June, 1996
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Who Can Rival the Lau, 
Muhammad, and Ferreira Siblings?
By Alexia Clarke
Tamir Muhammad has a fierce competition going on with his elder sister Tauheedah. She says, however, that the competition does not exist. "I'm not competitive, but he is. I compete with myself, for I feel that if I fail, the next time I'll try harder. I focus on what I'm doing, not on other people." The Muhammads are just one of several high achieving pairs of siblings at Central.
"I feel that you can never do too much. I constantly try to keep myself involved in anything that's positive. That way, there won't be too many negative obstacles," said Tamir, the vice-president of the sophomore class.
Tamir, an outgoing and pleasant student, is an honor student with an average of 90. He is a member of the football team and the Interact Club. Outside of school, he's involved with People Learning Under God, Upward Bound at Fairfield University, and Talent Search. Tauheedah is the Salutatorian of the senior class, having maintained an average of 94.2. She is a member of several clubs including the Interact Club, and the National Honor Society. The brother and sister seem to have a good friendship. "One minute we're the best of friends, the next we're enemies. I think it's because we're so much alike, but overall, it's a good relationship," explained Tamir.
They have a lot of respect for each other. "Tauheedah's very independent. She knows what she wants and she goes for it. I admire her achievements. She's living proof that hard work pays off," said Tamir.
"He has motivation to do well and he doesn't follow the crowd. He's his own person," explained Tauheedah. Then she added, with a smile, "He's very argumentative and he's a ladies man, he likes to flirt."
On the issue of religion the brother and sister have similar views. Tamir said, "My parents are Muslim, but I chose not to be Islamic because I don't know enough about that religion to claim it as my own. I want to find a religion my heart believes in."
Tauheedah had different reasons for not being Muslim. " I was raised as a Muslim, and I still follow some of the beliefs, but the only thing that turns me off is that women are supposed to be silent. They have to depend on a man's support, and I don't agree with that. So, I don't really identify with any religion right now."
Cindy and Stephanie Ferreira are very close and they try as hard as they can not to compete with each other in anything. Cindy, a senior, is a bubbly, open and friendly person. While Stephanie is also friendly and open, she is the more sedate of the two. They have a great love for each other. When asked about their relationship the sisters both replied that they were best friends. I asked each sister to give a description of the other. Stephanie said of Cindy, "I think she's the smartest, prettiest best friend anyone could ever have. She's out going, fun, and caring."
Cindy had this to say about Stephanie: "She's brilliant in everything. She's very alive and loves children. She's courageous. She takes risks and she makes you laugh. She's a wonderful person with a wonderful personality." Both Cindy and Stephanie won prizes in the C.O.L.T. French Poetry Recitation Contest.
The sisters were born and lived in France for six years. Stephanie, a junior, recalls the discipline and respect in France and the beauty of Portugal, where her family also lived for one year before migrating stateside. She recalls the differences between the countries and the culture shock she felt when she arrived here. "I wasn't accepted when I first came here because I dressed differently and spoke differently," she said.
Cindy shared some of her views. "Life was simpler in France and Portugal. There was always so much to do and so much to see. We had a great amount of freedom. In America, however, it's different, in that there's always a little worry in the back of everyone's mind in terms of their safety."
Cindy has a great love of traveling. "Traveling helps to remove ignorance because you go to places yourself and see how things really are." Stephanie on the other hand has a greater affinity for the arts and sports. She plays the piano, sings with the Madrigals and participates in theater whenever possible. She is also a member of the tennis team.
Vivian and Miriam Lau are very alike and yet very different in terms of their personalities. Vivian is the valedictorian of the senior class. She's a hard worker and an achiever. Miriam, a junior, is also an exceptional student and is in the top five percent of her class.
Both are very strong people. However, Vivian seems to be the one who is more likely to lead. She leans more towards academics. She comes across as a very business like, no-nonsense person. Miriam is also very business like, but she appears to be more patient and open. She is more artistic however, and willing to speak out and share her opinions.
The Lau sisters are very close and talk to each other a lot. They don't compete with each other because they go after different things. Whenever one has a problem she can go to her sister and tell her about it because of the kinship they share. The two are involved in Junior Engineering Technical Society, the N.E.D.C., the Tennis team, and the National Honor Society. Miriam said, "Sometimes I get really tired and frustrated with school work. But after a couple of days, things smooth out again."
"I feel proud of Vivian. She has a great personality and achieves so much. I like a lot of things about her, but what do I admire most? Probably her mind because she handles things so well," Vivian said, "What do I admire most about Miriam? I guess I admire her assertiveness and unyielding nature. She's very independent, very opinionated, really cool, very strong and smart."
As for me, I admire both sisters. I admire their achievements, their successes, their strength and their love for each other. Most of all, I admire their patience, especially Miriam's. Hey Miriam I finally got the names straight!
