"The one with why we celebrate Merdeka..."

Funny thing, learning is. It so seems that the more you learn about something, you'll realize how much more you know less of the subject. That's probably why us humans need books; the limitation of our brain's capacity to occupy information needs to be supplemented by materials that gives us reminiscence. Or probably we're just too darn lazy to read.

I had a very enlightening morning today; read the newspaper and updated myself with the ramblings of society. Nothing quite new, though. Most of them revolved around the penultimate celebration of our 50th Merdeka celebration. Notice that I did not mention that it wasn't Malaysia's coming as a half-centurian. Interestingly, most of us wasn't brought to light the reality of this extravaganza we have annually on the eve of September.

This had led me to actually think. Are we celebrating for remembrance of a freed nation; or are we just for the sake of having an excuse to party?

You see, Malaysia wasn't a nation until Sept 1963. Which makes us, practically just 44 and not 50 as is widely circulated. It hit me like a rock reading Marina Mahathir's blog about her dissapointment (disgust, if I may say) over how we're putting on deaf ear the true meaning of 31st August every year. She says that if we were to celebrate Malaysia's independance, it should be on the 16th of September. She also expressed her sadness to how much east malaysians (such as myself) felt 'terpinggir' from the celebrations as they realized the inaccuracy.

Check her blog out - http://rantingsbymm.blogspot.com

It doesn't hurt to enlighten yourself with the past. We achieve today what we've learned from the past.

I'd like to revise more on the issue and elaborate; alas I'm due for MSBMB tomorrow till Thurs so it's best I hit the books for my presentation. Gotta clarify the many shrouds of confusion I'm expecting to be engulfed in when I take the hall later, for sure.

Live safe, live adventurous. But more importantly, live in the moment. Something someone very dear in my life taught me.

-JeP