31st August 2009
I watched people walking across the street every single day. Those people who are so busy with everyday routine and I don’t even think they actually noticed me watching them every single day. I was wondering if they knew me or maybe would somehow drop by for a while just to say ‘Hi’ or ‘How are you doing?’. I keep wondering about people nowadays, what is that seems important to their life. Is it money? Higher position in the institution? Family and friends? Or perhaps doing whatever they want to do with life? I’m talking about freedom. So, I went to visit a few friends of mine and dropped them something to ponder and jot it down for me. I was asking what is the meaning of Independent to them. I got diverse feedback and I pretty much enjoy reading it.
Ms. C, 22, “Independent is responsibilities. Not sheltered anymore. Faced own consequence.”
Mr. A, 21, “Independent? Free to make decision for ourselves, free to do what we want to do, free to be what we want to be and free from being ordered by anyone.”
Mr. Z, 23, “For me independent means freedom, we can do whatever we want as long as it still follow under rule of law, religion n moral.”
Mr. F, 23, “Independent means stand by our own without any help from other people in such situation that he or she face.”
Mr. H, 25, “When you can be who you really are and what you want to be, you can speak up your mind. Freedom of speech, you control of your own life.”
Ms. H, 22, “Independent? We do thing ourselves, not depending others but use their methods just like in our government.”
Ms. T, 22, “Its mean freedom and stand on your own leg. Free from anything or anybody that can stop you doing what you want, giving opinion, making own decision and more.”
Mr. H, 22, “Independent, meaning for me is standing on our own feet, all happen in my life, don’t force to other people help and all idea or opinion must think myself. But some people pretend to be independent but don’t know the meaning of it.”
Mr. N, 30, “Independent. Free from people's cage or thoughts of mind. Doing things that we want without obstacle. But independent itself sometimes forward people to forget what we are and what we have.”
Mr. N, 21, “Meaning of independent to me is freedom. As teenagers freedom is not only about independent but also about we have our right to do something and also we will feel independent when we finish our task or exam. It’s about not having any connection to others.”
Mr. Z, 22, “Nationalism spirit as action need to be taken to hold autonomy’s rules of nation in preventing invasion of outsider colonial which those are capitalism.”
Ms. F, 21, “How we can feel the feelings of being free and plain. To know that we are no longer being griped by others hand and how we know, when there is nothing can stop us to show our loves to our homeland especially. To know that our grisly nightmare has a happy ending when our great ‘Jalur Gemilang’ waving away proudly and free.”
Mr. R, 21, “INDEPENDENT for me is a freedom that deserved by all society in any country to govern and take care their own country without any distraction from the other side.”
Mr. A, 24, “Independent, freedom and yet struggling to survive. Free from negative impact from family but work super hard to achieve the unachievable by your own capability.”
Ms. M, 22, “Independent to me, I guess it mean I myself being able to make wise decision about what is wrong and right in life, and able to stand on my own while doing something. I mean for some small things, I can handle on my own without bothering others that will make me more appreciates what I have.”
Mr. W, 24, “Not depend on others, self believing, brave to faces any challenges, your own mindset, most important thing, find your needs by yourself with full of energy.”
Ms. A, 21, “I think you can do your work very hard to achieve a good result without hoping to anybody to help you.”
Mr. H, 25, “For me, in this new era the mind should be free and independent. Those days were more into emotional and physical freedom. Today, the mind should be set wise, not too depend on others to spoon yourself the food you get from your own land, and not to be those who are always forgetting where they should stand. I’m an independent person. Too feel and look with your own heart not to see and it fades away by thinking what’s done is done. We’re not there before 1957. So we won’t know the pain they were in, the drought years that hurt and cut the veins without sanity. At least, appreciated.”
Ms. W, 20, “Freedom not to country only but our self too. Freedom in all aspect, especially in thinking and speaking. What other people say not always right. We’re independent already. And as Muslim, I’m advice myself how independent myself, I have to follow the Islam way.”
Ms. R, 21, “Independent means we free from colonist, free from influence of others, not just in physical but also our mind. Free to do and develop our country in our ways, for our self free from being control by other people and we can decide what we want.”
Mr. S, 22, “Freedom of kingdom and citizen’s mind.”
Oxford dictionary gives the definition of ‘independent’ as not dependent (on other people or things); not controlled (by other people or things); not connected with each other; separate; not depending for its validity or operation on the thing(s) involved; not unfairly influenced by the people who are involved; impartial.
No matter what independent means to each and every one of us, for me independence can be define in two; independence as for a country and independence as in individual.
Being able to sit at a corner of this cafe, writing a journal on my own will while drinking my favourite hot latte, that is my independence.
Being able to speak out my mind, express my own idea, get responds from other people, that is independence of individual to me.
Being able to choose and make my own decision in every option given to me without relying on anyone help or influence is independent to me.
Being able to love my family, friends and special someone, is independent indeed.
Happy 52nd Independent Day Malaysia.
