In the summer of 2009, I attended the Shifa Summer program in Amman, Jordan.

My intermediate Arabic
class consisted of a handful of students from different parts of the globe. Our intense 3-month learning
experience left me with a firm grounding in intermediate Arabic. The rest of my two-year stay consisted
of many different classes, some Arabic-focused. Unfortunately, once I returned to Sydney, my command
of the Arabic language grew rusty with disuse. When it comes to learning Arabic, one of the hardest
things to overcome is inertia, and Alhamdulilah, my brother's Arabic class gave me the motivation I
needed to restart my learning.

Now that I'm back in Arabic class with my brother, Ustadh Abdul Hadi, I've come to realise that I don't
need to fly halfway across the world and live in the Middle East to have a better grasp of Arabic. It just
takes a lot of patience and dedication. One of the highlights of my learning experience has been realising
how practice, dedication and sincere dua really does make a difference. Every week, concepts get easier.
This kind of noticeable progress is a huge encouragement for myself and my brother.

On a funny note, as hard as it is to keep a straight face when I genuinely am flabbergasted by the latest
verb conjugation, I know that when I sit down, do my homework and ask questions in class, new
connections are made in my brain and Arabic becomes that much easier. I'd like to salute my brother's
patience with me, and his belief that one day, I'll be as excited as he is about Arabic.

As Malcolm Gladwell describes it in his book "Outliers", mastery of any subject requires 10,000 hours of
practice. I have a long way to go, but my journey is made easier with the knowledge that my brother has
an incredible amout of passion for the Arabic language. His goal is for each of his students to one day be
able to teach Arabic too. My brother's enthusiasm about Arabic and how he wants to teach others
reminds me of this quote by French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery: "If you want to build a ship, don't
drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the
vast and endless sea.

This quote reminds me of the power of vision, and how it applies to learning Arabic. One day, I'd like to
pick up the Qur'an and read it and understand what Allah revealed to our Beloved Prophet (peace and
blessings me upon him). I'd like to open up books of Islamic Jurispudence and read what Muslim jurists
have written. I'd like to read collections of Hadiths. I pray that the Arabic homework which I do each week

will one day unlock these treasures to me. May Allah make easy the path of every student of Arabic,
bless the teachers who are so patient with us, and grant us the gift of success in this life and the next.