Ali Imran : 8

when I get older, I'll be stronger.
Ameen.


Do you ever wonder why, when we were younger, we had so much passion to do things right?

But now-
You hope your friends who had continue to soldier not to remind you how you used to be.

You hope nobody, including yourself, remembers.

You swallow you past like a bitter pill when it was once a felt like a wartime pride.

Why, are you ashamed of your own past?
Has life caught on with you and you're too trapped to see anything else?

Or do you intend to rectify the present time by doubling your efforts in your olden days, when you yourself can't be too sure if God will grace you with long life?

Or is it you know deep inside you're just all talk?

Rabbana la tuziqqulubana..

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modus

Sorry for the long hiatus. Took my time to re-settle.

Sudden changes took place and after finding myself in strange places, now I'm back home to Malaysia and I found her stranger than ever before.
Without the smiling bestfriend to (physically) hold my hand, I know I should be taking everything in a stride before I strike. Not a day passes me without thinking how I missed our little house in Anirudh. How I miss his gentle, teacher ways.

Nervously I had started to work, this time around with priorities to provide for a special person that every kick I receive at the other end a smile entails.
Pay is good, and its only 5 km away from home. God indeed works in mysterious ways to help us.
But of course, it ain't easy. One word: ladyboss (ok so I cheated)
No one would choose to work if paychecks come in the mailboxes (it is, actually possible- but that's another story)

Being away I began to develop the inner-sights of the complex human relations, as thinly we brush to each other's own is as thick the feelings we have inside. Friends, they come and go. Some stay, some dwell longer. Family is another fraction of how we intepret friendship, but with blood ties things are just meant to be more perpetual.

Where I went for during the hiatus is a mirror image of our own land. In bigger proportion, poverty becomes a disease, corruption becomes a practice, unity becoming a problem. But back at home sweet home, you don't have to wait for the nation to grow to billion population for the same outburst.

Surreptiously I observed from afar, of things that makes the world go round, making mental notes and juggle mental arithmethic.
Survival for the day, investment for the morrow, and lessons learnt hard from yesterdays. I'm threading carefully step-by-step to a fault of becoming over-analyzing, but sometimes, more than often, I carelessly stumble. Again and again.

Again I, restart.

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Kerala Backwaters : Houseboat

After tiring our feet (and back) from jalan-jalan cari nahas in Kochin, we decided to take it slow for a boatride in the backwaters of Kerala.

In India,the Houseboat attraction comes in third after the Taj Mahal and Kashmir. I was at first puzzled, what is so special about spending overnight in a slow boat??

Right. Little did I know.

Its the serene river and lakes, and surrounding scenes, even the houseboats are (cute!). Here everything is naturally beautiful. When I boarded into "our" houseboat, I was speechless. Memang cantik. For a couple's boat, we paid approx. Rm300 for a small luxury houseboat, one bedroom with rattan windows, bathroom, lounge, one kitchenette complete with a cook, meals, juices and everything else you need. Of course, the boat has a captain, so don't worry about getting lost..eheh (kalau lost pun best jugak hehe)

The trip takes about 18 hours, circling around the vast lake and small river. By nightfall, the captain parked the boat next to a breathtakingly beautiful paddy field. (The Keralan Govt. forbids night travelling for houseboat) We were visited by two English (funny girls) whom we bumped into each other couple of times during our trip.

After the rumble jumble, just by looking out to the open waters, felt as if all my troubles seem to dissipate somewhere far, far away. I highly recommend houseboat to anyone, this one thing you cannot miss. By the time the trip ends, I keep thinking if they'll let us another round. Sob sob.

I'll let the pictures speak of the beauty of the backwaters of Kerala.

Ni la rupa (tradisi) houseboat Kerala. Comel. Macam Ulat gonggok

Houseboat yang lebih besar ada 4-5 bilik. Satu famili dalam RM700+

Room with a view.

It's also known as (the Indian version) Venice of Asia.

Serene. Relaxing. Peaceful.

Our stop for the night. Breathtaking.

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Ever Thine, Ever Mine

I applaud Tuan Guru Nik Aziz's stand on the "Allah for Catholic" issue, at least to those following the Abrahamic faith.

But I also remember a local scholar who has the Al-Attas heritage in his name, claiming that it is not our culture to universally accept Allah as the One God for all, and this will ultimately confuse the Malay-speaking people.

As I looked past the New Year Celebration with our Prime Minister cajouling the Muslims over this issue, promising that there will soon be an appeal, I can't help but to think: why let it be decided in court, dear gomen, when this can go through academic theology dialouges?

They say, one have an hindsight of the whole year they're heading on the first day of the new year.
Good luck, Malaysia!

Well me. I had BaskinRobbins on the eve and I had missed eating my favourite (but equally fattening) breakfast on that day. Tell me thats a good omen.

Namanya Puri Bhaji.

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