Since the
beginning of the semester, there is one thing mutually feared and by all my
classmates this in my university, myself included. It is an entity none of us
could firmly grasp, govern by laws we cannot fully understand, and one which devoid
from a single definite solution. The dreaded entity is known as the Design of Reinforced Concrete Structures.
The subject is
taught by a lecturer who expects us to immediately remember and comprehend what
is said, and recall all the related subjects learnt in previous semesters. Add
it together and you have the perfect ingredient for what you need to stupefy a
student.
The worked
examples were…perhaps to better paint a picture, we are given ‘1+1=2’, then ‘If you
have 17 apples and you add 6 more to it, you will have 23 apples’. When
the assignments came, they were ‘You have a bottle
and you bought another triple the number. Calculate the total volume of water
for the bottles.’
Using this metaphor: the first equation is direct; the second example was more
complicated with a bit of twist; the third, in addition to what was freshly
taught required the knowledge of previous subjects, forced us to think out of
the box and use our discretion to solve the problem. For the third example you
will first need a certain level of English comprehension to understand and meet
the requirement of the problem. Then to find the volume of water, we could
assume different sizes for each bottle, or different volumes of water
containing in the bottles, or we can say we referred to the plastic label on
the bottle. Ultimately when it comes down to it, they are all additions.
It came as no
surprise then, that nobody in my class managed to complete the entire
assignment, except 2 exchange students who had previously taken the course back
at their home university. When the first test came, the nightmare was all we
had imagined – and more. Even the general assistants (GAs) pointed us to the
incorrect interpretation/method of solving a problem. By the time it ended, we
were all resigned to the seemingly obvious fact of achieving low marks for the
test. Frankly I could say for the majority of the questions I knew peanuts of
what I was doing, and second-doubting the ones which I knew.
Needless to say,
receiving back our results were like awaiting execution. Yet when I saw the
value contained within the red circle, I was honestly surprised in did, well…well. If there is one thing I must say, this incident
reminded me – again in the series of many agains – that as long as I put effort
in doing my best and lifting it up to the Lord in prayer, the situation cannot
go far wrong.
The event also
brought to mind a recent story I read from the Bible. In the last chapters of
the first book of Samuel 29 to 30, before he was king, when David went with the Achish
King of Gath in the war against Israel his own kin, I doubt he knew what he
should really do should he meet in battlefield. Sandwiched between the
Philistines (his former enemy turned current host and ally) and Israel (who
would perceive him a betrayer who joined their enemy’s ranks), it was obviously
not the best position to be in.
Yet David
trusted God, and in faith he went together with the Philistines. And God in His
great wisdom to establish David’s future reign, worked out the pieces for
David. At the last moment David withdrew from the battle, saved his people
captured by the Amalekites, gained a substantial fortune in the process, used
it to strengthen ties with his people in Judah, and Saul the current king of
Israel was killed, thus paving the way for David’s kingship.
In life, things
will not always be a breeze of the wind, and at times I feel as close to
flipping tables. Just take your best shot, pray, trust in the Lord and His
timing, and, just as He continuously sees me through the rest of the way, so I
pray for living souls who are reading this that you will find your trust in
Him.
RFG
always.
