If you're looking for an academic explanation of the above law, sod off. You've come to the wrong blog. What I'm going to write in this post isn't about the brilliance of Germain Hess, a Swiss-born Russian chemist. Instead, I'm going to relate his formula to the real life situation.
As I'm sure whoever followed my blog (ade ke??) has already know that I'm a chemist in the making. InsyaAllah. I'm in the 3rd semester now and I still have 3 more semesters to go. That means that I'm about half way through. On this current semester, one of my lab instructor is 25 years old. A year older than me. And he already has a master degree. Can you imagine that? A 24 years old boy still at half way of his degree course and the other boy who has already become a lecturer and they are only a year apart. Pathetic isn't it? Then, courageous girl of my class asked me what do i feel. I explained Hess's Law to her. She looked a bit confused at first. Then I relate the work of Germain Hess to real life situation. This is how it goes. The enthalpy of some reactions can easily obtain in a lab by a single reaction. However, for some reaction, a few different reactions need to be conducted in a lab in order to determine the enthalpy change. The final value is still the same regardless of the different pathway that the reaction is having. The same goes with life. Some people is lucky to have no obstruction in their way through life. Some people, like me, aren't very lucky not to have a hassle free route. However, our destination is still the same. Only the time of arrival is different. Me for instance, I'm going to finish my degree first. It will take another 1 and a half year. I will be 26 by then. InsyaAllah, with the help of Allah, I intend to continue with my master after that and followed by PhD. If everything goes smoothly, by then, I will be around 30. I will still get there, you see?. But I travel a longer route as compared to most of the people. Can you see the connection between Hess's Law and the real life now?
The late Steve Jobs once said "Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart." (Referring to his cancer diagnose). I agree with him. But for me, abandoning my medical study is the most precious thing Allah bestowed me with. It makes me feel stronger and having a broader view of everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) that happen in my life. I can't get that even if I'm admitted to Harvard, Cambridge, Oxford, Imperial or any other university in the world. You can only get that at the university we called life.
