Thursday, January 29, 2009

Nadia's Pets

This was Nadia's last pets. 2 hamsters named chippy and hammy. They even had 7 baby hamsters...which of course died one after the other. The baby hamsters died becoz the male adult hamster ate it. I don't understand why he did it but maybe the new-born babies were defected or something. Also, in the end, even the parent hamsters, chippy and hammy, died. The adult hamsters made a hole in the cage and was always fond of going out and about in the middle of the night. The next morning either one of the hamsters was always missing. So, Nadia and her brothers had to go looking for these hamsters. Favourite hamsters' hang out was under the bed, behind the wardrobe or drawer chest, or even in the kitchen. It was such a hassle when the hamsters was not found. I've never bothered to help out with these muddles in my home. I've got too much of other things to do!!!

Hamsters, kittens, ducklings, fishes, rabbits, chickens, terrapin...and many-many more long list of animals in my household. Mostly, these creatures are Nadia's pets. Nadia is most persistent when she begs and pleads us to allow her to keep these animals as her pets.

ALhamdulillah, we've never had all of these pets at one single time. Usually, when one pet dies, our house is animal free for a while. But...not long after, due to Nadia's pleas and doe-eyed look, we'll start to have another animal. Thus, since our first pet, which I can't remember what it was, we've had almost 20 different sorts of pets.

I've always resolved not to listen to Nadia. Countless times, I've said no to her pleas to get a new pet. Yet, after hundreds of 'No' ....I usually end up saying one 'Yes'. How many times can a person say No??? Although I've often regretted it, sometimes, it is just easier to agree and go along with Nadia. Then, we'll start a new pet episode. SubhanAllah, it's been almost one month since the last hamster's death. I am really hoping and praying that I will not weaken and break down to Nadia's pleas yet once again.

Last Sunday, as we were out in Ipoh, Nadia has started her campaign to get herself another boy+girl hamsters. When both me & my hubby explained to her the dificulties in having these pets, she sulked throughout the entire trip. Finally, coz my hubby can't bear to see his children being sad & disappointed, we decided to get her a non-living pet....


Ta-da....



One bear for Sarah and of course one bear for Nadia. Hopefully, she will be content with these for a while...but I am sure soon I will hear...

" Emak...bolehlah kita simpan anak kucing ini...Satu kali ini je...dia comelkan???Bolehlah mak...mak baik...Bolehkan???"







Saturday, January 17, 2009

My Niqab


Quite recently, I've started to put on the niqab. In Malaysia, niqab is not that prevalent. Although most of the muslim women do cover their hair, still... muslim women covering their full aurat is quite sparse. It's quite challenging wearing the niqab. Wherever I go, all eyes are on me (...well anyway that's how I feel) . The worst part is when, sometimes, small kids run away from me because they are scared of me. Look ma...hantu/ghost/zorro/ninja.....Sigh. I really feel bad about this. I do try to smile at them (although they can't see me from behind the veil) hoping that my warm and friendly aura can penetrate thru the niqab. I really don't want to frighten children. I know they do not understand. SubhanALlah, even adults do not understand, then, how can small children be any better?

There are varying reasons why I have decided to put on the niqab. My main belief is that the niqab is a form of sunnah. As much as I feel strongly that eating with my right hand is sunnah, so too, I do believe that covering of my face is sunnah. InsyaAllah, Allah swt has promises that there is success in adhering to Rasulullah saw's sunnah. With each sunnah that a muslim adhere to with istiqamah, Allah swt will grant him/her with 100 rewards of a syahid. Adhering to sunnah is totally alien nowadays. In this world of fasya and mungkar, following the sunnah or the way of rasulullullah saw's life is going against all that everyone else believe in. It is like swimming upstream against the flowing river. In fact, in a hadith, rasullullah saw has prophesized and told his sahabah that there will be a time when following the sunnah is like holding on to a burning wood fire.

Dikeluarkan oleh Abu Hakim daripada Ibnu Mas'ud ra sebagaimana dalam Kanzul Ummal dan Jami'us Saghir Rasulullah saw bersabda mafhumnya " Org yg berpegang kepada sunnahku di zaman perselisihan ummatku adalah seperti org yg menggenggam bara api" (Hayatus Sahabah Jilid 1 versi Melayu)

Truly, what rasulullah saw said applies to our time now. We are the "umat akhir zaman".

Everyday, we can see muslim women wearing skimpy clothing. In fact, in newspaper, magazines and tv, some muslim women wear very little clothing. However, nobody bats an eye at this. I bet no one will run away from these ladies and call them names...Look ma...almost naked lady! In fact, knowing the boys, I bet they will try to inch closer to get a better look at what is on display.

I bear no grudges to these semi-clothed ladies or the public who look down upon people who choose to cover their face. After all, this is my battle...my jihad. I am doing this first and foremost for myself. For my iman. It is said that adhering to sunnah is likened to a shield. A protection for our iman. The more sunnah that we practise in our life, the stronger the shield that you built for your iman.

When i first started to put on the niqab, I was overly conscious. Fearing that all of my actions are under close scrutiny by the misunderstood/misinformed public. I chose to stay indoors. Feeling that my iman is too weak to face any criticism from anyone, I felt that it is best if I stay clear of the general public. Closing myself off from even friends and family. In fact, I barely venture out of my home. Even to step off my front lawn to water the plants or hang my laundry became such a chore. Somehow, I've become pseudo-agoraphobic ( is there such a word). My hubby was at his wits end. Suddenly his outdoorsy and independent wife has become sooo timid and introverted. What to do??? I guess I kinda put my hubby through quite a rough couple of months.

Alhamdulillah, as days passed by...slowly ALlah swt gave me understanding. It is not important that people around me do not understand the niqab. It is true...tidak kenal maka tidak cinta. Before this, I used to feel the same way about the niqab. I am helpless to change the public's opinion. Only ALlah has power to do this. I am the person who must first change. Granted, I am wearing the niqab as a journey for my iman...but to have peace with my niqab, I must also understand that I should wear my niqb with pride. Not because I feel that I am far better off than the average muslim women...NO...I must feel proud because I have been blessed that Allah swt has shown me to this path. So, it is my duty to wear the niqab in public. To show to the rest of the people that it is not an ugly and fearful clothing. To show that I am just an ordinary person..yet I put on the niqab. Not because I am superior in knowledge or amal. But because it helps me to control my eyes and my attitude. It helps me to be wary (tawajjuh) of ALlah swt. To reinforce in me the idea that ALlah swt is ever watchful of me.

Thus, it is sad but true...I am just an average muslim lady. Battling everyday against my personal weaknesses and devils. My hubby said, we aredefinitely not the best of people...But everyday, we strive to better ourselves. Sometimes we fault and err but, we try outmost to never give up. After all, we are weak insans covered with much sin. Only ALlah is Most Rahman and Most Rahim. He understands and helps us through the bumps and dips in our journey. Life is too short. Barely seconds compared to the infinite akhirah. Who knows when my number will be up. Hopefully, through this small effort on my part, I pray that I shall obtain ALlah swt's benevolence. Insya ALlah. AMin.

Friday, January 9, 2009

Cuti-Cuti Malaysia - 2008

Alhamdulillah....dapat peluang balik kampung. Lama jugak. Lebih 2 minggu berada di Darul Takzim. Selalunya, kalau balik kampung, waktunya terhad. Dulu masa dok kerja makan gaji nie, bukan senang nak dapat cuti. Ramai orang tertanya2, kalau students cuti, lecturers pun tak cuti sama ke? Hmmm, iyalah tu. Time semester break le depa nak kita pulun buat kerja2 yg "extraordinary". Sekarang nie, dah tak payah berkira cuti, sakan le kami bercuti dan berjalan sempena musim cuti sekolah 2008. Masa permulaan cuti sekolah, kami ke Kedah (Sg Petani & Padang Serai) dan di akhir2 cuti sekolah pulak kami ke JB dan Sinagpore. SubhanAllah, dari utara hingga ke selatan semenanjung kami jelajah.

Rancangan asal, keluar ke jalan ALlah pada musim cuti sekolah 2008. Tapi, cuti suami tak diluluskan. Tu asbab aje. Hakikatnya mmg amalan kami yg lemah. Macam mana Allah nak pilih utk jd tetamuNya? Saya terpaksa akur & terima akan hakikat nie. Mmg rasa kecewa & sedih. Nak buat macam mana? Sabar & cuba lagi. Perbaiki amal..tingkatkan doa & korban. Cakap mmg senang...nak buat tu yg payah. Semangat pun dah lemah...iman pun dah sakit.

Allah nak tarbiyah sabar & redha. Macam tulah kan...kalau senang tak dinamakannya mujahadah. Walau apa2 pun, Alhamdulillah, takdelah cuti 2008 nie berlalu begitu saje. Banyak manfaat yg diperolehi. Antaranya, kami dapat banyak khidmat keluarga, teman dan saudara. Allah pilih juga kami utk dpt jaga anak kawan yg keluar masturat 10 hari di kawasan Perak nie.

Anyway, inile sinopsis cuti kami. Itupun tak banyak yg kami amik gambar. Selalunya...camera tu tertinggal dan terperap kat rumah jek...hehehe

Nape depa tak sembelih kerbau ekkk? Lembu tu kecil & kurus je. Berapa banyak le daging yg depa boleh dapat? Kalau kat Perak, mmg depa akan pilih utk sembelik kerbau. Kerbau nie, mmg besar2 & gemuk2 belaka. Kalau sembelih, mmg berbaloi. Lagipun kerbau & lembu nie, harganya same je. Ada ke beza rasa daging lembu dgn kerbau? Entahlah, bila dah masak tu...hmmm sedap aje.


Up close & personal. Comel jugak unta nie kan.


Unta & lembu yg dikorbankan di masjid kawasan Tmn Universiti. First time dpt dtg tengok unta dr dekat. Iyalah, kalau kat zoo tu, unta tu di belakang tembok. Mana nak dpt sentuh kan? Time nak dekat Raya Haji nie, sy ada tedengar satu ceramah ttg korban. Antara yg sy ingat, ustaz tu ada bagitau ttg kelebihan atau keistimewaan unta... unta nie ada sifat malu yg sangat tinggi. Ustaz tu kata lagi, dlm Al-Quran, Allah ada suruh manusia agar melihat kebesaran ALlah dgn melihat ciptaan unta yg unik ini. Mahal betul nak korban seekor unta nie. Kalau tak silap saya, suami kata harganya RM8 ribu. Ish...besar betul korban harta mereka.

Ini pulak di Danga Bay Mall. Ok jgk tmpt nie...yg paling penting tempat nie covered. Walau hujan atau panas, kami tetap selesa. Brg2 pun ok jugak. Tak le mahal sgt. Anak2 gadis ku sempat berposing kat window display kedai yg comel nie...


Ini pun di Danga Bay jugak. Berdiri di salah satu rumah2 limas yg tlh diubahsuaikan menjadi kedai wedding photo shop.


Siapa lagi kalau bukan yours truly...hihihi. Posing kat Danga Bay jugak. Di salah satu Rumah2 Limas. Tak ingat pulak yg mana satu.

Alhamdulillah, Walau apa2 pun mmg sakan kami berjalan cuti sekolah nie. Terima kasih pada Abang Sayang yg sudi sponsor segala-galanya. Lain kali bawak kami pi jalan2 lagi ekkk.

Photo Update

Boring btul blog kita nie ekkk. Langsung takde visual stimulus...hehehe. Al-maklumlah, penulis blog nie malas upload photos...ha..tau takpe! Dulu, pernah janji ngan Suzi nak amik gambar kat area2 rumah nie utk bagi previu "development" kat sini. Ehm...tangguh punya tangguh...last2 Suzi pun dah nak balik M'sia...iya tak Suzi? So, here goes...sorry ek sebab lambat. But, better late than never iye tak?

Muhammad sedang test utk jadi driver mak. InsyaAllah...10 tahun lagi. Boleh le mak jadi boss duk kat belakang pulak.


Ibrahim pun nak tak nak mengalah. Nak cuba pakai cermin mata hitam ayah.


Ha...jangan tak percaya...jalan dah 2 lane utk ke Ipoh dan 2 lane utk ke Lumut. Nampak tak dah ada lampu2 jalan. Alhamdulillah, ini lah yg dinanti2kan. Terang lah sikit jalan kat depan rumah tu. Legaaa....Sebelum siap jalan nie, mmg gelap gelita area kita kan? Bila drive malam2 tu, rasa risau...maklumlah kerbau pun banyak bersepah2...tak taulah sape punya... mmg selalu ada accident ngan kerbau2 yg hitam dan besar2 tu.


Siapa sangka ada Shell bukak kat tepi rumah lama awaklah Suzi...kat sebelah Sekolah Tamil tu...Setakat nie, dah ada EssoMobil, Shell dan Petronas bukak kat jalan yg sama menghala ke Ipoh. Ingat tak dulu, kalau nak isi minyak, kita kena pi Bt Gajah atau Pusing...ish...mujahadah betul. Mmg tempat kita duduk nie, hulu bebenor...tempat jin bertendang. Bak kata suami akak...lebih banyak anjing dr manusia.


Nie pulak simpang nak ke Bt Gajah. Dah ada flyover tuuu...Klau jalan terus ke Ipoh, pusing kanan pulak ke Bt Gajah dan pusing kiri ke Parit. Apalagi moh le ke ipoh.


JENG...JENG...JENG..Ha...yang paling best, kalau dah sampai kat area Ipoh-Lumut nie, janganlah lupa singgah kat rumah kami. kecil tapak tangan...nyiru kami tadahkan. Tengok tu, kami siap dah bukak gate...jemput masuk!

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Long Overdue

Assalamualaikum semua,

Maaflah, memang lama betul blog ini terbiar sepi. Maklumlah, bila dah sepenuh masa duk kat rumah nie, mmg susah nak dapat peluang masa duk dpn pc. Lama betul sy tak singgah masuk ke alam internet nie. I was too self involved up to a point that I was not even aware of what was happening in the world around us.

My husband came home with tidbits of news. Once, he came home and told me that some reporter threw his shoes at Bush. Ha..ha..ha. I regret missing that story. Last week, he came home to tell me that the situation in Palestine was really bad. This kinda woke me up from my self absorption. Finally, I switched on the news and read some internet articles. Things really have gone bad. Only to Allah can we seek help & refuge. Allah knows best and everything happens thru His will. Only duas and sympathy from me. May ALlah grant the victims of Palestines with unequivocal rewards. Truly Allah is Most Just. It is definitely unimaginable if something such as this happens to me or my family. It is only thru ALlah's mercy that we have been spared from such atrocities. Last night, as we were reading Muntakhab Hadith, we found this;

Dari Umar r.a meriwayatkan bahawa rasulullah saw bersabda;

Barangsiapa yang melihat sesorang dlm kesusahan dan malapetaka dan membaca doa ini:

Segala puji bagi ALlah yang telah menyelamatkan aku dari yang telah menimpa kamu, yang telah melebihkan aku keatas kebanyakan ciptaanNya.

Akan diselamatkan dari malapetaka dlm seluruh kehidupannya, tidak kira bagaimana malapetaka yg terjadi.

(HR Tirmizi)

Jaafar rah berkata, doa ini mesti diucapkan dlm hati seseorg supaya org yg tertimpa malapetaka tidak mendengarnya.

I do apologize that I couldn't type in the actual arabic dua. If this dua interest you, please refer to Muntakhab Hadith (Malay) pg 462 under the chapter of Ilmu & Zikir. InsyaALlah.