“Ana mesh 3awez 2ab2a fil gam3a kda so3’ayar 13 sana we mayeb2aash 3andy so7aab”
‘I don’t want to be in University, a young 13 year old, and have no friends.’
“Nefsy lama akbar 2ab2aa 3alem computer we 2a3mel 7aga gedeeda le masr”
‘When I grow up, I want to be a computer scientist and develop something new for Egypt.’
His name is Mahmoud and he’s 11 years old.
His father is a simple Egyptian doctor.
He memorized the multiplication table of 7 at the age of three.
He has an IQ of 155, and he wants to go through normal schooling….
He’s nice, he’s cute and he’s funny….
He plays football, he has friends, and he does karate…
He teases his sisters, and they get back at him by kicking his ass with some karate practice…
He was at an Arabic school, until an international school offered him a full scholarship.
He had to pass an English exam, so he took a 3 week english course.
He got an offer to skip high school (from the Egyptian ministers of Education) and he refused.
He doesn’t want people to think he’s only good at math and computer sciences, so he’s reading on other stuff like history and humanities.
His daily life?
School in the morning and Computer Science courses at AUC in the evening. These courses (Cisco) are for graduate students. He finished them with grades over 90%. He will be an instructor in that course very soon.
How does he see his future?
“Ana mafeesh fee dema3’y 7aga 3’eer eny a7’alas el shahada we asafer amrica we adares, ba3deen arga3 balady we akoon kebert shewayaa we afeed masr we 2a7’tare3 7aga le masr”
‘I have nothng in mind except to travel to the USA and study, and then come back to my country when I am a bit older and improve Egypt and invent something for Egypt’
His Father?
“Da mesh ebny lewa7dy…da ebn kol wa7ed masry we 3araby. Law kol wa7ed bas fee ebnoo hayla2ey 3ando Mahmoud”
‘He’s not my son alone, he’s the son of every Egyptian and Arab. If each parent looks into his son, he’ll find he’s got his Mahmoud.’
“Kol masry beyshoof ma7moud bey7eebo we beysalem 3alee. Mahmoud ebn masr we mesh 3’areeb 3anhom”
‘Every Egyptian that recognizes Mahmoud greets him and loves him. Mahmoud is an Egyptian and is not a stranger to Egyptians.’
“Ana we omo benraby fee sakafet el tomoo7”
‘His mother and I are raising in him the attitude of ambition’
His dream?
“Ana nefsy ab2a as3’ar wa7ed ya7’od gayzet Nobel”
‘I want to be the youngest person to win the Nobel Prize’
ما شاء الله لا قوة إلا بالله…:))
Why I am boring you with all this??
I was watching a TV show, ‘el 3ashera masa2aan’, and there was this kid. The 'genius kid', as they call him, with an amazing IQ and not little of a propaganda surrounding him.
Yet he was not vain, he didn’t dream of money of fame, he – nor his father – had any prejudice. He was laughing, speaking – without complex words or smart remarks – , and simply acting like a kid.
He was clear, he was honest and he was sincere. He had dreams and he was working hard to realize them. He knew what he wanted to do, and he knew why. He had a vision.
His father taught him how to dream, and dream right. How to be ambitious yet humble. How to be 100 times smarter than the other kids, but still enjoy a simple game of football with them.
The father really gained a lot of my respect as well. He loves his country and believes in it, a trait he clearly passed on to his son.
He didn’t push his son to the limits, yet gave him his space. He opened doors for him to achieve his potential without killing the child in him. He taught his son that being loved and giving to his society is more important than personal gain.
The sense of belonging he is placing in his son is so needed in each and every individual.
Mahmoud is going to to be great, Mahmoud has a bright future and I hope from all my heart to see Mahmoud with a Nobel Prize one day....
I’m writing because I got touched. I’m writing because I saw hope. I’m writing because I found my inspiration. Thank you Mahmoud.
ما شاء الله لا قوة إلا بالله
God Bless Mahmoud, God Bless Egypt, and God Bless us all…..
He was reading the autograph Dr. Ahmed Zewail wrote him a couple of days ago, and in the end he’s reading the signature, “Dal no2ta Ahmed Zewail”, that just killed me.
I just got captured by his ambitious, optimistic, comforting smile….
I cried…:)
Over....Wa domtom....
1 comment:
I just read this at the same time I was trying to write a statement of purpose, and my lack of finding anything to write that's remotely linked to a vision was very..umm..should I say sadly ironic?
Anyhow, you know how it goes.."Someday we'll find it" :)
I'm glad you found inspiration. I just heard about this boy, and when I went to your blog I immediately knew why you wrote about him, I figured out why you cried since line 1.
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