Oh my, I still remember how tired I am at that moment. What a wonderful OARS camp trip I ever joined for this semester. The unforgettable experience at Selai National Park, Johor was the thing that will never be deleted from my mind for sure. Truly exhausted, but it’s truly worth for me. Outdoor activities are my passion. Everybody would say, a petite girl like me, that’s seems like a fragile little kid, would rather choose to doll up and go for girly shopping spree time. But I’m not. Instead, I do love to dive in the ocean and rivers, being sucked by those cute leeches and being bitten by those mosquitoes (oh, I hate this part, haha!), get dirty in the mud, smell the fresh air of the jungle and enjoy the breathtaking view of the nature created by God. There’s nothing great rather than to get sweat. Seeing Rafael Nadal sweat like crazy after his 4- hour tennis match really convince me that it feels good to let the salty sweat running down the skin. Okay, stop talking crap.
After get showered, I was thinking of calling mama. I’ve promised her to go back home tomorrow, exactly on Wednesday, but seems that tiredness was all conquering me; I want to delay it to Thursday. After dialed up my mama’s phone number, gentle feminine voice was on the line. “Hello?” “Assalamualaikum Mama”, I started the conversation. Her Penang Malay accent was the thing that I missed the most. I just can’t resist to ask her questions like “What did you cooked for today?”, “How’s your health?”, “How’s Abah and Amin?”, “What are you doing right now”. Oh my, how I miss my Mama’s home-cooked meal. Then she suddenly asked, “When will you go back to Selayang, Kakak?, “You’d informed that you’ll be back on Wednesday, hadn’t you?”. Without hesitate, I informed her that I will go back home on Thursday, as I just came back from camping trip as I’ve told her before. She’s just keep silent for a while. All of sudden, she started to speak with such firm voice, with deep stress of words that just could trigger my shivers. “Kakak, you just don’t need to participate actively in university activities. I’ve told you just to concentrate on your studies.” Then she added, “There’s no point of being active in those university activities. I guess you’ve been busying mingling and flirting with boys and all you get is just endless fun and being giddy all the time. I suggest you to just stay at room and do revision.” I kept silent for a while. The late evening conversation that supposed to be relaxing turned out to be tensed and serious. I was trying so hard to back up my points. And seems it couldn’t convince my mom at all. Mom, you should be a lawyer by the way, seriously. I am really tired of arguing things that I viewed as positive but seen as negative by Mama. Hey! What’s the point of learning Critical Thinking subject this semester if I don’t apply it in my situation? Okay, it’s time to brush up my argument skills. Based on what I’ve learned, I came out with a good and valid argument, with premises and a conclusion. And I’ll make sure to put a full stop at the end of this tensed argument. With such gentle voice, here’s what I’ve said to her;
Conclusion: Mama, participating in university activities indeed brings benefits to me as a student.
Premise 1: It helps to brush up my communication skills, networking skills, problem solving skills and leadership skills. These skills are most demanded by potential employers when I get into real working environment. And yes, don’t you remember I will serve TM next 2 years as they are very kind to offer me the scholarship for my degree studies?
Premise 2: Busying myself with university clubs and societies helps me to avoid myself from doing useless activities that’s just waste of time such as dating with boyfriend all day long and go partying at nightclubs. Do you really want to see me out of control and labeled as being part of the social ills?
And yes, I did it! These bolded sentences really put an end to this tensed conversation. Mama just couldn’t say any words at that moment. Suddenly, without further argument, she said, “Alright then, take care, Kakak. Have a safe journey back home tomorrow. Assalamualaikum.” As a conclusion, thanks Critical Thinking subject!
The end.
Nur Adilah Arshad
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