PURPOSE AND INTENTION

Make your purpose BIG

It will become your PASSION!

Make your PURPOSE bigger

Even BIGGER than yourself

Then it will become your CALLING!

Time Travel

1. Venice Italy*

2. Seville Spain

3. New York USA*

4. Lhasa China

5. Rio de Janeiro Brazil

6. London England*

7. Marrakech Morocco

8. Petra Jordan

9. Rome Italy*

10. Varanasi India

11. Florence Italy

12. Havana Cuba

13. Kyoto Japan

14. Jerusalem Israel 

15. Paris France*

16. Beijing China*

17. Lalibela Ethiopia 

18. Granada Spain

19. Athen Greece

20. Bagan Myanmar

21. Kathmandu Nepal

22. Vatican City

23. Lisbon Portugal

24. Tokyo Japan

25. Istanbul Turkey*

26. Hoi An Vietnam

27. Amsterdam Netherlands*

28. Luxor Eqypt

29. Berlin Germany*

30. Jaipur India 

31. Lyon France

32. Oia Greece

33. Siem Reap Cambodia

34. Vienna Austria

35. Cusco Peru

36. Cartagena Colombia

37. Zanzibar Tanzania

38. Mexico City Mexico

39. Singapore*

40. Las Vegas USA

41. Samarkand Uzbekistan

42. Sydney Australia*

43. San Francisco California

44. Mont Saint Michel France

45. Dubrovnik Croatia

46. Bangkok Thailand*

47. Buenos Aires Argentina

48. Antigua Guatemala Guatemala

49. Prague Czech Republic  

50. Budapest Hungary

Above are the top 50 must visit places according to one website. The ones in * are places that I have travelled to. Well, maybe I do not have time nor the desire to visit some of the cities mentioned above, but I do have my wish list as follows (and they may not be in the order of preference)

1. Japan (any city)

2. Spain

3. Morocco. 

4. Vienna

5. Prague

6. Budapest

7. Turkey (other than Istanbul)

8. New Zealand (South Island)

If I live for another 10 years insyaAllah, I hope at least I would have visited the above cities/countries. If Allah permits. 

May Allah bless me with good health and given the opportunity to see His amazing creation.

Aameen. 

Till Death do us Part

So I lost two of the most important men in my life just about a year apart. My husband in July last year and my father last week. It was tough the first time but I must say that I was more prepared the second time around. 

But it both cases, the death left behind vulnerable people to be looked after. Earlier it was my two girls and now my mother.

After 14 months my girls have taken on life challenges pretty well I must say. Being young and with so much to go for in life, there are plenty to keep them occupied physically and mentally. There is not much time to grieve for too long. Maybe occasionally, I must admit, especially during certain events that we have to go through, but overall they are okay. The 3 of us are okay. Alhamdulillah.

My mother on the other hand is more fragile. Physically as well. Well, what can one expect.  She is 91 going on 92 years old. (My father was 97 when he died. He would have been 98 in December 14). She is as well as she could be for a person at that age actually. Nothing major to complain about, if you ask her.

And she has been married to my Dad for more than 70 years. I hate to think that she is going through what I have gone through last year. For a person who have been together for that long, I am sure there is a much bigger hole left in her heart. But then again she is a person who holds firmly on "Qada" and "Qadar". So I am hoping that her grieving will not be too deep nor too long.  InsyaAllah. 

May Allah ease her pain and keep her strong physically and emotionally. 

Aameen. 

          

My Father

When I die, I want to die the way my father did

My father died three days ago. And in my opinion, he died in husnul khatimah. And on his last hour, he was surrounded by his loved ones; his wife, children and some grandchildren even.  I thought it was a beautiful ending fit for a person who has led a good life. 

My father was a very unassuming man with a quiet nature and gentle humour. He was not a person who talk much but when he did it was to be reckon with.

He was never a person who like to trouble others and right to his last few days he was still putting everyone else above himself. For that, I believe Allah has ease his pain and ease his path to meet his Creator. And Allah has also ease everything else in preparation for his burial. 

Allahuakbar. Allah is Great. 

We are sure going to miss him and his demeanour. There is no one on earth who is like him. Thats for sure.  And he is sure one tough act to follow. 

May Allah place him among the solihins and grant him jannah without reckoning

Allahummaghfirlahu

Allahumathabbithu

Aameen. 

     

The Creator and the Creation.

I love reading about how a non-Muslim revert to Islam in Hadith of the Day. (Check the website on www.hadithoftheday or on FB). 

In my opinion anyone who would make an effort to learn the Quran would discover the truth. That there is only one God and Islam is the true religion. 

And this discovery should not be limited to the non-Muslim only but also the Muslim who wishes to deepen their faith and get closer to Allah. 

After more learning and reading  of late I still believe in the basic principle of the religion that was told me more than 10 years ago. 

A non-Muslim asked our Arabic Language teacher "what is Islam really about?" And he said it is about establishing a good relationship with our Creator as well as all of His creation. 

Its that simple. 

Easier said than done?

Just imagine! What if?

You have lost everything! Your money. Your job. Your house. Maybe even your family. And even your friends. 

Every single thing then becomes a huge blessing. 

Every single bite to eat

Every single piece of clothes to wear

Every single smile of hello

Every helping hand, no matter how small. 

Every little bit of shelter from the sun and the rain

You will never complain that the "food is not so nice"

Or that your clothes is not as good as the others

Or a house with an air condition would have been way better

You would be more grateful with what you have. 

You would keep a better relationship with those around you. 

You would turn to Allah more. 

Lets not wait till then to do all that. 

May Allah keep us humble and be a grateful and obedient servant and never ever forget our Creator. 

Aameen. 

Syawal 1435

I have to admit that there are less posting in my blog since I have become a stay-at-home-Mom. Some would say that there should have been more since I have more free time. But no. Not in my case! The thing is,  truth be told, I have less things to write about. 😁

You see, more often than not, I write over something base on my observation or surrounding. Something that amuses me or puzzles me or even thought provoking. And now all that I do daily (almost) is attend "kelas ilmu" in the morning (albeit they are different ones) and stay at home in the afternoon/night. Hence the windows of opportunity for 'people-watching' is smaller. In addition, there is no more office dramas and eye-rolling incidents and anecdotes to muse over. 😉

I even used this platform to channel my feelings during those trying times, which has helped a lot since many a times I did not really want a solution, just someone to 'listen' to.

But now I find that I am more 'content' or at peace with myself. And stress free... ❤️

Mind you, life have not gone mundane or boring. Its still as happening as ever minus the peer pressure! I have the joy of going out for lunch or dinner with family and friends during the week days and enjoy the week end outings without having to worry about the monday blues. Plus the fact that I can zippity zip to my hometown any time I want. And of course the dont-be-jealous trip to anywhere anytime without having to worry about the paper work piling up on the desk in the office. 

Anyway, the rest of the year is going to be free and easy months for me. That's the plan anyway. Of course, Allah may have a different plan as after all He is the master planner. So don't give up on me just yet. Watch this space. 😊

On the occasion of the month, me and my girls would like to wish everyone Eids Mubarak. Taqabbal Allahu minna waminkum. May Allah accept (our fast and worship) from us and from you. Aameen.

It has been kind of a subdued celebration for us actually. Just a tad. For the obvious reason. Also because of the recent incidents. MH370. MH17. Gaza. 😔

May Allah bless their souls and place them in jannah. And may Allah also bless us all to become steadfast in our pursue to become the people with Iman and Taqwa. 

Aameen. 

In Loving Memory

Its almost a year since you were gone. Ramadhan is here again. And it has reminded me of the ramadhan of last year. I guess every ramadhan will be a reminder to me (and may be to our girls too) of the time that we spent at the hospital before you were gone

A lot of events have taken place since then. First and foremost, I have decided not to continue working in the corporate world. Many have asked what I have planned. And you may too.  Lets just say that I just want to lay back and let the world go by for now. 🌅

One thing I am blessed with now that I am no longer working is that I can travel the world without having to worry about targets and P&L. Last May I went all the way to Canada by myself to visit our friend Rashimah and Duane. They are doing well and have a lovely home with a beautiful garden. Remember Syafiqah, the eldest girl? She is now in college while Liyana and Imran are in secondary school. I am still not familiar with the terms they use over there. Sophomore and what not. Promised Rashimah that I will visit again with our girls. InsyaAllah.

And our girls. Hanna has just completed her degree. Seems like it was only a little while ago that we sent her to Penang to do her Diploma. And now she is ready to join the rat race! 

And Syaza. She has turned 21 in June! Alhamdulillah. Both events call for a big celebration. It would have been more joyful for both of them for you to be around to celebrate the achievement and milestone of their lives. Even so, they know for sure that you would be proud of them. You have always taken time to spend time with them. And they really valued that. In fact Hanna missed the 'analytical' discussion with you and  I am really such a poor substitute. Oh well, she may just need to get another man in her life for that purpose. Wink. Wink. 

Like you said, we have good kids. Alhamdulillah. I constantly pray that they will turn to be good muslimah and be blessed with success in this life and the hereafter. InsyaAllah. 

May Allah bless you with His Rahmah and Barakah and may He place you with those He has given His nikmah. Aameen.