sayang? cinta? aimer? love? querer?

I haven't been a good girl lately. I've been very lazy. I enjoy going to gym much more than going to class. So unlike me, isn't it? Back in high school, I'd skipped anything that involved physical activities. I gave so many excuses, but I was lucky because I was a member of the school orchestra. So, whenever we have sports day preparation and everyone had to run to collect points for the team, I used ochestra as an excuse, for example : "We have orchestra practice today". Oh, the good old days. I miss performing on stage. =( And I have really good memories being in the school orchestra.

Well, that's not exactly what I want to talk about. I called Mama last night, I kind of missed talking to her. The first question she asked me was; "Malam ni keluar pergi mana lagi?" LOL. She must've notice that I've been out nearly every night, with Ieqa and friends. We dined, danced and partied! I'm too busy having fun to actually care about anything else. LOL. This seriously has to stop. I need to concentrate more on my studies. And oh, I might be signing up for salsa lesson next week. I don't really want to start this semester, but my friend begged me to join her, along with yoga. And she also wants to join me at the gym. So my days are going to be filled with activities! At least by next summer, I could cross some things off my 25-things-I-want-to-do before-I turn-25-list.

OK, I'm ready to talk about something else. You know what people said about 'I love you' being the most misused phrase in the English language? I, somehow think, that it is quite true. I, myself have been misusing it, until I don't really feel the actual feeling when saying it. And of course, the different spellings of these three words also bother me. Eg : luv, lahf, laff, etc. For me, writing 'I love you' without spelling it correctly, will bring a different meaning altogether to the words. Yeah, I'm pretty fussy about the spelling. Like, if you wrote 'luv' instead of 'love', it will simply have a similar meaning to 'like'. So, instead of saying you love a person, you're giving out the impression that you just actually like him/her.

The same goes for 'Je t'aime', in French. It comes from the verb 'aimer' which has a double meaning : to like and to love. And if you add 'bien' at the end of the phrase; 'Je t'aime bien', it means 'I really like you'. See, how one simple word can change the whole meaning of a phrase? This verb can also be used in describing what you like or love to do. Eg :J'aime lire (I like to read). In Spanish, the verb 'querer' also has a double meaning, to like and to love. But it cannot be used in the latter one, describing what you like or love to do. The verb gustar is used instead. Eg : Me gusta leer (I like to read).

And do you know in which language does the meaning of like and love is expressed in two different words? MALAY! Yeah. 'saya suka awak' does not mean 'saya sayang awak'. Suka and sayang are two totally different words which also have different meanings. You can use suka to talk about something or someone you like but sayang can only be used for the ones you love. Eg : Saya sayang kucing saya. And you cannot say, saya sayang baca buku because it doesn't sound right. The verb sayang can only be used towards the people you love. Malay is a beautiful language afterall, right? So, if you really love someone and want to express your sincere feelings without the person misunderstand what you're trying to say, why don't you use 'saya sayang awak' or better yet, 'saya cinta awak' (but that's way too jiwang!). Because, these three words have never fail to put a smile on my face when someone said them to me. =) It might put a smile on your face as well.

For me, the phrase 'saya sayang awak' has a much more sincere meaning. I don't know how you guys feel about the phrase. But, yesterday, I went to bed smiling just because someone said these words to me and waking up to it is better than anything, it reminds me that I'm still loved by some people. Isn't it wonderful what language can do to you? It transforms the whole meaning of a simple phrase. Language is amazing, don't you think? Anyways, I have to go now. I need to get ready. I have a theme party to attend tonight. Until then! Toodles!~

Juliette xx
Listening to : Calling You - Outlandish