What I Learned in January

Amelia Shabrina
9 min readFeb 1, 2023

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To welcome a new page requires a new frequency of yourself. You must leave the past in order to let God assist and redirect you to new life opportunities.

The Young Dreamer (Balfour Ker) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

1. Knowledge builds character

Ancient Rome (Roma), by Georg Braun & Frans Hogenberg (1594) https://sanderusmaps.com/our-catalogue/antique-maps/europe/italy-cities/old-antique-plan-of-ancient-rome-roma-by-georg-braun-frans-hogenberg-27029

The only thing I hated was studying when I was still on elementary school, however studying English was an exception. Years later, I begun to shift my mindset using a narrative from ‘studying’ to ‘learning’ and ‘failure’ to ‘process’. In consequence, I bounced back to someone who is never tired of facing failures owing to the fact that failure is a supporting role of process.

Murphy’s 2nd Law → Everything takes longer than what you think

In January, I challenged myself to learn astrophysics, cosmology, both quantum physics and mechanics, and Einstein’s theory of general relativity. As someone who is currently studying law, in my conviction, it’s necessary for us to have widespread of knowledge paralleled to what we are currently studying for to test ourselves how far can we understand the complexities of our world. However the field doesn’t has to be physics, of course. It can be from any field of your choice.

Some of you might think, “what precisely are you pursuing it for learning the things which don’t have a specific correlation, especially between social science and natural science, like law and physics?”

It is to aim the synchronicities, the connections and how it correlates, and so does how it differs from the others. That is what we called learning, we just can’t stop ourselves from it due to staying curious makes us someone better than yesterday, staying sane than ever. A crazy person, but also wise.

Gall’s Law → A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple system that worked

2. Accepting who I really am

I remember the first thing I did was to embrace how distinguished we are as human beings, our different time stamps, trajectories, and seasonal occurrences which we can’t entirely compare to every person around us — we are completely different, alongside the path we are facing remains irrelative to every single inhabitants.

Authenticity has proved me once again that being someone different is utterly fine. With various of interests I have explored myself, therefore I started to stay on my lane and focusing what I mostly enjoy doing. The amount of respect I put for myself is predominantly the safest way to protect my mental state and a form of trusting myself that it is okay to be different than the others as long as you are doing the right thing.

If you consider to stand out, meet me at the K2 summit. We’ll conquer the summit together! (you are not alone since you are facing it with me)

3. Never set limiting beliefs to everyone including yourself. Everything is possible as long as you try

If you ever find yourself in a position where someone tries to set their limiting beliefs on you, it’s your decision to sensibly listen to them or forget what they say and consciously move on, therefore, it’s relative as them trying to project their insecurities to you in order to prevent you doing what you deliberately like to do. In order to prevent limiting beliefs, try balance between being delusional and realistic at the same time (I’m not kidding). It might sound weird, however, so far being delusional has brought me into the person whom I’ve always inspire to become.

Remember, you are bound by nothing. Do what your heart tells you to do and don’t resist on pursuing whatever you want on life. Truly, life is short. Do what makes you feel like on top of the world and sense freedom within!

Clarke’s 2nd Law The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.

4. Behaving well as a first-born daughter

I have a tendency to be aware of how first borns are prone to be independent, assertive, responsible, and commonly stubborn, and yet I am a first-born daughter. However, as soon as I grew up I realize I need to assemble those personality traits into one system. Apparently, it ameliorates how I function day by day and the system from the personality traits I’ve assembled let me into someone who is more vocal, bold, and diplomatic than before.

That being said, I opt to be a good example for my surroundings and a well-behaved daughter of my amazing parents and a sister of my brother, predominantly as a good illustration for my kids in the future by optimizing my system as early as possible, filled with buoyant personality traits which can lead me into whatever I’m becoming. I now realize how big my responsibility is as a first-born and I’m down to do whatever I can to make my family proud.

5. Working under pressure

Couple months ago, precisely in the month of October, life anomalies hit me like nuts. Thank God I’m still alive by now and passed numerous sequence of events which totally sucked me up until this very day. And yes, they taught me a mammoth amount of life lessons.

Working under pressure and forcing yourself to stay sane is an achievement owing to the fact that you passed facing crucial times when you thought you weren’t capable of passing them at the first place. You are stronger than what you think and you deserve to celebrate small wins for that!

6. Solitude is not relative to loneliness

This January, I successfully accept that it is okay to embrace solitude, hence the bravery. Solitude is a survival mode which leads to affirm ourselves that working in silence when all that you have left is yourself tends to bring us to the unimaginable and great places we never encounter before.

Spending your time alone doing necessary stuff is solitude, could be actively or passively doing something as long as as you are alone, but it’s not being lonely at all. It’s just how our minds perceive and differs lonely and solitude.

Author Amy Morin says that,loneliness is about perceiving that no one is there for you. But solitude is about making a choice to be alone with your thoughts.

Loneliness is about expressing the pain of being alone, and solitude is more likely expressing the glory of being alone (Paul Tillich, German-American Philosopher)

7. Letting go an old lover and eliminate attachments

Separation (1896), Edvard Munch https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

You got to work extra mile to find a closure for a relationship that has to end notably. It’s not an easy task for someone who barely had a long term relationship before. However, I accomplished to find a closure and ended it right away months ago.

In January, I perceived that letting go is a reflection of yourself you have finally matured which is the best way to heal your wounds. Furthermore, you can’t run away from your traumas. All you have to do is face them strong, learn from them, and try to live with them temporarily. By learning your wounds and traumatic pasts, they will be your turning point for your next journey, your healed version of yourself. Besides, they guide you to put a wise respond on overcoming obstacles or setbacks in the future.

Moving on from some we have an interest on and eliminate attachments is also another way to understand God’s timing, that we can’t force things to fall instantly when you know Allah ﷻ (God) hasn’t let you have the things you desire just yet. Despite all of that, this world is just a testing ground. Moreover, Allah’s ﷻ (God) timing is always right and He will give what you desire once you are ready to receive it.

8. The distance between Orion Nebula and Earth is around 1,344 light-years away and has aged for 3.002 million years. We’re looking down onto history!

Orion Nebula (M42) https://astrobackyard.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/orion-nebula.jpg

In January 7th, I spotted a huge amount of stars shining through the clear evening sky, thank God that time the air wasn’t very much polluted as it normally does. Hence, Orion Constellation was visible through the naked-eye. I successfully traced the constellation and managed to capture the night’s sky only through my phone camera. I used my dad’s binoculars (Steiner 7x50 Marine/Military) in order to guide me tracing the constellation since we don’t have a telescope and binoculars is the only thing we have around to able to see space substance.

The Orion Nebula (Messier 42, M42, or NGC 1976, RA 5h 35m 17s | Dec -5° 23′ 28) is located under (or above if viewing from the southern hemisphere) the three stars of Orion’s Belt (Mintaka, Alnilam, and Alnitak). They are three dimmer stars that form Orion’s sword which is possible to recognize the Orion Nebula in the middle of the sword. With that amount of distance, it takes around light 1,344 years for it to travel from Orion Nebula to Earth, and vice versa. (https://astrobackyard.com/orion-nebula/)

9. Life is temporary, good deeds stay permanent

Teaching the Qur’an, Nicola Forcella (Italian, born circa 1868) https://www.bonhams.com/zh-hk/auction/25444/lot/55/nicola-forcella-italian-born-circa-1868-teaching-the-quran/

Indeed, those who believe and do righteous deeds — for them are the Gardens of Pleasure (Q.S. Luqman: 8)

They shall abide in them forever. This is Allah’s promise that shall come true. He is the Most Powerful, the Most Wise (Q.S. Luqman: 9)

They say kindness is never wasted. If only we could balance between being a good person and remembering that life is just a testing ground, the probability for us to be loved by Allah ﷻ (God) is infinite, beyond measured. God is already Loving, an act of kindness of His servant is a wisdom of His Love, perfectly monetized and controlled by Allah ﷻ (God) Himself.

And certainly, We shall test you with something of fear, hunger, loss of wealth, lives and fruits, but give glad tidings to As-Sabirun (the patient). (Q.S. Al-Baqarah: 155)

Who, when afflicted with calamity, say: “Truly! To Allah we belong and truly, to Him we shall return.” (Q.S. Al-Baqarah: 156)

They are those on whom are the Salawat (i.e. who are blessed and will be forgiven) from their Lord, and (they are those who) receive His Mercy, and it is they who are the guided ones. (Q.S. Al-Baqarah: 157)

Good deeds lead us to Paradise, the Everlasting Home, the Purified Gardens, جَنّٰت. Good deeds are our company while we’re buried on our graves alone and for our journey to لآخرة.

Never get tired of being a good person with a good heart. Sometimes life throw you scads of rocks, however life is just temporary. When someone is taking advantage on behalf of your kindness, that is when you know life is just temporary and yet you are being tested. In addition, that is also when Allah ﷻ (God) says to you,

“My beloved servant, if you are doing this for the sake of my contentment, I shall give you more than anything you could ever imagine. Just hold on to it with patience. Remember, I’ve promised you twice not once. I will never fail my promises. Again, I will never fail my promises.”

So, verily, with every difficulty, there is relief (Q.S. Inshirah: 5)

Verily, with every difficulty there is relief (Q.S. Inshirah: 6)

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