.: 故事未完成 :.

The story has not ended.

~

Do you ever have that feeling? As though God is not listening to you?

~

Friend :: That’s a complicated drawing. You should have taken Engineering.

Me :: It’s not that complicated really.  

Friend :: So what’s the story, morning glory?  

Me :: You see the head of a lion with wings. Do the Math. 

Friend:: Feisty, with an angelic side. :)  

Me :: You Engineering lads creep me out.

The message behind the drawing was an illustration of ‘Love’, ‘Fear’ and ‘Hope’ as opposed to ‘Faith’, ‘Love’ and ‘Hope’, from the Bible. I didn’t know about Ibn Qayyim then, and there I was, doodling one of his distinctive quotes.

In my pursuit, in becoming a potential hermit, I eventually came to the following deduction …

With every good that happens to me, with every comforting feeling that sweeps by me, with every situation that comes my way, could these be His way of sending the message across?

A coded mess.

8.45am Malaysian Time

.: Drop of ember :.

Changi Airport.

Cousin 1 :: Look at that grandpa over there. He shouldn't be working at his age!

Cousin 2 :: He has to. Singapore has high living standards.  

On one of my solitary walks, I observed a grandpa hastily picking up the rubbish us civilised people left behind. He had a hunched back, and could possibly be in his late 60s. As I observed him, I noticed the onlookers, comprising bustling youths, taking no notice of him. The ones, who did, chuckled as though he was their limelight of the day.

Morning came and I went on another solitary walk. I was trying to rid the image out of my head, when in less than a jiffy; I stumbled upon an elderly man, with a pile of cardboard boxes. He stood at the corner of the road, scrambling for some balance as he stacked one cardboard after the other. And I stood there, at the side of the curb, utterly helpless.

In all honesty, these impromptu trips to Singapore, have taken a toil to say the least. Of all things that could remotely be possible to bring the spirits down, incidents such as these equate to those watershed moments.

Outside of this ark, all is deluge

9.28pm Malaysian Time

.: 好心人 :.

让人感觉充满希望。

Feels absolutely exhilarating to be away from work and to be able to do the things I had long craved to do for an entire 6 weeks at stretch! As much as I want to prolong this newly discovered transient sanctity, I suppose I have to face this gutted reality. Work, or rather, my bold pursuit at a relatively unfamiliar environment, will officially kickoff as of 15th October 2012. 

Current state of affairs are starting to unravel in an interesting manner, to say the least. :)

加油~加油~加油！

1.50pm Malaysian Time

.: Masjid Ahmad :.

At Buona Vista, Singapore.

A matter of days left till the gates of Ramadhan close in on us. Haven't made specific plans for Eid, however the family had mutually came to a consensus to return to the Southern home for a quaint Eid celebration. After all, it has been close to 10 years since we last gathered there.  

Due to the close proximity between the Southern home and my motherland, I will most probably hop over to Singapore for a bit; seizing the occasion to strengthen the bonds of kinship and possibly badgering a couple of friends for a sip or two. 

Recollections.

4.20pm Malaysian Time

.: Luminous spectrum :.

Of a heart that speaks.

Sitting with the visually impaired and having casual chats with them can at more than one occasion be a remarkably profound experience. More often than not, the words that flow out of them are filled with traces of compassion and wisdom. Truth be told, they may not be able to see things in the physical sense, but their hearts made it possible for them to purge out the impurities, to see, to react to things in ways we seldom do. Patience, calmness, and gratitude; just a few of the many traits one can strive to learn from them. One only needs to stop for a moment, spend a bit of time, to feel what it feels to be them.

...............

If you are not patient upon seeking knowledge you (will have to) be patient upon the difficulty (misery) of ignorance.

Therefore I became ecstatic when I came to know my dearest Sketchedsoul has taken it upon herself to run a braille project! With the aim to empower these gifted individuals with the gift of knowledge, the funds collected will be used to purchase braille Qur'an, Muqaddam and Yasin. These items will then be distributed to children and adults residing in Malaysia, Gaza and Nigeria. 

As of today, she has managed to raise $1375, alhamdulillah. Hopefully she will reach her $2540 mark by Eid, insha'Allah!  

Hop on over to her blog for more info :: http://sketchedsoul.blogspot.com/

Eid is fast approaching.

6.17am Malaysian Time

.: Sunday tidbit :.

As though time stood still.

Shifted to the new environment. Things started off looking rather hazy for me, and somewhere in between, I begin to develop insecurities. I wasn't sure where I was heading to, and I wasn't sure what to anticipate. As though all I had was a rickety raft to hold on to as I allow myself to be drifted away into this peculiar and uncharted territory. 

Soon enough it was time for lunch. Took a walk along the pavements, and snatched one or two glances at a couple of shops. Walked a little further and found myself in an old neighbourhood. There were chickens running around and I saw an elderly Chinese lady wearing the traditional Chinese attire making her way to the market; an uncommon sight for me. From a distance. a cobbler sat at the sidewalk. Beads of sweat streamed down his face as he skillfully hammered the soles. And just like that I found myself surrounded by shops with old signboards. Had I somehow rather transported myself into a bygone era? 

Dramas aside, I walked back to where I came from. There I stood, at the crossroads between the bygone past and the subsequent future. Lost in thought until a boy with his brother rode a bicycle past me, smiling gleefully as they disappeared into the throngs of people. I suppose, life at the new place, will not be that boresome afterall.

Ramadan mubarak! :)

10.07pm Malaysian Time

.: ما منعك إلا ليعطيك :.

Metamorphosis.

A drop of ephemeral happiness is better than a lifetime of misery.

The transitory period has ended as once more I gingerly make my way into the corridors of the university of life, as a student, desperate in her attempt to grasp a better and viable comprehension of this shadowy life. Come this Saturday, if my health and God permit it, I will be at University Malaya attending the final weekend of Rays of Faith: Doctrines of Faith III, as taught by Shaykh Waleed Basyouni, the Vice President of AlMaghrib Institute. 

Philippines Sister :: You have attended so many AlMaghrib courses! Masha'Allah!

That statement catapulted a whirl of thoughts. Back to the time where I throttled endless questions asking God, the why, the what, the when, the how, but by far, after all those years, I had the presumption that nothing comes into light. Just when it appears as though one has reached the end of the passage, the doors begin to crack open, one at a time. Within a span of 4 years, the uncertainties, are answered. All that is left, is a continuous pursuit.

Closing in.

6.48pm Malaysian Time