Maryam’s Musings

Can you believe how time flies? It is May already!

The controversy over the immediate transfer of Datuk Jamry Sury by my Amirul Mu’minin Dato Seri Ir Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin was considered settled after the state government was forced to reinstate Datuk Jamry to his position. Sad to say that the joy over the initial news of the transfer was shortlived. A lot of friends couldn’t understand why I hated… no, disliked, Datuk Jamry. Well, my answer to them is, it is not that I hate or dislike him, I just don’t think he should lead a religious organization with his well-known ‘samseng’ character. For people who know him, or have worked with him would understand what I am trying to say. I think he would be a good leader in other departments, but not Jabatan Agama Islam Perak! The first time I worked with him for a project (alhamdulillah, it was the last one too), I had the shock of my life! How can a person with this character carry the image of Islam? Nevertheless, I still have to respect the decision of Tuanku. But I sincerely hope that some good would come out of all this.

I was just discussing with my friend the other day about how Ir Nizar is facing so many challenges at the moment. Every single thing that he does is news. I pray that he is careful in whatever he is doing or saying, and that Allah protects him all the time. The Perak Opposition team is not making things easy for him either (well, that is their job!). Of course, as one of my other friend stated, the closer you are to Him, the more tests and tribulations you will face. True enough, the controversies are just neverending. And, my heart goes all out to him.

Anyway, last week, I came across a nice homeschooling blog here – and I found many tips and tricks on activities to do with your children at home. We started out with finger painting on Saturday and the twins were surely happy with the entire process and of course, the results!

But, where do we go after that? Do we say sorry and forget things? Forget the argument that you just had? In your next unplanned argument, would you start reminding your spouse that he or she had hurt you with those words before? Or do you work so hard to make things work in your marriage that you sacrifice your own happiness? And then you think to yourself, when is all this ever going to end?

I found a helpful article from the Young Muslims of Australia on Adab within the Muslim Family. It outlines six tips for discussions and agreements:  

Life is about sacrifices. Being married is to love, and to give. Because, loving is about giving. And in giving, how we give is more important than how much we give. And love still counts….

The Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair 2008 was held last week.

I was in Kuala Lumpur for a meeting on Friday, and I managed to squeeze in two hours to visit the fair. My kids had to ‘ponteng’ tadika because I wanted to bring them along with me. Naughty mom!

Anyway, I bought the following books on Rasulullah and his Sahabah which I had been eyeing for some time:

  These are the novels:

And these are the motivational and self-help books:

I also bought Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat Unplugged 1 – which contains some speeches and writeups by my beloved Tok Guru.

I hope these books will last me until 2009 KLIBF. I still have a few more books that I had purchased earlier that I need to read!!!

Happy reading to me!

This was the first time in the history of Perak that our stadium was filled up with THAT many people (photo courtesy of utusan.net). Some estimated the number to be 50,000 and some estimated 70,000. You be your own judge!

Anyway, proud to say that I was part of that history. Although I managed to listen to only Dr Hasan Ali and YB Nga Kor Ming, it was a lifetime experience. The earlier plan was that the kids would stay with mom. It was a bit too risky to bring them, considering the number of people that would attend the session. But mom wasn’t too well that night, so we decided not to go and instead bring the kids for a ride around the stadium, just to get a feel of the ‘heat’. Alhamdulillah, Allah is great. We found a parking space, just right in front of one of the doors. We made a quick decision to stop, jumped out of the car, and went straight into the stadium.

It was around 9.00 p.m. when we made our way into the stadium. At that time, the seats and the field were half-filled. I was quite frustrated then, because I thought that at least the seats would be filled-up. But then, over the 2 hours while I was there, more people kept walking in. And what I thought was the most interesting thing was to see Chinese and Indians filling up the stadium as well! Malaysians from all walks of life!!! In fact, we were sitting next to a Chinese couple who were discussing on the speeches with another Malay couple. This is the end of racial politics created by Barisan Nasional!!

Anyway, we had to leave at 11.00 because the kids were getting restless. I think they got tired of screaming, because everytime my husband and I screamed, they followed. It was funny. They kept asking us, “mom, dad, why are you screaming?” and my husband would say, “just scream!”.

When I saw the photo posted by utusan.net, I was stunned. Masya Allah!

Yes, it is time for change!

MAKKAL SAKHTI!!!!!!

I have always been a PAS supporter, but I have never known Ir. Nizar personally. But ever since he was appointed the Menteri Besar of Perak Darul Ridzuan, I have often heard of so many good stories about him (e.g. he is intelligent, he can speak Mandarin etc).

Last night, I had the chance to hear him talk. Not in person, but I watched a VCD that was passed to me by my dad’s good friend. (Thank you Tok Megat!) It was a session between him and the leaders of the kampungs (JKKK) in Perak which was held at SUK.

Masya Allah! I was stunned!

He is just AMAZING. He is extremely articulate, and extremely convincing. Most impressive is the way he relates every single issue that he mentions to a particular verse in the Quran. He talked about how we should accept the taqdir of Allah, how Allah created us so that we can get to know each other (taaruf), about being amanah, about how iman and jihad go hand-in-hand.

I am thankful that Allah has given us a leader that can lead the Muslims and non-Muslims – and I pray that Allah gives him the strength to fulfill his duties. I am so proud to be in Perak!

YB Ir Nizar, I salute you!

Kuala Terengganu is a very peaceful city. I was there just last week for four days on business, and without my kids or husband! Nevertheless, staying at Primula Parkroyal was just heavenly. I could see the South China Sea from my hotel bedroom window. It was just so calming, so serene. The only most frustrating thing for me was that I left my camera behind! Ouch! I had to make do with my handphone camera, which didn’t turn out so bad. Alhamdulillah. But I really hope to go back there one day. 

The food…. Fuh! Unbelievable! The keropok lekor that we had at Teluk Ketapang made me go crazy!!!! 

I managed to visit the extremely-expensive-but-beautiful-and-controversial Crystal Mosque on one of the evenings after work, and did my Zuhur-Asr prayer there. It wasn’t 100% complete so I couldn’t actually enter the site where they built the replicas of world’s famous mosques. I could only view them from afar – they are quite impressive actually.  Regardless, I still like the ‘old and traditional’ Floating Mosque (Masjid Terapung). The feeling was just different. Just watching the Floating Mosque brought tears to my eyes. I didn’t feel that way when I was in the Crystal Mosque though. I wish I could explain why… 

Anyway, I ‘stumbled’ upon the newly-appointed MB of Trengganu who was also staying at the same hotel. He was on the way to the airport to receive the Tuanku who came down from KL. He looked quite calm on the outside, but Allah knows what is in his heart! If I were him, I don’t think I can trust the 22 elected Wakil Rakyats whom were so against his appointment in the first place. Funny how people can change within a few days. Really. One minute you are saying, no, I will not agree and I will resign from my post if you select him. But after another minute, yes, I agree that you appoint him. Can one of you really prove your stand, please?

Things in the 5 states are getting better. Our leaders just today, announced the formation of a formal alliance, most likely to be named Pakatan Rakyat. Cool, huh? I am sure they will work hand-in-hand for a better Malaysia. The combination of Tuan Guru Haji Hadi, Anwar Ibrahim and Lim Kit Siang is just perfect. And add Kak Wan Azizah to the team – more perfect than perfect! Good Luck Barisan Nasional – I am sure you will have a tough time in the Parliament!

The younger twin was down with fever for the past few days. On the second visit to the doctor last Tuesday, he advised us to do a blood test. He suspected her of DENGUE! My heart almost stopped. Allah! 

So the next day, Wednesday, we took her to the hospital. My husband couldn’t get the day off so I had to bring my mom along. Alhamdulillah, all praises are due to the Lord of this Universe, Allah s.w.t. The blood test was negative. The fever was due to a viral infection. The best part was when I took her into the small room where the blood sample was to be taken. My mother and the elder twin was waiting outside, praying and crying. I was hugging her in the room, also crying. But this little 4+-year old girl, did not even shed a tear. I hugged her over the whole process, told her repeatedly that it would only hurt a bit, and told her that the pain would go away, and repeatedly read “Bismillah”. She was extremely cooperative and even the nurse (a guy nurse!) who sampled her blood said Alhamdulillah as she didn’t move even a cm! I was so proud of her! 

Anyway, when we left the room, the elder twin was waiting outside crying. She was praying so loudly, “Allah, please save my little sister!” And that made me cry again, I cried so hard!  It is really amazing seeing them together. One minute they are fighting over who gets to get out of the car first or who finishes her milk first.. and now, they are so close, that the hurt one feels is felt by the other. This is the beauty of Allah’s creation!

I am glad everything is over. Adik is getting much better, and she already went to school on Friday. Kakak has been so helpful and being ever ready to take care of adik.

And I, on the other hand, am now struggling to submit my PhD proposal… please pray for me!!

The 12^th General Elections concluded last Saturday with shocking results. I was just too busy celebrating the past few days to update my blog! Alhamdulillah, Allah has heard our prayers. Although I am quite disturbed by the fact that the PAS candidate at my place lost by a mere 348 votes, I am thankful to Allah for all His blessings. As Ustaz Hasrizal mentioned in his blog, each vote that we cast for the opposition - well, we are not opposition anymore, we hold 5 states! - will bring down their extraordinary arrogance down!!!!!  

However, although all the other states have basically ‘settled down’, Perak is still trying to form a government. There have been all sorts of rumours and stories going around – DAP didn’t agree on Ir Nizar, PKR thought they had no seats when they have been allocated 2 exco positions, UMNO leaders trying to ‘buy over’ the PKR candidates, UMNO members wanting to join PAS, the Sultan wanted Lim Kit Siang to apologize – etc, etc. I just do not know what to believe anymore. But sincerely, I pray for the best for this state. The opposition, i.e. we, have gone THIS far. I mean, seriously, who’d ever thought that BN would fall? I kept telling all my friends, we aim to increase our say in the Parliament and we don’t wish to take over at all. But, although we planned, Allah is the best planner afterall!

I hope that the leaders get a concensus fast, appoint the MB and get to work. There is so much that we need to do, and so much wrong done by the BN government that we need to correct and rectify. Who becomes the exco is just a small matter. The rakyat have voted and we want to see our leaders working hand-in-hand to ensure that justice is done. 

The best part in Perak is, we have the most learned Sultan Azlan (the most learned judge ever in Malaysia) and the most brilliant Regent (who holds a PhD from Harvard!). Therefore, the appointment of Ir Nizar who has a strong educational and professional background – will make everything complete!

I was in Kangar over the weekend on a job assignment. It was my first time there. And with elections just around the corner, the roads were filled up with flags from the different parties/coalition. My favourite ustaz, Dato Dr Harun Din will be contesting for the Arau parliamentary seat. I was just reading the Harakah this morning and saw the photo of Harun Din with his brother, Ishak Din and Abu Hassan Din during nomination day!

 Anyway, on the way here, I heard a ‘ceramah’ on radio. This particular ustaz (not sure who he is) was trying to explain why all parties are equal. As long as they are striving for Islam, then we should support them. I laughed. Idiot! I thought. I am clear that PAS strives for Quran and Sunnah, but UMNO? Hello?? I seriously thought he was out of his mind. Has UMNO done anything for Islam except make people confused about it with Islam Hadhari? Do the leaders of UMNO follow Islamic teachings? The Hijab for example. What about integrity? What about honesty? The PM himself told a blatant lie just one day before the Parliament was dissolved! And, any efforts from them to uphold the syariah law? Or hudud? They don’t even respect the ulama’ – look what happened to Almarhum Ishak Baharom! And yet this ustaz is claiming that they are the same. May Allah protect all of us from being blinded from the truth! And the current PM whom everyone seemed to be so proud of – is the son and grandson of the ‘ulamas who actually founded PAS!

 Subhanallah. I pray that Allah guides me all the time.

 I have another story to share. Before we left for Kangar on Friday, my husband and I had breakfast at our favourite Kuay Teow Kicap stall. There were just too many people when we arrived. And obviously there were no empty seats left. So we waited behind the table of an elderly couple who were about to finish. Suddenly, they invited us to sit. We did. We had a chat. They were going to the Land Office. Had breakfast at their favourite place. Both were pensioners. And the conversation went on and on. When they stood up to leave, the husband actually paid for our food. We were stunned. Masya Allah.

 So, lesson learnt. There are still many good people out there. May Allah reward them for their generosity!

After two weeks of preparation and hardwork, I finally presented the policy to the Management Committee yesterday. Alhamdulillah, everything went extremely smoothly despite the fact that my ex-boss asked really hard questions which I had trouble answering. And Alhamdulillah also, I think it was because I made it a point to wake up that morning to pray Solat Hajat. Allah listens, always! The next step would be to present the policy to the final approving body, the Board of Directors, which would be next month. Insya Allah, I will work and pray hard to make it go as planned, Amin. It took us almost one year to complete the project! 

Anyway, just before I left for home yesterday evening, I had another unexpected surprise. That ex-boss (who was being difficult in the morning) called me to apologize for making things hard for me in the morning! Apologize!!! Subhanallah. The fact was, I was not offended in any way with his questions. I understood his point of view, and I am willing to make the necessary changes to ensure that we get the best deal. But he called. TO APOLOGIZE!! Imagine my surprise.

My reflections on this: when you are ‘up there’, holding high positions in an organization, never forget where you come from. That would keep you humble always! Afterall, you are only a servant of Allah!

History: This ex-boss of mine used to be an extremely difficult person to work with. He used to be the second man in the organization. He is such a perfectionist that even a missing ‘e’ in a word would make him question your capability! But I worked with him for 6 years, and I learnt so much for him. In fact, I thanked him for being that way because he taught me many things. He made you think before taking an action or saying anything for that matter. He would guide you, and he is a strong believer that if you make a mistake once, that’s acceptable, but not the second time!

Nevertheless, after about 8 years being a boss to everyone, he was ‘brought down’ from his position, and he returned to his original profession. What I notice is that he has changed so much ever since. He has become much nicer, humbler, understanding and most importantly, respectful of others. I mean, HIM apologizing? Wow! That is almost out of question two or three years ago! Alhamdulillah.. every thing that happens is always a blessing from Allah!