Rain fell from the sky humidifying the soil. The day did not seem like ones lived before, days that belong now to my past. People ran swiftly across the sidewalks trying to get to their offices, homes, or just a place to stand for a few minutes and not be drenched by the falling downpour. Hailstones hit the ground with severity; water flowed along the street, coming down the steep mountain, where a sequence of modern and recently constructed ten-story buildings stood silently. From my apartment the splendid and astonishing view of a city with more than one million people dominated the front section; at the back, the relaxing sight of nature and old trees created a welcoming and loosening up sensation. All these were located in one of the most popular and envied neighborhoods of the city, where security personnel, maids, and bodyguards were abundant.
I waited patiently one month for this day, a day in which I would have to leave most of my possessions, my old friends, my school, my city, and my country. I have been preparing myself for this task but each time I thought about it, it seemed impossible to start from zero in another place, with new people, and a new language. The rain continued for no more than fifteen minutes. My father entered my room and asked me if I was ready to go; I answered with a non-convincing, "yes," and then glanced around my room for the last time even though I knew would be extremely painful. I took my luggage with me, where I carried most of the goods impossible to replace or find again. I brought with me many CDs, my collection of bank notes, pictures, and other personal items that filled the two allowed suitcases. Fernando, the doorman, placed the suitcases inside ...
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...ed that once there I was at the point of no return.
The terminal completely dominated the view from my window. The engine's noise was minimal but the backing up movement could not be mistaken. While the airliner taxied I felt a void in my stomach; many sensations never experienced before manifested from my soul, the unpleasant sensation of loneliness combined with desolation and despair. Sadly the airliner turned ninety degrees at the end taxi lane toward the runway positioning the airliner prepared to take off. When the plane accelerated, the engine's thud increased and my heartbeat augmented at the same pace as the engines. The jet gathered speed and took off rapidly providing almost immediately a spectacular sight of my beloved home meanwhile my mother and I sobbed silently. We had left our hearts in the city of our ancestors.
The urban setting can instantly be recognized as an antagonist to anyone who faces it. The imagery of the city reveals its formidable nature. The
I was carrying my whole life with me, as I walked towards the aircraft. I was carrying two suitcases, filled mainly with clothes and books. I know they were less than 20 kilograms because that was the permissible weight. I could not feel their weight as they were on the trolley. I had a backpack on my shoulders. It contained some eatables, some clothes, a novel, some magazines, a portable CD player, some CDS, a deck of cards, and an inflatable pillow. I was well prepared for my long flight. In my hand I carried as brown leather case containing my passport, visa, and all other personal documents and papers. If I were to lose that case, technically I would cease to exist. Other than that, I had a tennis racket slung over my left shoulder. In short, I was carrying almost all my belongings with me. But that was not all I was taking with me. I was carrying with me memories of 18 years. Things and incidents, long forgotten, resurfaced in my mind, with incredible detail. Every face around me reminded me of uncountable incidents. I was carrying with me a sense of tremendous loss. But, at the same time, I was also carrying with me hope and excitement. A new world called me, and I was looking forward to go there. To protect me in this new place, I had a holy red thread tied on my wrist. That was the explanation my Mom had given me when she was tying it. Though I did not necessarily agree with her, looking at the thread did bring a warm feeling in my heart. It symbolized the love and blessings of my parents which I carried with me, wherever I went.
I walked around unsteadily all day like a lost baby, far away from its pack. Surrounded by unfamiliar territory and uncomfortable weather, I tried to search for any signs of similarities with my previous country. I roamed around from place to place and moved along with the day, wanting to just get away and go back home. This was my first day in the United States of America.
The Jewish Bible, Tanakh is made of 39 books, which consists of law (Torah), history,
The Book of Jonah is a story centered around the concept of disobedience. This book starts off in the most shocking way by showing the prophet Jonah disobeying God’s commands. The first instance of disobedience is shown when god commands Jonah to head to Nineveh in order to preach against their ideals, instead Jonah choses to flee, he heads to Joppa and boards a ship heading to Tarshish. Nowell points out in his biblical commentary Jonah, Tobit, Judith how ludicrous this situation was by citing Jonah 1:9 where Jonah expresses his fear of God because He made both “the sea and the dry land” (“JONAH’S DISOBEDIENCE AND FLIGHT”). God retaliates by sending a storm that terrorizes the sailors and forces them to throw Jonah off the boat. This highlights
The first section of the Hebrew Scriptures we will be exploring is that of Law, or to use the original Hebrew term for it, ‘Torah’. This section is rich in narrative, encompassing the stories of creation and fall from Genesis as well as the foundational myths of Israel in the forms of the Patriarchs, Exodus, Law and the concept of the ‘Promised Land’. Involving the first five books of the canonical Hebrew Scriptures, this s...
Bolin, Thomas M. "Should I Not Also Pity Nineveh?" Divine Freedom in the Book of Jonah." Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 67 (1995): 109-120. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials. Web. 15 Nov. 2013.
The Bible is the inspired Word of God. It presents salvation history as how God reveals himself, his plan for redemption of fallen mankind. His Divine plan starts with the creation of the world. The Bible is made up of both the Old and New Testament. The Old Testament pertains to God’s creation of the world and his Word to Israel. It is written in Hebrew Scripture except for a few written in Aramaic, and is composed of the Law(Torah), the Prophets, and the Writings. It was preserved in three languages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.
Upon arrival into the jungle of vast buildings, the first thing noticed is the mobbed streets filled with taxi cabs and cars going to and fro in numerous directions, with the scent of exhaust surfing through the air. As you progress deeper into the inner city and exit your vehicle, the aroma of the many restaurants passes through your nostrils and gives you a craving for a ?NY Hot Dog? sold by the street venders on the corner calling out your name. As you continue your journey you are passed by the ongoing flow of pedestrians talking on their cell phones and drinking a Starbucks while enjoying the city. The constant commotion of conversing voices rage up and down the streets as someone calls for a fast taxi. A mixed sound of various music styles all band together to form one wild tune.
Throughout life we come across many people, some who influence us in negative ways, and those who influence in good ways, often changing our complete outlook on life. For me, it took the struggle of one of my best friends to open my eyes. I only wish it wasn't too late to thank her.
At the beginning of American life, everything was special and fancy, and it seemed I would also have this life. However, when the time to find a new apartment, and I even thought I should not deserved this life. I tried many times to contact with residence companies and owners by cellphones, and most of times the reasons of the failure were I could not understand what other sides said to me, and my only reply was “thank you”. There was the first time I felt isolated and helpless. Before that, my friends asked me why I didn’t stay in host family, and what I thought was having an independent life; but after those failures, I thought the idea might be unrealistic. Whereas, I didn’t want to give up, so I stayed searching on the Internet, asking other students for the availability rooms. When I got a phone call from an owner for making an appointment to see the house, and I knew there was nothing wrong with perseverance. I prepared a lot before the meeting, and I did my best to understand the details of renting the room. After I saw the rent contract that he gave to me, I couldn’t even believe that my pursuit became true. The time of waiting frustrated me, but I should be grateful because I insisted on it. All in all, I think I inspired the potential of endurance inside of
Karma, also known as Karman is a basic concept common to Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. The doctrine of Karma states that one's state in this life is a result of actions both physical and mental in past carnations, and action in this life can determine one's destiny in future incarnations. Karma is a natural, impersonal law of moral cause and effect and has no connection with the idea of a supreme power that decrees punishment of forgiveness of sins. Karmic law is universally applicable, and only those who have attained liberation from rebirth, called mukti (or moksha) or nirvana, can be transcend it. (The Columbia Encyclopedia)
The book of Jonah is story about a prophet in the Hebrew bible. The book tells about Jonah, a good man that had been chosen by God to preach His word in the city of Nineveh. Nineveh was a place not inhabited by good people, that is the reason God wanted Jonah to go there and make that people change their behavior. But Jonah, despite being a good men, disobeyed God and boarded a ship and headed to a different place.
The heart begins racing the moment the car pulls into the airport parking lot. The smell of jet fuel, automobile exhaust, and hot tarmac combine to assault the senses with images of exotic escapes and the kind of freedom that can only come from airports. I feel the thrum of the engines at takeoff and the vibration of the plane during the flight in my skin. I see people listening to MP3s and playing video games. I hear the couple behind me chatting about the weather in Florida and the possibility of rain. I recognize the smell of fading perfume that women are wearing. Chanel, Windsong and White Diamonds clash with the smell of popcorn and Quizno sandwiches.
I always had, and still have, a very good relationship with my parents. Some things have altered slightly with time but not too much. I used to adore my father. Like most young kids, I thought that my dad was the best thing since sliced bread. My feelings began to shift some as I started to grow up. I began to have my own ideas, and no longer was he always correct. Sometimes he was simply wrong, and pointing this fact out to him sometimes got me into trouble. The punnishments for these deeds taught me more in the long run than they did at that time.