من أمريكا مع الحب

Penned by a fellow MIB, Mike S.! Absolutely amazing.

Go placidly amid the Hall of Flags, and remember what peace there may be in the library. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with everyone in your finance group. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the MALDs; they too have their story. Avoid career strategy groups, they are vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with Coach, you may become vain or bitter; for always there will be those with a more profound understanding of whales and caustic soda. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; for there are certainly some negative cash flows and opportunity costs with coming to Fletcher. Exercise caution in your multiple choice answers; for the world is full of trickery and it always depends. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for more accurate accounting and valuation methods; and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about global macro; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the 2nd years, gracefully surrendering the rooster (not). Nurture strength of debt financing to tax shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with going to all PDP sessions. You can miss two without OCS harassing you. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to space in the library during finals week. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with Jacque, whatever you conceive him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life remember to back that debt out. With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to MIB happy.

After a long and busy semester, yesterday I took my last final and finished my first semester of grad school. As we would say in Egypt, الحمد لله. 

My first semester classes consisted of:

• DHP-D220 Processes of International Negotiation
• DHP-D263 The Arabs and their Neighbors
• EIB-B200 Foundations in Financial Accounting and Corporate Finance
• EIB-B207 Financial Statement Management
• EIB-B238 Strategic Management
• EIB-E216m Global Macroeconomics

and an audited class of Beginning French I!

Still not sure what next semester will bring in terms of classes. Fletcher’s flexible course registration process is awesome as I am still struggling to decide between my concentrations. But Saturday I leave for Minnesota and then on the 27th I’ll be in LA for the first time in a year! And the best part: Christophe will be coming with me. Safe travels everyone and happy holidays!

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. 

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons;they are vexatious to the spirit. 

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass. 

Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. 

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. 

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

So the Fall semester is now in full swing and my blogging skills are once again slacking. I finished up the summer with a two week vacation in Germany and France and then moved up to Boston the day after I arrived back stateside. Two days later I started classes at The Fletcher School for an MIB pre-session class on Strategic Management. The two-week intensive course allowed for real bonding between the MIB cohort of 32 and made attending orientation a whole lot less awkward to say the least. I’ve now finalized my schedule and secured a part-time job in the Office of Admissions and am now trying to balance coursework with all of the amazing events and speakers coming to Fletcher weekly. There is always so much to do, and see, and listen to! It gets a little crazy. The whole experience has been pretty amazing so far and my peers have the most interesting backgrounds and so many unique experiences. In other exciting news, Ambassador Pickering will be speaking at Fletcher next week as part of the Fares Center’s conference on The New Middle East: Challenges and Opportunities.