Summary

Well, shall I start like everybody does? Introduce the course? Thought it would be a boring one and eventually find it interesting, and finally a hundred thousand thanks to our beloved Mr. Jafre?

Honestly I did not aspect the class will be carry out like the way we did, Where we can have lot of interaction in the class, sharing and listening to Mr. Jafre experience and story, its feel really good, I like freestyle, unlike other class that was bound to a syllabus. The first two or three discussion indeed seems to be quite a boring one , but when it gradually come to song interpretation, lyrics compose, the class become more lively, knowing that this were the element which will spice us up. Mr. Jafre really did a good job in giving us freedom in talking and way of doing our presentation. Whatever we throw to him, he received it all in an open mind and heart, very positively. That’s what I like about him.

I first thought, and actually quite confident that I might score well in this subject but when I find myself now still working hard on the blog which I miss for the pass few months, I knew that I am gone, hopeless. I can’t help but to admit my laziness bought me to this end, and I am so helpless.

I knew I was too much as Mr. Jafre has given us so much extra time but yet I still take it for granted, I deserve it. You treat us too generous, which has made me fallen down now. Anyway I like your easy going character inspire me, I like everything to goes the way it should, so naturally in happen to be so.

So far as I had seen, majority of the students like us tend to like topics that we like, but definitely not something regarding to politics, history or may be religion. We always avoid to get involve in those current issues and pretend that the campus is our world, so when it come to discussion about independence and religion, it seems to be less talking in the class. That is what I had observed from the few months we took this course. We have had very little awareness to the reality, the real world, I think most us did. It’s not a good sign. May be this is the reason Mr. Jafre divulge all these during the class discussion, it might help somehow.

I am so fond of the style of the class, the freestyle which I always dream of, not much rules and regulation applied. Not much burden. But I still can’t hand in my work on time, shame on me. Anyway I hope that the LHP459 will keep the way it is and if Mr. Jafre will be conduct the same class ever, I wish that he could have give the student some pressure on the due date of the blog or whatever assignment submission.

My heart will go on Vs. My heart won’t go

Rainy day I’ll miss you
In moonlight I’ll see you
And I wonder if love comes by

There are times when I cry
You cheer up my whole life
Then I wonder if love comes by

True, false… I really can’t sort
Falling deep down so slowly but real
In love, that’s not what my will
I just want you to stay by my side
…all long night

Hold me not or I’ll leave
Let go me, it’s too much
Solitude me, leave me alone

Turn back times, hold back tears
Take deep breath, put grin on
There is always better tomorrow

Peers, love…I think now I sorted
Falling deep down to you seem fool
In love, I don’t want it all
I believe that I’ll live my life
all by myself my way.

I compose almost all the song, and it was like few weeks or months back.
Looking, reading and singing this recall me about things that happen to me at that moment.
Sometimes I can’t really distinguish between love and friends. I have a lot of platonic relationship. Indeed part of the song is actually my own story, at least its part of my feeling and some thought.
So many I hold myself back when ever people tend to treat me good, I think I just afraid, I am fear for falling to anybody. I am exactly a chicken. It happen so many times that I thought that was love, and then I stand still and dare not to move forward, I dare not to take the risk of losing, may be a friend. I dare not to face differences in life on the way we moving to the future.
This should have flesh back to the incident few years back that I put in all, and was hurt badly. Ever since then I become a very protective and defensive girl, but at the same time I wish that someone will somehow appears in my boring life to stimulate some different elements. I was such a spear and shield (proverb in Chinese which mean I am go against my own self.)
Let me explain the lyrics stanza by stanza
Stanza I
Rainy day I’ll miss you
In moonlight I’ll see you
And I wonder if love comes by

Obviously I telling that I will all the time missing the person whoever he is. Where I’ll miss him in the in the day and night, that even I’ll see him in the moonlight. But the problem is I am still not sure that is that kind of feeling call love? A question I always doubt.

Stanza II
There are times when I cry
You cheer up my whole life
Then I wonder if love comes by

Whenever I am feeling down, I’ll cry to him and he’ll eventually make me smile and bright up the day. So again I wonder is this love? Or simply care out of friendship? I doubt that again.

Stanza III
True, false… I really can’t sort
Falling deep down so slowly but real
In love, that’s not what my will
I just want you to stay by my side
…all long night

And so that I can’t distinguish the trueness of the feeling of love, but gradually I found that I am actually falling into it, gradually I addicted to the good he did to me. But I keep on telling myself I don’t want to fall in love to anybody, this kind of relationship is not what I want. I just want that there will be always someone beside me, what a selfish thought.

Stanza IV
Hold me not or I’ll leave
Let go me, it’s too much
Solitude me, leave me alone

I can’t help but to beg him to not treating me good anymore, don’t get any closer or I’ll leave, and his good being too much till I can’t take it anymore. I wanted to isolate myself, I wish I could live alone. Can I?

Stanza V
Turn back times, hold back tears
Take deep breath, put grin on
There is always better tomorrow
How I hope that time can turn back to when we do not know each other or just to the moment I realize that there is something wrong so that I can hold myself on time. Since I do not have the authority to do so, I have to bold back my tears, take a deep breath, in and out, put on a faking stupid, but confident looking smile and walk on my way, cause we always optimistically believe that there is always a better day ahead, await.

Stanza VI
Peers, love…I think now I sorted
Falling deep down to you seem fool
In love, I don’t want it all
I believe that I’ll live my life
all by myself my way.

Every now and then I remind myself to stay in sensible, that that was only friend, and friendship always last longer. I laugh at myself for being such a fool to almost bury a life long relationship. I don’t really need anybody to supply me anything or stimulate any element into my life. Cause present seems so good to me, and I still not ready for any changes.

Mine seems to be too sentimental but anyway Susan had made Mr. Jafre a funny comedy one. Good job everybody.

Eventually we decided to take the song “unfaithful” by Rihana who she is among the happening one in town. Basically we took that as the rhythm of the song is very nice and easy to sing. But somehow the lyrics of the song didn’t bring much thought for me, at the same time its not a very meaningful one that I could talk about. Thus, here I would like to share with you all, a song that might be one of my favorite as I like the melody as well as the lyrics too. The song which I wanted to share here is “Flying without wings” sang by the once very popular boy band (haha) Westlife. I really like the song since I first heard the song. The rhythm of it is a very comfortable and easy listening one…

Everybody's looking for that something
One thing that makes it all complete
You find it in the strangest places
Places you never knew it could be

Some find it in the face of their children
Some find it in their lover's eyes
Who can deny the joy it brings
When you've found that special thing
You're flying without wings

Some find it sharing every morning
Some in their solitary lives
You'll find it in the words of others
A simple line can make you laugh or cry

You'll find it in the deepest friendship
The kind you cherish all your life
And when you know how much that means
You've found that special thing
You're flying without wings

So, impossible as it may seem
You've got to fight for every dream
Cos who's to know which one you let go
Would have made you complete

Well, for me it's waking up beside you
To watch the sunrise on your face
To know that I can say I love you
At any given time or place

It's little things that only I know
Those are the things that make you mine
And it's like flying without wings
Cos you're my special thing
I'm flying without wings

And you're the place my life begins
and you'll be where it ends
I'm flying without wings
And that's the joy you bring

I'm flying without wings

Basically the song is not just a simple romantic love song but a song about love, one love of all and for all. Include love of family, friend, love of life, and nature. In the first stanza we can see that the writer is trying to tell that that’s a very unique and special thing that can’t be definite, which everybody is searching for it through out theirs life time.
As for me, I interpret this way. The special thing might be the satisfaction that you gain when you do something that you love or to or with your love one. At the first stanza too it shows that the special thing you might find it somewhere you wouldn’t know.
Then in the second stanza, the song writer is giving example of different people found the satisfaction by different source. They are somebody who find it in the face of their children, some find it in their lover’s eye. He describe that if you found this special thing, you’ll be flying without wings. It show that the satisfaction of love is something very abstract, is something deep in your soul, you will never know it.
In the lyrics, the writer had bring out that the truth where simple little thing will make someone flying, and to different people, different reason will cause them so. The song also encourages us to be brave on fighting to reach our dream, because we used to think that it was impossible as it seems so. But if you let go of it or give up on it, how in earth you knew that it was not the one that completed you, not the one that put on the wings on you.
In the following part, was the singer’s confession to his girl, somehow for me, its really sound sweet. He wanted to do every little thing to the girl and the girl was the one that make him fly. He confesses that she was where he begin, and he will end there, indicate that the girl was his one and only beloved. Lastly the girl has bring him the joy of flying without wings. Its such a romantic and meaningful song, right?

The Chorus

Today’s(sorry it was a week ago, since I started to write the beginning at the time but stuck somewhere till now, sincere apology) class was quite interesting as we need no to prepare for any topic concerning. It’s indeed lighten up my day but somehow I have to admit here to Dr Jafre: I am so sorry that the previous blog that I should write but in fact I have not even start a single word, feel so sinful. Well I will try to post it within this week.
The Chorus, I never aspect it to be a French movie but anyway thanks God I did not sleep in the class. Actually the theme of the movie does impress me but unfortunately I doubt the originality of the disc, It stuck every now and then especially on the climate and the scene where the children were singing. Whenever Dr. is approaching the player, it will function like normal then.
The story start with one of the character flash back the to the year of 1949 if I am not mistaken, where they were in a boy boarding school. The setting of the story is central region of French. And roughly the story is about how Clement Matthiu try hard to help the children here by teaching them to sing, of course there is a lot of things they go through. In the end I believe this story somehow impress everyone in the class, it just bring us to some thought.
As for myself, I have to admit that I love choir and especially sang by children, so whenever I heard choir in any occasion with all the meaningful lyrics and sweet voices, I can’t help but my eye will started to flooded by my tears, I know it sound funny, but they are so touching that the melody really moves my heart. In the movie they sang nice song, but unfortunately I am not French interpret so I doesn’t get the meaning of their lyrics, thanks God again I did not cry in the class. Anyway the soloist Morhange is actually a true singer in the real life. His voice is so amazing flawless.
The attitude of the supervisor, Clement should be praise as well. The patient he possessed to teach these student is something I believe I can’t do as good as him. As we know the student in the Fond de’l Etang meaning “bottom of the well” is from not an affluent family, most of them are dumped out, orphan or problematic one. Thus they will be a bit difficult to approach them, as the environment where they has been brought up influence them a lot. So I could see that they are trying to put protecting shield from the supervisor. But Clement’s never say never attitude eventually build a choir group that indeed made everyone in the school even closer to each other. There where the scene of the principal take the initiative to play soccer with the school member. His effort has finally bonded everybody together.
His passion of music has once again been light up when he find out that the children there can really sing well. So he started to use his talent to help the student, and it did work out. These can also be reflect in our real life whereby if we were to do something up to our strength, where we were good at as a kick start. We’ll be more passionate doing it, and for sure we’ll be able to handle this more easily. So in my point of view, whatever we want to do we have to love to do it at first, and then we’ll be doing it well.
The story in the other hand shows us that deep down in a children heart, here I refer to the naughty one, they are always kind and innocent. Their pass has created who they are in the present. May be they just need a bit of attention. Is not an easy task to bought up a children, from the story I realize the responsibility of a guardian to always guide them with a lot of love and patient. Thus in impact I know that in the future I’ll have to provide the best for my children. And let them joining a choir group seems to be a good idea as well. Hahahaha…

Soft Skill...Undergraduate...Unemployed

First few things that come into my mind was confidence, leadership, communication skill, management skill, socializing skill, emotional control. For sure there are plenty of it and if one can mange to develope all of it then will lead him or her to an ideal personality.

For me hard skill can ensure you to be profesional of in certain field of carrer but without combination of all sort of sofk skill you cant so any futher. As soft skill will help us to play our role even better no matter in dealing with our career, family and friends as well.

Recently i came across this statistic from some news paper regarding highest unemployed graduates from public and private universities. Thanks God, USM asn't on the top 5 ranking. Other than saying that the fresh graduates now are chossy and expecting too much from the emplyer, somehow its true, I would rather think that they are seriously lack of confidence, and the reasons of being super low self-esteem might be cause by a few of factors, lacking of soft skill might be one of them. Confidence seems to be something given or borned but it can also gain by hardwork.

As an undergraduate who is still suffering the same desperate struggling of being lack of confidence. I could have point out some reason why students were to be in such problem.

Firstly they rarely expose themselve into the world outside, as we see majority of them don't care much about what is going on in the real wolrd. Frankly campus has been a comfort zone for us, thus it makes all of us or shall I say some of us tend to be running away from the truth, the real world, as reality is always cruel.
You can see that abundant of student of USM crowding everynight at Khaleel or what ever mamak stall, simply chit chatting, talking nonsense, "Lepak" in CC (cyber cafe) playing computer games. I wonder if they ever think about their future. I find it quite disappointed when I saw students spending their whole semester break parasiting at home rather than doing something meaningful like looking for job whether concerning their field of study or not. In some way it really helps a lot in the future.

Formal education and family education has bear a result oriented mindset on the students, parents or even the society. Difinitely its not an easy job to change the mindset but at the same time we have to balance in every aspeect. In my point of view, result doesn't mean much but the experience, practical does matter. If I were to be an employer, i would rather hire a candidate with experience than a dean-list student without any. As for my case, I dont really did well in my exam. ( I knew it wasn't a sign either) Anyway, I firmly believe that result is not everything but the your personality and experiences of life encountered. And this is where or how you develope your soft skill. Is not about attending or taking any soft skill courses, in my opinion.

I had notice that nowadays the students are devided into 2 categories, which i mean student in the university. They are both very extreme and aggresive. Its either they are extremely active in co-curriculam activities or other wise. No doubt joining actively in any society or clubs is a good path to develope all kind of soft skill and train up our self-esteem, but sadly majority of us belongs to the second category,

Last word of mine I would advise all my friends here to arm ourselve in which ever way with all these sofy skills to make us more competitive and marketable. But how? Thats what you should find a way out by yourself. The only clue I can give is step out from your room, think out of the box.