What I Wanted To Be Is Not What I Am Now. But I am Truly Happy

When I was a kid, I used to have several ambitions. Each time people asked, "What is your ambition?", different answers popped out from my mouth.

I wanted to be a lawyer, doctor, pilot and even a forensic specialist. Guess I was a little too ambitious back then?

But now, I felt blessed to be a person in a position to share knowledges and experiences with the new generations. And obvious enough, I had never thought to be a lecturer when I was still a school kid.

That is so life. Looking back in retrospect, it brought me to laughter and sometimes, tears. Life does not move in a straight line anyway.

The glitches used to be real pain in the ass, but it got its beauty when you look back from down a memory lane.

If I were to list down the glitches and the good ones, the former sure will outnumber the latter. Anyhow, the few best ones are more significant to my life than anything else.

As a matter of truth, the glitches had brought me to where I am today. If we believe in qada' and qadar, we will see the beautiful reasons for everything that had happened. And we will be thankful for the glitches!

I did not know what I exactly want to be when I was in school. None of the school I went to did stress on the importance of identifying and aiming for an ambition. I am not blaming off the school systems solely because I took part of the blame as well.

However, I do think that it is ultimately important for teachers to emphasize on this in every meeting with the pupils. Of course they are not in the position to tell the kids what they should be, but teachers are those in the right position to help the kids see their future.

University is the place where I learned tremendous lessons about life. I was lucky enough to have great mentors whom now I consider more than just teachers because their influences in me are like parents. When I was there, I knew that I want to be a person who is able to share a lot of things for the benefits of others.

Lessons can be learned in multiple ways. And I would say that most of the precious ones are earned not in classrooms. If we appreciate knowledge, we will learn about a lot of things almost anywhere, anytime.

Just one thing is needed- determination.

No, It's Not Always About Age

The world has not turn upside down. But the ways we look at things should be revised. From time to time, perhaps.

Am not offending the very fact that age does matter. Anyhow, I personally do not think that we should undermine the capabilities of the youngsters.

Their experiences may not be as much as what the older ones have recorded, but just do not easily forget that they have this one thing- 'talent', it is.

And their heterogeneous talents bring will definitely help them to climb higher.

A few days ago, I was going through my wedding journal- a tiny book where I jot every single things related to my wedding. Then only I realized that 80 percent of the people involve in the making of this big day are youngsters! But they got talents I adore. Talents that are not in everyone, perhaps.

From the wedding dress, decorations for hantaran, dais, make-up, photographer and cinematographer to the canopies, all are with people who aged below 30 years old. Adding to the list a fact that should be proud of, all of them are Malays.

My dad is person hard to convince. Without substance, we can just forget to get him believe in something. But beautiful truth is, those young talents penetrated his resonance.

Although he is at times hard like a stone, but my dad strongly believes in talents of the youths.

Some people I met had vehemently criticized works done by the youths without even looking at the positive side of it. They just refuse to accept the very fact that the modern youths are not like what they had during their times back then.

I call people like these the 'outdated hidebound people'.

Youths of today are well educated, bold and their talents are much preferred by the modern people nowadays. It is going to be a big loss if we blatantly neglect what they got for the various industries this country offers.

One chance may lead to different opportunities in life. To give a chance does not cost us that much. It is all about investing a little trust.

And let's wait for the outcome. InsyaAllah, we will love to see what they can give to us.

Yes You Can Be Rich

You can be rich. Everyone wants to be rich. And the fact is, no one can stop you from being one.

The Prophet SAW once told all Muslims that the biggest portion of strong income is generated from trading activities.

In short, it can be well comprehended that Islam encourages its followers to do business. Any businesses, as long as we follow the Islamic guidelines in doing it.

The guidelines are simple, though.

Just make sure that our businesses are free from what we call as al-riba'.

To some, the definition of al-riba' is whining. To me, it is not. If only you put some little efforts to find more about it.

Al-riba' means 'excess or increase'. To make it easier, it can be defined as the 'effortless profit or that profit which comes free from compensation or that extra earning obtained that is free of exchange'.

Under the New Economic Plan (NEP) put forth by the government of Malaysia, we have seen abundance of young Malay-Muslim entrepreneurs joining various fields of businesses. I got quite a number of friends from all over the country who are running their own businesses. This is something to be proud of, really.

Anyhow, my concern goes out to those businesspeople who failed to understand the concept of al-riba' and they are actually engaging the elements of riba' in thier businesses, unintentionally.

Some people reached out to this issue politically. But I personally do not see the connection between this particular outbreak with politics.

Under the umbrella of the Ministry of Finance, the government of Malaysia are providing monetary funds to all young Bumiputras entrepreneurs. The funds may not be that big, but the money has helped many of them to enter the world of lucrative businesses.

There are several payment methods offered by the government. All of them are free from the elements of al-riba'. Therefore, it is VERY unreasonable for the businesspeople operating under the various monetary schemes provided by the government to take the blame off from themselves.

Even if we put religion aside, engaging with al-riba' will never help us to do good business. In fact, it will inadvertently hushed away your potential clients. I was one of the potential clients who have hushed. Really.

Let's take a look at how many Chinese businesspeople designed their businesses.

Most of them rather go for volumes than one time big profit. They may not understand al-riba', but the way they bring it on is in tandem with this concept.

For those who are doing business, do remember that most of your modern clients are not plain stupid. They got brain, they think a lot. And you are not alone in this industry. If you choose to charge them unreasonably, you choose to lose them as well.

Yes you can be rich. Anytime.

Am Not Condemning

I complimented the noble efforts done by the government of Malaysia rescuing our local students from the raging ground of Egypt.

Some said such efforts should have been done way earlier. Anyhow, the government has successfully brought home thousands of students, safe and sound.

Malaysians, especially the students and their families should be thankful for that. Really.

But recently, I read one of the Twitter updates by KOSMO! and I came across another Twitter update by NST that the students should bear the cost of their flight tickets to fly back to Egypt.

I am not devastated because I am literally not affected by this news.

But my true concern goes out to the ones affected- the students of course!

I have to admit that some of the students came from quite well-off families and they can afford the tickets anytime.

What about the ones who can barely afford the tickets?

It is true that most of the students are under scholarship and it provides cost for flight ticket as one of the benefits included.

But, it is also important for us to consider the cost of living that they will bear once they step foot back on the ground of Egypt. In one of the interviews with the students which I listened from the radio, she shared that prices of goods and food over there have rocketed.

I personally still believe that the prices will still be in the peak, at least for the next few months. We did learn from the history books, didn't we? A land devastated by war took years to 'recuperate'. And in the 'recuperating' process, the students have to bear expensive costs over there.

I hope that gave us enough reason to think. Perhaps re-think.

These students who are returning back to Egypt really hope for the generosity of our government to consider their conditions.

They are our precious assets in the future, it will sure be a worthwhile effort to help them, just one more time.

InsyaAllah.

Seven Months

As much as I wanted to write and update this blog, I had unintentionally neglected it. For seven bold months.

A lot had happened throughout the time I failed to write.

The best thing was, me and him made decision to take a huge leap in our lives. With HIS permission and blessings, Alhamdulillah, today it has been four months since our engagement on 02.10.10. Two more months to go. Or 45 days more to go before our solemnization day. Exactly!

Resigning from job was another leap I took in life. I called it a leap because that was when I started my PhD studies. Something that brings me a step closer to my ambition. And I call it a commitment.

Although a year ago I was supposed to pursue my studies in South Australia, but I believed HE has a better plan that awaits me. I wish not to dwell much on that because that is so history. Bad things have led me to a whole lot of good things in life. That is how life works. Always.

Previously, every time I had this in my head, I would definitely cry till the eyes turned like the zombies. But when I started to see the beautiful blessings accompanying the fate, now I smile in gratitude for what HE has planned for me. Alhamdulillah once again.

The big time lesson is, never regret for what had happened. It sure will bring you to a better life ahead.

For the past two months, me, him and both families are busy making the preparations for the wedding which is due in April.

As for me and my fiance, we are working on one thing at a time because we both wish not to miss anything important falling out from the checklist. This may be a good approach for couples who are simultaneously moving with the plan.

However, I do admit that time is always a big challenge for many of us. So, it depends on other commitments that we are having in this life. For couples who are all tight up to a strict schedule, I do believe that there are some other ways to get things done before the ceremony.

Once you have identified your situation, it will be easier to plan ahead.

As for me and him, there are still a lot to do although we work on our plan on a daily basis. We just hope that we will be able to get the things done before April kicks in. InsyaAllah.

Time is envying not only me and him, but everyone else. I believe. Anyhow, one of my mentors used to tell me, "There's always a time for those who are able to manage it well". Ponder no more, just bring it on!

I always reminded myself that as much as I want to make sure everything will move smoothly throughout the ceremonies that will be held soon, I choose to prepare myself to be a solehah wife, a good mother, a good daughter and a good sister for my beloved ones more than anything else.

The ceremonies are just a matter of a few days, but living with the commitment is going to be in in every single breath I take till the end of my life.

All in all, life is way better now than before. Alhamdulillah, ya Allah.

Semangat Baru!

The octopus is enjoying a great celebration made especially for him now and for the next few weeks, maybe. Yes, he is just another living octopus, but 'special'.

Since day one of this year's FIFA, football fanatics from all over the world turned for Paul's prediction on the winning team for the most-looked-forward games.

For football, Paul has done a great job. For the past one month, we got the answers, although Paul's prediction was said to be only 80 percent accurate.

However, it is just a football game. Even if we choose to listen to Paul and say apparently he made an inaccurate prediction, it does not cost a life, still. Football fanatics could live in frustration over the results, but technically, it will not last forever.

But, what if we made a wrong choice for our lives? Do we choose to use the psyche octopus to tell us about our future?

A definite no.

Bookies say they are the biggest suckers as Paul has cost them up to half a million squid. But hey, losing half a million dollar is nothing to compare with losing half of your soul over the wrong decision made for our dear own future.

I've been there and done that. Once is enough. Twice made me a loser. But, what if my case is five? Complete loser? Tell me about it.

Some decisions I made in my life had cost me a lot. But I am not losing grip, still. With constant prayers, hopes, big-time efforts and iman, I managed to pull through the hardest and most challenging paths in my life. Nothing will come to you easily - I totally understand this.

Amidst the major flaws that took place in my life, Allah SWT has granted my doa and brought me closer to my ambition. Alhamdulillah.

Education, checked. Career checked.

I am contented.

However, I can still see a gigantic question mark on the other side of my life. Somehow or rather, I have made a promise to both of my parents about this. And I have also made an important promise to myself. I will rather see the question mark for the next few years, rather than making a wrong decision.

What if I manage to decipher an answer within a short time? I will then kill the gigantic question mark. And he will get a name. As being promised.

I need no octopus' assistance for this.

Fingers crossed!

Yes, I am so BACK

It has been a few months since my last post. Or even bad than that.

The job has taken too much from me. But I am loving it though. This is what I really want to do.

To teach, to share knowledge and to gain precious experiences are things I insisted doing. I have been teaching for almost a semester without I am actually realizing it. How time flies! But yes yes, I dearly love what I am doing now!

It is always good to understand that everything is in place now though it was quite rocky in the beginning. I think learning it the hard way is the best approach to learn life better. So I did.

Each single things that took place throughout the process were too new for me. Meeting the students, teaching, composing and marking assignments, consulting, preparing the tests , examination questions and marking and scolding the students - everything for the 'very first time'!

I did get upset over the students' attitude at times, but most of the time I love them more, or I must say EVEN more!

I have come to realized that working in a private institution is way more challenging than working anywhere else, let alone being a government servant. If you question a why, take a read more: the students are demanding, different ways to approach students from 150 distinctive cultural backgrounds, language barriers, competing philosophies with the employer and to fit in an eco-system which is TOTALLY different from the conventional higher learning institution.

I resist to consider my students as mere clients. To me, they are CLIENTS to a better world. Therefore, I always believe that they should not be treated like a king- instead,they got to be trained to be KINGS and LEADERS for a brighter world.

They should not be spoiled and over-pampered. They should get the chance to unleash their wisdom, expand their knowledge and be the man for their nations and for the world.

Don't you think so?