last year in the supermarket. They actually told her: “wow you look like you haven’t slept in a week!” After a few minutes of laughing at what she said, my sister walked in my room and told me: “Why do you look so tired?! get some sleep!” …. -_-

I also think that I added 2 kilos to my not-so-perfect weight this weekend alone. Let me explain why… Usually during final exams I eat a lot of snacks while I’m studying (thinking gives me the urge to eat)… My mom takes this chance and puts nuts and fruits in front of me so that I’d be chewing something healthy for a change). But this is my first weekend (no exams yet) so no healthy snacks in the house. Since this weekend I filled forms and applications and I did my college research, I had a LOT of thinking to do. And not any type of thinking, but thinking that will eventually affect my future. So in the end… junk food became my snack, and the kitchen became my new room. I don’t know why but chewing and eating while working on something really helps me relax.

This hard phase is bound to end though. And I want it to end in a good way. I don’t want to regret not working enough or not studying for the standardized tests. So for now we just have to do things smoothly. Finish things before their deadline, manage our time productively, it’s only 1 semester and then we’re free! Keeping that in mind really boosts up my mood!

Sulafa a friend of mine has been reminding me this past week that this is our senior year and we have to have fun! I agree with her. I will try to look at the bright side of the application process more often (It may seem that that side doesn’t exist, but a dear wise person told me that this process will prepare me for more stressful situations in the future)I might be complaining in a few of my next posts, but I’ll try to keep it in a paragraph or 2 only. (I will try my best but I can’t promise).

This is a part of an article from the U.S. News’s “America’s best Colleges ” 2010 edition. I believe it’s true:

“Pick the correct school and you will, of course, become a road scholar, Noble prize winner, president/CEO/titan of Industry, managing partner of a major law firm, biomedical wizard, or perhaps, if you plan it just right, all of the above.”-Bruce Poch

“Thanks to Fatima Al-Bassam for providing these wonderful (much like herslef) pictures”

Back to… Mac?

It’s been about 2 months since I’ve posted something new in both my blogs. I apologize for that, but hopefully I’m going back to blogging with this new school year to come!

Ok  so after 2 days I’m officially starting my senior year!  yay!? I am excited at the fact that it’s a new year. Starting fresh is always good.. but the fact that I’m taking both Physics and Chemistry at the same semester is ruining it.. not to mention the SAT and the Subject SAT. Actually college applications alone would do the trick… (Over the summer I realized that complaining really does help make you feel better!) …  Ah this is going to be a …fun year?

So I was checking out new laptops in the market. Since it’s a new school year and my almost 4 year old HP is begging to retire… I have to release if from its pain sometime soon.. Searching the World Wide Web has proven to me that the Macbook pro is amazing! I’ve never had Mac before, I’ve always been strictly PC (Windows). I think most windows users would agree that it’s much easier. And plus the transition from Windows to Mac seems kind of hard, and we’re not very much into “difficult” stuff these days..

So as usual before buying any new hardware I got online and started searching and comparing between the Mac and PC….  Youtube did the trick! I found a couple of really funny ads that point out how Mac is so much better than PC!.. no viruses, no freezing, and I think everyone would agree it looks SUPERB!

The thing is, I’m pretty big on applications, and I’ve heard from various people that Windows applications for Mac are harder to find. I searched online and that didn’t seem to be a problem! Now everything is available for Mac! and even if its not.. (This is the pretty cool part)… you can actually run BOTH operating systems on a mac!! so lets say you miss your windows OS… a few clicks and it’ll appear on your Mac screen!

Mac Vs PC

I know we’re not a “Mac community” here.. which makes it harder to get local opinions.

And I’m still having second thoughts though. So a call to all Mac users: care to share your experience with your laptops? How’s it going for you guys?

Background Music

I nag. It’s me, it’s what I do, It’s who I am… and apparently my friends don’t seem to accept it!… Their reaction to my nagging comes in the form of not listening to what I say.. (They claim that my voice has a kind of barrier to their ears from all the nagging *rolling eyes*)

I love to talk and we all know it, I can’t deny it, you’ve seen how long my posts are!!! I’m not asking for much walla! all I am asking from you guys (Fati, sumer, samar, dany, naimah..) is to listen to me! ok so here’s a typical scene from an outing with my friends, we went to Fuddruckers the other day, (I arrived late and they all were giving me the “looks” and hidden laughs, I wasn’t too fond of that btw:)  )

Scene 1: *The group discussing new movies*

Sara: Hey guys there is this movie…

Fati: oh yes yes I saw that scene… !! (talking to the group)

Sara *with a higher voice*:  there is this movie that I wanna see..

Dany: Yea I told you about it! it was so funny! (talking to fati)

Naimah: Hahaha yea and remember that scene when…(talking to the group)

Sara *Sits quietly until someone notices her*

Sumer, who was playing with her BB, finally noticed me! yay! -_- and started laughing… The girls saw my face, saw sumer’s laugh, and joined in! I couldn’t resist so I just started laughing and tearing as usual…

This scene repeats a LOT! I don’t know, is it my voice? is it too low? I think my family would disagree.. Apparently the reason was that I nagged too much…

Let me explain how my beloved friends “clarified” this repeating phenomenon… “Sara nags. We get used to her voice. It becomes like the sound of background music in a song, we just don’t listen to it, but enjoy the song…”, so apparently I’m the “background music” now!

I realized this whole dilemma in London, where we went for our MUN conference… Scene 2: I was talking (a lot) and no one seemed to listen. It’s not like they were ignoring me, it was like they ACTUALLY didn’t hear me!!!  so I had it! I just spilled it out! “NO ONE LISTENS TO WHAT I SAY!” -__-  a moment of silence, then .. as usual…. laughter… So after that every time I say something,, I try to repeat what I said, and if it still didn’t work, I’d just stay silent, like moving and kicking in quick sand,  it doesn’t work so you’d stay still and stop fighting… so that’s what I do, I’d stay still and stop talking.. hoping that someone would hear that quietness and notice that I was trying yo say something!  And every once in a while it works! but sometimes it doesn’t…  but that’s life I guess.. as they say “yom lak o yom 3laik”

* btw if you’re wondering, nagging works! almost ALL the time! that’s why it’s nice..

The problem is, when they act like that… apparently everything around them does too!! example .. Scene 3:

We walk into our hotel room in London… Hanouf, Sumer and I were roommates… Therefore as expected everything they got, I got too…. So we walk into the room, and this TV screen was opened, showing the hotel’s name and a tab under that’s moving… saying “Welcome Sumer and Hanouf…”.. I waited… and waited… and waited for my name to appear! but guess what! Not even the TV is recognizing me!

“WHAAT! WHYYY?!?!?”, after saying that with an extremely whinny voice, Hanouf and Sumer laughed until the tears came streaming down their faces… And of course, a moment like that should be cherished! so Hanouf ran, got the camera, and took a video of my disappointed face… ahhh why?

Listen guys, you know I love you, and I know that you have a fun time seeing my reactions to these “scenes”… honestly I have fun too! It’s really funny!! But I always I talk and talk and talk and ask and say and explain.. NO ONE LISTENS!! not even 1 girl!!!! It’s actually scaring me!! ahh I am expecting an explanation with the laughing on the comments btw.. I DEMAND an explanation people!!!!

When I want to say something important they don’t listen! but when I get tongue tied or say something wrong, suddenly it’s like they’ve been waiting for me to say it so that they’d laugh about it non-stop! For example … Scene 4 (my typos)…  I miss-spelled the word “tulip”on msn in a joined conversation between me, Fati and Danya… I distinctively remember talking EVEN ON MSN and I wasn’t paid attention to!… So I wrote it as “tollips” and got distracted when my little sister came and asked me to fix something of her’s… I go for 5 mins, come back, and I see that the whole conversation window consisted of.. “LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO……OOOOOOL”… I wanted to know what was SO FUUNY?!  so as curious as I was.. I went up the conversation log up …up…  up  (the OO’s were there) .. until I reached the part where they were making fun of me.. TO MY FACE/screen…  I couldn’t help laughing at this! and then typed a whinny “ahhhh, u ALWAYs make fun of meee!!” …  therefore, the LOL’s double..….

They’re really diverse when it comes to making fun of me… sometimes about my typos, sometimes because I don’t pay attention to what I’m laughing at, and when I ask “what happened?” they continue laughing at me… sometimes about my nagging… sometimes for buying a BB gun or a new GTA PS2 game that I was SO excited to buy!… It’s all about diversity baby …

Scene 5: a certain someone that has very very creative ideas (Fati)… suggested that we play hide and seek at the middle of the night in the hotel hallway in London! I got SOOOO excited!!! Then,, the rest of the girls *cough* losers *cough*, said no .. I got so upset! and I … ehm, nagged to plaay! but they didn’t listen to me! I got so pissed, and FYI, every time I think about it, I get even more pissed!, and apparently you laugh when I do -_-…

ahh life is hard when you don’t get what you want from nagging, and even harder when your nagging isn’t even listened to!  I guess I’ll just have to wait and see…

“Nagging is the repetition of unpalatable truths” ~Edith Clara…  See? I say TRUTHS! So u better listen from now on!

* I know you guys don’t think that, and if you do, shame on you! *

Sigh.. Salam!  :D

Rarely seen

A room in an apartment in Riyadh. In this crowded room you’d see more than 5 different nationalities. People from all over the world sitting together having a cup of tea, some cookies, discussing politics, children and maybe even new food recipes. Husbands and wives sitting together, each discussing different experiences that they’d been through the past couple of years.

A Japanese woman sitting next to her hadrami husband. A Sudani women chatting with an American lady. A hadrami family having a nice conversation with a Saudi woman and the host who was Lebanese/Turkish. Every once in a while those side chats would turn into a group discussion, our future and what we have become.  A scene that I witnessed. A scene that I was part of almost 5-6 years ago…

Difference. Different beliefs, different ethnics, different looks, different countries. It was like a reunion of so many ideas, thoughts, nationalities…

This was a scene that had a ripple effect on me, a scene that made me think in a whole different way. A scene rarely seen here in Saudi.

When did this become so rare to be a part of? How many times would a person go through an experience like that here in Saudi… If ever? We lack that joy. The joy of introducing ourselves to so many different ideas and traditions, the joy of being a part of a global gathering. People from different parts of the world in one country, in one city, in one room.

In that group, we were the hadrami (7a’9rame) family. 7 members, 3 girls, 2 boys, and 2 amazing parents.

As a part of my family, we’ve been introduced to so many societies, so many cultures. We would spend a day with people from our extended family, a hadrami gathering in a house. Listening to our ancestor’s accent, being a part of our culture and traditions. We’d notice the normal things. The men would be in one side, the women in the other. As youngsters we’d join them, join our extended family, and try experiencing something new, talking our native accent.

Personally, I love it when I talk to grandmothers. they’re so cute! They usually ask me “Ha sara? Did you pass in school?” like not passing my grade would be an option, like there was no such thing as a percentage or grades, ahh their old days… I would cheerfully respond with a “Yes!” …why explain the complicated system of today’s education, when you can make them happy and proud with a simple word and a big smile .

I love those traditions, where you go into the living room,  greet everyone in person. When you kiss the hand and the forehead of an elderly even if you don’t know her. I’d watch little kids running around playing hide and seek, with their gold bracelets on their hands (Usually gifts from their grandmothers). Noticing the “Henna” on their hands, listening to their conversations. Hadrami social updates are pretty much the same anywhere…. It’s either someone got married, someone passed away, or someone had a new baby! And that someone always seems to be related to you in a complex way that I will never understand. “Ahmad’s mother’s aunt had a new grandson!”… “Do you know your mom’s uncle’s daughter got married?”…I never understand them!  Sometimes I’d be lucky enough to get the family name too! Ba-alhadad, Ba-alhamdan, Ba-tog (ba6og, yes the gum :p )… those two letters (Ba) are like screaming “Hadrami”. Two letters that I hear a LOT when receiving updates!

The next day, we would be hanging out with friends of my parents. No segregation, every man and his wife and their grown up children in one living room. Discussing books, education, politics… A  totally different atmosphere than the one we’d been in the other night. Sometimes we’d even be lucky to join in with American friends and turn it into an international sitting.

Being introduced to so many societies, so many traditions, so many living impersonations of countries… Ah the feeling of being a part of a growing world.

The other day I was invited to a ceremony. A person from our extended family was married to an American woman. They had a new grandson. So as all hadramis do, they had a small gathering of the family. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to attend the event (something I regretted a lot). I went in to call my mom, and I walked into this room. My first gaze into the wide living room brushed a smile on my face (not that smile of politeness) But the smile of true joy! The room had hadramis and Americans all over. It had a grandmother wearing her “dara3a” and a nice colorful veil, sitting next to a trendy American woman. I was fascinated by the diversity, the merging of two great societies. I saw little kids running around like the ones in the hadrami gatherings, even with golden bracelets, but, some were talking English. Questions varied from “Did you pass?” to “How was the Model UN trip?”. How fascinating is that?

The whole ride back to our house, I was asking my mom the same question…”How?” How did two great families get together? How did two nationalities fit in the same place, had the same conversations and communicated in such a smooth way.

Aah that feeling that I felt the moment I walked into both those scenes. A moment to remember. I know now that nothing can stop love, nothing can stop respect and nothing can stop having fun even when more than one country is involved. It’s “Diversity” people…  It’s a remarkable thing that we take for granted every day, a thing that we don’t appreciate it’s bliss.

” We have become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams.” ~ Jimmy Carter

Salam!

The C word…

TOEFL, SAT, IELTS, RAM… those letters when combined, they create that feeling. A feeling of stress. A feeling of panic and mostly a feeling of fear in almost every high school student with one year left to graduate. Those feelings would cause students to panic when taking the tests, and maybe even lead to a lower score. But in the other hand, those feelings would be the encouragement to start preparing for such competitiveness in order to achieve what you really want in life.

I get that these tests help colleges admit students; they may even help students to show their abilities in different subjects. But what happened to old school grades? Aren’t they enough? don’t we suffer enough everyday of the year (except summer, but that changes when it’s your last summer in high school). College. It has become everything that anyone talks about; it has become the center of our conversations. Those conversations also became a habit in every gathering.

They always seem to sneak up on us, those “talks” about our future; they’re kindda fun when discussed with friends. We start planning what would we do there: meet new people, have late study nights, go on road trips… until we start discussing the serious parts, then it gets scary. But with family you don’t know what to expect out of this conversation. You don’t want to shed their dreams and expectations. For me, what I’m doing and thriving for is not just for me, I want my parents to be proud of me, I want them to be proud of the daughter they raised, the daughter they gave the first book to, the daughter that they will inshalla see one day holding a bachelor’s degree in her hands, using it to enter the real world to fight and change for the best. They’ve had such a ripple effect on me and my behavior, then again, my whole family had that effect on me, I’ll talk more about my incredible family in another post…

Anyway, so these “talks”… They come up everywhere, whether its meeting someone new, eating lunch with friends, or even when making dip to watch a movie. They sneak up on us like they’ve been hiding all that time, and as soon as someone mentions the word “college” they blow out and hang on to that word, bringing armies of thoughts and opinions about the future. Aah those talks…

As DAS students, it’s like we’ve been created to face these fears (maybe because we go through them everyday in school). We have ambitions; we have goals that we want to achieve. And we know that the way to achieve them is by going to the right college.

We can use many roads. The road to the land of “liberty” (USA) where you could choose from 51 states varying from different weather, people and colleges. The road to the land of “Queen Elizabeth” (UK) where you could benefit from outstanding education while still being close to your family. Or you could just stay here, in what I like to call in omegle “the land of sand” (KSA) Stay with your family. Lately people have been going to Bahrain, where you will still be with your family, but with a hint of independence.

Choices choices choices… Where to go? What to study? Questions that pop into our heads like little fire crackers that are fun, yet can cause u pain when used inappropriately….

We try to take breaks, run away from these choices that will define and shape what we will be after 10 years from now, making a choice like that, being afraid that you’ll regret it.

It’s not easy, not at all… and whoever said that it was obviously didn’t go through it the same way we do…

Along with all those wonderings and doubts, we start looking at ourselves. Asking, am I good enough? Will I ever become that person? What if I end up being a total failure in my major?

Those thoughts lead to something that isn’t accurate; they lead to something that will make you underestimate yourself. That thing is comparing you with others. Sometimes you have to so that you can improve and develop, but the way that people look at it is in a different way. While we were making dip at my friend’s house we started chatting, and of course that topic slipped its way into our conversation. One of my friends wished that she was as smart as a girl in our class; she wanted to have her personality and her intelligence. But why? She was supposed to thank god for making her the way she is. She is unique and special in her own way, just like every one else is. DON’T, I repeat, DON’T compare yourself with ANYONE! Doing that, you are insulting yourself. You are who you are, and you do what you do. Those things define your personality and your habits. They define you.

Sumer my friend told me that the most important thing is your own personality.

Why would you want to be another person when god blessed you with your own?  You have the way you look at stuff and the way you act. You see all these goals that you want to achieve… all these little objectives that you want to come true… they are all a result of your character. What you like and what you dislike, your interests and you skills. These are the things that make you different.

So what if you didn’t get a good grade on that test? What if you lost more grades than you expected? There are more than 8 types of intelligence. Choose the one that works with your personality, and try achieving your goals through them. Use them as the right keys that would fit to the lock of the door to YOUR future.

Remember, there are always other choices, if one door is closed, go to the next one! And keep doing that until you attain your goal.

In the end I would like to leave you with a quote, something that I wish you would think about and truly inherit…

“Don’t compare yourself with anyone in this world… if you do so, you are insulting yourself” ~ Alen strike

Salam !

DASMUN ‘09

“Let our minds be Leonardo Da Venchi, let our voices be the painting brush, and let our ideas and believes be the colors. Together we will transform a white board into a beautiful piece of art, to our own Mona Lisa that is hanging on the wall of victory … guarded by our courage”. DASMUN ‘09 Secretary General (Sumer Alawami).

That was a part of an inspirational opening speech at the first Model United Nations conference held in our own Dhahran Ahliyya Schools. These words were like little steps to the future. Steps that will be remembered each year as the start of something new… Something that would change minds, thoughts and attitudes toward different global issues and countries.

As organizers of DASMUN, it is our most cherished moment when a delegate stands up and states a point of information. Or for an admin to pass a note running from the delegate of France to the delegate of Costa Rica, being supervised by their remarkable managers (Fatima, Alhanouf). For the amazing chairs (Danya, Samar) to call an order in the house after a creative punishment has been made. For the registration crew (Halah, Shadia, Hessa and I)  that took care of every person that walked inside the walls of our school. For our advisers (Ms.Hanaa, Ms.Huda) to make sure that everything was going smoothly while they watched how young students held a conference under their supervise and care. And finally for the approval panel (Raghad, Mayada, Marwa) that reviewed the resolutions in the computer room.

All these scenes are engraved in my mind, and they will be memories that I will hold on to forever. They prove what we can do. They prove that young individuals CAN accomplish something that WILL change the future.

It’s the part of high school that I will never forget. It is the MUN part where we all shared those unforgettable moments. Standing in front of the Big Ben in London knowing that it is time to make a change and to prove what we can do… or walking inside the glorious blue mosque in Turkey realizing how lucky for us young Muslims to be expanding our knowledge and viewing the history of our religion. Now I can add to these memories… I can add the picture of young DAS students sitting in their chairs, raising their placer, representing a whole country. Raising their hands will make each decisions matter and will make their voices be heard, causing an echo that will be listened to after many many years of future DASMUN conferences.

I am proud today. I am proud of each and everyone that participated in making this conference a treasured experience to all participants.

I am proud of the people that faced their fears and presented their amazing speeches with such power and determination.

I am proud of the delegates that learned to share and merge with others, connecting different countries with the same point of view to share and demonstrate clauses that can be the keys to solving issues.

I am proud of our school for giving its students the chance to excel and stand out in its community that cherishes and encourages educated decisions and future enhancements.

I am proud of the understanding and encouragement each mentor has given to her assigned delegate.

I am proud of this astonishing success that has started a new era that will open doors for many students.

I am proud of DASMUN 2009!

High school… Seriously?!

High School… two words that come to mind. Fun:“huroob jama3e”, take out, hanging out between classes, funny moments that makes your stomach hurt and your eyes tear from laughter… Frustrating: exams, deadlines, final essays and assignments… W11A girls

The rest of high school consists of things that are thought of differently when it comes to each person…people, gossip, rumors and friendship. OK, I don’t want to sound like we’re living in a 90210, gossip girl world.. I’m talking about what really happens in front of us.

Some people claim that what we live in is not near the TV shows we watch. We don’t have people cheating on others (for the most part), nor do we have drug problems. What we have is something more deep.. have you heard of .. Hypocrisy?

Before people start blabbing about how it’s not there, and that’s wrong, look around you. you know what, don’t look, scrutinize the people around you, open your eyes! How many times have you seen a girl act nice and sweet to another, and then goes and talk about her behind her back? How many times have you seen two best friends get into a fight, and then one of them goes and talks about her behind her back, forgetting all of what they’ve been through?

I’m not pointing this out to blame or condemn. I am pointing it out to open eyes. When I told my friend I wanted to write about something that happens that doesn’t get much attention, I told her about the gossip and rumors, she started asking “Do we really have that?” Her question made me think… How can people really know whats happening around them?

An applause… An applause to 2 types of girls that I see rarely.. A girl that puts aside all the rumors and keeps doing what she believes in.. and a girl that found a best friend that she can truly trust. It doesn’t matter how many friends you have, or how many people you know! at the end of the day you’re going back to your true friend, the one that was always beside you. The one that stopped people from saying anything remotely wrong about you. Even the one that would call in recess time to ask why you’re absent. A one that waits for you in the hallway no matter how long you take to get your stuff (mariam ;*). Its those little things that make a true friend.

High school is a phase.. one that will end, like every other phase in life. Don’t make the little things ruin that phase for you. Live each day knowing that one day, maybe 5 years, 10 years or 40 later for that matter, you will look back at your high school days as days that were spent helping others and enjoying your time. Days that were spent gaining knowledge and creating your own personality.

“Yesterday’s gone and we can’t get it back.” … Don’t spend your days feeling gloomy and uncertain, since that day will be “gone”, better live it the way you want to remember it… Keep your true friends beside you, and live your day in a way.. a way that when the end of the day comes you will be able to look at how much you’ve accomplished and how many people you’ve affected, either by a nice gesture, lending a helping hand, or simply a smile .

Stumble upon?

Well, I know it’s been a long time since I wrote here, but there were some things that I needed to handle. Today I just want to share some of the wondering that I’ve had, and I’m hoping that maybe someone out there will have an answer to my questions.

My friend Fatima mentioned a website http://www.stumbleupon.com/. It was suppose to lead you to websites that are compatible with your interests. Some of mine were jokes, mysteries, computers, technology, and life. When I was using it I “stumbled” across a website that really drew my attention… It had a flash video that talked about the “8 irresistible principles of fun”. I encourage you to check it out!  http://www.eightprinciples.com/

I wish that I had the strength and power to apply ALL what I learned from that flash. Not just to have fun, but to also live my life without worrying about so many little insignificant things.

Yesterday I was feeling very upset, and I just couldn’t point my finger at that reason, that darn reason that made me so upset!!! I tried to think, many things came to my mind, but I thought that they were just too silly for me to be upset with. I hate that. I hate that feeling when you don’t want something to upset you, or affect the way you think and act, but eventually it does. I hate that these things I think about actually make me depressed, if not that; they make me think too much about unimportant things.

I hate that feeling when (what I like to call) a ball of tears heads out from my throat and seeks its way into my eyes. Pressuring mini balls (tears) out of my eyes. I try to stop them; I try to swallow what was left of them. I mostly succeed in doing that before anyone notices, but when someone asks me those 2 words: “What’s wrong?” It’s like these words were the (I have a dream) speech for my tears; they come falling one after the other like an organized army. With each tear that falls, I’m afraid that also a small part of my power and strength is taken away with them.

I don’t scream, I don’t hit, and I only keep the things inside. When I’m mad, sad or frustrated you will only see the smile fading away from my face.

Did you ever wonder why you smile in politeness when someone tells u a joke that’s not funny? Or why you get a little bit sad when you hear that someone that you don’t know, or haven’t heard about had something bad happen to him/her? Or why you laugh when someone trips over and falls yet you try to help the person and ask if they’re hurt? No matter how mean, sweet, arrogant, kind a person is, there will always be these emotions. These emotions that will affect the way you act and talk to people. The way we behave is due to situations we went through. What we like and dislike are all results of an experience. If you hate someone so much, will you name your child by their name?

These emotions lead to so many wonderful things, including charities, fund raising, sympathy and more. Yet they are also the reason why people act with such hatred and abhorrence.

There are 2 sides on which these emotions can affect you. Which one will you choose? You and only you can choose how these emotions will influence you and how you act upon them. I personally am trying my hardest to let the little things that cause my sadness to pass by me, and not have so much effect on me. I will just think, is this going to change or influence what will happen in 2019? Is it really THAT important? If not, then it’s not worth “stumbling upon”…

Great Young Minds, Great Young Saudi Minds!

We are the future! We decide whether the world is going to be a superior one or the opposite. It is our actions today that make a better tomorrow. All these are sentences that hold the key to our future. A key that will always be accessible to almost everyone. Everyone that is thriving to do his/her best. That key is our way to communicate with the rest of the world, to spread our knowledge and be blessed with even more.

Destructive Criticism, being pessimistic, and ignorance. All these are words that we as the Saudi society should scratch-out from our dictionary. Since these words are considered the barriers to our development.

Today we stand here, turning our knowledge and passions into actions that will shape the future of our country as whole. What made me think of these potentials that we as the youth possess, is a writing contest that I have recently entered that was sponsored by Otacuschez. Their topic was “How do I turn my passion and enthusiasm into actions that make Saudi a country that I’m proud of in 2020?” After staring at that topic for a few seconds I realized how much we have to offer, and how much we can do! Why can’t we turn what we like to do into something that makes both us and our country productive?

I have seen so many people, so many young Saudis with so much potential and enthusiasm that involve different types of interests including; Soccer, fashion, graphic design, Politics and writing. My hope is that one day these individuals will use their skills and develop them, turning the things they enjoy into “actions”, actions that will develop our country and the society as whole.

A friend of mine, Tala, started her own small fashion line called (T by Tala). If this was 20 years back, would you have thought that a young 16 year old would start her own fashion line here in Saudi? Impressive improvement right? Well, let’s continue that improvement. Another friend of mine, Mariam, has expanded her skills in Graphic design into abilities far more advanced than she was when it was just a hobby. She also plans on studying it in college to truly benefit her country and widen its advancement by doing the things she likes the most. This list can go on and on covering different majors, such as politics (Sumer and Samar!), and writing such as (Danya and Deema).  It would be a wonderful application of those skills and passions if done in the service of our country. For me personally, I have a special passion for technology. I consider technology to be a whole different world beside the ‘real’ world we live in. It is a world where everything is possible. An exciting world that communicates so fast, making each individual’s life easier and more interesting. It is a world that has many aspects, features and opportunities that could be used to make Saudi Arabia the country that I’m proud to call home.

As girls here in Saudi, we cannot do what we want without being self- conscious about it. So I want to use technology to overcome such obstacles, and set ourselves free to grow and reach our potential. Through technology, I want Saudi girls to achieve their dreams, stand up and stand out. I believe that they can do just that it by knowing and using the modern tools of technology and advancements.

The young rising company of Otacuschez, which was actually founded by young Saudi’s, gave us the opportunity to turn these passions into pre-actions by leading the way. The winners of the contest were not granted presents like iPods and Blackberries. Instead, they were given something far more valuable, something that is not available to everyone. They offered us 3 workshops that covered the topics (writing, Goals, and starting your own business). A wide variety of different information granted as our gift. Their gift to us was the knowledge and different perspectives presented to us by highly impressive and trained key note speaker. The best present for the best contest.

We face problems proving our self as young creative minds in Saudi, especially when it comes to women. But we must never surrender to those who try to demolish our growing minds. We can grow by using our knowledge to improve and build up our country while holding our Islamic values near our side for the whole journey to come. Wrong misunderstanding some religious principles resulted in some wrong views, which most probably is the reason why we have so much to do and begin with. Yet we should slowly dig into these barriers and enhance the country that we know we can be proud of. We all know that by time, and by effort from people that want to spread knowledge, make a difference and in rich the mind of young Saudis, Saudi Arabia WILL be a country with strong principles, religious values, and a country that will be led by great leaders and young educated, creative, enthusiastic individuals that will lead the way to a better tomorrow.