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Monday, July 14, 2008

A Lesson from Maths

One more instance of how different individuals think and learn differently.

A teacher teaching Maths to seven-year-old Arnav asked him, 'If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?'

Within a few seconds Arnav replied confidently, 'Four!'

The dismayed teacher was expecting an effortless correct answer (three).
She was disappointed. 'Maybe the child did not listen properly,' she thought. She repeated, 'Arnav, listen carefully. If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?"

Arnav had seen the disappointment on his teacher's face. He calculated again on his fingers. But within him he was also searching for the answer that will make the teacher happy. His search for the answer was not for the correct one, but the one that will make his teacher happy. This time hesitatingly he replied, 'Four...'

The disappointment stayed on the teacher's face. She remembered that Arnav liked strawberries. She thought maybe he doesn't like apples and that is making him loose focus. This time with an exaggerated excitement and twinkling in her eyes she asked, 'If I give you one strawberry and one strawberry and one strawberry, then how many you will have?'

Seeing the teacher happy, young Arnav calculated on his fingers again. There was no pressure on him, but a little on the teacher. She wanted her new approach to succeed.

With a hesitating smile, young Arnav enquired, 'Three?'

The teacher now had a victorious smile. Her approach had succeeded. She wanted to congratulate herself. But one last thing remained. Once again she asked him, 'Now if I give you one apple and one apple and one more apple how many will you have?'

Promptly, Arnav answered, 'Four!'

The teacher was aghast. 'How Arnav, how?' she demanded in a little stern and irritated voice.

In a voice that was low and hesitating, young Arnav replied, 'Because I already have one apple in my bag.'

When someone gives you an answer that is different from what you expect don't think they are wrong. There may be an angle that you have not thought of at all. You will have to listen and understand, and not listen with a predetermined notion.

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Pernahkah kamu?

Pernahkah kamu merasakan, bahwa kamu mencintai seseorang, meski kamu tahu ia tak sendiri lagi, dan meski kamu tahu cintamu mungkin tak berbalas, tapi kamu tetap mencintainya?

Pernahkah kamu merasakan, bahwa kamu sanggup melakukan apa saja demi seseorang yang kamu cintai, meski kamu tahu ia takkan pernah peduli ataupun ia peduli dan mengerti, tapi ia tetap pergi?

Pernahkah kamu merasakan hebatnya cinta, tersenyum kala terluka, menangis kala bahagia, bersedih kala bersama, tertawa kala berpisah?

Aku pernah.........

Aku pernah tersenyum meski kuterluka karena kuyakin Tuhan tak menjadikannya untukku,
Aku pernah menangis kala bahagia, karena kutakut kebahagiaan cinta ini akan sirna begitu saja.

Aku pernah tertawa saat berpisah dengannya, karena sekali lagi, cinta tak harus memiliki, dan Tuhan pasti telah menyiapkan cinta yang lain untukku.

Aku juga pernah bersedih kala bersamanya, karena kutakut aku kan kehilangan dia suatu saat nanti, dan......

Aku tetap bisa mencintainya, meski ia tak dapat kurengkuh dalam pelukanku, karena memang cinta ada dalam jiwa, dan bukan ada dalam raga.

Semua orang pasti pernah merasakan cinta.. baik dari orang tua... sahabat.. kekasih dan akhirnya pasangan hidupnya.

Buat temenku yg sedang jatuh cinta..
Selamat yah.. karena cinta itu sangat indah. Semoga kalian selalu berbahagia.

Buat temanku yg sedang terluka karena cinta...
Hidup itu bagaikan roda yang terus berputar, satu saat akan berada di bawah dan hidup terasa begitu sulit, tetapi keadaan itu tidak untuk selamanya,
bersabarlah dan berdoalah karena cinta yang lain akan datang dan menghampirimu.

Buat temanku yang tidak percaya akan cinta...
buka hatimu jangan menutup mata akan keindahan yang ada di dunia maka cinta membuat hidupmu menjadi bahagia.

Buat temanku yang mendambakan cinta..
bersabarlah.. karena cinta yang indah tidak terjadi dalam sekejab.. Tuhan sedang mempersiapkan segala yang terbaik bagimu.

Buat temanku yang mempermainkan cinta....
Sesuatu yang begitu murni dan tulus bukanlah untuk dipermainkan. Cinta bukan suatu kehampaan. Semoga kalian berhenti mempermainkan cinta dan mulai merasakan kebahagiaan yang seutuhnya.