Up High

When you are blamed for performance failure, what will you feel? Yes we need critiques to improve our self, but condemnation is something unbearable. Condemnation without data and evidence is more wounding.

As a responsible person we will ask, why and how that happen so that we can do some measure to rectify it back. We will do anything to make sure nothing like that will occur in the future. We ask for reason but we get none.

Action and event always speak louder than words. I don’t believe about that before but maybe I should believe it now.

We are feeder for a degree programme and yet when things get bad, they need a scapegoat. So I don’t have to explain, you know what will happen next.

But something happens which ease our ears that hear.

When the results been announced, there are six students that are honour with Vice Chancellor award. Four of them are from our institutions. Four out of six is more than 50%. Isn’t that too good to hear? Well I believe that we don’t have anything to regret and now we are enjoying the news.

Up high? That is the word to explain all!

Cycle of Life

Do you still remember Lion King? The story about the lost lion cub, Simba, searching the meaning of life and fight to claim his thrown as the only heir in animal kingdom. Simba fight to uphold tradition and sustain the true cycle of life.

The story today is not about fighting for rightful position (eventhough I'm thinking about it), but to tell you my family history to show that life is about a cycle.

The boy in uniform is the famous Tah Hong Ming. An actor which appear in Yasmin Ahmad's short film that shown in national TV again and again to promote 1Malaysia campaign (before the idea of 1Malaysia has been brought up by our Prime Minister). The boy in orange shirt is not so famous, Mohd Alif is my own nephew. They look alike ey? But we don't have any trace of lineage from Chinese family, so does Alif's mother. To have a nephew with Chinese look is quite cute and to add he always pretending that he have the smile of the famous Tan Hong Ming.

So my brilliant in IT brother and an artist (Alif's father) superimposed this picture to show how similar they are. I have to agree for what they said after seeing this picture.

How that can relate to cirlce of life?

Well, 30 years ago when my brother (Alif's father) was a young boy, at the same age of Alif he too have this Chinese look which is so unfamiliar among our siblings. Well, we have typical Malay looks with some additional of Arab flavour. Because of his looks, he was consistently teased by my uncle and aunt. They called my brother as Hai Hong. We do not know what is the meaning of Hai Hong, maybe what my uncle and aunt mean that, he looks like typical Chinese son, not from a Malay family. My brother on the other hand was so upset with this calling, Hai Hong. He felt that he was not belong to my family due to his unconventional looks.

Years past by.

His first born child is a son, and his name is Mohd Alif. He's too looks like typical Chinese boy. The ironi, the name of Tan Hong Ming.

Well, life is about a circle. We should uphold the tradition, so the world will be in harmonious balance right?

:)

p/s: I don't think Alif upset when we called him Tan Hong Ming. He seems to like it as Tan Hong Ming is so famous. Maybe he think he is famous too. Well, Alif is actually famous in our family, no doubt about it. And he share the same birthday date with our late father. After two years Alif was born, our father passed away. My father was born on 1932 and Alif's 2002. Looks like the cycle has begin. We pray that he will gain the same talent, intelectual capacity, good heart and true servant as our father, his granddad. InsyaAllah.

Honesty 2

Is it very hard to be honest this day?

Will honesty bring harm to person who want to engage with this moral attitudes?

Being honest, while others are not is suffering. To witness colleagues score in tests and exams with flying colour eventhough they don't deserve it is annoying.

So will those who honest will remain honest?

My friend always remind her students to think twice if they have guts to cheat. They get marks for the effort which they don't even do. In economic practice it is kind of riba' (rasuah) or in English term they call as usury.

What is riba' then?

Riba' is an act of sins, in Islamic tradition the sin has been group into 10 biggest sins.

But will people listen to this? No, they will not, because everybody in this whole world involve in riba' whether they realise about it or not.

But to think you will make a living from immoral act is kinda scary. To think you will give your wife and kids from your earning, that is nightmare.

I always reflect to elders whom have been given good life and happiness. They are not rich, but they live in traquility. Their children and grandchildren do well in their life. When I do simple research on how they can manage this, the keyword is to earn money from righful source. In Islam, rezeki yang halal.

Rezeki nowadays, that form your blood, circulate throughout veins and organs are not halal anymore. When there are a lot of news regarding abandon baby, that is actually curse to our society. When peoples are killed, rob and all of the misery that happen without we can ensure when all of this will end, that too is a curse. Why this happen? Because people now live from rezeki which is haraam.

My respected friend always regard cheating is an unmoral act. She condemn the act and to all who are please with it and consistently repeat the same act.

And she is a teacher.

To me, condemnation is justify to those who commit with this sin. The worst is yet to come when they give money from their earning to their parents, wife, children and family. The earning is not halal (if they fail to repent). They will be condemn by for those who strive with sincerity. The worst of all, they will be condemn by their teachers. Their teachers will not pray for them, will not please with them, will not approve their knowledge to them.

We need a better society to live in. You need a better society for your children and grandchildren to live in. To start, be sincere to yourself, friends and your teachers. That will bring justice to all.

Don't even talk about how bad the world you live in right now, if you just can't be sincere to yourself.

Don't let your teacher condemn you, you will never succeed, here and hereafter.

The worst, don't let you future wife and childrens condemn you, for the reasons they don't know, but you on the other hand knew it very well.

Just be honest.

(gambar diambil dari warung diskusi, Diskopi)

Honesty

A time ago, during my study years, I’ve been advised by my lecturers and teachers to honour myself.

I asked them, “How can I do that?”

Then they said, “Never ever cheat during your test and exam.”

Well, I take that advised literally. I struggle to maintain good result while witness my colleague cheating and telling other out loud what they are doing.

Ironically, they got excellent result during test but never in final exam. That event depressed me because I can’t ever bring good mark for my carry mark. I always comparing myself with my colleague results, how foolish I’m to be so naïve (square) when everybody cheats without any guilt. And yet they score with flying colours (for carry mark but never in final exam).

“Is this justice?” That was the question during that time.

But the problem is, I’m too obliging with my lecturers’ advice. At the same time I’m questioning myself is it worth it? How in the earth being truthful to our self will bring honour and respect? Despite, my friend will always praise those who scores, not those who being honest.

One day, I met with my former teacher and having a good conversation with him. Then I asked him, how we can honour our self by not cheating in exam, while other doing it with pleasure. I’m asking him about justice.

He smile and said, “Justice not always have to be materialized.”

My face puzzled. “Enlighten me, Sir.”

“Well, your teacher always knows what are you doing even though they seem don’t bother. They always know who being honest and so who is doesn’t.”

He paused which make me impatient.

“Well, teachers they know. And they also recognize their student who being honest have the same set of question without being able to get the answer. I will tell you the answer…”

He paused again which make me more intolerant.

“After the day off when they prays everyday, day in day out, at least five time a day, your teacher will stretched their palm wide and pray. They will pray to God to bless their student who being honest to themselves, to their teachers, to their friends, and give them good life here and hereafter.”

“Have they not pray to other as well?”

He smiled, “Yes they do.”

“So, what is the different?

“The day when you meet with your teacher or lecturer again maybe five or ten years later, when you greet them they will start to recall your face. When they remember, you will never want them to have remark in their heart, “Owh, this is the student who cheats in tests 5 years ago (or 10 years ago). If this happen, you know what, you are actually being cursed. Your live have been cursed by a teacher.”

“Will all teacher remember?”

“Yes, they do."

"How about for those who being sincere?"

"When they meet you, they recognised your face and witness how well you're doing right now, he will extended his prayer and said, "Oh God, pleased blessed him/her, I'm approving my knowledge to him/her. I asked you now, is this justice?”

I nodded, agree with him. Knowing that, the prayers of teachers have magical effect to their students. I simply agree. I now know why my friends are not doing well out there. I now know. And agree, justice not always have to be materialised.

People ask me, why I just don't write things that closer to my heart and my life. I said, I just don't, simply because the are a lot of sadness that resided there. And it just won't help, if my brother read and witness my broken heart, alas weaknesses inside me.

So, I decided to keep smiling, while the tear falling secretly. Yes, I have decided.

I have only one brother, my precious, which will not fail from my rememberance and dua'. He too, despite his young age, experiences the saddest experiences in our life, the loosing of our love one(s). Not one, but one by one, even we still need their accompany and advises.

I just keep praying he will not always have to stand the heartache watching things falling, but life simply not always be what we always wanted them to be.

But I can't tell him that right? I should always tell him that this life is full of hope. When the night came, it will always have a new day. When it rain, the sunshine will appear and bring along the rainbows.

But I always wanted to tell him one thing.

I will tell him to love. To always keep it in mind, in his heart. So that he will always see life in colours and soothing symphony. Even that love betrays, don't make yourself drowned. But find ways to float again and again. One day, you will find the ultimate love. Then you will thankful for what ever happen to you, because everything will be counted.

And that counting will not betray you.

Just be thankfull and redha, insyaAllah, the happiness is there.

Matching Idiom with Malay Peribahasa 2

Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder
Hanya jauhari yang mengenal manikam



photo: man and landscape, which one is the beauty :)

Matching Idiom with Malay Peribahasa 1

It takes two to tango

Tepuk sebelah tangan tidak berbunyi

:)

(photo: Debab's after eat, good post ey?)