Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. ~Dr. Seuss
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Untitled 2
Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. ~Dr. Seuss
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
My Wish....for my son
I hope the days come easy and the moments pass slow,
and each road leads you where you want to go,
and if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose,
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
and if one door opens to another door closed,
I hope you keep on walkin' 'til you find the window,
if it's cold outside,
show the world the warmth of your smile,
more than anything, more than anything,
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
your dreams stay big, your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.
I hope you never look back, but ya never forget,
all the ones who love you, in the place you left,
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,
and you help somebody every chance you get,
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,
and you always give more then you take.
But more than anything, Yeah, and more than anything,
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it,
to your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it,
to your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.
yeah this is my wish o0o0o0o0o0o0
i hope you know somebody loves you
may all your dreams stay big
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Much ado about nothing...
I was clearing my phone sms when I found this. I got it when I was still in Mekkah...it's funny as hell when I first got it.
Big Bro : Assalamualaikum bro? Buat ape, dah start mengaji kat masjid ke?
Reza :W'salam. Mengaji? Dah..sikit-sikit
Big Bro : Dah sembahyang Qada, for all the waktu that u missed..
Reza : Belum..Thanks for reminding me..
Big Bro : Good, start doing it. Don't forget sembahyang sunat too. And don't sembahyang in yr hotel room, go and do jemaah.
Reza : OK, only once aje prayed in my room.
Big Bro : GOOD. Hv you managed to see any Iranian chicks yet..?? Hot babes, they wear sunglasses and tight jeans under their jubah...Oh LA LA. Check that out too bro..
Big Bro : Assalamualaikum bro? Buat ape, dah start mengaji kat masjid ke?
Reza :W'salam. Mengaji? Dah..sikit-sikit
Big Bro : Dah sembahyang Qada, for all the waktu that u missed..
Reza : Belum..Thanks for reminding me..
Big Bro : Good, start doing it. Don't forget sembahyang sunat too. And don't sembahyang in yr hotel room, go and do jemaah.
Reza : OK, only once aje prayed in my room.
Big Bro : GOOD. Hv you managed to see any Iranian chicks yet..?? Hot babes, they wear sunglasses and tight jeans under their jubah...Oh LA LA. Check that out too bro..
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Yasmin in the sky with diamonds...
This is my niece, Yasmin. She is 13 years old and plays the guitar. Her older brother, Hariz is in Liverpool studying medicine while older sis Diyana is doing law. The youngest Imran is still in school.
Didn't know she posted a youtube video until I visited my older sister for Raya and saw this.
For a kid playing the guitar under 2 years...she rocks..
Sunday, April 26, 2009
A Vigil
A call late evening, 2 days ago.
‘Tok Chik’ my wife stressed, ‘She is sick...very sick, you better come see her, tell your mom too’.
I called mom and together with my wife went to visit her a day later. I was feeling feverish from a day before but I had to go see my grandfather’s sister whom we affectionately called Tok Chik. We arrived at around 5pm to a semi large gathering of close relatives. My wife drove since she knew Shah Alam better than me. I owe her one.
After the customary handshakes and hand kissing, we proceeded into Tok Chik’s room. It’s downstairs near the living room. She lay with her eyes closed, the pillows and mattress propped up to support her semi upright position. She is sleeping, beside her on a pillow is a dark Hewlett Packard PDA on speakers playing Quranic verses, the sounds emanating from it seems to calm the nerves of the visitors especially me. I looked around her room; on her dresser I can see old pictures from bygone days and news paper clippings featuring her. I was attracted to a larger newspaper print in a DIY frame. It is about her and the Malaysian flag she helped made for our country independence. She was among the many prominent Johoreans whom helped Dato Onn Jaafar form UMNO and rally the Malay folks against Malayan Union. Tok Chik was a strong woman; she raised 5 of her kids almost single handedly after her husband passing. The matriarch before me is still strong at 82, the pain she is now enduring would make a grown up man like me crumble, that I am sure.
‘Tok’ my mom called out, ‘Tok Chik, nih Eton, Tok kenal lagi tak?’
She did not answer. I reached out to rub her hand, ‘Tok Chik’ I called. Her hands are cold probably from the air conditioning.
She opened her eyes briefly, she seems to acknowledge us and she went back to sleep. She is tired, we are told from the many visitors that come and go that day. L****, the second eldest daughter was with us the entire time. At 60 plus, she looks 40 and have the gusto of a 30 year old. All her daughters have that trait. They look younger than their age, outspoken, well educated, well travelled and looked upon themselves as equal if not better than their male counterparts. I have seen them dress down a male relative in a debate, you would want these girls on your side in an argument.
After that we adjourned to the living room for tea. As a normal custom in my family, there is a lot of food on the table, way too much food. I brought along lepat pisang, pisang goreng and a box of carrot cake from Secret Recepi. On the table there is pengat pisang, bread pudding, apom, cakes and fruits. The atmosphere in the room changed considerably. My wife started to serve me the bread pudding along with tea. She can read minds, I thought. The extra cream she put on my bread pudding confirmed the fact that she at least could read mine.
‘Mak dah cakap’ M****, the 3rd oldest daughter spoke in a joking tone ‘Mula-mula je sedih, nanti dah semua sedara mara datang, kecoh lah rumah’. M just came back from Perth where she works in the Malaysian Embassy. She told me that she is 57, but she looks a tad under 40.
None of them wore head coverings, like the many in my family which includes my 2 sisters but that hides the fact that these girls are religious and are competent in religion. They just don’t wear head covering because they don’t think it is necessary. They dress modestly and will tell you point blank that having a head covering does not make you a better Muslim and if you are smart, you better leave it at that. Many male relatives learned the hard way; I have no intention of making the same mistake.
B**, the 4th eldest was the host. She is a Professor and heads a campus for the preparations of students before the government sends them overseas to do medicine, engineering, business and other courses in UK, Germany, Middle East, India and Russia. She is also my wife’s big boss and at 52, she does not seem to be considering retirement. Joke around us is that she is an anak merdeka, she was born in 1957. Her mother was pregnant with her when she was sewing the merdeka flag and she was delivered about 42 days after Independence. These details were in the newspaper clippings in her mom’s room. Loud, boisterous and outspoken, she seems quiet today leaving her sisters to do most of the talking. I am not putting any money for this condition to continue however.
The conversation around the room spiral around plays (Les miserables, Cats), overseas trips, food stalls in Plaza Damas where they serve authentic Johorean mee rebus plus satay to the going ons in the family. It also went around religion.
‘I don’t understand nowadays why people say that it is prohibited to baca Yassin during visits and the practice to do 3 and 7 days of mourning’, one of the girls spoke ‘If cannot baca Yassin, what are we suppose to do then, just look around each other..?’ She continued ‘Anyway, I don’t understand their reasoning in these matters...whatever you call them’
‘Invention’ I spoke out ‘The people called these thing inventions because it was not done during the Prophet era’.
‘Yes’ my mom spoke out ‘but, we are not going against Islamic teachings by reading Yassin which is also from the Quran. People also criticized the kemenyan we burn with setanggi’
Kemenyan, is sort of an incense that Malays usually burn with setanggi which gives a nice smell. It is widely believed that setanggi will hide the smell of a corpse thus not subjecting the visitors to the smell of a dead body. The reason is a valid reason, but through time it has acquired a bad image through the bomoh and voo-doo practises which also uses kemenyan and setanggi. IMO, it is the same with perfumes, we use it to smell nice which is permitted. You can also use it to flaunt wealth, pick up men or other wrong factors which make it haram; it depends on your intention. Not everything is so clear cut. I remembered when I was studying years ago, the Muslim communities were so certain that perfumes are haram because it contains alcohol. Since I was chemistry major, I pointed out that even fruits contain alcohol but we can eat them so the reasoning that perfumes cannot be applied because it contains alcohol does not make sense. Alcohol for intoxification is wrong, not the alcohol itself. Alcohol is used since heydays to disinfect humans thus saving a great many lives, it is a noble substance. Muslim scholars would serve the community better by not commenting on issues they do not specialize in. It creates confusion.
The topic quickly changed to handbags, specifically Coach handbags. It seems that one of the sisters had a huge stash of handbags and purses she brought from the US where she is staying. My wife picked a cute purse and agreed to the price. I will be expected to contribute to the purchase, that I am sure and do willingly.
Conversations free flowed, guest intermingle like they know each other for years and food readily consumed. Everyone is truly relaxed. A few more visitors arrived, more handshakes and more food. My mom was busy taking M phone number in Australia; she planned to go there next October as according to M, it is spring then and the best time to travel. I met some nieces and nephews I have never seen in years. This is D’s daughter, someone said. The beautiful girl bent to kiss my hands, she looks older than 13, I retract before her lips met my hands like my late father usually do. Ohh, this is A, B’s daughter, someone else said, kiss your uncle’s hand. I just smile. Come over here I am told, meet your new nephews. On and on.
Soon it was time to leave. Before leaving, we bid Tok Chik goodbye. L was in the room completing the Asar prayers, M was next. Tok Chik was still sleeping, she looks strong. I am not surprised if she outlived some of her grandchildren. 2 children was playing outside, the younger one named Omar wore a Ben 10 shirt.
‘What do I call you...fire-starter? ‘I asked.
The kid looks perplexed.
‘Heat-Blast lah’ my wife corrected me, referring to many of Ben10 aliases. The kid smiled.
‘4 arms’ the kid said. ‘I wanna be 4 arms’.
Bye Tok, see you soon.
‘Tok Chik’ my wife stressed, ‘She is sick...very sick, you better come see her, tell your mom too’.
I called mom and together with my wife went to visit her a day later. I was feeling feverish from a day before but I had to go see my grandfather’s sister whom we affectionately called Tok Chik. We arrived at around 5pm to a semi large gathering of close relatives. My wife drove since she knew Shah Alam better than me. I owe her one.
After the customary handshakes and hand kissing, we proceeded into Tok Chik’s room. It’s downstairs near the living room. She lay with her eyes closed, the pillows and mattress propped up to support her semi upright position. She is sleeping, beside her on a pillow is a dark Hewlett Packard PDA on speakers playing Quranic verses, the sounds emanating from it seems to calm the nerves of the visitors especially me. I looked around her room; on her dresser I can see old pictures from bygone days and news paper clippings featuring her. I was attracted to a larger newspaper print in a DIY frame. It is about her and the Malaysian flag she helped made for our country independence. She was among the many prominent Johoreans whom helped Dato Onn Jaafar form UMNO and rally the Malay folks against Malayan Union. Tok Chik was a strong woman; she raised 5 of her kids almost single handedly after her husband passing. The matriarch before me is still strong at 82, the pain she is now enduring would make a grown up man like me crumble, that I am sure.
‘Tok’ my mom called out, ‘Tok Chik, nih Eton, Tok kenal lagi tak?’
She did not answer. I reached out to rub her hand, ‘Tok Chik’ I called. Her hands are cold probably from the air conditioning.
She opened her eyes briefly, she seems to acknowledge us and she went back to sleep. She is tired, we are told from the many visitors that come and go that day. L****, the second eldest daughter was with us the entire time. At 60 plus, she looks 40 and have the gusto of a 30 year old. All her daughters have that trait. They look younger than their age, outspoken, well educated, well travelled and looked upon themselves as equal if not better than their male counterparts. I have seen them dress down a male relative in a debate, you would want these girls on your side in an argument.
After that we adjourned to the living room for tea. As a normal custom in my family, there is a lot of food on the table, way too much food. I brought along lepat pisang, pisang goreng and a box of carrot cake from Secret Recepi. On the table there is pengat pisang, bread pudding, apom, cakes and fruits. The atmosphere in the room changed considerably. My wife started to serve me the bread pudding along with tea. She can read minds, I thought. The extra cream she put on my bread pudding confirmed the fact that she at least could read mine.
‘Mak dah cakap’ M****, the 3rd oldest daughter spoke in a joking tone ‘Mula-mula je sedih, nanti dah semua sedara mara datang, kecoh lah rumah’. M just came back from Perth where she works in the Malaysian Embassy. She told me that she is 57, but she looks a tad under 40.
None of them wore head coverings, like the many in my family which includes my 2 sisters but that hides the fact that these girls are religious and are competent in religion. They just don’t wear head covering because they don’t think it is necessary. They dress modestly and will tell you point blank that having a head covering does not make you a better Muslim and if you are smart, you better leave it at that. Many male relatives learned the hard way; I have no intention of making the same mistake.
B**, the 4th eldest was the host. She is a Professor and heads a campus for the preparations of students before the government sends them overseas to do medicine, engineering, business and other courses in UK, Germany, Middle East, India and Russia. She is also my wife’s big boss and at 52, she does not seem to be considering retirement. Joke around us is that she is an anak merdeka, she was born in 1957. Her mother was pregnant with her when she was sewing the merdeka flag and she was delivered about 42 days after Independence. These details were in the newspaper clippings in her mom’s room. Loud, boisterous and outspoken, she seems quiet today leaving her sisters to do most of the talking. I am not putting any money for this condition to continue however.
The conversation around the room spiral around plays (Les miserables, Cats), overseas trips, food stalls in Plaza Damas where they serve authentic Johorean mee rebus plus satay to the going ons in the family. It also went around religion.
‘I don’t understand nowadays why people say that it is prohibited to baca Yassin during visits and the practice to do 3 and 7 days of mourning’, one of the girls spoke ‘If cannot baca Yassin, what are we suppose to do then, just look around each other..?’ She continued ‘Anyway, I don’t understand their reasoning in these matters...whatever you call them’
‘Invention’ I spoke out ‘The people called these thing inventions because it was not done during the Prophet era’.
‘Yes’ my mom spoke out ‘but, we are not going against Islamic teachings by reading Yassin which is also from the Quran. People also criticized the kemenyan we burn with setanggi’
Kemenyan, is sort of an incense that Malays usually burn with setanggi which gives a nice smell. It is widely believed that setanggi will hide the smell of a corpse thus not subjecting the visitors to the smell of a dead body. The reason is a valid reason, but through time it has acquired a bad image through the bomoh and voo-doo practises which also uses kemenyan and setanggi. IMO, it is the same with perfumes, we use it to smell nice which is permitted. You can also use it to flaunt wealth, pick up men or other wrong factors which make it haram; it depends on your intention. Not everything is so clear cut. I remembered when I was studying years ago, the Muslim communities were so certain that perfumes are haram because it contains alcohol. Since I was chemistry major, I pointed out that even fruits contain alcohol but we can eat them so the reasoning that perfumes cannot be applied because it contains alcohol does not make sense. Alcohol for intoxification is wrong, not the alcohol itself. Alcohol is used since heydays to disinfect humans thus saving a great many lives, it is a noble substance. Muslim scholars would serve the community better by not commenting on issues they do not specialize in. It creates confusion.
The topic quickly changed to handbags, specifically Coach handbags. It seems that one of the sisters had a huge stash of handbags and purses she brought from the US where she is staying. My wife picked a cute purse and agreed to the price. I will be expected to contribute to the purchase, that I am sure and do willingly.
Conversations free flowed, guest intermingle like they know each other for years and food readily consumed. Everyone is truly relaxed. A few more visitors arrived, more handshakes and more food. My mom was busy taking M phone number in Australia; she planned to go there next October as according to M, it is spring then and the best time to travel. I met some nieces and nephews I have never seen in years. This is D’s daughter, someone said. The beautiful girl bent to kiss my hands, she looks older than 13, I retract before her lips met my hands like my late father usually do. Ohh, this is A, B’s daughter, someone else said, kiss your uncle’s hand. I just smile. Come over here I am told, meet your new nephews. On and on.
Soon it was time to leave. Before leaving, we bid Tok Chik goodbye. L was in the room completing the Asar prayers, M was next. Tok Chik was still sleeping, she looks strong. I am not surprised if she outlived some of her grandchildren. 2 children was playing outside, the younger one named Omar wore a Ben 10 shirt.
‘What do I call you...fire-starter? ‘I asked.
The kid looks perplexed.
‘Heat-Blast lah’ my wife corrected me, referring to many of Ben10 aliases. The kid smiled.
‘4 arms’ the kid said. ‘I wanna be 4 arms’.
Bye Tok, see you soon.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Tea or coffee..??
A mistake is to commit a misunderstanding - Bob Dylan
Son : Papa...what is sodomy..??
Me : What..!!
Son : Sodomy...what is it..??
Me : Where did you find the word..?? Is it from your friends..??
Son : No...from a magazine...
Me : What magazine..?? Spell the word for me...
Son : Sure...T-S-U-N-A-M-I
Son : Papa...what is sodomy..??
Me : What..!!
Son : Sodomy...what is it..??
Me : Where did you find the word..?? Is it from your friends..??
Son : No...from a magazine...
Me : What magazine..?? Spell the word for me...
Son : Sure...T-S-U-N-A-M-I
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Selamat Hari Raya 2008
I would like to wish all my family, relatives and friends...a wonderful Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
Mohon maaf zahir dan batin, semoga kita akan bertemu Ramadhan di tahun hadapan.
Indah langit kerana awan,
Indah laut kerana kebiruan,
Indah Ramadhan kerana keinsafan,
Indah Aidilfitri kerana kemaafan.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Sea Shell
Life is hard, we say. An oyster’s life is worse. She lives motionless, soundless, her own cold ugly shape her only dissipation ... - M.F.K Fisher
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sea Shell by Amy Lowell
Sea Shell, Sea Shell,Sing me a song,
O Please!A song of ships, and sailor men,
And parrots, and tropical trees,Of islands lost in the Spanish Main
Which no man ever may find again,
Of fishes and corals under the waves,
And seahorses stabled in great green caves.
Sea Shell, Sea Shell,
Sing of the things you know so well.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Words...(a true story)
Sometimes when I'm talking, my words can't keep up with my thoughts. I wonder why we think faster than we speak. Probably, so we can think twice - Bill Waterson, author of the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes
This happened while I was watching the film Collateral(2004) with my wife, Liza.
In the scene, Max(the cab driver played by Jamie Foxx) was forced to get the hit-list (the list of people about to get killed by Vincent-the assassin played by Tom Cruise) he lost from Felix(played beautifully by Javier Bardem).
The dark big room was behind a hispanic bar and full of gangsters, all keen to see the weirdo Max get killed while talking to the head honcho Felix.
Reza : Hold on...I missed the whole thing about the Santa Claus...I never heard about Pedro before. I rewind it back a little....
Liza (bewildered) : C'mon..it's not important...let's just watch the movie..
Reza : It will take just a few secs...
Liza : Pleaseeee...those are just wordss.....rewind it back when Tom Cruise is in the scene...
Reza : Wordsss..?? Boy, cat and flower are words. Those are not words..it's an inspiration. Those writers probably wrote and rewrote the script 20 times before we see it in it's final form. The scene probably took 15 takes. Have I ever said your Furla bag was just a BAG..? I wanna see it again. See...you made me missed it AGAIN....we could do this all night, you know...
Liza : Wake me up when you're done..
Reza : I think about it...
That was 6 months ago. I know women can be harsh...but we have since reconciled ;-)
For those who are interested in the script in question however...this is it...
FELIX: Do you believe in Humpty Dumpty?
MAX: No.
FELIX: Do you believe in Santa Claus?
MAX: No.
FELIX: Neither do I. But my children do. They are still small. But do you know who they like even better than Santa Claus? His helper, Pedro Negro. Black Peter. There's an old Mexican tale that tells of how Santa Claus got so very busy looking out for the good children that he had to hire some help to look out for the bad children. So he hired Pedro. And Santa Claus gave him a list with all the names of all the bad children, and Pedro would come every night to check them out. And the people, the little kids that were misbehaving, that were not saying their prayers, Pedro would leave a little wooden donkey on their windows. And he would come back and if the children were still misbehaving, he would take them away and nobody would ever see them again. Now, if I am Santa Claus and you are Pedro, how do you think jolly old Santa Claus would feel if one day Pedro came into his office and said, 'I lost the list.'? How F***ING FURIOUS do you think Santa Claus would get?!
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