How long has it been since you picked up a fountain pen? Not just to sign a contract or an agreement, that is, but to write with. How long has it been since you wrote a letter, as opposed to typing it. I recall the last time I used a fountain pen was in 1993. I was a student at the only French school in Abu Dhabi back then, and we had to use fountain pens to write our homework.
As for the last time I wrote a letter, that was during my first year of university, in 1999, when I wrote to some old high-school friends who had moved to France, Tunisia and the United States to study for their university degrees.
Both occurrences were before the 21st century showered us with the marvels of social media networks, bridging distances with the click of a mouse and unfolding a world where fountain pens, pencils and ball-point pens would only be used in schools or to sign documents. Much has changed since the days when I was subjected to sessions of calligraphy (khatt) in the classroom.
More than 40,000 years ago, humans identified a basic need to leave a trace of their journey on Earth, drawing on walls to keep track of quantities, crops and days, and above all, to communicate. Over the millennia, pictographs and cuneiform scripts evolved as writing became a necessity that grew further with the birth of various civilisations and different religions, as arts, sciences, and humanity evolved. This evolution goes hand in hand with the need for communication brought about by world explorers discovering new horizons.
The invention of computers and internet, of social networks and new means of communication, appears to have revolutionised mankind and its societies. The speed at which information now circulates has changed the way we perceive the world, and the pace and rhythm of our lives.
Millennials, like me, grew up around traditional media, such as the morning paper, the radio news and the evening bulletin on television. Their importance was reflected in the sound of silence imposed during these segments of time, governing our movements around the house accordingly with the importance of said broadcasts.
Times have changed, to say the least. The emergence of new information and communication technologies has led to new forms of writing, raising a number of questions about the future of writing as we know it. “Sociolect” used in SMS is but one obvious example of this.
Recently, I have been trying to get my four-year-old son to trace over dotted lines and curves to form letters. The process made me realise that I am experiencing the “iGeneration” first-hand, because my son preferred to do this on the computer.
Now, “it’s faster on your iPad, mummy” and “Mum, let’s check if we can find something online” are part of my four-year-old’s daily sayings.
Expressions such as “it’s easier on mummy’s laptop” and “let’s ask Siri” punctuate daily conversations.
His schoolteacher has summoned me to his classroom to inform me that he doesn’t like colouring and he doesn’t want to write because it “takes too long to do it right”.
Even though this generation needs to keep up with the times, it is essential that it also comes to understand the value of patience, of a slower pace, of meditation and retreat, away from the endless whirlwind of information that surrounds it.
Each September the world marks “letter writing day”. This millennial will torment her iGeneration specimen into writing letters to his cousins and grandparents.
I will do so because handwriting is personal and writing a letter is like sending a piece of yourself. An email can never be this personal. Nothing beats the smell of ink on paper and the scent of a sprig of thyme or a stick of cinnamon in the envelope.
cmirza@thenational.ae
Company%20Profile
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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More on Quran memorisation:
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KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
Saturday's results
Brighton 1-1 Leicester City
Everton 1-0 Cardiff City
Manchester United 0-0 Crystal Palace
Watford 0-3 Liverpool
West Ham United 0-4 Manchester City
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESmartCrowd%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiddiq%20Farid%20and%20Musfique%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20%2F%20PropTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24650%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2035%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVarious%20institutional%20investors%20and%20notable%20angel%20investors%20(500%20MENA%2C%20Shurooq%2C%20Mada%2C%20Seedstar%2C%20Tricap)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5