These are five sample essays for trial questions. Good luck people!
Describe a place you go to when you feeling sad or down
It is a huge old tree by the lake. The branches hang low though the trunk probably needs three people’s arms to go around it. The strong roots have through the years intertwined to form a nice cradle for anyone who wish to sit there and a feel a need to be cuddled. Like an old wise woman or man, it stands there patiently day in day out, be it rain or shine, exuding compassion for all those seek refuge underneath of its heavy branches.
They say it is more than a hundred years ago. The first pioneers of this town probably rested under its cool shade. Even those 100 odd elephants belonging to the Siamese who once ruled this land more than a century ago probably rubbed their tusks against it.
If you really consider it, it is the best spot in town. For at least fifty metres in radius, there is only solitude. I love it there. It is quiet and peaceful. It frees the mind. Troubling thougts drift away easily into the gentle breeze across the serenity of the lake water. The gentle lapping of the clear lake water against its emerald green bank forms ripples that mesmerises you as you watch. The lone insect or two hovering over the lake's surface or the occasional white swan like birds that swoop in for a quick catch of fish fry, it is a liberating sight.
In the early mornings, you can see clouds of mist moving against the distant mountains. Fresh and invigorating, it fills you with hope. In the evening, when the sun sets down in the east; its golden streaks in the sky get reflected on the lake waters, then time stands still and you marvel at the magnificence of life itself. It fills you with gratitude and reverence.
I go there when I’m feeling down because it never fails to lift my spirits up again. I wonder sometimes whether it is a magical spot or is it charmed. I have seen lovers sitting on the stone bench beneath it, lost in time. I have seen others sit underneath that tree, in contemplation, a faraway look in their eyes.
I just hope it will be there to last my lifetime at least. Almost like a refuge for me to run to in times of sorrow, I would be broken hearted to see it go. Many such old trees have been felled to give way for developments. But i hope at least, this one tree will stand the test of time.
How to promote unity in Malaysia
Our beloved country Malaysia has always been well recognized globally for its multi racial society that lives in harmony. It is important to maintain this unity that makes us all uniquely Malaysian. Unity must start from everyone’s heart. It must start from young. It must start from all levels.
First of all everyone must respect the various differences that can exist in a multi racial society, be in religious or other practices. Maybe one racial practice may contradict the belief of another but when you respect that difference, you learn to accept it as well. The best possible way to promote this would be to organize activities where everyone can learn and share more information about each other’s culture. We could organize more campaigns or even camps for everyone to participate, from school level right up to corporate world. We could make more documentaries for people to watch and books for people to read. A learned society is indeed a wise society.
Secondly unity must be promoted from young. From the small steps of kindergarten right to the halls of universities, parents and teachers play a crucial role in this. Children learn by example therefore parents must set a good example of interacting well with a multi racial and multi religious society. Prejudices and biases learnt at childhood will manifest into more serious level at adulthood. Teachers must reinforce unity in school. We must have students of different races work close with each other rather than segregating the groups.
Thirdly, from the man on the street to those on top rungs of the society, unity must be close to their hearts. They must believe in its goodness and really want it in their hearts. Likening unity to bridges that connect the people and disunity to walls that divide them, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak recently urged the people to repair their bridges and tear down the divisive walls that existed among the races. The way we interact and treat our neighbours, our friends, the people on the street, will all affect how we relate to each other. When we relate to each other with an open heart, it will be returned in many folds.
United we stand, divided we fall.
Honesty pays
His mother struggled to call out to him between her breaths ‘Mat… Mat..”
Ahmad was at the back of the house climbing the old guava tree when he heard his mother’s feeble cry. He dropped down and leapt up the wooden steps into his old kampong house.
“Mat, help Ibu to take my medicine on the kitchen shelf” his mother pointed weakly at the broken kitchen door, her other hand holding her chest. Ahmad dashed into the kitchen, the shelf was too high for his height, he quickly pulled an old cracker tin and stepped up. He found the familiar brown bottle at the back of the shelf but it was empty.
“Ibu, did you get new one?” he yelled out of the kitchen.
“No, Ahmad, only the one on the shelf…” his mother’s voice died off.
He dropped the bottle and ran out to see his mother collapse on the old tattered linoleum on the floor.
“Ibu ! Ibu! Hang on please, I’ll be back with the medicine fast!” He saw his mother’s eyes close before he ran out.
He grabbed his late father’s old bicycle and peddled as hard as he could, his heart thumping, tears blinding him. He had only one thought in his mind, he must get to that medicine shop, the only one in town, his only hope.
As he raced up the bumpy lone road and reached the junction to the nearest town, a motorcycle rattled past him. A Chinese farmer was carting his vegetables to town. They stopped at a junction together. As the man turned into the opposite lane, Ahmad saw something drop from the motorcycle. It was an old wallet. In a split second, Ahmad had to make the decision to stop or keep going his way.
The wheels of his bicycle came to a screech as he halted on the gravels. He picked up the wallet and yelled as loudly as he could to the Chinese man on the motorbike who was already riding away fast. The man couldn’t hear him. He got back on his bicycle and cycled towards the man more furiously than ever, shouting on top of his voice at the same time. Suddenly the man looked back and stopped his bike. Ahmad waved the wallet at him. The farmer grabbed at his side pocket and realized it was empty. His face was filled with gladness when Ahmad gave him back his wallet.
“Thank you so much, my boy.”
Ahmad hardly had the time to utter ‘You’re welcome’ as he was back on his bicycle cycling away, never even looking back.
Moments later he reached the medicine shop and ran in ‘Sir, please I need medicine for my mother. She is having an asthma attack and she can’t breathe’.
The man behind the counter quickly took out a small bottle, put in a plastic and rang the cashier’s machine. “That will be RM12.00.” he said
It then hit Ahmad, he had no money with him at all. In his panic, he had not stopped to think about money at all.
“But uncle, I did not bring any money with me,” Ahmad muttered
“Then you want me to give you this medicine free?” the man asked, his face annoyed.
“Please Uncle, I promise to pay you back…” Ahmad pleaded
“Do you how many of you kampong people walk in here and ask for free medicine, you think what, I am running a charity here?” he demanded
Then out of the corner of his eyes, he saw someone place a RM50 bill on the counter.
“There, is that enough for your medicine?” It was the same Chinese farmer from the motorbike. He took the medicine and pushed it into Ahmad’s hand.
“Take it and hurry now.” The man smiled kindly at him.
Factors to consider before choosing a career
As soon would be school leaver, I am faced with dilemma of making decisions. With so many fields offered by the higher institution, including mixed courses, it is not an easy choice.
While we are often encouraged to choose a field that is profitable and that is guaranteed to make a living for us, other factors such as our own talents and interests seem to be equally important. Many took up careers such as lawyer, doctor and engineers because they are popular choices only to realize later it was not meant for them.
Personally I feel the first and foremost to be considered is our passion. It is not only about what we like doing but is it that we like doing so much that we tire doing it no matter how difficult it gets. What are our personal values? Do we like to heal others, do we like to experiment, do we like calculation, do we like to organize or even do we like to do creative work or do we like working with children? The test is to think about what activity that we did filled us with complete happiness and that is an easy pointer.
Secondly we have to consider our skills and talents. By now, we should have an idea of what we are good at. What we want to do and what we CAN do can be totally different things. For example, being able to be creative and design well can indicate a path into Graphic Designing, being able to get along very well with people can indicate a career in Public Relation and having a head for math and balancing sheet could mean a career in Accountancy.
The third factor to be considered is our own preferences and personality. Are we an introvert or an extrovert? Do we like working alone or working with others? Do we like working 9-5 in an office or do we like doing field work? Often many make the mistake of choosing a supposedly lucrative career in an office and end up feeling suffocated within four walls the rest of their lives. This could end in a lot of frustration and unhappiness.
Fourthly we need to research as much as we can on our choices of career before making a decision. World trends and job scopes are ever changing. For example the field of IT and business is ever volatile; we have to be ready for the challenges ahead. Keeping ourselves informed of the latest information would prepare us for it.
And finally we have to be able to adjust and adapt. In the time of economic crisis and downsizing of many companies, people who can multitask become valuable asset to a company. While specializing means expertise, it is also good to learn up other relevant skills on the side. As they say one is never too late to learn anything.
By considering all these factors, one should be able to make a wise choice in a lifetime career.
She
She was different from the rest. She was quiet and she kept to herself while the rest of the school went about daily lives. She joined us in the beginning of our Form Four school year. I remember she walked in during the first lesson one morning and the English teacher introduced her to the rest of the class. She didn’t smile at all and quickly settled into her table and chair. She more or less blended into the background from that day forward.
The word was she came from a very small town, maybe that explained her timidness a bit. She was average in build and had dark chocolaty skin. Small features on a somber face, one thing that stood out about her was her eyes. They were deep and searching but most of the time she kept them lowered from the rest of us. Her name was Meena.
Maybe she was not that easy to like or maybe she couldn’t speak English very well which was not a cool thing in an English speaking convent school like ours, she didn’t have many friends. When she was forced to speak in class, her voice stammered and the fingers holding up the book trembled visibly. Some of us in the class felt sorry for her, a few girls even mocked her nervousness. Call it a prejudice or pettiness, but eventually everyone kept away from her.
Throughout those two years in school, I sometimes noticed her seated at the steps to the main school hall during recess. She was often huddled over a notebook, furiously scribbling away. I did get curious once, so I approached her and offered her a slice of my sandwich, trying to take a peek at her writing. She quickly put the book away and politely refused me. I tried getting her to talk to me and asked her whether she liked being in this school. She searched for the right words but from her halting explanation I understood she found an all girls school convent rather snobbish after 10 years in a rambunctious co-ed school. .
During Form Five year end school performance, our class decided to stage a variety show about Angels and Devils. The organizing committee comprised some snooty girls who saw it fit to allocate Meena the role of the Devil’s apprentice because of her dark complexion and her anti-social personality before giggling away. I did feel sorry for her but surprisingly she happily participated in the training wholeheartedly and I can’t help but feel respect her for it. She went on to surprise everyone by signing up for the year end talent time contest. A few girls sneered behind her back when she brought a wooden guitar to school for the contest.
“She is going to make a fool of herself, ” Winnie, one of class reps said.
I actually held my breath when she went up the stage that morning, wearing a pale yellow flowery dress. As she sat on the stool and adjusted the microphone, the speakers whined a little. The crowded school hall fell into silence. She held up the guitar and started plucking the strings. The speakers whined louder… and went dead. The teachers rushed to check the sound system, Meena just froze on her seat. I wished she had said something funny, but she just sat there staring at the end of the hall. Oh no, I thought, was she going to make a fool of herself?
Then one of the teachers went up to her and motioned her to start playing. She snapped back to live and began strumming again. When she opened her mouth to sing, a lot of mouths fell open in the audience too. We had no idea, she had an amazing voice. Her voice was rich and haunting, it echoed from the far ends of the hall. Her singing and the sound of her guitar blended into a great harmony of a country and western song she had composed herself. Everyone was stunned. When she finished, it took us a while to realize she has stopped and then the applause came. It was thunderous; some of our class girls jumped onto their feet and clapped furiously, their faces beaming with pride. We were very proud of her and there were no guessing, she was the first prize winner. It was almost a poetic justice.
The next day, the final day in school, she was the talk of the school; everywhere she went she was crowded by new found fans who congratulated her. Finally she was alone no more, suddenly everyone wanted to be Meena’s friend.
copyrights reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment