A Food For Thought

Congratulations to Che Aman and wife for the arrival of the new born baby, Abdullah Fahmi. So what do we call him? Dol? Dollah? Che Lah? or PAK LAH?

Syukur Alhamdulillah.....after a long wait, the BOD of KPTM have approved the pay raise. And Alhamdulillah again, the payment was made almost at the same time when the Government made the decision to reduce the price of petroleum by 10 sen. Isn't that we call "rezeki"?

Satisfied with the raise? For me.....whatever amount raised should be good enough. Syukur. No complains. At least i have some extra cash to spend for the Hari Raya. Alhamdulillah.

Ok, let's think about after the raise. The pros and cons. Lets start with the pros. High basic pay means we will have higher amount of savings in KWSP. And of course, more savings in other places. We will have extra cash to keep and to spend.

The cons. Higher pay means more tax payable. The tax rate for an individual person is between 0% to 28% depending on their chargeable income. Chargeable income mean income from all sources (including employment) minus the reliefs. Chargeable income starting from RM2,500 and above may be liable to tax.

My advise, to those who don't prefer to pay tax, pay more zakat. Our income will be more "berkat". Lastly, enjoy your pay raise......spend wisely.

Assalamualaikum to all muslim readers,
Wishing all of you "Selamat Hari Raya and Maaf Zahir dan Batin".

I don't know why i'm very emotional this morning. Listened to ERA radio on my way to work. The topic for this morning was "Pulang berhariraya". I sempat dengar two cases.

Case 1
A lady was telling ERA about her brother who has not come home for three years. This was due to a misunderstanding with his mother. So the lady was sort of begging his brother to come back for hariraya and ask for forgiveness from his mother. It seem that their mother selalu tanya if her brother is coming back for hari raya or not. This was what the lady said through ERA, "Abang, baliklak hariraya ni. Minta maaflah dengan emak. Tak kiralah siapa salah. Awak tu anak. Beralahlah".

ERA pasang lagu Aishah "Pulanglah" after this first case. Tangkap sayu......

Case no. 2
The caller's sister did not come back for hariraya for several years. Why? Again, misunderstanding with her sibblings. And the caller was also begging her sister to come back.

Apa yang buat i rasa emotional? The first case, kelahi dengan emak......dengan mak pun nak kelahi ke? The one who gave birth to us. No doubt, sometimes memang ada misunderstanding dengan my mom ....but taklah sampai tak boleh nak minta maaf.

Same with the seond case, sayu hati i because their parents are still alive. And just imagine, hancurnya hati ibu bila anak menjauhkan diri. I, myself is a mother, sometimes, anak i ada kecilkan hati i, but we just have to forgive them. And of course as a parent it is my responsibility to tell them what right and what's wrong. A mother will always be a mother. I really thinhk that not a single mother in this world, yang lahirkan anak, tak sayangkan anak....Macam mana jahat pun anak tu, rasa sayang pada anak will still be there. so if a mother can forgive her child, why can't a child forgive his/her mother. Syurga dibawah tapak kaki ibu.

Sama juga dengan adik-beradik. Macam mana marah pun pada adik-beradik kita, air dicincang tidak akan putus.

As parents, we need to didik anak-anak unrtuk sentiasa menghormati orang lain especially ibubapa. Give our children as much love as we can so that ada bonding antara parent and anak-anak. Where ever they go, they will always remember to come back. Rumahku Syurgaku.

So my conclusipn is:
1. We have to learn to forgive and forget. We will enjoy life better.
2. Always respect others if we want to be respected.
3. Give lots and lots of love to those we care for so that we will always be in their mind where ever they go.

Lastly, Selamat Hari Raya. Ampun dan maaf di pinta. Kalau ada masaalah dengan sesiapa pun, bermaaf-maafanlah dihariraya ini. Its the best occasion untuk mengahapuskan dosa sesama insan.

Workshop at De Palma hotel, Ampang, 12 - 14 September 2008

Opening Ceremony
Left: Our new Rector (in greenbaju melayu)






Participants

A group of KPTM lecturers from Kuantan, Bangi, K.L, Ipoh, Alor setar and Batu Pahat attended a workshop on the preparation of the final exam papers. Details of the workshop is......CONFIDENTIAL. Workshop? During the fasting month? Yeah....i was not comfortable about attending it too....but it's part of my job.

This Q & A was forwarded to me recently. Hanya untuk berkongsi ilmu.

Mengahwini Wanita Hamil

Sesungguhnya, permasalahan ini berat. Perhatikan soalan 1 - 5. Perkahwinans eumpama ini hari ini memang tersangat biasa kerana keluarga biasanya memilih jalan ini untuk menutup malu. Bila dapat tahu anak pregnant luar nikah, cepat cepat kahwinkan.. Berdasarkan kenyataan ini, nikah itu TIDAK SAH, maka pasangan itu kelak hidup dalam zina sampai bila-bila... .

Persoalan ini telah diajukan kepada seorang Imam, di mana banyak persoalanlain timbul dari persoalan pokok tersebut. Saya kongsikan bersama anda di sini kerana ianya amat penting:

Soalan 1 : Apakah langkah yang sewajarnya sekiranya seorang gadis belum berkahwin didapati hamil anak luar nikah?

Jawapan 1 : Gadis itu tidak boleh berkahwin sehingga bayi itu dilahirkan.

Soalan 2 : Sekiranya lelaki yang bertanggungjawab itu bersedia mengahwini gadis itu, bolehkah mereka bernikah?

Jawapan 2 : Tidak. Mereka tidak boleh bernikah sehingga bayi itu dilahirkan.

Soalan 3 : Adakah pernikahan itu sah sekiranya mereka berkawin?

Jawapan 3 : Tidak. Pernikahan itu TIDAK SAH. Seorang lelaki tidak boleh mengahwini seorang wanita hamil, walaupun lelaki itu merupakan ayah kepada bayi yang dikandung itu.

Soalan 4 : Sekiranya mereka bernikah, apakah tindakan mereka untuk memperbetulkan keadaan?

Jawapan 4 : Mereka mesti berpisah. Perempuan itu mestilah menunggu sehingga melahirkan, atau sehingga sah dia tidak mengandung, barulah mereka boleh bernikah sekali lagi, secara sah.

Soalan 5 : Bagaimana sekiranya keadaan itu tidak diperbetulkan?Jawapan 5 : Maka mereka akan hidup di dalam zina kerana pernikahan itu tidak sah.

Soalan 6 : Apakah hak seorang anak luar nikah?

Jawapan 6 : Kebanyakan pendapat mengatakan bahawa anak itu TIADA HAK untuk menuntut apa-apa daripada ayahnya.

Soalan 7 : Sekiranya hukum mengatakan lelaki itu bukan ayah kepada anak tersebut, adakah itu bermakna dia bukan mahram kepada anak perempuannya sendiri?

Jawapan 7 : Ya. Dia tidak boleh menjadi mahram.

Soalan 8 : Sekiranya seorang lelaki Muslim dan seorang wanita Muslim (atau bukan Muslim) ingin bernikah setelah bersekedudukan, apakah tindakan yang sewajarnya?

Jawapan 8 : Mereka mesti tinggal berasingan segera dan menunggu sehingga perempuan itu haid satu kali sebelum mereka boleh bernikah.

Soalan 9 : Sekiranya saya kenal/tahu seseorang di dalam keadaan ini, apakah saya perlu memberitahu kepadanya, atau lebih baik menjaga tepi kain sendiri?

Jawapan 9 : Anda wajib memberitahu, kerana itu sebahagian tanggungjawab anda sebagai saudaranya. Mereka harus diberi peluang untuk memperbetulkan keadaan mereka, kalau tidak semua keturunan yang lahir dari pernikahan tidak sah itu adalah anak-anak yang tidak sah taraf.

Boy.....am i lucky to have a thai and italian cooking husband, huh. Myself.....Malaysian food jelah.

Then, his first day at school (standard one), i didn't give him any money as he didn't know how to buy at the canteen. I only gave him a bottle of plain water. He didn't complain. When i fetch him from school that afternoon, he was telling me about his first day at school. And he said this to me, "Mama, tadi masa rehat, Abang (that what he call himself) duduk kat kelas. Abang nak makan. Lepas tu abang pikir, abang pikir macam mana abang nak makan". I felt really guilty for not packing him any food. After that day i made sure that he had his breakfast before going to school and either pack him food or give him some money.

He was very nervous yesterday. He asked me, "What if i don't get good result for UPSR?". My reply to him was, "You don't have to be nervous. You have studied. Whatever results you get later should indicate your effort. How bad can it be?". We brought him to KFC last evening(he requested for it) for fast breaking, with the hope that it would calm him down.

This morning, he was very excited to go to school and i'm glad that he had overcome his nervousness.

Bulan Ramaddhan is back. Bulan yang penuh dengan keberkatan. Doa-doa dimakbulkan dalam bulan yang mulia ini.....insyaAllah.

My children....Rashdan (12), Izzati (9) except for Aishah (3) are fasting. My concern was with Izzati who is very very skinny even when it was not during not fasting month. Very choosy on food. Kata lapar tapi makan sikit.

Surprisingly, Izzati makan banyak during this fasting month. It was my "azam" to cook every day for the family during this fasting month, and so far i have succeeded in doing so. And i felt great to see the children were eating well since day one of this fasting month.

Our dishes during berbuka puasa were very simple. My children don't want to eat rice with lauk. So i cooked something else.

First day: Mee Hailam (cooked by my hubby at my mom's house)
Second day: Laksa Kuah putih (two bowls for Izzati. She loved the dish)
Third day: Mee Sayur
Fourth day: Bubur sup ayam
Fifth day: Nasi ayam special
Sixth day : Speghetti (cooked by my hubby) and sausage salad (i cooked)
Today? My daughter requested for bubur lambuk.

The children's requests have actually make it easy for me. I don't have to think of what to cook today. as my mom said, whenever you want to cook for berbuka puasa, always ask the children first. Bukan husband...ek. Bukan apa.....just to encourage them to fast.

So far what i have cooked were just enough and no wastage. Alhamdulillah. Kalau ada lebih, i habiskan masa sahur. That is also an ibadah.

Why do we cry? We cry when we feel sad or in pain. Sometimes we also cry when we feel very happy.

Here are a few moments when i feel like crying.
1. At a majlis akad nikah. After pengantin lelaki successfully akad nikah. I will always feel like crying because it means it is a new journey of the pengantin's life. A lot more to come after that.

2. When i see people celebrating their victory. For example, when the Brazil women volleyball team won the gold olympic medal. The moment they celebrated their victory toucched my heart.

3. During hari raya. When i kissed my parents hands especially my mom's and say sorry for all my wrongdoing. Memang tangkap shahdulah masa tuh. And i will cry every time and every year when it happens. Oops....not to forget....masa minta maaf dengan suami pun tangkap syahdu jugak.

4. Death of any one i know. Friends and relatives. Remembered when my Mak Teh passed away. I just cannot help crying looking at her cucu cried bila nak tengok jenazah. And also masa arwah Encik Fauzi......especially when looking at his youngest son was playing near the kubur bila nak kebumikan jenazah. Sedih. Ada student call nak tanya whether the news about his death was true or not.....i couldn't speak. And the student understood.

Ada a few more which i cannot think of right now.

Sunday, 7 September 2008. My son is going to sit for his UPSR this Tuesday. Phew......he's gonna sit for the exam.....why am i having butterflies in my stomach?

He cannot sleep last Friday night. He came into my room and wake us up. And my husband went to sleep with him in his room. Just to accompany him. That was about 1 am. I woke up again at about 2 am. I couldn't sleep after that, wondering if my son was thinking about his exam. Since i couldn't sleep, i got up and performed the solat taubat and followed by solat hajat. As i was just about to complete the solat hajat, my son came into my room again and told me that my youngest daughter wants milk. After preparing milk for my daughter, i saw my son was still awake. I took the chance to talk to him.

I asked him what made him couldn't sleep? Is he thinkng abou his exam? It was true. He was actually a bit tensed. This is what i told him:

"Abang (that's waht i call him) jangan tension. You have studied hard. Whatever your result you get, should be good enough for me because you have shown to me that you have studied. Kalau abang tak dapat 5A sekali pun, i will not be angry with you. Just be cool."

I really hoped that what i said calms him down. As a parent, i want him to be successful. But i have to make sure that i do not pressure him too much. I will not show my worry but keep on encouraging him and praying for his success.

Mahmood Rashdan.....i pray that you get 5A because you deserve it.....