Joy the Remix

Hey, I’m posting this up on Jasmine’s behalf because she couldn’t post it herself (got problem with WordPress ar?).

Anyway, below is what Jasmine has to say.

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JOY (Remix)

Hey, how are you all doing this holiday? Well, I’m fine here in Bintulu. I bet you’ve already heard about the “big news” that happened here in Sarawak. Thanks to our reliable source stationed in Kuching, Javier who also posted twice about me on the church’s blog (without me knowing it…but thanks). And now he’s helping me to post what I’m going to share since I have some problems in logging in (sorry). I think it’s going to be a long one, so be patient while reading (because my shepherd always write long2 one, so I also follow la..haha!)

I went to Kuching on Monday morning..actually I almost missed my 9am flight. Why? Hmm, well..not because I woke up late like most of you might think right now, but certain things happened unexpectedly at home. No matter what, got the problem solved and left for the airport at 8.15am. The journey from my house normally takes around more than 15 minutes. And in the car, my dad wondered if we are able to check in on time. Of course that kind of question makes you kind of worried and imagine the money spent on the flight tickets..it would be a TOTAL waste of money if you missed the flight isn’t it? And it was a last minute booked ticket too. But, I tried not to be so worried and I trust that God will not let me lose this opportunity and He will lead us the way to reach the airport on time. I even took a short morning nap in the car! So relaxed hor?? When we reached Bintulu airport, it was 8.27am – 3 minutes earlier. So, my dad and I said our goodbyes to my mum and brothers, brought our luggage through the security scan and reached the counter – all done within 3 minutes. Fast? The counter was supposed to close at 8.30am (30 minutes before flight) and my dad and I were the LAST passengers to check in! Phew! Thank God! And thank goodness it was MAS too, because if it was AirAsia, then no point for us to go to the airport because their counter closes 45 minutes before flight (I went to the airport at 8.15am, remember?). The 1 hour flight to Kuching was good. When we arrived, we went straight to UCSI (together with our luggage..hehe) – actually wanted to go to my aunt’s house which was located just opposite UCSI, but since no one was at home until evening, we thought of maybe we have a look around UCSI and the students’ accommodation as well. I also already knew that there will be a launching ceremony for the scholarship thing in the afternoon but I didn’t know what would happen later.

My dad and I were greeted by the student counselor and she told me that the principal asked me whether I want to do the interview now and get over it before lunch hour, so I wouldn’t have to wait until the next day (which was supposed to be the actual day of my interview). I was uncertain at that time..I mean, I just went through lots of trouble this morning, and I’ve just arrived and still in my casual attire (black long sleeved blouse + jeans like what you’ve seen in the picture) I was just not ready yet. I’ve got my formal attire in the luggage but my dad thought that it might not be appropriate to keep them waiting. So, I grabbed all my necessary documents and went inside the principal’s office while my dad waited at the hall (my dad decided to accompany me to Kuching although I insisted that I can go alone because he already took so many days off from work for my sake – sent me to attend the Petronas Educamp, accompany me to UTP and fetched me from UTP…and now this…thank you, daddy!J)

Ahem! So, continue..in the principal’s office. The interview started after exchanges of “Good Morning”. It was quite similar like the Petronas one, it’s just that there’s no case study. It’s more like a job interview, a spontaneous one without giving you time to do drafts or whatsoever…she asked me to introduced myself, asked questions like what do I think of UCSI, how well do I know about UCSI, what do I want to do after my A-Levels, what do I expect from them, how will my ambition contribute to the society, why I should be given the scholarship, do I think that I deserve the scholarship…the questions seemed easy but they’re actually hard to answer (harder than stone…haha!), because in interviews, people expect the best answers from you. They want professional and matured kind of answers, making it as long as possible, good enough to convince them, right? Not simple ones. But, when she asked me how I knew about UCSI and what made me to come here, I tried to search for the answers but as if I can’t. If I said because my parents asked me to come here, there would be more “Why?”. And it’s not an appropriate answer. So, I knew this was the moment of truth, and told her everything about I was actually a Petronas scholar before, went to UTP using my trial result, but then my actual SPM result was not the same as my trial so they terminated my scholarship….(went on explaining) and my parents found out about UCSI so they told me to withdraw from there although I can still continue without scholarship…blablabla… To my surprise, she feels sorry on what I’ve been through and she said she understands it – being a youth that just turned 18, or maybe not yet 18 at that time, already given such hardship. Then, her final question was, “Are you willing to accept this scholarship although it is not as grand as your previous one? And our scholars are compulsory to serve the school 5 hours a week, plus, their performances will be monitored tightly. Will you accept it?” I answered, “Yes. Yes, I am. I don’t mind about the value, I’ll really appreciate it if you offer me the scholarship. It means a lot to me. If that’s what I have to do for the school, I accept.” Then, she said with a smile, “Congratulations, you are our first scholar!” Wow! Being offered a scholarship on the spot! And the first one! Overjoyed! She even told my dad how amazing I was (I seriously didn’t know what factor about me that amazed her). So, the committee thought that since I’m already offered, maybe I join the launching ceremony in the afternoon because they invited reporters as well as an important minister. Since they said it was to promote the institution, I agreed. But I didn’t know I will be interviewed by reporters later. I even went to see my new accommodation at Green Heights before the ceremony. It’s a lovely place…sorry, no pics.

I expected the news to be published in just a small column in the newspaper. But the next day, it came out FRONT PAGE! Unbelievable! Shocked! Even UCSI didn’t expect it and they were also surprised. I think they are going to have lots of applicants after this. Haha! But then, it was a very wonderful experience and I really thanked God for this once again scholarship opportunity. What I want to say is, God knows our needs and He will actually provide more than what we need and expected. We need to ask and trust strongly in Him that He will provide a way for us. Like when I managed to arrive the airport on time although there’s almost no hope and I’m given a new scholarship again. I actually felt down the night before I went to Kuching because it was the 15^th. Yes, I know it’s exactly one month after my birthday but that’s not the cause. It’s actually exactly 2 months since I received the news of the termination of my Petronas scholarship. 15^th will be the date I’ll never forget, but 16^th and 17^th are the most unforgettable dates! See how wonderful our God is? He is our joy, our shepherd and He will not let us suffer too much. He promised to never leave us nor forsake us.

*Enjoy reading, and sorry if it’s too long…can’t stop sharing God’s marvelous wonders.

Thanks for supporting me through your prayers. Love you guys!

~God bless

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