The Reader

Caring for parents

A saying goes around that a mother can take care of seven children but not the other way around. When parents get older,it is not easy to manage them because they don't listen to their children who take care of them even though their children are already grandfathers and grandmothers. From my experience we need to be very patient with them.

We can't give as much time as they gave to us when we were children but we MUST allocate time for them-may be 2 or 3 days in a month but FULL of LOVE.

Dan Tuhanmu telah perintahkan, supaya engkau tidak menyembah melainkan kepadaNya semata-mata, dan hendaklah engkau berbuat baik kepada ibu bapa. Jika salah seorang dari keduanya, atau kedua-duanya sekali, sampai kepada umur tua dalam jagaan dan peliharaanmu, maka janganlah engkau berkata kepada mereka (sebarang perkataan kasar) sekalipun perkataan "Ha", dan janganlah engkau menengking menyergah mereka, tetapi katakanlah kepada mereka perkataan yang mulia (yang bersopan santun). (Al-Israa' 17:23) | <Embed> | English Translation 

Yes,it is just NOT caring but loving them...

Sent by DiGi from my BlackBerry® Smartphone

Above the clouds

The sea of white clouds made me feel like travelling on another planet....
Sent by DiGi from my BlackBerry® Smartphone

Thank you,Allah!

Today is my 34th wedding anniversay.Time really flies....Now,I have 3 sons and a daughter-in-law.No grandchildren yet but looking forward to it in not too distant future.Two of my kids are already working and the youngest has just entered a university a few kilometres from my house to do civil engineering like his daddy.

First and foremost,let me say my thanks to Allah for this long and blissful life and to my partner-my dear loving and caring wife,Norina for being with me through highs and lows,thicks and thins.First,we started living with our parents ,then we lived on our own and when we got married,we lived with our wives and children.Two of my three sons are now living on their own and in a few years time,it is my wife and me.That is the cycle of life...

To young parents with small children,I know it is very taxing and hectic to manage work and family but take time to enjoy the chaotic fun.When you are in your 50's and 60's like me,you will wish you have more children than you had.

One advantage of living longer lives is we may have deeper knowledge as we get 'meaning of things' over time.Experience upgrade our level of wisdom,insyaAllah.

A few of my friends died before they are 50 and a few had divorces in less than 20 year of married lives.I am very lucky and again,I thank you Allah for your rahmah on me and my family.

Eating out..

Have you seen any restaurants open 24 hours in other countries than Malaysia?Very seldom! In my country Malaysia,we can see every where Mamak Shops advertisements that they are OPEN 24JAM(HOURS).People are eating every where..day or night!I could not deny if someone were to say that eating is our Malaysian pastime!Some even dared to say that no Malaysians has died due to starvation but due to eating too much.

I am now living in Bandar Baru Bangi(BBB) where UKM(National University) is located.BBB is also called Bandar Ilmu(town of knowledge).Yes, I believe we have more educated people here per square km compared to other towns but we have many,many restaurants.I would love to call it Bandar Kaki Makan(town of great eaters).I have yet to see a proper bookshop but we do have a few stationery shops.For my reading needs,I have to go to MPH at Alamanda, Putrajaya or Kinokuniya at KLCC.

I am not talking about others but about me who loves to eat.When my mother complained yesterday  that I eat too much I told her I cycle 3 times a week.What excuses can I give.From now onwards,I must eat less or if I still crave to put something into my mouth,I must add more fruits and vegetables.The photo above is one such example.

Eating out is one of the culprits that make me eat a lot.There are so many that seduce you to eat and many of us just can't say no!We eat, and eat and get fat in the middle.If you don't believe what I said now,just look down and see that extra 10 or 20 kg hanging  right in front of you and me.

So,what shall we do?I am not qualified at all to offer any advice to anyone.I am guilty as charged!When my mother made a remark yesterday about my eating,I must take note to do something about it.Old habits die hard-so I must modify my bad eating habit to a better one by eating less portion and change the menu to healthier food and drinks.What says you?

Note on photo: Taken at Tarbush,Ampang Point.

Obedience is an act of worship!

Be warned...if we obey our nafs..Please ponder on this ayat:

Dengan yang demikian, bagaimana fikiranmu (wahai Muhammad) terhadap orang yang menjadikan hawa nafsunya: tuhan yang dipatuhinya, dan ia pula disesatkan oleh Allah kerana diketahuiNya (bahawa ia tetap kufur ingkar), dan dimeteraikan pula atas pendengarannya dan hatinya, serta diadakan lapisan penutup atas penglihatannya? Maka siapakah lagi yang dapat memberi hidayah petunjuk kepadanya sesudah Allah (menjadikan dia berkeadaan demikian)? Oleh itu, mengapa kamu (wahai orang-orang yang ingkar) tidak ingat dan insaf? (Al-Jaathiyah 45:23) | <Embed> | English Translation 

Just reflect on our past lives..how many times we had obeyed our nafs and neglected the commands of Allah swt!May Allah forgive me and all of us who had transgressed the borders of obedience and come back to obey and to worship ONLY Allah.

New sandals..

Less than two years ago,I bought a pair of sandals from Clarks.Lately,I could not locate them when I want to wear my sandals.Later I found out that one of my sons has taken the liberty to wear them whenever he does not wish to wear  his shoes.

As a father,I am a bit strict on the proper shoes to wear for my kids.I told my boys to wear socks and leather shoes whenever they attend any official functions or event.Typical men wear boring business shirts and trousers/pants.To make a difference,I believe men must wear good ties and good shoes.

My favourite footwear when I go out for leisure with my family and friends,I usually wear sandals.Two particular brands that I like-Clarks and Hush Puppies.They cost a few hundreds but I buy when they are on sale except for Clarks-very seldom.Most of the time,we only can get 10% discount.Nothing great at all..

As I mentioned a few times,at my age,safety and comfort come first.That is why again and again I kept buying Clarks as shown above-where every step is a joy to walk!

 

Mee bandung

Last night I told my friend Saifuddin that his family restaurant-Nim's Little Island hidden in Taman Sg.Ramal,Kajang(but closer to Bandar Baru Bangi Seksyen 8) sells the best mee bandung.I always order Mee bandung Muar Special.This one [shown on the right] is as good and at times better than what I eat even at Muar!

If you are in Klang Valley or Putrajaya and crave for it,I recommend this dish.By the way,my view may be a bit biased because the restaurant owner is my school mate and riding buddy;-)

Oh one more thing,the Ceria drink goes well with this mee bandung.

Public surveillance?

This photo was taken at the back fo Masjid Sultan Mizan,Putrajaya.It has a camera and a loudspeaker.The location is well lighted at night.It is my favourite place to do my warm up before I go cycling or walking.Why?The sounds of waterfall nearby is music to my ears..

Some people think this is an act of intrusion into people privacy.I agree when everyone behave properly but considering the global indecent behaviours ,thefts and vandalism,I agree to have more of these surveillance equipments.We can save a lot of millions if everyone believe and fear God,but for the moment we have to have these 'eyes' all over the place.

What do you think?

Tourists at Putrajaya

I am very pleased to see busloads(exceeding 10) everyday that came to Dataran Putra next to Masjid Putra.Glad to see the majority of them went inside the Masjid Putra for sightseeing especially those from the Middle East.I also noticed that a lot of Chinese visitors came for breakfast at the Souq  and watching them eating roti canai with udang galah is fun.The mamak shop owner smiles everyday on his way to the bank!

From my experience as a tourist,stopping for one hour at scenic spots and going around the city by bus only let me see the tip of the iceberg of the city.To really enjoy and see the city,one has walk or cycle around the city in order to see more..

We need to live each moment..

As I grow older,it seems that the clock is moving faster...so I must be healthy enough to catch up with my breath and live every moment of my life.As they say,the past is memory but real and the future is virtual until we come to it.So let us live in the present-for the moment(the pun is intended).That is why it is called the present-a gift from The Lord of all Universes-Allahu Rabbul 'Alamin.

via adib.typepad.com

The time of our lives just flows like the water in the river...If we just sit besides the river and not doing any "fishing",we are sure not to get any fish. However,if we throw a line,we may get some fish or  nothing at all but at least we have some fun going fishing...Similarly with our lives.To my peers,55 is not to stop working but enjoying hard the fruits of our previous labours and getting ready for the next world.