The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion
The Malaysian Insider :: Opinion |
| Posted: 14 Nov 2011 04:22 PM PST NOV 14 — We need to be the change we wish to see in the world. — Mahatma Gandhi One day a patient walked into the clinic and sat down heavily on the nearest chair. "I have chest pains," he said. "And it is affecting my quality of life." His notes said that his name is Malaysia, and he is 54 years old. His does many things in his job. He provides land for people to build homes on, has a unique history and culture; and most importantly, he promised his people they would grow and prosper. But he is so weak that he can't do that now. They lay him down on the examination table, and the first doctor, Understanding, asked him about the timing of his pain. When does it happen? Malaysia told Dr Understanding that the pain happens usually when there are arguments among the people who live on his land. He said that people argued a lot more, for less, nowadays compared to when he was growing up. Sometimes he would go several weeks and months with the pain in his chest not subsiding, because someone was always arguing about something, somewhere. Dr Understanding was able to explain that the reason he got pain when people argued was because he was being torn between different opinions. The pain came from the splitting of his heart as he tried to support all his people equally. The second doctor to see Malaysia was Dr Equality. Dr Equality asked him if he experienced any other problems apart from his chest pain. Malaysia thought for a moment and said that he could not be sure. Dr Equality pointed out that Malaysia had neglected to mention an ulcer on his leg, which was very big. It must have been growing for some time. Malaysia was surprised to see it, saying that he had not noticed it at all before this. Dr Equality told Malaysia that because his chest pain was in the forefront of his mind so often, he neglected to look after himself in other ways. So much so that he did not even notice his leg ulcer, so he had not done anything to take care of it. Malaysia was getting quite upset at this point. The next doctor was Dr Progress. Dr Progress asked him about the character of his pain. What kind of pain was it? Malaysia told him that the pain was a tight, clenching pain at times, and a subtle dull ache at others. He said the worst stabbing pains came when people tried to divide him up into smaller pieces, and then stretch him at different rates. Dr Progress nodded gravely and said that the stabbing pains came because he was being made to grow at different rates, at different places, in different ways, all at once. Because the lines of separation that they had drawn up were so severe, the pain happened because nobody was willing to cross the borders to lend help to other less able parts. All three doctors agreed that Malaysia was very unwell. They looked over their notes, they took blood, and they tried giving him medicine. Malaysia was very depressed when he heard that he had so many things wrong with him. He asked the doctors: "What is the point of living when things are so bleak and my life is so depressing?" None of them could give him an answer, and his condition slowly deteriorated. One morning Dr Hope, one of the doctors who had thus far not said much to Malaysia, wandered into Malaysia's hospital room. He sat down and had a long talk with Malaysia. He found out that the reason why Malaysia hadn't felt well enough to leave the hospital was that he was afraid of what awaited him in the world outside. During the course of his illness, Malaysia discovered some things about himself that he wished he hadn't. There were big problems to solve, many things to consider, and a lot of changes to be made. He broke down and admitted all of this to Dr Hope. Dr Hope did not need to give any explanation. He sat down and listened. After several hours of talking, Malaysia finally wound up by repeating his question about the point of living. To that, Dr Hope said very simply: "The difference between the person you were when you came in and the person you will be when you go out is that you've managed to figure out where the problems lie and you can now work on fixing them. Your future is your own, but the only way you can recover is to stand up and walk out of this hospital with this goal in mind. There's still a big chance you can turn things around. You just have to be honest to yourself about what needs to be done and move forward." After the doctor left, Malaysia closed his eyes and had the first good night's sleep he had had in a very long time. The next morning, he walked out of the hospital into the sunshine. * Angeline Lee is a medical undergraduate at the University of Bristol. * The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Posted: 14 Nov 2011 04:06 PM PST NOV 15 — The World Champions were beaten by England! The Germans had to claw themselves back against Ukraine! The Guus got cooked at home to Croatia! The European Golden Boot winner Cristiano Ronaldo may not play in Euro2012! And finally, Leo Messi was POOR against Bolivia! Yes, the Messi-ah had a shocker and truth be told, I have never seen him play this bad ever before! OK, enough of the exclamation marks and down to the business that was the weekend of football. It was a repeat of Switzerland versus Spain from South Africa 2010 as England beat Spain at Wembley. Though the Spaniards will play many games where their opponents will refuse to attack but still get slaughtered, there are exceptions. And the facts do show that the Spanish have been poor in friendly games since becoming world champions. Come next summer, their defence of the European title will require a new and fresh approach from Vicente del Bosque. Can the Spanish get better? They will have to! Sorry, there I go again. Their opponents in that final from three years ago in Euro2008, Germany, are beginning to build a squad that could well give Spain a run for their money from Euro2012 onwards. They were good in patches against Ukraine but showed the same resilience that have made German teams so difficult to beat in competitions over the years. But enough about friendlies, the real competition during the weekend were in the Euro2012 qualifying playoffs, the South American World Cup qualifiers and the SEA Games football. After missing out on the last World Cup with Russia, the question already on most football journalists' minds is "which English club can Guus Hiddink be linked with next?" . . . that is, unless Turkey pull off a miracle by beating Croatia 4-0 in Zagreb. This is certainly the biggest game of Hiddink's career but now that Andre Villas-Boas is firmly entrenched in the Chelsea hot seat, it will be interesting to see where the rumour starts. It will be an equally crucial game for Villas-Boas' country Portugal, too, as they should finish off Bosnia at home to qualify for Polkraine 2012. Else, we could miss the talent of Cristiano Ronaldo in Europe's biggest football showcase. The first leg played in Zenica, Bosnia, could well have been settled if Vedad Ibisevic had not blasted over in the later stages of the game. Then, there's Portugal's former Spurs striker, Helder Postiga, whom I think is not going to shine next summer. Meanwhile, Ronaldo's main rival in world football today, Lionel Messi, continues to disappoint with his performances in an Argentina shirt. I have to admit that his performance in Buenos Aires against Bolivia has got to be the worst I have ever seen Leo Messi play. In the 1-1 draw, with Martin DeMichelis being the best player for Bolivia, Messi showed a lack of imagination. Playing in the hole behind Gonzalo Higuain, thus the most crowded midfield area on the pitch, Messi proceeded to attempt dribbling at every opportunity. He was crowded out every time and made to look quite silly as he continued trying that the entire match. With a little imagination or perhaps a word from his coach, he could have drifted wide to take on defenders, leaving more space for his teammates to exploit. He could have played further forward as a false Number 9 with Higuain going wide left or right. But, Messi stuck to his position with Bolivia's defensive midfielders having a laugh. Quite perhaps, Messi will learn from this game that it is not all about him and that sometimes he has to sacrifice his skills for more intelligence to benefit the team. Finally, moving closer to home, or more specifically, Jakarta for the 26th SEA Games, I am pleased to say that we have a very good 17-year-old central midfielder in Nazmi Faiz, who is currently bossing our Under-23 team. He has been likened to Azizul Abu Hanifah, the best local midfielder I ever played with, and after watching him play, this kid certainly has got the talent to be a star. He occupies the central midfield space between the defensive and middle third while Azizul was the best from middle to attacking third. Perhaps where Nazmi Faiz is quite different is that he tackles like Holland and Manchester City's Nigel de Jong. Finally, after such a long wait in the national football scene, we are beginning to develop squad strength and competition for places in the senior squad that can only benefit our football in the long term. * The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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