Project 1: From Sandstorms to Snowstorms

Victor Hugo, the famous french poet once said, ‘Winter is on my head, but eternal spring is in my heart’. However in our case, its not just on the head, its out there knocking at the doors and windows reminding us that its finally time to get our winter clothing out.

Good Evening Fellow Toastmasters and guests.

Yes, the time has come to bid adieu to the light rustling breeze, the late evening sun, the gorgeous warmth the morning sun rise brings, sigh, the little pleasures of life seem like a distant dream. I am sure each of us in this room wants those good old days of summer to come back.

With the temperature going down by the day, my feelings towards the coming winter are mixed. There is anticipation at the thought of spending my second and hopefully more prepared winter here in Toronto. But there are stronger feelings of disbelief that summer flew so fast! I guess a part of me just prefers to be in its ignorant world where winter is just an illusion of the mind. After all, Ignorance is bliss!

I guess, the reason I am apprehensive about this winter is because I have spent most of life growing amidst heat, deserts and sandstorms. Coming from Dubai, United Arab Emirates which is in the Middle East, seeing the temperature rising to 50 degrees centigrade during summer was a very normal thing. I actually liked that heat.

Needle less to say my first winter here was a harsh shock. It had me dreaming of the weather back home where bright sun meant the day was going to be hot! So what if its hot, you don’t have to wear 5 layers of clothes and take them off every time you enter class! Just when I had made up my mind that summer was any day better than winter, something really interesting happened. I flew back home after the second semester. It was during peak summer and every second of those four months I kept dreaming about the snowy winters here! So what if I had to wear 5 layers of clothes? At least I am not wet with sweat every time I stepped out!

Mind, a very strange thing indeed. We want what we not have and we not want what we have. Its with everything, weather, clothes, shoes and in my case, my career choices.

I’ve always wanted to be an engineer – probably since I was about 10 years old. Growing up in Dubai was one major reason for affecting my decision. Dubai had undergone a major technological face lift over the past decade. Innovative projects were inspired by a passion to progress which fascinated me. I could see technology shaping our life. The major turning point in my decision to become an engineer was when I observed the rapid growth of cell phones. From being bulky and unreliable gadgets, within a decade, they underwent such a major transformation that they became a necessity. This is the power of technology and I wanted to be a part of it.

From that day my sandstorm journey to study ECE at Skule started.

It was definitely not a pleasant one. Academically stretched in final 2 years of my high school and leaving my parents for the first time in 18 years made it even worse. A lot of people told me that first year here is a killer, but I thought they were kidding. After 11 months in UofT, I can say with guarantee, that if I thought I left the sandstorm to get some breeze, I was wrong. I stepped in a huge snowstorm!!!

University was so much harder than I ever expected it to be in my wildest dreams. I realized what it meant to be an engineer and what it took to be one. There were some nights when I felt that I really shouldn’t be here because I was finding it too hard. I had set my mind to change my major. Before I could make any decisions, I had gone back to Dubai for the summer break.

In 5 months the city had undergone so much of change. With outstanding projects like the world’s largest indoor ice park and islands in shape of world map coming up, the marvels of engineering were taking a totally new dimension. This made me realize the power of the field I had chosen to study and could see that we were on the threshold of a new revolution.

Yes, engineering is definitely is a snowstorm, but at the end of the snowstorm there has to be the rainbow! It’s not going to be an easy ride. There are going to be enough holes on the way and I am sure that I am going to fall in more than one of them and more sure that its going to take me forever to rise. But then, I have the confidence that I can rise!

In conclusion, I once read that, “The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning”, this journey has not reached the end yet, as the destination seems far away. Atleast I know the road now, and my journey has just begun.