Maryam’s Musings

The woman whom my mother grew up with (besides my late grandmother) died of old age on Wednesday, 16 January. Ah Mak, as we fondly call her, drew her last breath in front of all her children at about 11.20 p.m. She was 107 years old. 

 My whole family, including my two kids, went to pay our last respects on Thursday night. Mak was so devastated and she cried almost uncontrollably. Personally, I have never seen her like that before. When Opah passed away, I was overseas studying so I couldn’t imagine how she had reacted. But I truly understand her situation. Ah Mak practically took care of her since she was still small while my Opah was busy working to make a living. I think it was Ah Mak and her late husband who paid who her schooling, up until she went to the Teachers’ Institute. Although she was Chinese, it did not matter to them that we are Muslims.  May Allah grant Mak the strength to move on. 

Saturday 19 January was my mother’s 63rd birthday and my husband’s 30th birthday. At first, I had planned to call some of Mak’s close friends to celebrate it at our house. But, Mak was still  grieving over the death of Ah Mak. After much arguing (as usual!) finally, we decided to have dinner at Krom Luang Restaurant in Ipoh. It was my first time there. It wasn’t too bad at all.  The food was good and the ambiance was …well,  just nice.  I bought Abang a book for his birthday. He is so into reading thriller novels nowadays. I am beginning to wonder why. 

Anyway, I have lots more to update. Will do so when I find the time..

My husband’s officemate got married yesterday. The reception was held in a small town called Parit. (Actually, Parit is where my dad was born and raised.) It was a simple and nice wedding. (And nice food too!) Unfortunately, we had to leave early without saying hello to the newlyweds as my kids were getting restless in the hot sun.  

Anyway, we decided to drive along my dad’s kampong on the way home. I knew that my late grandparents’ home had been demolished as there was no one living there ever since they passed away. When I approached the ‘home’, or land – I felt a certain awkwardness. I had tears in my eyes. I tried to recall the happy times I had with my grandparents. When we actually got there, it was just too much for me to handle. There was practically nothing left. Not even a single wood or brick or even signs that there had been a house there before. That was the house that I used to frequent in my childhood. I felt even worse when I thought about how my granddad had built the house on his own – time, money, energy – all for his nine children. It was really sad to see all that effort put to waste. Not that we can blame anyone for it.  We didn’t even stop the car. My kids couldn’t stop asking me why I was crying.  

About one km away from the land, were my grandparents’ graves. We dropped by and read Fatihah for them. By this time, my vision was nearly blurred because of the tears.  What would it be for me and my other half 20 years from now?

Hmm.. Exactly two month since my last posting. I wanted to write, in fact there were so many things I wanted to talk about.. but I just couldn’t. My life was in a turmoil for the past two months. The excitement of the new job and a new boss, the sadness of leaving the previous job, the death of a dear friend.. sometimes I felt as if there was too much to handle..

But Allah is great.. I am still standing strong. I am getting used to my new job and, I still spend some time to help my previous department.

My husband has been extremely supportive.. and my darling daughters have been understanding, especially when mama has to work late nights!

I think I definitely deserve that long break. I needed it. We needed it. We had a fun time with the kids. My twins, as usual, attracted too many comments from the public that we decided that it was a bit too much. I mean, anywhere we went, it was like, “Are those twins?” “Kembar yer?” “They look exactly the same” “They look like their father”. Allah… Thank you for this beautiful gift!

The visit to the zoo was enjoyable. My kids had so much fun running around that towards the end of the visit, they suddenly decided that they are too tired to walk. So, my husband and I had to carry them. Now, that really made us tired since each of them weighs almost 16 kgs! The funny part was when we watched the multi-animal show. The orangutan was so clever, and when it waved goodbye, my twins couldn’t resist shouting “Bye Bye Monyet” (Bye Bye Monkey) loudly - and that really caught everyone’s attention.

But then, Aquaria was a different story altogether. If you have not been, you should. No, you must. It was incredible. I even feel that it is better that Sydney Aquarium and definitely better than Underwater World Langkawi. You can see Allah’s creation around you! Magnificent!

I enjoyed myself too much I guess.. and I now I am not in the mood to work…

It does take a while to get over the loss of a loved one. I have been keeping busy, but once in awhile, the visions of him keep coming back to me.

Today is already the 13th of September. How time flies! Currently, we are tight up with the preparation for the upcoming event. Everyone seems to be so busy. It should be a fun time for the whole family, considering that we have to spend so much for it. Mind you, it has been a while since we’ve had something like this take place. Everyone is looking forward to the event.. happening!!!

Anyway, they have planned for some games. The whole group will be divided into 4 teams, and they have given some really lousy names for it! Shucks!!! I have always hated racing. And I just don’t feel like part of the team. McLaren? BMW? Yikes! They should have gone for something like Barney or BJ or Baby Bob… (God, my twins have been watching Barney every second and I am beginning to sound as if I like it too!!!!!)

And the theme song keeps hovering over my head… Barney is a dinosaur from our imagination….. lalalala….

Help!!!!!