My Memorable Story - Personal Statement Example

Memorable Story Memorable Story Every person in the world has a story to tell during his or her lifetime. Though it is clear that when people die, they will always leave a family legacy, which may live long with people or may fade away within a very short time. Below is an account of an event that took place in my family which is very memorable to me. My grand mother’s death from cancer is one day that most of our family members will never forget since she was a pillar in the family. My early childhood was filled with love from everybody that surrounded me. I was the darling of all the family members. It is evident that people have been handling loses in families or their life differently since it is part of life to lose someone close to you. Even though I have lost many family members, I never thought that in my youth I would be able to lose someone who was very dear to me. Before 2006, I had very many relatives from both the extended family and the nuclear family. The members included great grand parents and grand parents. However, at the beginning of the year 2006, all this stated to change. I remember how sad I was when I sat with my sister and saw life fading away from my grand mother. Her death came about due to a cancer which became terminal at a time when no one expected. The medication that she took after the cancer did not work well with her body since she even changed her facial complexion. During the lasts moments that my sister and I spent with her, we saw how sad it was to see a person who was filled with life with the recent past looking helpless and clearly on the way to leaving us. The only thing my sister and I could do was to hold hands and pray that she would be fine. Although her condition sometimes looked better, it was clear that she would never be the same gain. One day as I sat with my sister watching over our ailing grand mother, we were chatting our own stories. At that moment, she woke up and asked me “are there any plans for the day”, after her normal greeting which was directed to both of us. Since I was the first born out of all the grand children, I held a special position in the family and she always took me to be the eldest. This had made us to develop a very close relationship. However, my sister was also a favorite of my grand mother’s. Like on this day she whispered to her ear “you are a beautiful angel” As our old lady spoke to my sister, she got concerned and asked her if she was in agony. In unison, we found our self asking the same question again “grandma are you feeling pain anywhere”. She replied to us with a beautiful smile “no am fine my angels.” According to the stories she had given us, she was a strong lady who had gone through a rough time in her life but persevered. She used to tell us that her perseverance was what made our parents to get an education. Since she did everything to sacrifice what she had to make the lives of her children to be better that hers. However, the condition she was in had made grandma weak and it was saddening. She even told the physician who had performed surgery on her that she wished she had the angry to make his work easy through recovering quickly. She said, “I am saddened that you have done a big part of your work but am not the one responding with angry to stay alive.” That statement made me very sad since it was like an admission from her part that she was on her deathbed and she was going to die soon. However, my grand mother was not a person of great drama. She was sometimes very comical. However, the cancer took way her life at the time, which we had a very close relationship. She passed on 20 December 2006, a date that I will not forget since her passing on brought about great sorrows. When I had the news of her death I felt a mixture of sorrow, loneliness, and misfortune. My grandparents from my others side were the ones who broke the news of her death to us. What a painful and sorrowful day it was. Family ritual Since I come from a Muslim background, the rituals that are performed have to strictly adhere to a Muslim code of conduct. The main rituals that are performed according to the Muslim religions are as follows. Prayer: Muslim prayers are supposed to be done in a clam and relaxed environment since they are a way of communicating with God. The prayers are conducted by citing parts of the Quran during the prayers. The prayers are characterized by a combination of verbal platitude and physical movements. The prayers begin with petition to God and some movements, with idioms that praise the Greatness of God. Fasting: Fasting is done by avoidance of engaging in eating for sometime of the day and avoiding beverages, and avoiding sexual intercourse from sunrise to dusk. The fasting takes place through the holy month of Ramadan. Pilgrimage: The pilgrimage is also known as the Hajj, which Muslims of good physical health are required to undertake in the world (Esposito, 1999). Although it should be noted that the hajj is usually done by Muslims who have the financial means to undertake the adventure. Charity: Muslims are required to offer part of their income to the poor people as charity as a matter of principle. It is a significant part of the Muslim religion since it shows the caring nature of Muslims. For instance, a Muslim is required to give 2 percent of what they have made in a year to the poor people as charity. Purification: Before going to the presence of God, Muslims are required to purify themselves through an act known as the “wudu”. It is an important act since it makes it possible for Muslims to pray to God when they are cleansed. Since Muslims pray at least five times in a 24 hrs day, the purification exercise makes it possible for Muslims to have high level of cleanliness (Esposito, 1999). Creature sacrifice: Creatures sacrifice s usually done so that Muslims appreciate God for giving us animals that we can use as food. Hence, Muslims undertake the creature sacrifice as a way of appreciating God for giving the human race animals that can be used as food. Dialectical Tension Examples Dialect tensions are made up of restrictions that people find in a relationship. Characterized as restricting and compels that individual’s come across strains in their relationships. They are very important for social improvement. An example of such tensions is the pressure of incorporation and division. Within a relationship, the demands of amalgamation and division are met as needs for relationship when we differentiate the superiority of fellowship and closeness alongside the need for independence, which shows itself in independence. When these two energies are balanced it becomes possible for a relationship to survive. This balancing can work well in a family where the pressures are contained and come to a balance. Film Analysis Gregory Navas My Family is an account of three periods of the Sanchezs, that is a Mexican-American family residing in East Los Angeles. Beginning in the 1930s, the movie shows the challenges confronted by Jose (Jacob Vargas) and Maria (Lopez) as a wedded couple raising a gang. As Jose and Maria age, the central attention moves to their child, (Jimmy Smits), as he starts his family in the 1960s. While Lopez part was not accredited, she was chosen for an Independent Spirit Award for her good performance. The story of these couples is cast with vitality that makes someone to be glued to the movie. The movie captures life that people can easily pass to a true story, hence making it very entertaining. It is a movie that shows how people who came to America struggled to ensure that their children live a better life than they did. I connect to the movie since it makes me remember how hard my parents worked to make sure that they secure our future. Metaphor Statement "Life is a precious ownership, it termination is an inexorable disaster.." This metaphor represents a similitude case that is used in writing. It is a representation of a way of communicating a message through the use of a statements that pass a message through concealed means by using word which someone has to go around to find the exact meaning. The following are examples of metaphors that are found in my community: His sash was a snake twisting around his waist She is a canine when she is ravenous Affection is a developing festoon Plans are wings He attempted to help however his legs were wax Her hair was bone white Its coming down like a hurricane Power is a seat, it needs legs to remained up Words are false Idols When your hearts been crushed it develops spirit greater The pigeons fountained into the air H is hair is a white snowflake and his hair is an untidy pile Kicked the container The ocean is a hungry lion He swam in the ocean of precious stones Your kinship is the picture to my casing Summary Statement We live at a time when the family as institution has suffered a big blow from the way people’s mentality has changed reading family. Moral values have broken so much that even gay people are seen as people who can get married and have a family. Islam is one religion that is conservatism and cannot recognize the forms of family that have evolved with time. Islam is based on the premise that family comes about as result of a marriage between heterosexual partners. The Muslim culture has its own religious practices that differ much from other religions. This article has outlined what a family means to Muslims, the rituals that are undertake by Muslims and which are central too Islam. It should be good that even physicians know what they should expect when they are handling Muslim patients since there are some restrictions that are put in place by religion. My family is a good example of a Muslim family and we follow a Muslim culture, like for instance my father is the head of the family. Reference Esposito, J., L. (1999).The Oxford History of Islam. London: Oxford University Press Read More