I'm content

My mother has just passed away today.

But I'm content.

Last weekend, when she was still ok, she made me my favourites, ubi rebus ikan masin for breakfast and nasi ayam for lunch.

Before I went back to KL, I had the chance to kiss her hands and she kissed me on my cheek as a reply, saying I love you in her own way.

When she was in the critical zone at the hospital, I still got the chance to ask for her forgiveness and I told her that I love her. She couldn't say anything at that time, but her eyes blinked a little bit when I talked to her. So it might be safe for me to assume that she understood whatever that I said to her.

I'm content.

Because before she passed away, we didn't have any problems, we were not in any form of argument, we were ok and I still got the chance to have my favourite dish that I don't think anyone can actually replicate right now. Something so simple yet so meaningful to me.

The day that she was taken to the hospital, I was at the hospital when I was on the phone with my niece, Zahra. I asked her if she's ok right now. She said, yes, I'm ok right now. And then she asked me, how's Nekwan (my mother)? I told her, don't worry Zahra, everything is going to be ok. Though I'm very sure now that it didn't turn out the way that I expected it to be.

If you love someone, don't leave that person with a tiny bit of anger or hatred, you do not know if that might be the last time that you're actually seeing that person. At least for me, the last meeting with my mother was of love and because of that, I'm content.



Some other posts about my mother, which I wrote much earlier.

http://shrineofserenity.blogspot.com/2009/05/let-whole-world-know.html

http://shrineofserenity.blogspot.com/2010/05/your-shoes-are-too-big-for-me.html

http://shrineofserenity.blogspot.com/2013/04/for-all-pain-you-had-to-go-through.html

I love you, Ibu.

Election candidates for Rasah and Rahang

It is almost the time for the 13th General Election of Malaysia now. We have been waiting for this since ages and truthfully, many of us have made our decisions on who we are voting for since the last general election in 2008. The last general election has made many of us more aware of our power in voting and that we can take in or kick out any politicians who do not deserve to be in power or misuse our trust in them. So just before this upcoming general election, I tried emailing some of the candidates for the constituency that I will be voting later for the Rasah parliament and Rahang DUN. I would say that what I received later was a disappointment.

At first, I tried to look up for information for DAP candidates for Rasah and Rahang, Teo Kok Seong and Mary Josephine but I couldn't so I emailed Loke Siew Fook, ex-MP for Rasah because I know I can easily contact him. I asked him how can I have the email for those two candidates as I wanted to ask them some questions regarding elections. Less than an hour later, I got a reply from him.



Ah, if only all candidates are like him, so approachable and actually took the time to reply my email. Because he actually CC his reply to both candidates, I got emails from the candidates not long after that.

From the Rasah candidate.



And the Rahang candidate.



I assume that the Rasah candidate prefer to be contacted on his phone rather than email so I texted him and asked him a question. This is a standard question that I asked all the candidates, PR and BN, about their plans for Rasah and Rahang if they won the election. And this is the reply that I got from him



Obviously he did not understand my question when I specifically asked him what his plan for Rasah is if PR manages to win the federal government. I was asked to have a look at the website though that is a very general manifesto and there is nothing specific for the people of Rasah constituency. At least he actually replied. When I emailed the Rahang candidate, she did not even reply my email when I asked what would she do for the people of Rahang if PR manages to win Negeri Sembilan. Futile, really.

I wanted to ask the same question to the BN candidates, Teo Eng Kian and Julia Wong Pik Min, what they would do if they manage to retain the state and the federal government but I was not able to find their contacts so I emailed the state MCA to get their details. Again, this was answered in less than an hour and I consider this as very impressive.



But the same can't be said for the candidates because I did not get their emails but I got contact numbers of people who manage their election centres. I tried texting these people to get the emails of the candidates but to no avail.

The Rasah candidate.



The Rahang candidate.



Honestly, I am disappointed. I know that they are busy but I have waited for more than a week for their replies but not getting any. I just want to know that they have a plan on what to be done if they won this election so that we know they really want to win and contribute something for the people of the constituencies rather than just being in power. I really hope that this does not reflect them when they have won later, that they can be approached by the people of the constituencies later. What I want is someone like Dato Saifuddin Abdullah, he actually has a manifesto for the people of Temerloh.



Of course, it is not the prettiest video or well made manifesto, but he actually has one compared to candidates of my area, who have none so far. Because seriously, if you can't spend some of your time to answer questions from the people who are going to vote for you, why should we even vote for you?

For all the pain you had to go through, thank you.

I am at an age where you can start seeing many people getting married and some have already have their own babies. And when you have many friends who constantly update about their babies online as if they are the only ones who have babies, you can see how excited some people are when they can finally have an offspring of their own, especially if it is their first. And seeing how they had to go through that mixed bag of emotions, happiness, excitement, and pain, we can definitely understand that having a baby is not as smooth sailing as some people might thought it would look like. It is times like this that we start to understand the sacrifices that every parents have to do in raising their children, especially the mothers who have to carry you around for 9 months.

Maybe now what we can do is that whenever it is your birthday, instead of waiting for people to wish us, we can also thank our mothers who have sacrificed so much. At least, once a year, thank them for enduring the pain in getting you into this world. For all mothers and mothers to be, thank you.

Being Successful

There was a time when I used to read News Strait Times because there were many excellent writers that I aspire to be just like them, having my own column, writing my experiences and about life. Ahh, that was the time when NST was not as shitty as what they are now.

One of my favourite column writers that I really like at that time was the late Yasmin Ahmad. In one of her articles, she talked about being observant. According to her, if you want to be successful, make sure that you are observant. It was quite difficult for me to understand the concept at that time, but now it seems to clear to me that maybe it is true, you have to be observant to be successful.

If you are a parent, you have to be observant, then you will know if your kids are being bullied at school, unhappy about something or as something simple as knowing what your kids like so that you can get their presents for their birthday. Or if you are the kids, you have to be observant, so that you know the times that your parents are not busy and won't be angry at you if you want to ask for a permission for extra pocket money for that weekend movie outings.

If you are a teacher, you have to be observant so that you will know if your students are very sleepy or look bored while listening to you. By then, you know that you have to take some break or crack some jokes to make sure that the students are actually paying  some attention. If you are the student, you have to be observant so that you know how your teachers mark your mark and what is the best way for you to get the highest mark.

If you are someone who is already married, then you really have to be observant so that your partner won't be angry at you for lying on bed without taking your shower first or not closing the toilet door once your are done.

Being observant requires you to focus and observe or listen to what people are saying or doing. If you are actually being observant to what I have written just now, you might realise that I did not mention anything about money because being successful is more than just being rich and that includes making someone that you care about happy.

100% Right For Each Other

"..your father and I, we're not even 90% right for each other. Not even 60, okay? But he's the love of my life. And right now the love of your life is going to fly away and I bet somewhere in the back of your mind, you're thinking that she'll always be there if you want to try again, but you know what? She wont, because she's the goddamned best! And some lucky guy is going to make it work with her no matter what. - Tom's mom"

Last night, I watched The Five-Year Engagement. Yeah, I know it's kinda late. I have been wanting to watch it since I saw the trailer but somehow it slipped out of my mind and I just remembered about it last night.

So it was about a couple who is not sure if they really want to get married as they think that they don't really suit each other and that they better if they end up with someone else. I'm not here for the review. For movie reviews, you can read my other blog, Dramatic Durian. What I really want to talk about is about finding your life partner.

I am lucky that I am married to someone who I have known for so long, knowing her for almost one decade before I got married to her. We got our differences, there are things that I like but they will bore her to death, and the same thing applies to me that I can't stand watching Vampire Diaries for more than a minute but that is her favourite series. And seriously, that is OK as we don't really need to pretend that we have the same interest. Just like what Tom's mom said, you don't need to be 100% right for each other to know that that person is the love of your life. If you need to do that, then there are two possible consequences.

First, you will never get married. Or maybe it will take a very, very long time for you to get married. You have to make sure that that someone really suits you or you might even resort to dating websites. You know, the ones where we can state the criteria that we want and they will try to match them with what we want. I mean, why would you want another you? Someone who likes every single thing that you like? Might as well you clone yourself. But of course, there should be some traits that are attractive to you but you have to give and take, you can't expect someone to have all the criteria that you have listed in that small book of fantasy of yours. Yes, I know you have that.

The other possible outcome from this is that you will get married but you will try your best to like whatever that your partner likes so that to appease your partner. In a way, you are forcing yourself to like something that you don't like, enduring the boredom though it's eating inside of you. So have your own personality, like something that you really like and if it is the same thing that your partner likes too, then that is a bonus of course.

So whatever it is, try to make sure that you will work it out with your partner no matter how difficult or how different you think you are from your partner. As for me, I must say that I'm married to someone who I have known for so long that I know what ticks her off and how to make her happy. I'm just lucky that I'm married to someone who I can call my bestfriend.

Growing Old With You.

True love, is like a ghost, so many people talk about it, but only a few have experienced it.

For me, my true love is certainly love at the first sight. After so many years of knowing each other, going through many heartbreaks, the hurling of anger, swearing not to call each other anymore, we know that somehow we can never get enough of each other no matter what happens.

It is not easy making that decision to get married. You will often ask yourself, "Is she the one? Do I want to spend my life with her? Do I want to grow old with her?"

But then I asked myself," How can I not get married to someone who is so understanding, someone who is always there despite my hardships and flaws, someone who knows me so well that I really think she is a psychic at times, someone who after all the stupid things I did, will still say I love you?.

Then, I told myself, "This is the one, this is the one who you want to spend your life with, the one who you want to grow old with".

And I definitely concur with that.

The Right Person

Some people asked me, " How do I know if that person likes me? How do I know if that person is right for me?".

Honestly, I can't really answer that question because it is a matter of the heart and it is not the same with everyone as there can be many factors involved. But what I do know is that when it comes to men, men would work their ass off if they like a woman, while women would always stick to their man if they know that the man is the person that they want to be with.

How do you know that a man really likes a woman? He works for it. Men do not usually show their affection through words but what they lack in words they compensate with actions instead. As a man myself, I know that if a man really likes a woman, he would try to win her heart and this includes trying to make her happy, even if it means that you have to lose that game at the arcade so that she can mock you afterwards (and most probably she knows that you lost intentionally, but who cares, as long as she can revel in that moment of glory) or that the man would always be the one who text her first and not making her waiting for replies. Or he would work hard in getting to know her family and making sure that he remembers their name, so that he won't make a stupid mistake later. That is in the process of getting to know each other, of course. But when it comes to getting married, men should still work hard even though he knows that she would want to marry him. There is no such thing as letting your guards down. So I am not so sure what is the fuss about duit hantaran for weddings, as long as it does not come to a point where the man can barely afford it lah. While I do think that the amount asked should be appropriate to that man's ability to provide, the man should  try to fulfill the request, as long as it is not ridiculously high and disproportionate to that man's income. I mean if that man can at least try  to fulfill that request, we know that the man will do what it takes to get married to that woman.

We know the old age phrase that, " Behind every successful man, there is a woman" which really sums it up nicely : Women would always stick to their man, even during their ups and down. I have seen so many women having a husband who I would categorise as a total douche but these women won't just leave them and would still be with their husband, which really left me flabbergasted when there are so many better men out there. I guess this is one of the characteristics of women, they will always be with their man no matter that the place that they live is like hell rather than heaven. I personally know a couple, the man was ( I really hope I'm using the correct tense here) a drug addict. The woman is a very nice woman, always smiling though sometimes when I look at her, I know that she is in much pain. So they got married, which I thought is good because his wife might be able to guide her  and that he might be able to shake off his old habits because he is a family man now. But of course, old habits are like Bruce Willis movies, they don't seem wanting to die easily. So he was involved in a lot of run ins with the cops, brought to correctional centres and was even involved in some thefts. But even with everything that had happened, she persevered and she stayed with the husband of hers and not leaving him all alone. After few years, after two or three kids, he seems better now and I guess he has learned his lesson. At the same time, she is still with him, not leaving him even during his darkest hours. This is the type of woman who really loves her man and you can't ask for a more solid proof than that.

Not everyone has the chance to be in love, especially true love. True love, is like ghosts. So many people talk about it, but only a few have actually encountered it. So if someone does not know to appreciate what one has, that is actually that person's loss. A big loss, I would say.

Superhero

I am on my Raya and Merdeka holiday right now so for two weeks I'm at my lovely home, a very long break from my work. So the other day while watching a movie on my laptop, my niece, Zahra, came to me with a box in her hand. "Uncle," she said, "I have a present for you". She opened the box and there was a Superman figurine which her mother bought from McD in it.



A Superman? That's good. I guess she wants me to be her superhero then. Unfortunately, I am anything but superhero. But I guess, for kids, you are already a superhero for them when you can show them that you can listen to what they have to say or always be there when you need them.

I am not married yet and I have no idea what kids really need from their fathers. But if I can make a guess, it is not enough just to provide the materials for the kids, but also to talk to them, or simply interacting with them. I mean, how do you expect kids to listen to you when you do not take the time to listen to them and dismissing them without giving them a chance to express themselves? I have seen too many cases where fathers who are supposed to be with their kids 'delegated' the job to either their wife or their mother/mother in law. I just hope that if I ever get to be a father one day, I will not just provide the money but also my time and never to make my kids longing for my presence in their lives. That is the worst part, when your kids do not even care if you are around them.

I am lucky in some way as I at least have a healthy relationship with my father. We have small talks and we discuss things. It is a pity when people who still have their parents do not even care about their parents or ask how their day was. That is the least that you should do. Karma will hit you big time later when you have kids and your kids do not even care about you, that is what I fear the most. How you treat your parents will almost certainly have some impact on how your kids will treat you in the future. There is this story about a man who takes care of his parents even when his parents have turned into pigs as his parents had committed sinful acts that they are transformed into pigs. Yet, he still took care of his parents and they were rewarded in the afterlife.

In in the end, when you fail to appreciate what you already have, neglecting those who you are supposed to cherish and love, do not be surprised when things do not go according to your plans. We might have plans but God is the one determining how it will turn out later on. For that, I am blessed for those who I have right now.

Saving Others Starts With Yourself

So another fancy video pops up from nowhere. But now, this video is not about Kony anymore. It is now about Islam and proselytism. Talk about the timing, really. It is released when Ramadhan has just started and Muslims are very enthusiastic on doing our best in this holy month of Ramadhan. But seriously, another attempt in making another viral video?

While the intention is good,there are some flaws or questions that need to answered here.

1. 2 million Muslims leaving Islam for Christianity each year? Based on this, the rate that Christianity grows does not reflect that, at most 6 millions in 5 years (2005-2010), which we are not even sure if all the 6 millions are Muslims who have converted to Christian. Meanwhile, Islam has seen an exponential growth of around 17 millions in 5 years (2005-2010). 2 millions per year? Thats a bit of an exaggeration,isnt it?

2. The fault should be at Muslims who neglect those who are in trouble. Seriously, what is the use of the zakat money then? Why blame those who are in trouble and get love and support from those who are not Muslims and attracted to Christianity? Why blame the Christians who proselytize? Blame the Muslims who are too lazy to care about others and neglect those who are in need. It is not something new really. In Malaysia, we have Hassan Ali talks about Christians trying to convert some Muslims by offering help and such. So how about other Muslims then? Why aren't Muslims helping other Muslims by utilizing the zakat money to those in need? It is not for a Minister to use it for his lawyer fees, that is for sure. I have had some experience in being involved with organizations which give out free food to homeless and those who are less fortunate and based on what I have seen, very few Muslims take up the initiative to be involved in this kind of programme. It is better for those who are reluctant to join to just stay in the mosque and listen to ceramah, I guess. So again, blame the Muslims who are not trying enough.

3. You know who need the real help? The Rohingya people. They are facing threats of being killed in huge numbers and this is not an exaggerations. Many of them have to leave Burma and to find somewhere safe where they won't be persecuted due to their ethnicity. Some of them are even here in Malaysia. Ahh, that is good to hear, right? Right here in Malaysia, a country where the Muslims are the majority. Wrong. Absolutely wrong. Malaysia has not signed the 1951 Refugee Convention agreement thus these refugees do not have the basic rights of a refugee and this also leads to many cases of abuse of power where they can be detained and treated as illegal immigrants. Of course, there are some discretion by the Immigration Department but cases of abuse of power is not something that is rare.

So how can you help them? One way is to get the Government of Malaysia to sign the agreement thus the Rohingya can actually be helped. If you really are concerned about Muslims, this is the way. Not just sharing videos and sitting there and hoping a miracle will happen. Life does not work that way. It requires action, not just mere words.

The Preparations

There are times when at one point, one event will change your whole life. For me, many events have shaped my life and made me as who I am today. But later this year, there will be another defining event that will definitely open a new chapter in my life : getting married.

Yes, getting married. It is not as easy as I thought it should be. I mean, you have so many preparations and as of now, I think I'm only half done with what I'm supposed to do. I already got the money ready, the gifts, the venue and some other things. But of course that is only the tip of the iceberg. I have never realized that you got so many things to do before you can actually get married. Isn't it better if we can just go to the Islamic Department and have our solemnization and done with it? That would be easier I guess.

So some of my friends and colleagues already know that I am getting married end of this year. So hopefully they bring LCD TV 40 inch with them as gifts can come to my wedding. Hehe. Of course, there would be situations where you would get advice from married people, such as how to organize my wedding, where to do the HIV test, where to go for my honeymoon and stuffs. But I guess there are two advice that would be special to me as it is related much to what should be done once I get married.

A colleague of mine, a woman in her 40s, told me first thing that I should do to prepare myself is not to have big houses, big cars or even a lavish wedding. The thing that I should do is to always read the Quran, An-Nisa specifically. Oh, it must be so that I can understand women better, right? I answered, trying to be a smart ass, remembering some of the verses from the surah. No, she said, it is so that you can lead your wife better. It struck me, that once I'm married, I'm responsible of whatever that my wife does, that it is not enough just to take care of myself, I must also remember I have someone else who would depend on me, that I'm going to be the leader of the family, the leader of my wife. Remember, she continued, not only that you would have to read it, you must also understand what the surah actually means. Read the translation too, she reminded me.

O ye who believe! Ye are forbidden to inherit women against their will. Nor should ye treat them with harshness, that ye may take away part of the dower ye have given them,-except where they have been guilty of open lewdness on the contrary live with them on a footing of kindness and equity. If ye take a dislike to them it may be that ye dislike a thing, and Allah brings about through it a great deal of good. But if ye decide to take one wife in place of another, even if ye had given the latter a whole treasure for dower, Take not the least bit of it back: Would ye take it by slander and a manifest wrong? And how could ye take it when ye have gone in unto each other, and they have taken from you a solemn covenant?

An-Nisa: 19-21

Of course, when people read the surah, some men would know that it talks about how men are allowed to get married to one women, that polygamy is OK in Islam. But what many opt to ignore is that it also talks about to be fair to your wife(s), to treat them well, not just to see the bad in them while ignoring the good in them. I mean, of course no one can be a perfect partner, but at least with some effort, we can work it out. No one says that marriage is like a bed full of roses. In fact, it is like someone who has a cat as a pet, sometimes the cat would shit on the bed. But would you just let it stay there and not making an effort in cleaning it? How many men would say thank you to his wife when she cooks for him? Or how many women would actually ask if the husband is tired after a day of hard work, being the breadwinner of the family? Appreciation would go a long way in making each other happy.

A few days ago, I met a friend of mine, who just got married last year. A good man, he is, I have known him for 7 years now. He told me, when you get married, the most important thing that you should do is to have more knowledge about the religion compared to your wife. As the leader of the family, the husband should be able to say what is right and what is wrong, but of course it must be based on something, and in this case it should be based on what guides them, the religion. Somehow I remembered about an interview of this old man, who was asked, what is the secret that he is still together with his wife after all these years? Always solat together, he answered firmly, with the husband as the imam and the wife as the makmum. To think of it, there might be some truth there. How can you be a leader of the family if you can't even lead your wife in solat?

Ahhh, so many things to be considered now. I guess I need to prepare more for my marriage life too, not just in getting married. Looking at the current circumstances, it is not getting married that worries me, it is staying married that worries me more.

The Journey

" So, you are a little subdued now?" My friend asked me.

"Yeah, I guess." I said.

The new semester has just started, it is in its third week now. So while going to the classes, you tend to bump into students who you have not met for a while. Of course, they would say hi, we had a chat for a while before we move on to our classes. Some of them said that they are already in their last semester, which surprises me actually. I still remember going into their class when they were in their first semester, which just shows how time passes by so quickly.

Some of my students from the previous semester also gave me a thank you card because they have passed their exam. Not that I crave for it, but it is a good gesture, being shown some appreciation after all those months of hard work. Of course, in teaching, you are not supposed to expect any rewards from the students, enough that they do well in their studies. But still, I like it. They are my good students anyway, I have always known that they would pass.

Which also reminds me to how I was when I was still a student, doing my degree. I just can't imagine how naive and easy-going life was back then. And also all the wild experiences that you had when you are a student. Surely beats working life, any time of the day. I have always enjoyed my study years and I just hope that my students enjoy theirs too. Some people are too affixed to what you can get from your studies; the degree, the scroll and all that, while forgetting the most important part, the journey in getting those things, which I won't trade for anything in this world.

Simplified Life

I have just started using Twitter a couple of months ago. It was not exactly planned, just to update the Dramatic Durian website actually. But it led me to using the Twitter now, though it is just an occasional thing. Not that I am going to tweet non stop like what I see some other people are doing.

 The most obvious thing that I realize from using Twitter is that its limited words is not something that I really prefer. Hence mostly what I do is just reading other people's tweet rather than writing my own. Being someone who teaches language, writing in point forms or not elaborating my points is not something that I would want my students to do. There have been instances where my students would write their academic writing essays in point forms, which is just downright blasphemy for me. Might as well use SMS language for their essays then. Somehow I feel like due to the technology, we tend to simplify everything, that we have become too lazy to even read a book, thinking that it would take so much of our time.Technology also plays a part where it makes us having a short attention span, especially towards doing something like reading. We are so attached to technology that we can't seem to get enough of it, which I feel I am kinda guilty for that part too. My friends and I even have an agreement not to use the phone at all during the lunch sessions but to talk to each other. Like a normal person. Like what we used to do back in the good 'ol days.

 We are so caught up in all these stuffs that we might have forgotten that we should be the one controlling the technology, not the other way around.

While We Celebrate.

Today is Raya Aidilfitri. Selamat Hari Raya to everyone. It is also a day to celebrate and do good deeds. But while we have fun and visit our loved ones, just remember that there are those who are not able to indulge in the lavish activities that we are used to. Some people even have to resort to living in toilets.

Early this year, the night before Chinese New Year, I was sipping my teh tarik at the usual mamak stall in front of my house when I saw a Chinese family, a mother with her two daughters, eating roti canai when they should be having their big dinner.The mom just watched her daughters sharing a cup of water with one roti canai. It made me realise that poverty is not restricted to certain people when actually it covers some percentage of people in Malaysia, no matter who they are. There are always some people who need help from us, you just need to watch Bersamamu on TV3.

So for this Raya, help those who are in need. Who knows, maybe someday you would need some help too.

Chances.

I was involved in a CSR programme that was organised by my workplace. As I am used to being involved with programmes like this when I was studying, I figured that I might as well lend a hand in helping my colleagues. It was a CSR programme that was held at a primary school nearby where we had some language games and book donations. While we were playing the language games with the students, some students, even the weak ones were very participative. Though they can hardly understand English, they tried their best to give the answers. Partly because we offered some prizes to entice them, I guess. But that is not the point. What the students need is motivation. Some of them see English as something that is so alien, so foreign to them that they can't seem to see themselves to be involved with it. What makes matters worse is when teachers label the students as incompetent thus demotivating the students. Some teachers need to know their students better because that is how we can motivate the students. For example, there are students who like to be praised for them to work hard. While some students prefer to be challenged for them to give their best. But when teachers do not even take their time to engage the students, that is when the problem comes. Sure, some teachers are recognised as the best teacher when they are able to help the students to get as many As as possible. But what is untold is that most of these students are already bright students, teachers do not need to do much to help these students. Meanwhile, students from the remedial classes are ignored because they do not have much hope to score as many As as their more intelligent friends. Sadly, that is the situation nowadays, those who seem to have less are ignored.

I was talking to some of my seniors colleagues when the topic of their younger days suddenly cropped out. Those were days, they said, when it was in the 80s up until the early 90s, when people don't really wear hijab, even for some of the ustazah. Both of them have almost the same story. One of them said that she was not wearing any hijab at that time but she wanted to know more about Islam. But the problem was, the Muslim bodies in her university shunned her because she was not wearing hijab at that time. As she did not have anyone to guide her, she did not wear hijab until few years later. The other one said that her friends who wear hijab also shunned her because she did not wear hijab. But one of the now-outlawed Muslim bodies (it was not outlawed at that time) accepted her and helped her to know Islam and others things related to it. They lamented how easy it was to judge people and have negative perception just because they do not conform to the same set of standards that other people have. They said it would be better to help them rather than making them feel like an outcast. Sure, it is easy to give sermons to those who always come to the mosque everyday. But what about those who do not, should they be left out? Maybe this is why some people gave up and went to other bodies in request for help as even some Muslim bodies prefer to wash their hands of difficult things and concentrate to things that are easier.

Chances. It is very easy to be said but not very easy to be given to those who need them.


Nur Kasih The Movie 2011 PPVRip 01 by daniNor15

I like this scene from Nur Kasih The Movie, watch from minute 25 onwards. It is very much related to what I'm writing today.

The Fish That is Fed

Life is not a bed of roses, no one can deny that. It is a very materialistic world now, that sometimes people are divided between the haves and the havenots.

Funding

I went to Singapore last week, with a hope that I could enjoy myself there. Instead, I had to follow a group for visits to mosque around there. The committee of the mosques explained that they did not get any direct funding from the government. What they got were money from Mosque Building Fund (MBF) and discounts in buying plots of lands for their mosque. MBF is a fund where Muslims in Singapore would have their salary to be deducted and put into the fund. The minimum is 5 Dollar while others can opt for more. This is the fund that is used to buy the lands, build the mosque and for the upkeeps of the mosque. While some mosques received fundings from MBF, there are also those that do not receive them. What these mosques did was they organized programmes, such as selling food and selling items that have been donated to the mosque. What impresses me the most, for them, mosques are more than a place for you to pray five times a day. For them, it is a community centre, where it is not limited to praying only. They have programmes where they engage the community and the youths in liking the mosques. They worked for it as they know that if they do not work for it, then no one else will. In the midst of that monetary hardships, they persevered and did not whine hoping for assistance from the government. Of course, as the minorities, they had to compromise such as they cant use the loudspeakers for azan but they did not see that as a problem as everyone knows that they can still listen to the azan in the radio. These are the examples where you have to persevere and not let the problems to get you down.

Tourist spots.

While the Singaporean Malays persevered, Malaysian Malays prefer to wait for everything to come to them. Very well known for being lazy, all the fundings should come from the government, that is what the Malays have always thought. Thus, they did not actually work for the fundings, they just have to apply, contact some YBs and they will get the fundings. Not only that the mosques are used for praying only, sometimes the main purpose that they are actually built are for tourism. Yes, we can show to the people that we have alot of mosques, but who actually use them? Maybe what should be done is we have something similar like MBF, so that the Muslims here actually feel some sense of entitlement to the mosques because they actually contributed their money to the mosques. Maybe only then, we will work hard with what we have and not being ignorant just because we already have our day jobs and we can put food on our table.

The fault here is when we feel comfortable with our life that we tend to ignore hardships that other people had been through and not to work hard to achieve something that we actually want . Like the saying, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. "

Privilege

Walking

I was playing basketball last week when I accidentally hurt myself and had a torn ligament. It was not fun. Really. I could barely walk in the first few days and had to wear leg braces. At that time, I had to get people to drive me to places and buy me food. Feeling hopeless is an understatement. I lost the ability to walk for awhile and it hit me how important a simple act like walking can be.

Water

Klang Valley was hit with a major water cut that led to many grouses for two whole days in certain areas. People were suddenly panic because they could not do their daily chores because of the disturbance. Not many actually realised the importance of water before that. Only when there is a major water cut that people go huha about it.

Scholarship

I heard that there will be some changes to the scholarships for SPM students. I think this is long overdue. Some students thought that scholarships are rightfully theirs when you have to be chosen to obtain them. There are already too many scholarship holders who have not returned to Malaysia even after decades finishing their studies. Why should we have more? Only give scholarships to those who got to top universities then we can control the outflow of taxpayers money. How can we keep on bashing the local universities when we do not even send the top students to our local universities? It is obviously a case of which one comes first, the egg or the chicken. The scholarships should rightly be taken away and be given only to those who deserve them.

People go crazy when they lost something, including their insanity. Hopefully we can be like the Japanese, calm and disciplined, during our adverse times.

My Sungai Lui

I was listening to the radio and Aizat was on an interview. One of the question was about his song, 'Sungai Lui'. He explained that the song is about a man who is successful but still comes back to his hometown, knowing where his root is.

There are many news highlighting about Malaysians migrating for the greener pastures, some of them due to better job offers, not satisfied with the treatment that they received in Malaysia plus many other setbacks that prompted them to choose leaving rather than staying.

Of course, I would be lying if I say that I'm satisfied with the happenings in Malaysia. It is harder nowadays, especially for young people like me who are burdened with loans and other difficulties, to get a good life. There are people who suggested that I should be leaving to other countries where life is better there. But for me, I can't correct the things I want to if I leave this country. I love this country and I will fight for it by staying here.

Reliability of Emails

While I don't want to comment about the 1Malaysia email as there have been alot of comments from other people, I just hope that apart from having emails for ordinary Malaysians, they better have a system where the government agencies actually reply the emails that are given to them. Waiting for an email reply since November last year is not a good thing.



At least an MP actually replied my email promptly.

For the love of movies.

I have not been writing a lot these days. One of them is due to work commitment that requires me to be doing something else in front of the computer except blogging. As if I dont have enough work to occupy my time, now I have another blog in place. I will be writing on that blog with my friend Ijan which will discuss about movie reviews, news and once in a while some feature articles that will be written by us.

I love going to the cinemas and Ijan does too, I think. So we figured that maybe we should write about something that we have been discussing all this while. We are by no means experts in this field but we figured that there are not many blogs that talk about movie in English. We will be discussing about international and, not forgetting, the local movies. While my blog here mainly talks about serious things, this movie blog will talk about about something light that we all love. I guess.

Have a look at www.dramaticdurian.com Hope you enjoy it.

Why Malaysia is better.

As the time of writing, many pro-democracy protesters are on the streets of Cairo and Alexandria, demanding that Hosni Mubarak steps down. You do not have to take a flight to Egypt to actually see the effect of the protests. While they have many reasons for protesting, it is undeniable that there are some side effects such as unruly atmosphere that forces many foreigners to flee the country, including Malaysians. So what should have Mubarak done?

From my point of view, there are two. First, leave the country like what Tunisian ex-President Ben Ali did. Once he stepped down and left the country, the political unrest stopped and they are now looking forward to a new government.

Or, if he does not want to step down, make sure that the protest does not happen from the start. While the top military chief already declared that they "will not use force against protesters calling for the removal of President Hosni Mubarak ahead of a 'million people' march", but I guess it is already too late now. They should have used force from the start, preventing the protest from even happening. Like what Malaysian police usually do, even to a candlelight vigil protest. No protest, no problem.

I love Malaysia.