Faith Through Open Eyes
The phone rang one morning.
“Jim? It is Nazmi. Miriam is very sick.”
“What do you mean?” my Dad replied.
“Miriam passed away two days ago.” Nazmi cried.
Miriam is the daughter of our very old family friends. She died at the age of 34. Her husband, Yannie and their two kids, Zoe and Manos, survive her. Miriam was an extremely accomplished woman. She worked as a senior vice president for Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Los Angeles, California. My sister and I were flower girls in her wedding. She was a role model to the both of us. Miriam was a woman who had a successful career, was a successful mother, and had a very fulfilling life. Miriam was selfless, kind, and all around an inspirational woman to me. Even when Miriam was diagnosed with cancer she remained positive and chose to live the rest of her life to the best of her ability. She put herself last and others first. Miriam represents a strong character that had an optimistic view on life, even when her future was dark.
I had never attended a funeral before Miriam’s. My family is small and has been healthy. The news of Miriam’s passing was shocking and unexpected. Miriam chose to keep her illness to herself and her immediate family. So, her death was a tremendous blow to her close friends and extended family. I had no time to act on what was or had happened, only time to reflect. My family made immediate arrangements to attend here funeral on very short notice.
Attending the funeral brought me to a whole new state of mind both spiritually and emotionally. When we arrived at the church I automatically knew this was going to be a tough experience by the body language the people were showing as they walked in. All of a sudden, I had a flashback of her wedding walking down the aisle in front of her as one of her flower girls. Miriam was such a beautiful happy woman, and I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that she was gone. The theme of the funeral was dark, but at the same time I was surrounded by so much love. Once we sat down in the church, Miriam’s parents entered from the back of the church. The look on their faces was devastating. They paced back and forth between friends and family who supported them with as much love and support as possible. I felt hopeless and so sad. The parents of Miriam looked as if they had been through many traumas. They looked weak and depressed with dark circles under their eyes. The audience was silent and sat facing the front of the room as tears rolled down their faces and they held handkerchiefs in their hands. Even though everyone was so juxtaposed I felt alone. It brought to mind many questions and caused me great confusion. I didn’t understand how this could happen to such an amazing person at such a young age. She had the rest of her life in front of her, and she was taken from this earth without explanation.
All of a sudden those cliché quotes and metaphors about life became more meaningful to me. It made me realize that living each day as if it is your last is extremely important. I was inspired to be a kind and a good human being. It brought a question to my mind, “What is the meaning of life?” I started to reflect and I realized that I must be a good person and remain strong through tough times in life. I recognized the importance of family, friendship and strong personal relationships. I found myself thinking of God and how Miriam would soon join Him in the after life. Miriam was very close to my deceased grandfather on my father’s side. He was a mentor to her and treated her like a granddaughter. In her last remaining days on this earth, Miriam spoke of my grandfather as if he were in the room with her. It was interesting to think that the dead and living could have a relationship, almost as if they knew that they would see one another sometime soon.
Miriam’s death was a realization for me. Some of her co-workers gave eulogies that left me in humbled by how she affected others in such a strong way. I became motivated to live a successful and fulfilling life so that I would be remembered as a person who made a difference by being a good citizen.
Her passing also created a deep curiosity in my mind about my own faith and spirituality. We are all born into a family. Our family tends to dictate our beliefs and our religion. For many, religion becomes an accepted faith based on the faith of their parents and grandparents before them. My parents come from different religious backgrounds, my father is Muslim and my mother is Catholic. When they committed to each other, they worked hard to focus on the similarities of their religions and not the differences. The common lines found in both of these religions, belief in life after death, the Ten Commandments, and the acceptance of all religions is what is meaningful to me. Miriam came from parents of different faiths as well. Her mother a Greek Orthodox and her father, a Muslim. Although her funeral was held in a Church, you could sense the common beliefs amongst many different religions at the Christian ceremony.
Overall you never know what your life holds. Miriam’s death and our study of religion gave me insight into the meaning of faith, religion and life. We are all equal in that sense, no matter what religion. We all must face death someday. Miriam’s outlook on life was not because of her faith, but rather as a strong individual who lived life according to her moral obligation to humanity. Her death had an impactful affect on me. It drew me closer to my own family and closer to my own beliefs. Religion is a scripture that we all can subscribe to and follow. However, the spirituality of each religion is what comes through us in our actions and behavior. I like to live by the saying, “What is written is written,” meaning that everything happens for a reason. This gives me courage to continue on with life to the best of my ability. It helps me comprehend situations like Miriam’s death.
I would like to believe that there is a place to go after death and that I have someone looking after me, but what really matters is trying to live my life to its fullest potential each day. Each day, I try to gain and pursue as much as possible even if that means doing a little deed each day. The purpose of life to me is to be human. This means enjoying life each day, helping others, being kind and supportive of others, persevering through hardships and struggles, accepting challenges, and believing in my faith. Miriam represented a true human being to me. She inspires me to live my life in a similar way as she did. I still have many questions that I need to explore and understand with regards to religion and my own faith. However, I am more fulfilled now than ever before having experienced this unfortunate event and the background of various religions.
“Jim? It is Nazmi. Miriam is very sick.”
“What do you mean?” my Dad replied.
“Miriam passed away two days ago.” Nazmi cried.
Miriam is the daughter of our very old family friends. She died at the age of 34. Her husband, Yannie and their two kids, Zoe and Manos, survive her. Miriam was an extremely accomplished woman. She worked as a senior vice president for Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Los Angeles, California. My sister and I were flower girls in her wedding. She was a role model to the both of us. Miriam was a woman who had a successful career, was a successful mother, and had a very fulfilling life. Miriam was selfless, kind, and all around an inspirational woman to me. Even when Miriam was diagnosed with cancer she remained positive and chose to live the rest of her life to the best of her ability. She put herself last and others first. Miriam represents a strong character that had an optimistic view on life, even when her future was dark.
I had never attended a funeral before Miriam’s. My family is small and has been healthy. The news of Miriam’s passing was shocking and unexpected. Miriam chose to keep her illness to herself and her immediate family. So, her death was a tremendous blow to her close friends and extended family. I had no time to act on what was or had happened, only time to reflect. My family made immediate arrangements to attend here funeral on very short notice.
Attending the funeral brought me to a whole new state of mind both spiritually and emotionally. When we arrived at the church I automatically knew this was going to be a tough experience by the body language the people were showing as they walked in. All of a sudden, I had a flashback of her wedding walking down the aisle in front of her as one of her flower girls. Miriam was such a beautiful happy woman, and I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that she was gone. The theme of the funeral was dark, but at the same time I was surrounded by so much love. Once we sat down in the church, Miriam’s parents entered from the back of the church. The look on their faces was devastating. They paced back and forth between friends and family who supported them with as much love and support as possible. I felt hopeless and so sad. The parents of Miriam looked as if they had been through many traumas. They looked weak and depressed with dark circles under their eyes. The audience was silent and sat facing the front of the room as tears rolled down their faces and they held handkerchiefs in their hands. Even though everyone was so juxtaposed I felt alone. It brought to mind many questions and caused me great confusion. I didn’t understand how this could happen to such an amazing person at such a young age. She had the rest of her life in front of her, and she was taken from this earth without explanation.
All of a sudden those cliché quotes and metaphors about life became more meaningful to me. It made me realize that living each day as if it is your last is extremely important. I was inspired to be a kind and a good human being. It brought a question to my mind, “What is the meaning of life?” I started to reflect and I realized that I must be a good person and remain strong through tough times in life. I recognized the importance of family, friendship and strong personal relationships. I found myself thinking of God and how Miriam would soon join Him in the after life. Miriam was very close to my deceased grandfather on my father’s side. He was a mentor to her and treated her like a granddaughter. In her last remaining days on this earth, Miriam spoke of my grandfather as if he were in the room with her. It was interesting to think that the dead and living could have a relationship, almost as if they knew that they would see one another sometime soon.
Miriam’s death was a realization for me. Some of her co-workers gave eulogies that left me in humbled by how she affected others in such a strong way. I became motivated to live a successful and fulfilling life so that I would be remembered as a person who made a difference by being a good citizen.
Her passing also created a deep curiosity in my mind about my own faith and spirituality. We are all born into a family. Our family tends to dictate our beliefs and our religion. For many, religion becomes an accepted faith based on the faith of their parents and grandparents before them. My parents come from different religious backgrounds, my father is Muslim and my mother is Catholic. When they committed to each other, they worked hard to focus on the similarities of their religions and not the differences. The common lines found in both of these religions, belief in life after death, the Ten Commandments, and the acceptance of all religions is what is meaningful to me. Miriam came from parents of different faiths as well. Her mother a Greek Orthodox and her father, a Muslim. Although her funeral was held in a Church, you could sense the common beliefs amongst many different religions at the Christian ceremony.
Overall you never know what your life holds. Miriam’s death and our study of religion gave me insight into the meaning of faith, religion and life. We are all equal in that sense, no matter what religion. We all must face death someday. Miriam’s outlook on life was not because of her faith, but rather as a strong individual who lived life according to her moral obligation to humanity. Her death had an impactful affect on me. It drew me closer to my own family and closer to my own beliefs. Religion is a scripture that we all can subscribe to and follow. However, the spirituality of each religion is what comes through us in our actions and behavior. I like to live by the saying, “What is written is written,” meaning that everything happens for a reason. This gives me courage to continue on with life to the best of my ability. It helps me comprehend situations like Miriam’s death.
I would like to believe that there is a place to go after death and that I have someone looking after me, but what really matters is trying to live my life to its fullest potential each day. Each day, I try to gain and pursue as much as possible even if that means doing a little deed each day. The purpose of life to me is to be human. This means enjoying life each day, helping others, being kind and supportive of others, persevering through hardships and struggles, accepting challenges, and believing in my faith. Miriam represented a true human being to me. She inspires me to live my life in a similar way as she did. I still have many questions that I need to explore and understand with regards to religion and my own faith. However, I am more fulfilled now than ever before having experienced this unfortunate event and the background of various religions.
Seminar Exhibition Reflection
While getting ready for the seminar exhibition I was both excited and nervous! I was not sure how the seminar would turn out because of the live audience listening in on our discussions. At first the seminar started out slow and took a while for everyone to get comfortable speaking. I felt a lot of pressure from the audience and wanted to make sure everything I said made sense. Religion is a wonderful topic, but I was worried about my thoughts during the seminar and if people would understand my perspective. During the beginning of the seminar I hesitated to participate. Whenever I would have something to say I would get anxious and forget my train of thought. Instead, I watched and analyzed what viewpoints people were leaning towards. I was really excited when two seniors decided they would join our seminar even though they had not had time to study the topic. It made me feel more comfortable and confident in my own voice and ideas given that I had time to prepare. By the end of the seminar, I felt I brought up some good ideas and became more comfortable opening up to the public. I found myself wanting to say more; however, students were continually circling their thoughts around the same ideas and it even became difficult to have the opportunity to speak. This was one of the most exciting seminars I have be involved with however, I wish we had more time because I felt as if we could have expanded more on questions we didn’t get to.
During one part of the seminar I found it humorous listening to Brad and Nolan’s conversation about religion in which they argued incessantly over whether religion caused people to have stronger morals which in turn led to a safer society in general. I couldn’t help but jump in and share my viewpoint that religion does in fact give people an incentive to be a good person each day. One question that impacted my ideas during the seminar was, “Does there need to be a God or religion to have faith?” Even though I do believe in God myself, I found this question interesting because faith can be a whole separate category from religion and one does not necessarily have to believe in God to have faith in what was written. The most troubling question during the seminar was, “What brings enlightenment, or do you need to strive for enlightenment?” This question was troubling to me because enlightenment is different for everyone. After talking about this topic for a while during the seminar I came to the conclusion that it doesn’t matter what brings you enlightenment as long as you understand what it is that makes you happy and fulfilled in the end and that you are able to get to the point of feeling enlightened at some point. In order for me to find enlightenment, I must strive to maintain a good relationship with friends and family, and constantly try to be a good person each day.
After participating in this seminar, my thoughts on religion and faith became clearer to me. I enjoyed hearing a variety of ideas and perspectives some of which paralleled my own and others that were very different. Taking time to study and think about the topic instead of just blindly following faith and religion helped me develop some of my own conclusions. After hearing a variety of speakers on their faith and religion and having the opportunity to have an open seminar, I heard many different viewpoints on the subject, which helped solidify my own beliefs. In addition, while working on this project I brought up the conversation with friends and family, which provided me the opportunity to clarify my thoughts.
The biggest connection to this religion project for me was the death of my close family friend Mariam. My artist statement was a story of my faith and was based off of Mariam. After her death it brought together many different questions about life and religion. Having this opportunity to express what I believe while learning about religion created a connection amongst what we were doing in class and the unfortunate event that I experienced. The most meaningful connection between the religion project and Mariam was the question, “What is the meaning of life?” This question is similar to the question, “What brings you enlightenment?” because they both can be answered in many different ways. However, after Mariam passed away it became clear to me that you never know what your destiny holds and you must make the most of each day while it lasts. This is why I think it is important to understand what is the meaning of life so that in the end you hopefully will have accomplished your dreams with will feel fulfilled with the life you have lived.
Overall, I really enjoyed this seminar. For the first time I had to think about and defend my stance on religion. I was definitely moved by the viewpoints of others. I walked away thinking that I want to enjoy life each day, help others, be kind and supportive, persevere through hardships and struggles, accept challenges, and believe in my faith. I still have many questions that I need to explore and understand with regards to religion and my own faith. However, I am more fulfilled now that I have reflected upon Miriam’s unfortunate death, took time to understand different religious perspectives, and actively participated in this live seminar.
During one part of the seminar I found it humorous listening to Brad and Nolan’s conversation about religion in which they argued incessantly over whether religion caused people to have stronger morals which in turn led to a safer society in general. I couldn’t help but jump in and share my viewpoint that religion does in fact give people an incentive to be a good person each day. One question that impacted my ideas during the seminar was, “Does there need to be a God or religion to have faith?” Even though I do believe in God myself, I found this question interesting because faith can be a whole separate category from religion and one does not necessarily have to believe in God to have faith in what was written. The most troubling question during the seminar was, “What brings enlightenment, or do you need to strive for enlightenment?” This question was troubling to me because enlightenment is different for everyone. After talking about this topic for a while during the seminar I came to the conclusion that it doesn’t matter what brings you enlightenment as long as you understand what it is that makes you happy and fulfilled in the end and that you are able to get to the point of feeling enlightened at some point. In order for me to find enlightenment, I must strive to maintain a good relationship with friends and family, and constantly try to be a good person each day.
After participating in this seminar, my thoughts on religion and faith became clearer to me. I enjoyed hearing a variety of ideas and perspectives some of which paralleled my own and others that were very different. Taking time to study and think about the topic instead of just blindly following faith and religion helped me develop some of my own conclusions. After hearing a variety of speakers on their faith and religion and having the opportunity to have an open seminar, I heard many different viewpoints on the subject, which helped solidify my own beliefs. In addition, while working on this project I brought up the conversation with friends and family, which provided me the opportunity to clarify my thoughts.
The biggest connection to this religion project for me was the death of my close family friend Mariam. My artist statement was a story of my faith and was based off of Mariam. After her death it brought together many different questions about life and religion. Having this opportunity to express what I believe while learning about religion created a connection amongst what we were doing in class and the unfortunate event that I experienced. The most meaningful connection between the religion project and Mariam was the question, “What is the meaning of life?” This question is similar to the question, “What brings you enlightenment?” because they both can be answered in many different ways. However, after Mariam passed away it became clear to me that you never know what your destiny holds and you must make the most of each day while it lasts. This is why I think it is important to understand what is the meaning of life so that in the end you hopefully will have accomplished your dreams with will feel fulfilled with the life you have lived.
Overall, I really enjoyed this seminar. For the first time I had to think about and defend my stance on religion. I was definitely moved by the viewpoints of others. I walked away thinking that I want to enjoy life each day, help others, be kind and supportive, persevere through hardships and struggles, accept challenges, and believe in my faith. I still have many questions that I need to explore and understand with regards to religion and my own faith. However, I am more fulfilled now that I have reflected upon Miriam’s unfortunate death, took time to understand different religious perspectives, and actively participated in this live seminar.