A few weeks ago I got a chance to meet my good friends.. in separate occassions. We used to be very close once upon a time. After awhile, we each took separate paths and lives continue to go on.
I know I am not good at keeping in touch with others. I barely call my family and friends. The most is brief text messages a few times a week. We don't write email to each other either. I know I also miss out a lot because I do not facebook or myspace. But who has time for that..?
I went to Nida's parents' house and we talked a bit. I was busy handling my two kids too. She gave birth to a baby boy two weeks ago and I still haven't visited her. I managed to visit her baby at the hospital though.
I got to meet Umi and chatted with her about the latest goings on. We did not get to hang out too long anyway. I hope her father gets well soon.
Then I had lunch with Nieza and Kak Shidah at KLCC. It was fun, as usual.
Each time, it was not enough time. Too much to share and to talk about. You are all dear to me.
May Allah bless us. I love you all!
And I also miss you all.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
Today
Today is not a good day.. so it is easy to dwell on the negatives. I am forcing myself to think of the countless good things I am taking for granted.
I found that the tea lady's children stay home by themselves when she is at work. Last night my husband said his friend's children stay home all day (now it is school holiday) by themselves when she is at work. He wondered if it is normal like that here. YES. For most people who cannot afford a stay-at-home parent or a live-in maid, the kids tend to themselves. The tea lady wakes up at 4am everyday to make meals for the whole day so that the kids have food to eat even when she is not home.
On school days, she also makes sure the school uniform is all ready in one place - underwear and socks included - so that the younger one can get ready by herself before noon. She drew a 10 o-clock for the kid to refer to so that she would not be late. Things mothers do for their kids.
I remind myself to buy something for her kids whenever I buy a snack for myself at work.
For some people, little things mean a lot. Compare that to ingrates who are never thankful and who always want more.
This reminds me of what I see every day at work. We the locals can be considered the middle class. The upper class is the expats. The lower class is the migrant cleaners.
Expats are paid maybe 10 times our salary. They also get all kinds of perks, like lodging, allowances, and the paid trip home (or anywhere) every quarter.
The cleaners are paid maybe a tenth of our salary. They do not even get any medical coverage. Most of them do not see their family back home for many years -- they cannot afford the costs.
We the middle class spend money here and there mindlessly. My electric bill last month was half of the tea lady's monthly pay. My groceries last week costed more than the cleaner's monthly pay.
If I am still ungrateful, then I do not deserve more.
May Allah keep me in the right path.
I found that the tea lady's children stay home by themselves when she is at work. Last night my husband said his friend's children stay home all day (now it is school holiday) by themselves when she is at work. He wondered if it is normal like that here. YES. For most people who cannot afford a stay-at-home parent or a live-in maid, the kids tend to themselves. The tea lady wakes up at 4am everyday to make meals for the whole day so that the kids have food to eat even when she is not home.
On school days, she also makes sure the school uniform is all ready in one place - underwear and socks included - so that the younger one can get ready by herself before noon. She drew a 10 o-clock for the kid to refer to so that she would not be late. Things mothers do for their kids.
I remind myself to buy something for her kids whenever I buy a snack for myself at work.
For some people, little things mean a lot. Compare that to ingrates who are never thankful and who always want more.
This reminds me of what I see every day at work. We the locals can be considered the middle class. The upper class is the expats. The lower class is the migrant cleaners.
Expats are paid maybe 10 times our salary. They also get all kinds of perks, like lodging, allowances, and the paid trip home (or anywhere) every quarter.
The cleaners are paid maybe a tenth of our salary. They do not even get any medical coverage. Most of them do not see their family back home for many years -- they cannot afford the costs.
We the middle class spend money here and there mindlessly. My electric bill last month was half of the tea lady's monthly pay. My groceries last week costed more than the cleaner's monthly pay.
If I am still ungrateful, then I do not deserve more.
May Allah keep me in the right path.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Gratitude
Definitely lots of things to be thankful for despite of the lack of updates here.
My amazing Amira helps with laundry a lot - putting in washer, hanging to dry, putting clean ones away. MashaAllah. Thank you sayang.
My energetic Umar has four teeth. He looked like a cute hippo a few weeks back. Healthy strong baby.
I was having my first food of the day yesterday at 3pm, after spending thousands of ringgit on fees, and overhearing two women talking about how cheap some jobs pay.. "Imagine getting paid RM500 a month.. how much to send to the kampung, how much to pay bills, how much left to eat." It was humbling. How much do I share with those more in need.. whatever Allah bless me with? Whatever I earn more than I really need, is not mine. I am just a channel.
I was driving home at the rush hour from Shah Alam.. and it seemed to be another round of waiting at the traffic light when the cars in front of me kept going.. then only I saw the traffic policeman waving to the cars.. right when it started to rain.. on them too. Imagine that.. standing in the middle of traffic jam, breathing in all the pollutants, under the searing heat or heavy rain, to take care of the motorists.. Thank you for making our lives easier.
There's more.
Thank you Allah for everything.
My amazing Amira helps with laundry a lot - putting in washer, hanging to dry, putting clean ones away. MashaAllah. Thank you sayang.
My energetic Umar has four teeth. He looked like a cute hippo a few weeks back. Healthy strong baby.
I was having my first food of the day yesterday at 3pm, after spending thousands of ringgit on fees, and overhearing two women talking about how cheap some jobs pay.. "Imagine getting paid RM500 a month.. how much to send to the kampung, how much to pay bills, how much left to eat." It was humbling. How much do I share with those more in need.. whatever Allah bless me with? Whatever I earn more than I really need, is not mine. I am just a channel.
I was driving home at the rush hour from Shah Alam.. and it seemed to be another round of waiting at the traffic light when the cars in front of me kept going.. then only I saw the traffic policeman waving to the cars.. right when it started to rain.. on them too. Imagine that.. standing in the middle of traffic jam, breathing in all the pollutants, under the searing heat or heavy rain, to take care of the motorists.. Thank you for making our lives easier.
There's more.
Thank you Allah for everything.
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