Electronic components and good friends

The electronics kit that his dad gave him as a Christmas gift smelled like licorice. The oscilloscope had hundreds of loose components, dozens of circuits, and one ten-year-old to assemble them. The make-believe scientist turned the dining table into his workbench, sorting colorful resistors, capacitors, and 16-legged microchips. He soldered piece by piece on three electronic boards inhaling enough fumes for a lifetime.

Two weeks later, clearing the table only once for family lunch, he held his breath, plugged the instrument, and clicked the knob. ... beeeep. The green horizontal signal glowed in the tube. The boy was jolted with just enough self-confidence to propel him for his whole life.

[tic.toc.tic.toc.tic.toc and 10 years later]

He had to quit halfway through his studies at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and leave for the US. While finishing his engineering degree, he met this one teenager who became a lifetime friend.

[tic.toc.tic.toc fast forward 10 more years]

He's in the same classroom at AUB, but this time as a professor. He followed the system when he could, frequently pushed the envelope, ruffled a few feathers, lost battles but gained insight, experience, and friends. That lifetime friend he met in the US? They got to share an office for a few years.

[tic.toc. another 10 to 20; who's counting]

Loving to explore the entrepreneurship scene, he left the classroom for the board room towards the startup's make-shift desk. He fell several times, got soaked in the sizzling heat of the arid planes, drenched in thunderstorms, sought shelter in caves, and felt the sweet breeze on his face at the top of the mountain.

[Science in action]

He approached his lifetime friend for the closest party around. He pointed him to this one program where science and engineering meet. Being part of the making of the Stars of Science got him to contribute to the life of 8 inventors and, in the process, enjoy the company of creative and hard-working teamsters.

[Today]

His mission is to help entrepreneurs pack lightly, get the right gear, learn how to fall, see the mountain top, prepare for the valleys, and enjoy their journey.

[Moral of the story?]

Do your best to keep your friends. They'll tell you where the parties are. Sometimes when and if you show up, you may stumble on someone who's soldering colorful electronic components. You smell the fumes again and remember. You remember the feeling several decades back when you turned on that masterpiece of an instrument. When an impossible project became a reality. You recharge, feel more confident, continue your journey, and pay it forward.

When was the last time you gave a 10-year-old a challenge that would change her life?