Chamomile

Chamomile

 

 Chamomile is a common name for several daisy-like plants of the family Asteraceae. This plant could be found in Europe and Asia country that has four seasons. But today it also found in America and Australia. It usually grow wild in sidewalk or farms with height of 15 until 60 cm. But don't underestimate this plant! It has lots of amazing advantages. This is the classification:

Scientific Classification
Kerajaan: Plantae Divisi: Magnoliophyta Kelas: Magnoliopsida Ordo: Asterales Famili: Asteraceae Genus: Matricaria Spesies: M. recutita
Binomial Name
Matricaria recutita

Chamomile is an herb that people have used for centuries. People in the United States probably know it as tea to calm an upset stomach or to help with sleep. Two types of chamomile are used for good health: German chamomile (Matricaria retutica) and Roman (or English) chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile). 

Chamomile, or more specifically, typically the tops gathered in the early stages of flowering, reduces cramping and spastic pain in the bowels and also relieves excessive gas and bloating in the intestines. It is often used to relieve irritable bowel syndrome, nausea, and gastroenteritis (what we usually call stomach flu). Chamomile is also an excellent calming agent, well suited for irritable babies and restless children. Moreover, most children tolerate its taste. Chamomile is an ideal choice for those with ulcers or other stomach problems aggravated by anxiety. Muscle pain that results from stress, worry, and menstruation is another indication for chamomile. Twitching and tics in muscles may respond to chamomile tea or other chamomile medications. Chamomile also help fever, colds, and asthma. It also good for healing skin ulcers, sunburn, and glowing lighter skin.

Nowadays, we can get chamomile in a form of tea. Commonly found in herb stores and supermarkets.

Chamomile Tea.

"If I" Things?

Aloha! 
Just wanna tell you. I will be happy if I...

• Have a better score at school
• Can eat all spicy foods without getting sick
• Continue my study to my dream university
• Have a ridiculous, unimportant, silly, funny, cool chit-chats with my friends 
• Swim in a beautiful pool or beach
• Get a news that The Script and Coldplay will held a concert in Indonesia and I can watch it
• Can go travelling to Bora-Bora or Europe with my own money
• Can actually cook delicious foods
• Can play piano well
• Can get slimmer and taller
• Upgrade my self-quality
• Get lost in a beautiful place with nice people
• Can go for a pilgrimage with my family or my future family
• Can photograph every moment beautifully just like tumblr people
• Have concerts with my MK
• Have an adventure in nature with a lovely person
• No word: "regret" in this world

Hey! It's not over.
I wanna tell you again (hopefully you won't close my blog immediately) what I might do if I have a billion Rupiah....

• Save some of them in bank for my future
• Get my parents and brother for a trip to South Korea or UK or Europe maybe.. or all of them I think is a nice idea
• Get my family to pilgrimage :D
• Build my own house and buy my own car
• Donate some of it to the orphans
• Start a small business (to get another billion, lol)
• Buy a white grand or baby grand piano
• And.... I don't know :p

Yuhuuu! That's all my Ifs (I mean a lot of If ._.) Is it tacky? I hope no..... 
Share your Ifs too buddy, I'm curious (not really)!!!

Undergraduated Scholarship Program for Freshmen

Hello people! 

I found a useful information for us, young teens. It's about scholarship to Nanyang Technological University Singapore. Wow! The 47th best university in the world based on QS World University Ranking 2012 and the 17th best university in Asia. Great..

There are so many scholarship to Nanyang Technological University available. There are some scholarship that administered by NTU office of Admissions & Financial Aid, there are:

• Nanyang Scholarship
• College Scholarship
• E. W. Barker Scholarship
• LKCMedicine Scholarship
• LKY-STEP Award
• Ng Bok Eng Renaissance Engineering Scholarship
• The Khoo Teck Puat Scholarship
  Toh Kian Chui Scholarship
• University Engineering Scholarship
• Wee Kim Wee Legacy Fund Undergraduate Scholarship

But now, I will only tell you the first one, the Nanyang Scholarship. Let's check it out together guys! :)

Nanyang Scholarship

The Nanyang Scholarship, NTU’s foremost undergraduate scholarships are awarded to outstanding freshmen pursuing undergraduate programmes. Nanyang Scholarship recognizes students who excel academically, demonstrate strong leadership potential, and possess outstanding co-curricular records.

Eligibility

Open to all nationalities. Successful awardees should read a full-time undergraduate degree programme. The scholarship will cover the years of study^ at NTU. Possess outstanding Singapore-Cambridge GCE 'A' level, Local Polytechnic Diploma, NUS High School Diploma, IB Diploma or Year 12 equivalent qualifications. Excellent co-curricular records. Strong leadership qualities and potential.

Benefits Of Award

Nanyang Scholarship covers up to the normal programme duration on condition that the scholar maintains a record of good academic performance and conduct satisfactory to the University. Subsidised tuition fees (after Tuition Grant) will be fully covered. Living allowance of S$6,000 per academic year. Book allowance of S$500 per academic year. Accommodation allowance of up to S$2,000 per academic year. Applicable to scholars who reside in NTU hostels.^ Travel grant of S$5,000 (one-off) *                         Computer allowance of S$1,500 (one-off). Settling-in allowance of S$250 (one-off). Priority for Overseas Study Programme. No bond is attached to the Nanyang Scholarship apart from the three-year bond applicable to all Singapore PRs and international students under the MOE Tuition Grant Scheme. ^ For the Biomedical Sciences & Chinese Medicine and the NTU-Georgia Tech Integrated Programmes, the scholarship will cover only the first three years of study in NTU. For the Renaissance Engineering Programme (REP), the scholarship is also applicable for the one year the scholar is at the University of California Berkeley.                     * Applicable to new recipients. Terms & Conditions Scholarship holder may not, without the approval of the University, hold concurrently any other scholarships, bursaries, university loans, fellowships, grants or awards.  Scholarship holder are required to maintain a minimum Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 3.5 over 5.0. Academic performance will be reviewed every semester. Scholarship holder are required to take on the role of student ambassador, or any other similar role, representing the university to give publicity talks, to receive guests, etc, as and when called upon to do so. The scholarship may be withdrawn at any time if, in the opinion of the University, the scholar’s progress or behaviour is deemed unsatisfactory. If the scholarship holder decides to terminate the scholarship prematurely, the University reserves the right to impose a repayment on a case-by-case basis. Application Procedures The same application period for admissions applies. Scholarships are awarded based on competition amongst shortlisted candidates. Applicants are required to submit your application for admission before submitting your application for scholarship.  Applicants with the following qualifications:       1. Singapore-Cambridge GCE 'A' level     2. Local Polytechnic Diploma     3. NUS High School Diploma     4. IB Diploma The scholarship application form can be found at the link 'Application for Scholarship' at the end of your online application for admission. You are required to login with the application number assigned to you. Applicants are required to submit a recent passport-size photo (digital image) online after completing your application form. Applicants are also required to submit a referee’s appraisal online. The appraisal is to be completed by your school teacher, who must not be your family or relative. After you have submitted your scholarship application, you will be provided with a URL to be forwarded to your school teacher. Your school teacher is to submit the online appraisal to us within 7 days of your scholarship application. If you have reserved an undergraduate degree programme in NTU, you canlogin here to access the scholarship application form. Applicants with Year 12 equivalent results: Click here to apply for the scholarship with your assigned application number. Applicants are required to submit a recent passport-size photo (digital image) online after completing your application form.  We regret that only shortlisted candidates will be notified for an interview.

Well after reading that, can you answer my questions? :D

True or False?

1. Minimum Cumulative Grade Point Average each semester of this scholarship student is 4.0 over 5.0
2. The behaviour is not affected to the scholarship, progress and score are the only thing that become the judgement.
3. For the Biomedical Science & Chinese Medicine students, travel grant and computer allowance are not covered by the scholarship.
4. No bond attached to the Nanyang Scholarship after graduation.
5. The scholarship candidates should complete some basic tests including NUS High School Diploma.
6. Nanyang Scholarship is opened for Asian only.
7. Scholarship student should take part of student ambassador or any similar role representing the university.
8. After we have reserved an undergraduate degree program in NTU, we should wait for the scholarship application form that will be sent to our email.
9. We should live by ourselves due to unavailability of NTU hostel.
10. School books is covered by the scholarship (SGD 500) for each academic year.

A Short Story to Share

Hello again, my dearest readers.

About few days ago, my teacher asked me to read a short story titled "The Necklace" from Guy de Maupassant. It's a good story from France, even though it's pretty hard to understand, because it has so many vocabularies beyond my knowing. Maybe because I'm an amateur English speaker, maybe.

Now, I would like to share another story that I've found (of course on the internet) here. I found it's both interesting and miserable. It comes from a great Russian author superb mind, Anton Chekhov. He's one of the best authors in history that ever lived on earth. The title of the story is "Vanka". Enjoy! :D

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Vanka

By Anton Chekhov

VANKA ZHUKOV, a boy of nine, who had been for three months apprenticed to Alyahin the shoemaker, was sitting up on Christmas Eve. Waiting till his master and mistress and their workmen had gone to the midnight service, he took out of his master's cupboard a bottle of ink and a pen with a rusty nib, and, spreading out a crumpled sheet of paper in front of him, began writing. Before forming the first letter he several times looked round fearfully at the door and the windows, stole a glance at the dark ikon, on both sides of which stretched shelves full of lasts, and heaved a broken sigh. The paper lay on the bench while he knelt before it.
"Dear grandfather, Konstantin Makaritch," he wrote, "I am writing you a letter. I wish you a happy Christmas, and all blessings from God Almighty. I have neither father nor mother, you are the only one left me." 

Vanka raised his eyes to the dark ikon on which the light of his candle was reflected, and vividly recalled his grandfather, Konstantin Makaritch, who was night watchman to a family called Zhivarev. He was a thin but extraordinarily nimble and lively little old man of sixty-five, with an everlastingly laughing face and drunken eyes. By day he slept in the servants' kitchen, or made jokes with the cooks; at night, wrapped in an ample sheepskin, he walked round the grounds and tapped with his little mallet. Old Kashtanka and Eel, so-called on account of his dark colour and his long body like a weasel's, followed him with hanging heads. This Eel was exceptionally polite and affectionate, and looked with equal kindness on strangers and his own masters, but had not a very good reputation. Under his politeness and meekness was hidden the most Jesuitical cunning. No one knew better how to creep up on occasion and snap at one's legs, to slip into the store-room, or steal a hen from a peasant. His hind legs had been nearly pulled off more than once, twice he had been hanged, every week he was thrashed till he was half dead, but he always revived.

At this moment grandfather was, no doubt, standing at the gate, screwing up his eyes at the red windows of the church, stamping with his high felt boots, and joking with the servants. His little mallet was hanging on his belt. He was clasping his hands, shrugging with the cold, and, with an aged chuckle, pinching first the housemaid, then the cook.
"How about a pinch of snuff?" he was saying, offering the women his snuff-box.
The women would take a sniff and sneeze. Grandfather would be indescribably delighted, go off into a merry chuckle, and cry:
"Tear it off, it has frozen on!"
They give the dogs a sniff of snuff too. Kashtanka sneezes, wriggles her head, and walks away offended. Eel does not sneeze, from politeness, but wags his tail. And the weather is glorious. The air is still, fresh, and transparent. The night is dark, but one can see the whole village with its white roofs and coils of smoke coming from the chimneys, the trees silvered with hoar frost, the snowdrifts. The whole sky spangled with gay twinkling stars, and the Milky Way is as distinct as though it had been washed and rubbed with snow for a holiday. . . .

Vanka sighed, dipped his pen, and went on writing:
"And yesterday I had a wigging. The master pulled me out into the yard by my hair, and whacked me with a boot-stretcher because I accidentally fell asleep while I was rocking their brat in the cradle. And a week ago the mistress told me to clean a herring, and I began from the tail end, and she took the herring and thrust its head in my face. The workmen laugh at me and send me to the tavern for vodka, and tell me to steal the master's cucumbers for them, and the master beats me with anything that comes to hand. And there is nothing to eat. In the morning they give me bread, for dinner, porridge, and in the evening, bread again; but as for tea, or soup, the master and mistress gobble it all up themselves. And I am put to sleep in the passage, and when their wretched brat cries I get no sleep at all, but have to rock the cradle. Dear grandfather, show the divine mercy, take me away from here, home to the village. It's more than I can bear. I bow down to your feet, and will pray to God for you for ever, take me away from here or I shall die."

Vanka's mouth worked, he rubbed his eyes with his black fist, and gave a sob.
"I will powder your snuff for you," he went on. "I will pray for you, and if I do anything you can thrash me like Sidor's goat. And if you think I've no job, then I will beg the steward for Christ's sake to let me clean his boots, or I'll go for a shepherd-boy instead of Fedka. Dear grandfather, it is more than I can bear, it's simply no life at all. I wanted to run away to the village, but I have no boots, and I am afraid of the frost. When I grow up big I will take care of you for this, and not let anyone annoy you, and when you die I will pray for the rest of your soul, just as for my mammy's.

Moscow is a big town. It's all gentlemen's houses, and there are lots of horses, but there are no sheep, and the dogs are not spiteful. The lads here don't go out with the star, and they don't let anyone go into the choir, and once I saw in a shop window fishing-hooks for sale, fitted ready with the line and for all sorts of fish, awfully good ones, there was even one hook that would hold a forty-pound sheat-fish. And I have seen shops where there are guns of all sorts, after the pattern of the master's guns at home, so that I shouldn't wonder if they are a hundred roubles each. . . . And in the butchers' shops there are grouse and woodcocks and fish and hares, but the shopmen don't say where they shoot them.

"Dear grandfather, when they have the Christmas tree at the big house, get me a gilt walnut, and put it away in the green trunk. Ask the young lady Olga Ignatyevna, say it's for Vanka."
Vanka gave a tremulous sigh, and again stared at the window. He remembered how his grandfather always went into the forest to get the Christmas tree for his master's family, and took his grandson with him. It was a merry time! Grandfather made a noise in his throat, the forest crackled with the frost, and looking at them Vanka chortled too. Before chopping down the Christmas tree, grandfather would smoke a pipe, slowly take a pinch of snuff, and laugh at frozen Vanka. . . . The young fir trees, covered with hoar frost, stood motionless, waiting to see which of them was to die. Wherever one looked, a hare flew like an arrow over the snowdrifts. . . . Grandfather could not refrain from shouting: "Hold him, hold him . . . hold him! Ah, the bob-tailed devil!"

When he had cut down the Christmas tree, grandfather used to drag it to the big house, and there set to work to decorate it. . . . The young lady, who was Vanka's favourite, Olga Ignatyevna, was the busiest of all. When Vanka's mother Pelageya was alive, and a servant in the big house, Olga Ignatyevna used to give him goodies, and having nothing better to do, taught him to read and write, to count up to a hundred, and even to dance a quadrille. When Pelageya died, Vanka had been transferred to the servants' kitchen to be with his grandfather, and from the kitchen to the shoemaker's in Moscow.

"Do come, dear grandfather," Vanka went on with his letter. "For Christ's sake, I beg you, take me away. Have pity on an unhappy orphan like me; here everyone knocks me about, and I am fearfully hungry; I can't tell you what misery it is, I am always crying. And the other day the master hit me on the head with a last, so that I fell down. My life is wretched, worse than any dog's. . . . I send greetings to Alyona, one-eyed Yegorka, and the coachman, and don't give my concertina to anyone. I remain, your grandson, Ivan Zhukov. Dear grandfather, do come."
Vanka folded the sheet of writing-paper twice, and put it into an envelope he had bought the day before for a kopeck. . . . After thinking a little, he dipped the pen and wrote the address:
To grandfather in the village.
 Then he scratched his head, thought a little, and added: Konstantin Makaritch. Glad that he had not been prevented from writing, he put on his cap and, without putting on his little greatcoat, ran out into the street as he was in his shirt. . . .
The shopmen at the butcher's, whom he had questioned the day before, told him that letters were put in post-boxes, and from the boxes were carried about all over the earth in mailcarts with drunken drivers and ringing bells. Vanka ran to the nearest post-box, and thrust the precious letter in the slit. . . .

An hour later, lulled by sweet hopes, he was sound asleep. . . . He dreamed of the stove. On the stove was sitting his grandfather, swinging his bare legs, and reading the letter to the cooks. . . .
By the stove was Eel, wagging his tail. 

Source: http://www.americanliterature.com/author/anton-chekhov/short-story/vanka

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Well, that's the story about Vanka from Anton Chekhov.
I enjoy that story a lot! For me it's a great story. 

Now I will make the summary and description about the story. Let's check it out :)

• Summary

There was an orphan boy named Vanka. He was left in a very early age by his grandfather, Konstantin Makaritch. That's why he work for Alyahin the shoemaker in Moscow, Russia. 

Get a job doesn't mean a better life for Vanka. He still suffer in pain. Having no childhood, no parents, no friends, no home. Everybody around him always underestimate him, just because he is a child. His master, Alyahin, always being cruel and rude to Vanka due to his dissatisfaction to Vanka's work. There is no happiness and nice things come to Vanka.

On one Christmas when his master and mistress and other workers left for a night party, he start to write a letter to his grandfather. He write everything about his hard life. The sadness, cruelness, and hardness he get is written on the letter. He hopes that his grandfather will read the letter and come to take Vanka out from all of these, just like the old times when they were together.

After finishing his letter, Vanka go to the post box that the shopman at the butcher's told the day before. He send his letter and go back home with happiness and hopes. 

• Characters

 There are five characters in this story, they are:

1. Vanka; a pity boy that get a very hard life in his age. He is plain, optimist, patient, loving, and tough.
2. Alyahin; Vanka's master. He is cruel, rude, and inhumanity.
3. Konstantin Makaritch; Vanka's grandfather. He is irresponsible by leaving Vanka alone, but actually a loving and nice person. 
4. The shopmen at the butcher's. He is a kind and caring person.
5. Other workers. They are really rude and mischievous.

• Plot

This is a sad story about an orphan boy Vanka, who is being left by his grandfather in a very early age. He lives in sadness, cruelness, and hardness. On one Christmas, he write a letter to his grandfather, telling his hard life. This story has no real end, actually. Because the story end when Vanka send his letter to the nearest post box and go back home happily.

• Settings

 The story takes place in Moscow, Russian during Christmas.

• Moral Value

The moral value of the story is don't you ever give up in life, even though it hits you really hard. Because God never give us more than we can handle. And believe that we are never walk alone :)

SWAD.

Hello readers!

I'm Farah, a high school student in SMA Negeri 3 Bandung. 
So, in my first post here I write "SWAD" for the title, it's actually an abbreviation for strength, weakness, and dream. I want to tell you about my "SWAD".
I think, my interest to new things is one of my strengths. I get interested in new things a lot. It could give me new knowledge and new experience, and it's totally fun for me. While my weakness is, I take too much things too easy. Sometimes it's good, but if I always do that it won't be good for my future. I think, I should start to change this habit slowly.
The last, my dream. My closest dreams are to do my best in school, go for an exchange program to my dream country, and go to college in ITB. Aaamiin, may the God always hear our prayers.

So that's all my "SWAD", what's yours? :)