CERITA SEORANG PESARA TENTERA

Assalamualaikum,


Semasa saya tingal di England, saya pernah bertemu dengan seorang wanita tua. Dia tinggal seorang diri. Saya berkenalan dengannya setelah kami bertukar senyuman. Begitu hebat kuasa sekuntum senyuman. Darinya boleh bermula suatu persahabatan walaupun kita berbeda kaum dan agama.

Suatu hari selepas saya dan suami "strawberry picking"; saya teringatkan dia,
Lagipn strawberry yang kami petik banyak. Saya pun memberi sedikit kepadanya. Dia lantas menjemput saya minum teh di rumahnya.

Dia menceritakan yang dia seorang pesara tentera. Berumur lebih 70 tahun, dia terlibat dalam peperangan Dunia Kedua. Dia merupakan seorang pemandu trak tentera yang ditugaskan di Brussel,Belgium. Katanya hidup ketika itu sangat sukar. Tetapi ketika itu dia meneruskan hidup dengan perasaan bahawa dia berjuang untuk kebebasan kemanusiaan.

Kini dia tinggal seorang diri tetapi anaknya datang menziarahinya sekali sekala. Paling menarik perhatian saya dengan makcik ini ialah dia sentiasa riang, Walaupun duduk berseorang di sebuah bilik yang usang, Ya, dia bukan tinggal di sebuah rumah tetapi di sebuah 'bed-sit' atau bilik sewa yang dilengkapi dengan tempat memasak dan bilik air. Tetapi dia nampak seperti seorang kaya yang tinggal di dalam istana.

Saya bersyukur saya tidak pernah melalui peperangan. Ingatan dan doa saya kepada semua insan yang menjadi mangsa peperangan sekarang ini seperti di Palestine, Syria,Afghanistan... Semoga kalian akan bertemu kebebasan dan ketenangan...Amin.

THE ENDLESS MARATHON

May peace be upon you.

My youngest son had just been circumcised. He was very brave. He didn't even shed a tear. I just realized that that is the end of the circumcision saga of my children. Phew! Alhamdulillah, that is a relief.

       Bringing up my children felt like a long endless marathon. Sometimes you need to speed up your running but sometimes you need to slow down. Just to catch a breather.

        I had my first and my second babies in England. That was hard. My family wasn't there to help me, my mom wasn't there to nag me what to do.

        It was harder with the first baby. I broke my leg when I was 8 months pregnant! I slipped and fell. My husband rushed me to the hospital and this nurse accidentally stepped on my injured leg. That really hurts...  I spent the rest of my pregnancy with a big cast on my leg. Fortunately, one week before the baby was due the cast was off. Thinking about it now, it was funny. But it wasn't then. Just imagine a pregnant woman with her huge belly and a monstrous bright orange cast.

       I'm grateful that all my babies turn out alright even though all of them had asthma. It was an arduous journey but a meaningful and enjoyable one. But there is still a long journey ahead of us...  

THE STORY OF A STRANGER

May peace be upon you.


I met a lady,one day while waiting for a taxi..I told her there are not many taxis around here. The bus comes when the bus driver felt like it. She then sat next to me and told me her story. I don't know why she told me, a total stranger but I guess she needed  somebody to talk to.

       She just been to the Municipal Council Hq to make an appeal. Apparently her illegal stall was torn down by the authority. She is a single mother with 5 children, Only one was working as a factory operator, the rest were still schooling. She had no house and therefore forced to live with her mother in a 2 bedroom flat in a low cost housing area.She and her 5 children had to cramp in with three other members of the family in the small unit.

       The stall was her life line to feed her children. I asked her why didn't she ask for help from her ex husband. When she answered I knew then she was a good person. Instead of bad mouthing her ex, she just said he was married and also in dire straits.

       From her story I know she will never give up. She will sail through the storm and come out a survivor and a winner. She didn't blame anyone for her misfortunes but instead focus on getting back on her feet and move on. Her story inspired me. I feel so grateful to God for giving me this good life. Alhamduleelah...

     

IT'S THE HOLI HOLI HOLIDAY!

May peace be upon you.


It's the school holiday again!? Why do I have this sense of dejavu. Oh... I've been through this again and again... It's the time when you do not have much time for yourself. You wreck your brain thinking what to do to fill the children's time before they started thinking of creative stunts that could cause havoc and chaos like the time when my 9 year old son secretly went to the nearby condo pool and swam naked at 11.30pm! I almost had a heart attack.

         And I still remember when my other young son threw a cat in the monsoon drain during the monsoon season! The drain was full to the brim.  I shrieked in horror, my husband frantically tried to save the cat, while my son coolly said,"It's okay mom, the cat can swim."

          Now four of them are teenagers and I face a different type of creative stunts. So always be prepared for the inevitable.

This is my kitten,pikachu.He is a survivor.

SALAHKAN DIRI SENDIRI...

Assalamualaikum wrt,

Saya mengenali seorang yang suka menyalahkan orang lain. J, menyalahkan segala kegagalan dirinya  terhadap orang lain. Orang lain yang menyebabkan dia memilih kursus yang  salah dan bosnya yang salah kerana memecat dia. Yang sebenarnya dia yang datang kerja hampir tiap2 hari lewat. Dia menyalahkan keluarganya kerana dia tidak berjaya dalam hidup. Akhirnya, dalam umur 40 an dia masih tidak bekerja dan tidak berkahwin. Duit simpanannya makin habis. Dia masih menyalahkan orang lain.

       Sebenarnya menyalahkan orang ni bukan dialami oleh J tetapi ramai orang masih bersikap begini. Termasuklah saya. Ini adalah satu sikap saya, yang paling saya tak suka. Mungkin saya tak se extreme si mamat J ni tapi ia masih tak elok. Contoh  bila saya kehilangan kunci, saya terus menyalahkan anak2 atau suami saya. Hakikatnya saya yang menghilangkannya.

       Apabila kita asyik menyalahkan orang lain, kita tidak dapat menyelesaikan masalah yang kita hadapi. Contoh seperti kunci yang hilang itu. Kalau kita salahkan orang lain kita pasti tidak dapat menjumpai kunci itu. Tetapi kalau kita salahkan diri kita, baharulah kita akan cuba mengingati bila dan di mana kita letakkan kunci itu. Kemudian carilah di atas, tengah ,bawah, sebelah kiri dan kanan dan akhir sekali di belakang. Jumpalah kunci itu!

        Kehilangan kunci ini cuma contoh kecil. Dalam masalah yang besar juga sama. Kenapa aku masih tak kaya, kenapa aku tak bahagia, kenapa aku gagal dalam peperiksaan dan sebagainya.  SALAHKAN DIRI KITA APABILA BERLAKU KESILAPAN ATAU KESALAHAN. Barulah kita dapat 'KUNCI' untuk atasi apa jua masalah.

          

      

       

       

THE LAZY WORKER

May peace be upon you.

It has been quite sometime since I wrote in my blog. Just that so many things happened at almost the same time. My son is sitting for his big exam and my two little kittens died. It is really hard to deal with any death. But one kitten did survive and we're looking after him like a prince. There is always hope.

     
         Anyway, I just want to share a story with you. Not about kittens though...

          Maybe we can learn something from the story.


           A CEO from a large company visited one of his of branch office. He entered the office and started to check on the progress of the workers one by one. He saw everyone was working really hard except for one. This particular worker was sitting behind his desk and not doing anything except whistling.

            He went to the worker and angrily asked why he was no working like the rest. The worker stared at him and didn't say anything. But still the worker did not start to do any work.

             This made the CEO furious. He said, "How much are you being paid?"

              The worker looked startled but answered,"$1 000 sir."

              "You're fired! We do not have a place for a loser like you." shouted the CEO.The CEO then continued to call the accounts officer to prepare a check for $4 000 for 4 months wages to be paid to the worker.

              The worker looked confused but accepted the payment. When he walked out the door, to the CEO amazement he started to whistle happily again. Then the CEO felt something was just not right.

               "Who is that?" he finally asked.

               "He is the dispatch rider, sir. He came to send some documents." 

SELAMAT AIDIL ADHA

Assalamualaikum wrt.


Awal pagi tadi saya bermimpi memeluk kakak2 saya yang kini menunaikan haji di Makkah. Lantas terbangun dan teringat hari ini sunat puasa 9 Zulhijjah. Sempat lah bersahur. Alhamdulillah.

        Hari ini merupakan hari kemenangan bagi mereka yang mengerjakan ibadah haji. Padang Arafah menjadi saksi pengorbanan mereka. Semoga K.Intan dan Ijah mendapat haji mabrur. Begitu juga seluruh umat Islam yang mengerjakan haji tahun ini.

         Saya ingin mengucapkan Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Adha kepada nuslimin dan muslimat dan SELAMAT BERKORBAN...

FREE THEM!

May peace be upon you.


People here are still talking about the case of the two Indonesians brothers who were convicted of murder. To all of you who is not familiar with the case, the fact of the case  is -  the victim, a burglar, broke into the brothers' house. He crept through the ceiling of the house and fell into the brothers' room where the brothers were sleeping. The brothers woke up and tried to apprehend the victim but the victim fought back. During the struggle, the victim was killed.

        The brothers were mysteriously charged and convicted of murder.  Once upon a time, I was a law student and any criminal law student knows it is difficult to prove someone is guilty of murder. Basically, you have to prove the existence of mens rea (the intention) and the actus reus(the act) of murder. However the most difficult part is to prove that the accused is guilty beyond  reasonable doubt.

          The question is how on earth the prosecutor succeeded in proving intention to murder? Did the brothers before they sleep, had planned - if a burglar falls through our ceiling, we will kill him? If someone broke into your house, don't you have the right to defend yourself, your family and property? It doesn't mean you have the intention to kill.

           It sends a chilly precedent that if an intruder entered your house, you are at his mercy. You cannot defend yourself for fear not of losing your life but the life of the intruder. This is totally absurd.

           It is not surprising, there is a public outcry against the injustice towards the two brothers. I pray there will be a judicial review on this case and I sincerely hope they will be found innocent. PLEASE FREE THEM.

AYAH...JADILAH NAKHODA!

Assalamualaikum wrt,

Sedari kecil hingga sekarang bila saya mendengar ceramah daripada penceramah2 mengenai rumahtangga, fokus banyak kepada si isteri. Tanggungjawab isteri dan kesilapan2 yang dilakukan oleh isteri.Tetapi dari statistik yang didapati dari jabatan agama menyatakan penceraian semakin tingi dan majoriti puncanya adalah daripada pihak lelaki. Jadi mengapa fokus kepada isteri?

        Mungkin kalau fokus dilebihkan kepada suami, masalah ini dapat di atasi ataupun dikurangkan,

       Allah s.w.t telah melantik lelaki sebaai pemimpin sebuah keluarga, Ianya adalah suatu tanggungjawab besar bukannya suatu keistimewaan.

        Ramai lelaki sekarang ini menyerahkan tugas rumahtangga bulat2 di atas bahu si isteri. Dari mengajar Quran hinggalah menghantar anak ke sekolah. Bermakna tugas suami hanyalah pergi bekerja. Kadang2 tugas mencari nafkah pun jatuh kepada isteri. Mereka pulang terus membaca suratkhabar dan si isteri pula terpaksa bergelut dengan memasak dan menjaga anak2. Adakah itu sahaja tanggungjawab yang diberikan Allah kepada suami?  

        Suami adalah seumpama seorang pakar bedah.Isteri pula adalah jururawatnya. Seorang pakar bedah tentulah semasa pembedahan tidak boleh sama sekali berkata kepada jururawat,
         "Nurse,  awak ambil alihlah pembedahan ini. Saya nak baca suratkhabar je!"
 Matilah pesakitnya atau paling kurang pun, pesakit akan menjadi cacat. Begitulah dengan sebuah keluarga.

         Seorang bapa yang hebat akan melahirkan anak2 yang hebat.

        Cucu Rasulullah s.a.w, Hasan dan Husin adalah hebat kerana mereka mempunyai bapa yang sangat hebat iaitu Ali(r.a). Saya berpeluang berjumpa dengan bapa dan  adik Muhammad iaitu seorang hafiz pada usia yang muda. Begitu juga saya pernah berjumpa dengan bapa dan adik Adi Putra iaitu seorang genius matematik Saya dapat lihat dari riak wajah dan kata2 bapa Adi Putra betapa komitednya dia. Kejayaaan kedua2 anak ini adalah di dorong oleh semangat dan rasa tanggungjawab bapa2 mereka.

         Begitu juga Lee Chong Wei dan Tiger Woods. Kehebatan mereka dipupuk oleh bapa masing-masing. Jelas bapa memainkan peranan utama dalam kejayaan anak2 khasnya dan seluruh keluarga amnya.

         Akhir kalam...

         Ayah... jadilah nakhoda. Jangan biarkan kapal  tenggelam atau sesat di lautan yang luas ini. Kemudi lah kapal ini ke jalan yang benar dan sampai ke destinasi yang aman. 

          

        


       

      

IT'S THE MONSOON SEASON AGAIN!

May peace be upon you.

The monsoon season is here again. It has been raining like cats and dogs everyday. But I like rainy days. The air just feels so fresh and cool. I love to see the white mist surrounding the tropical forest near my house. When we were kids, my mother allowed us to play in the rain for hours. That was really fun.


         I know some of you do not like the rain much but you have to agree it was stifling hot when it didn't rain not to mention the haze that covered our nation for quite some time. Hooray for the rain! Thank you God.


          But then again I shouldn't be so ecstatic about the rain. I remembered when I was in secondary school (well that was a long time ago), my old friend said to me, "Ita, you might like the rain but to my old folks who are rubber tappers, rain means no income for us." I was totally humbled. Every time it rains, rubber tappers can't go to work. It must be an extremely difficult time for them.

     
           The monsoon season also brings flood especially to the East Coast. I experienced that when we were living in the state of Pahang. The flood rose up to to the roof. Every year we have flood in the east coast and every year we have fatalities due to drowning. Can't we do something about it? With all our modern technology, there should be less fatalities.


             We do have the monsoon festival in the state of Terengganu. I did visit it once. It was rain,rain, rain... but we did had fun.



         



          

JANGAN PUTUS ASA

Assalamualaikum w.r.t,

Saya tertarik untuk berkongsi tentang cerita seorang lelaki yang terperangkap dengan "demam emas" berpuluh tahun dahulu di Amerika. Dia pun pergi ke arah Barat untuk "gali dan jadi kaya". Dia  bekerja keras menggali dan mencari emas walaupun dalam keadaan hidup yang penuh dengan kesengsaraan.

          Akhirnya segala penat lelahnya dibalas. Dia berjaya berjumpa emas!. Tetapi dia perlukan mesin berat untuk mengeluarkan emas tersebut. Olehkerana kekurangan wang , dia telah meminta pertolongan daripada ahli keluarganya dan beberapa kawan2nya. Dengan wang pinjaman daripada mereka, dia dapat membeli jentera yang diperlukan untuk melombong emas itu.

           Dengan jentera tersebut, beberapa ketul emas dapat dikeluarkan dan dia telah dapat membayar hampir separuh hutangnya. Malang sekali tiba-tiba, tiada emas lagi di temui. Dia cuba lagi menggali beberapa kali tetapi gagal menemui apa2. Akhirnya dia mengaku kalah dan berputus asa.

            Dia pun menjual jenteranya kepada seorang penjual besi lama.. Kebanyakan penjual besi akan menjual semula jentera itu, tetapi penjual besi ini seorang yang bijak. Dia telah memanggil seorang pakar untuk mengkaji dan meneliti tanah tersebut. Pakar tersebut memberitahu bahawa memang terdapat simpanan emas besar di situ iaitu hanya 3 kaki sahaja dari tempat lelaki itu berhenti menggali!
     
             Penjual besi lama itu menjadi jutawan emas kerana dia meminta nasihat dari seorang pakar sebelum menyerah kalah. Pelombong emas yang malang itu telah belajar sesuatu yang penting... bahawa ilmu dan sikap tidak menyerah kalah adalah sangat penting dalam mengejar kejayaan. Dia juga akahirnya menjadi jutawan selepas melibatkan diri dalam perniagaan insurans. Dan dia tidak pernah lagi berputus asa.

MY RAMBUTAN TREE

This is my rambutan tree. To all of you who live outside the realm of  tropical heaven, rambutan literally means hairy fruit. Sweet and juicy. They are still unripe. We have to wait for another month before they are fully ripe. Then the colour of the rambutan will turn to fiery red.

         My nextdoor neighbour, Mrs. S is more excited than I am about the rambutan fruits. Her sister who came all the way from Riyadh makes my rambutan tree looks like some kind of a tourist attraction.

          I  also planted a cocout tree in my back garden. My mom forced me to plant this. She kept nagging me until I, the ever 'filial' daughter, grabbed  the hoe and planted the coconut sapling. Lo and behold after  a year and a half the tree started to produce coconuts. The problem is, this is a super coconut tree. It yields around 30 to 50 coconuts at one time! And it never stops fruiting. Now who is going to drink and eat these fruits?

          At first I did give many of the fruits to my neighbours but after a while it has become too cumbersome. Do you know how heavy a coconut is and how difficult to open one? Now my mom kept nagging me to cut down the coconut tree...

Assalamualaikum w.r.t. Anak lelaki saya baru pulang dari melawat rumah anak2 yatim di Paya Jaras. Dia pergi bersama-sama rombongan sekolahnya. Apa yang diceritakan kepada saya membuat airmata saya menitis...

      Salah seorang anak yatim itu mengajak kawan anak saya untuk tidur semalam di rumah tersebut. Kawan anak saya menjawab yang dia ada hal keesokan harinya. Seorang lagi anak yatim terus berkata,      
      "ala... mereka macam yang lain. Mereka tidak  akan datang lagi ke sini.."

       Sedihnya rasa hati mendengar kata2 begitu daripada mulut seorang anak yatim. Terasa sangat bersalah. Kita selalu memberi sedekah kepada rumah anak yatim. Tapi sebenarnya mereka bukan mengharap sangat duit yang kita derma. Mereka lebih menghargai kasih sayang yang boleh kita curahkan.
       
        Suatu peringatan terutama untuk saya. Pesanan daripada seorang pengerusi sebuah rumah anak yatim,
         "Janganlah pergi ke sana seperti melawat sebuah zoo."

AN EXTRAORDINARY WOMAN

This is a tribute to my sister. Today is my sister's birthday. Her name is Kamariah Haroon. She is 66. She is my eldest sister. More than 10 years ago, my sister suffered a massive heart attack. She survived but it left her with some physical disabilities.
         My sister had led a hard life. When my father passed away leaving my mother and eleven of us, my sister just started work as a teacher. My mom was a housewife, hence my sister had to take upon herself the responsibility of being the sole bread winner of the family. I was only three and my youngest sister was only one year old.The others were still schooling. At such a young age and with such a meagre income my sister had to sacrifice and struggle to get by.
         Despite all the adversities, my sister managed to further her studies in one of the prestigious university in Malaysia. Studying yet at the same time working as a teacher. Once she said she had only 10 cents in her pocket because almost all her money was given to my mother. I could not imagine how she must had felt. She overcame this and succeeded with an honors degree. 
          She went on to become a successful secondary school principal until she retired at the age of 55. Not long after that, she had the heart attack. Eventhough, she is constantly in pain, she still has the energy and vivacity to carry on with life. I wish I could diminish her sufferings and I wish I could pay back her sacrifice. But I could only say "THANK YOU KAK PAH FOR EVERYTHING..." May God bless you forever. HAPPY BIRTHDAY.

CERITA AYAM PANGGANG

Dengan nama Allah yg Maha Pemurah dan Maha Penyayang.


  Hari ini saya nak cerita tentang cerita kawan saya. Dia tinggal bersebelahan sebuah keluarga bukan Islam yang mempunyai anakk2 remaja. Pada tiap2 hari Jumaat keika ibubapa tiada di rumah, anak2remaja ini akan membuka muzik terlampau kuat hingga dia tak dapat mendengar apa yang dia sendiri cakapkan di rumahny.Hari Jumaat sengaja dipilih kerana mereka tidak suka mendengar alunan ayat2 al Quran dari masjid yang berdekatan.  Reaksi pertamanya biasalah bagi orang yang marah ialah untuk pergi ke rumah jirannya dan memarahi remaja2 itu. tetapi dia tahu kalau ikut kemarahan selalunya hasilnya adalah lebih buruk. Mungkin dia akan bermusuhan pula dengan ibubapa jirannya. Hidup pula tak tenteram nanti sakit pulak. Dan dia sedar juga yang mungkin dia telah tidak memberi contoh seorang Muslim yang baik.

       Tiba2 dia teringat sepotong ayat al Quran yang bermaksud "Tolaklah kejahatan dengan kebaikan.Apabila engkau berlaku demikian maka orang yang menaruh permusuhan terhadapmu,dengan serta merta akan menjadi seolah2 sahabat yang setia." Surah Fussilat: ayat 34.

        Oleh itu dia mengambil keputusan untuk berbuat baik pada anak2 remaja ini. Pada tiap2 hari Jumaat, dia akan memasak ayam panggang dan memberinya kepada anak2 jirannya itu. Alhamdulillah, sejak hari pertama dia memberi ayam tersebut anak2 jirannya tidak lagi membuka muzik dengan kuat.Dan anak2 ini lebih bersikap mesra dengannya dibandingkan dengan masa dulu.

         Kadang2 saya harap sikap ini diterapkan kepada setiap orang Islam. Bila kita menghadapi konflik dengan sesiapapun Muslim atau tidak, kita perlulh bersabar dahulu. Kemudian fikir adakah tindakan yang kita akan ambil berdasarkan kemarahan atau yang di ajari Islam. InsyaAllah jika kita praktikkan ayat 34 Al Fussilat bukan sahaja negara kita lebih aman malah dunia pun...

WHO IS THE CLEVEREST OF THEM ALL....

In the name of God the Benificient the Most Merciful.

 I was in a discussion with a few friends when we asked a friend who was so quiet to give her opinion. She said she didn't have any and said she's not that clever. That answer prompted me to tell her a story about a Professor and an old boatman. One day a prominent professor went to a jungle to do some scientific research. He had to cross a river and therefore had to hire a boatman. During the ride, the professor asked the old boatman,                                                                                                                'Old man! Do you know how to read?'
          
              The boatman said,'No, Sir...'
              
               'Arghhh... do you know, if you do not know how to read, half of your life is wasted' said the
               Professor arrogantly. The poor boatman kept quiet.

               'If you do not know how to read, I assume you do not know how to write. There goes half of
               of your life old man! You know, I have written so many books. It's a pity that you couldn't
               read any of them.' boasted the professor.

               The old boatman just kept quiet.

Suddenly, in the middle of the river the boat started to sink. The professor was panicky but the boatman was calm. The boatman asked the professor a significant question,
                'Sir, do you know how to swim?'

                'No, I definitely do not know how...' said the scared to death professor.

                'Then sir, ALL YOUR LIFE IS WASTED AND GONE NOW!' said the old boat man.

 The story teaches us that actually nobody is cleverer than anybody. Einstein is not absolutely cleverer than a sweeper on the street. There may be things that the sweeper knows better than him. Just keep this in mind when you're speaking to a cleaner or a professor...               
                                                                                          

Assalamualaikum w.r.t.  Saya nak ceritakan satu cerita lucu. Mungkin anda dah baca ttentangnya. ceritanya mengenai seorang kapten kapal yang sedang menerajui kapalnya di tgh laut. Tiba2 dia ternampak cahaya terang betul2 berada di laluan kapalnya. Dia dengan segera menghubungi kapal yang di hadapannya. "Tolong pusingkan kapal anda 10 darjah ke selatan" kata kapten kapal itu. Jawapan yang diberi mengejutkan beliau. "Anda hendaklah pusing 10 darjah ke selatan" jawab suara dari kapal lagi satu itu. Kapten kapal mula merasa tidak sabar,"Saya seorang kapten kapal besar. Andalah yang mesti pusing 10 darjah ke selatan!"   "Dan saya adalah pelaut yang berpengalaman!" kata suara itu lagi. Kapten kapal itu terus menjadi sangat marah dan menjerit,'SAYA SEORANG KAPTEN SEBUAH KAPAL PERANG YANG BESAR! PUSING 10 DARJAH KE SELATAN' Tetapi selepas mendengar jawapan daripada pelaut itu kapten dengan cepat memusingkan kapalnya ke arah selatan. Apa agaknya jawapan daripada pelaut itu? Jeng..jeng..jeng...   "Saya adalah sebuah RUMAH API!"

Hi, my name is Ita. I'm new at this. I chose hope coz everything we do need hope. Growing up without a father since I was three years old wasn't easy. living in poverty too was hard. but I had hope. hope carrried me through the years until I found success and happiness.