"Sharing is Caring" - a powerful quote with powerless action

          "Let me give you a hand." It is simple, caring and it shows 'sharing' action as well. But how many of us really, I mean REALLY means it, and not just by saying it. Sharing somebody's burden is not an easy task but it is not burdening concurrently. It is a language of being HUMAN. It is better asking to help than asking for help.

          I always lend others hands although my feet always blink red light to my effort. Frankly, I may learn this from my favourite uncle Hais who sincerely and faithfully looked after me since I was a newborn (I was born as an orphan) and I can say that sharing is a value that I've learnt from my family 'school of thought'. As I grew up, I observed, analyzed and finally decided to share the burden of others instead of giving one to them. From there, I educate and develop this sharing value to my children (students). I strongly believe that to be a caring figure, one must be willing to share first.

          My uncle Hais is unlike other people. He took care of our big family for he was the sole breadwinner. He sacrificed a lot, including his bachelor days, upon sharing the hardship of my grandmother to raise up his siblings, including my mother who was widowed back then. My uncle Hais got married at quite inappropriate age for he was almost 40 at that time. It is all because of his sharing value. And up till now, he never talks about it. Never!

           Now, my uncle Hais who is also an ex-manager of UOB, still shares what he has and what he is good at the best. There are countless sharing he had made and I just could only share his burden by delivering prayers upon him and his family for I have nothing valuable to be shared except for du'a. 

            Move to the 'sharing is caring' concept, shall we? At present, teenagers and shameful to say grown adults find that it is very hard to lend a hand to others. How can we implement this value if we are not performing it at our level best? We keep on saying that 'sharing is caring' but we are actually caring less about the sharing value. 

            So what is the best way to encourage the youngsters to be able to share or lend their hands if none other than through "do as I say and follow as I do" as the saying goes "action speaks louder than words". Don't speak much as action is none as the saying goes "do as I say, not as I do". It is a great shame if we teach the value to the youngster without able to perform it in our life. 

           Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the best role model of his words. He acts as he speaks. That is why, there is no doubt that Muhammad saw is the most influential person ever. As his 'ummah', it is the best for us to follow upon his footsteps. 

So, what should we do to be a caring person who is willing to share? Here are some tips:

• Share because you are a MUSLIM.
• Look for a significant role-model who inspires you to be a caring person. (I've found one) 
• Feel free and sincere when you are sharing something with others like food, money and knowledge for instance.
• Take sharing as your responsibility to help others.
• Start sharing at small amount.
• Keep in mind that sharing is not only about the materials and wealth but it includes moral support, advice, 'a shoulder to cry on', motivational speech, motherly approach, personal touch and inspirational thoughts.
• Always be sincere to share.
• Not to remind others of your help. 
• Never ever think of to be rewarded.               

Literature Bright - ONOMATOPOEIA

What is ONOMATOPOEIA?

ONOMATOPOEIA is a literary device which imitates sounds; directly or indirectly.

Here are some examples:

• Suddenly, he heard footsteps near the window. (suggesting sound of footsteps)
• The sound of clinching teeth gives me goosebumps, apparently. (suggesting sound of clinching teeth)
• He tries to dodge and suddenly 'dush', the punch kisses his left cheek.
• "Kaboom". The bomb crashed the building and killed a few innocent civilians. 
• 'chirp, chirp', the yellow parakeet sings happily on the branch of the mango tree.
• The chirping sound of birds amuses me.(suggesting the chirping sound)

How to detect onomatopoeia in a literature piece?
It is easy, though. All you have to do is identify the sounds. Read the extract below to identify the onomatopoeia.

As I walked alone in the forest that day, I felt free. Free as a bird. Free as I ever could be. The chirping sound of birds was wild but inspirational. The crispiness of the dried leaves can be heard upon stepping on the ground. The wild river flew soothed me as a music of the nature. And the breeze whistled gently to my ears.

In the extract above, there are a few sounds suggested by the writer.

• The chirping sound of birds was wild but inspirational  - the sound of the birds chirping is said a bit noisy but it also inspire the persona that day.
• The crispiness of the dried leaves can be heard upon stepping on the ground  - the persona could hear the sound of dried leaves when he walked in the forest.
• The wild river flew soothed me as a music of nature  - the river creates a sound of water flowing which is also a music of nature.
• And the breeze whistled gently to my ears  - the breeze blew gently and as is it whistled on the ears of the persona.

 When you read the lines, you could imagine how the birds, river, dried leaves and breeze sound like. All the sounds above are onomatopoeia.


Now, read the lines below and detect four onomatopoeia.

Flint dashed to the door as the shadow approached. With a very stingy ray of light, he couldn’t see straight. He bumped on the door and he bumped hard. He cared less about his head and headed to the front door. Afar from his thought, he smashed a mirror on his left and the mirror cracked to the floor. He grabbed the door knob and shook it hard. He opened the door and slammed it hard. And suddenly, ‘bang!’ he was shot out of nowhere. He saw blood on his right shoulder and ‘buff’ he collapsed on the ground.

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