Seeing that it’s Ramadhan and Arief is done with his exams, hubby and I decided to get him back on track as far as his mengaji is concerned. Our eldest, Shaf had also said he would like to go back to his former ustazah for some refresher of some sort. So after a quick call to the ever reliable Uztazah, I hollered to the boys last Saturday morning, ok kids, mengaji at 9:30 today! That of course did not go down too well with Arief because he was supposed to have a futsal match with some friends at 11 but no big deal, mengaji would be done before then so off you go..come on, no more excuses..! And at the last minute, hubby said, why don’t we send off our precious as well.
So there, Saturday officially became Haqim’s first day of mengaji..! yeay… off he went with his little jubah and skull cap, armed with a mini jawi book. He came back all excited, recited a portion of the alif, ba, ta and had written jawi very neatly in a new exercise book. Soo proud of him..! One funny thing though, Uzatazah had apparently told Haqim’s brothers to please talk to him in Bahasa more because Haqim speaks mostly English whereas Uztazah most certainly doesn’t. Then by Tuesday, which was his 3rd lesson, Arief told us, uztazah had begun speaking to Haqim in English…! Way to go Uztazah..!
Ok, now about tarawikh prayers. For many years we have been regulars at our neighborhood mosque, although once in awhile we do visit others, just for a change of environment. This year, we started off with the big mosque at Jalan Duta – Masjid Wilayah, and for hubby, there was no turning back. He likes the place so much he is willing to drive all the way there every single nite. I, on the other hand still prefer the familiarity of our mosque and all that it has to offer. We prefer to do 8, and they do just 8 at this small mosque of ours. Besides, it has adequate a/c, bacaan imam that is not bad and as soon as we’re done with witir, it’s immediately followed by ‘ratib’ that is so soo mendayu…
Despite the grandeur of Masjid Wilayah, I find it rather uninviting. And you would think a mosque of that size must have super cool air conditioning correct? Naaah..The rest cannot understand me when I tell them, the place is warm..! Very warm, unless you pick a spot right under the a/c louvers, in which case, you’d end up praying solo, when the rest of the female jemaah will most likely be way up front. And of course there they do 20 each nite, and so witir would be on our own and when you leave, there is no ‘feel’ , you know. But, hubby likes it there and although it’s not what I prefer, it’s not something worth arguing over. Besides, I know he doesn’t stop me from going to our mosque if I so wish. I’m the one who much prefer to go togeder-geder..
There are however, several nights where he agrees to go back to that familiar mosque near home. And last night was a case in point. But only for him to confirm that he much prefers Masjid Wilayah. So we have kinda reached a nice compromise. How nicely that plan will work- we will see-lah.
Ok, sothere I was last nite, that small mosque-lah. We got there just before Isyak prayers so I got a spot close to the back. However, it was a nice spot because it was also under the fans and so I had nothing to complain about. Oops, I spoke too soon. Halfway through my tarawikh, some familiar shrill came from the back. That familiar sound of little kids playing with toy cars, would you believe it - having loads of fun of course. I could only afford to curse them in my heart – ye lah, I was supposed to be praying remember..! When we stopped for breather between the ‘sets’ I turned in their direction and tried to give them a glare, din’t work..they were too far to my right. Good Lord, where in the world are your mothers??! These were not toddlers ok, they must be at least 5, 6 years old. Certainly old enough to understand that you’re not supposed to make a racket dalam masjid. Bapaknya pulak entah lah ke mana, don’t see why they could not just follow their dad and pray along.
Ok, so one young mom came behind, reprimanded her kid and for the rest of the time, that particular boy was quiet. For the other 2, it was still party time. One was even dressed in one of those super heroes PJs complete with flowing cape, no wonder he was so hyper! Ok, Pak Imam, err, do you think I can interrupt and make an announcement at this juncture, do you allow that..? Noo.? Oh well, just wondering..
Ok, ok, so maybe these moms don’t have maids so they have no choice but to bring their kids to the mosque..well, then make sure they behave- lah for heavens sake! Or sembahyang je lah kat rumah – kalau dah anak tu tak reti bahasa, sampai terlalu menganggu jemaah lain…(ok, if I just use the word ‘mengong’ or something, would that constitute me being rude and therefore disallowing me from collecting brownie points for todays’ puasa..? ok, so I won’t use the word then..) See, the thing is, I don’t know how these moms can just continue as if all was well. The kids were loud ok, very loud! When we were all done, I turned to see what the mom looked like. I saw an elderly lady who looked like their maid, (ok, so dia pun sembahyang juga ke....) and then the young mom came, and merrily collected all the toy cars which by then were scattered all over the back. Oh, did I mention they had lego blocks too? The place is not carpeted all the way to the back so imagine the din they were making with legos and toy cars on the marble flooring! The super heroes had vanished by then, probably they had a rescue mission.
I just sighed as I left. Ok lah sayang, tomorrow nite we’ll go masjid wilayah ok..?
Friday, September 29, 2006
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Officer 2164
"Mom, from now on, don’t call me Haqim ok, call me Officer 2164.”
That was what he told me yesterday when I called him from work. You see, they're learning about all kinds of occupation and yesterday it was a police officer. He even came home with a cool badge bearing the said no and has the words “Young Thinker’s Squad” with double sided tape, stuck onto his shirt… isn’t that adorable..?? Ok, he’s my 5 year old son, so yes, he is adorable, without a doubt!
As I drove into the porch when I got home yesterday, there he was - at the front door, greeting me with a salute and wearing that police badge on his tank top! So yesterday evening he was Officer 2164, right til bedtime. (incidentally, officer 2164's ambition, the last time we asked, is to be a dentist..! Why? Well, because he always enjoys his trips to the dentist and he thinks the dentist has a very nice office!!) - See, I told you he's adorable..! ha ha
Today they are supposed to have some role play, and my precious angel will be the ambulance driver! He said, “you know mom, err, actually, I was supposed to be the victim, but then now I’m the ambulance driver.” (actually, I just found out from him a short while ago that he was "actually a paramedic..!")
Anyway, in the wee hours this morning, while it was still dark outside Haqim had woken up. His daddy and me were awake too but still "dok mengegham atas katil" and the first sound we heard was a shrilling “nee noo nee noo”. And of course mummy played along and pretty soon I ‘called’ an emergency (ok, digressing just a little - do you guys know what no to call in case of an emergency..??).
Anyhow, this took place..for real ok….!
Mom: “ Hello, (trying to sound real frantic – laa) I have an emergency. My cat has gone up the roof, can I get some help to get him down?”
Him: “oh, you need the rescue policeman”
Mom: “oh, yea, ok, (silly me, he was the ambulance guy..!)
Him: : “But the police station is not open yet. They open at 9 o’clock, Now it’s still dawn..!”
Mom: speechless..just rolled around with laughter…
Aaah, I never recall learning was this much fun..!
That was what he told me yesterday when I called him from work. You see, they're learning about all kinds of occupation and yesterday it was a police officer. He even came home with a cool badge bearing the said no and has the words “Young Thinker’s Squad” with double sided tape, stuck onto his shirt… isn’t that adorable..?? Ok, he’s my 5 year old son, so yes, he is adorable, without a doubt!
As I drove into the porch when I got home yesterday, there he was - at the front door, greeting me with a salute and wearing that police badge on his tank top! So yesterday evening he was Officer 2164, right til bedtime. (incidentally, officer 2164's ambition, the last time we asked, is to be a dentist..! Why? Well, because he always enjoys his trips to the dentist and he thinks the dentist has a very nice office!!) - See, I told you he's adorable..! ha ha
Today they are supposed to have some role play, and my precious angel will be the ambulance driver! He said, “you know mom, err, actually, I was supposed to be the victim, but then now I’m the ambulance driver.” (actually, I just found out from him a short while ago that he was "actually a paramedic..!")
Anyway, in the wee hours this morning, while it was still dark outside Haqim had woken up. His daddy and me were awake too but still "dok mengegham atas katil" and the first sound we heard was a shrilling “nee noo nee noo”. And of course mummy played along and pretty soon I ‘called’ an emergency (ok, digressing just a little - do you guys know what no to call in case of an emergency..??).
Anyhow, this took place..for real ok….!
Mom: “ Hello, (trying to sound real frantic – laa) I have an emergency. My cat has gone up the roof, can I get some help to get him down?”
Him: “oh, you need the rescue policeman”
Mom: “oh, yea, ok, (silly me, he was the ambulance guy..!)
Him: : “But the police station is not open yet. They open at 9 o’clock, Now it’s still dawn..!”
Mom: speechless..just rolled around with laughter…
Aaah, I never recall learning was this much fun..!
Ramadhan al-Mubarak
So folks, puasa month is here again. Well, in a few days lah. And of course that damn weekend roster that just came out here at work has my name up for site duty this Saturday. As I had expected.. since I had the last 2 weekends free and seeing that it is almost puasa month, I suppose my name just HAD to come up for this weekend.. shucks!
Anyway, there goes the plan for a movie with my precious angel…
So this year, Ramadhan will be without my dearest sister in town. The now OZ celup sis of mine will be missed, along with her kuey teow putih, beef stew, daging mu’az etc etc.. (jgn nangis sis…) Chances are she will still be away when syawal comes along too, unless of course she decides to flee melb for a short rendezvous, I donno laa..
Ok, sis, as promised, no group photo this raya, unless that computer savvy sil of ours can superimpose your cute face. Hey, just this morning, it was realized that ayahanda cc’d his mail to your ag address, and Fred said hey who knows, maybe you ARE in town, perhaps you were a stowaway on your hubby’s flight! Ha ha…
Last nite I caught a bit of this malay drama, (nope, I still don’t watch malay dramas, shame on me..but hubby.. yea, he’s a true anak melayu kan..) and there was a scene where this family was putting up those lampu kelip kelip as puasa month began. And when a neighbour commented “orang pasang lampu bila nak Raya,” the mom replied. “tu lah orang kita, nak sambut Raya beriya-iya, sepatutnya nak sambut bulan puasa la start seronok – nak buat ibadat.” Which got me and hubby thinking..maybe we shud go look for our light set in the storeroom and go pasang them soon too..!
So, anyway, in anticipation of Ramadhan, I felt it’s nice to share one of those “reminder” pieces, you know. Hopefully, we will gain more out of this year’s ramadhan..and develop more than just hunger and other temporary deprivation lah kan..Personally, I hope I can learn to be kinder, more so to my kids, and be able to instill in me higher degree of tolerance; to certain situations and certain people that I cross paths with. Of course my other wish is for hubby dearest to kick the habit, once and for all..Wishful thinking?? Well….surely there is no harm in wishing. And hoping…Who knows, one of those nights in this blessed month, the skies open up and God answers my prayers..betul tak? Kan ke berdoa bulan puasa ni mustajab..Besides, if there is one thing I’ve learned, is that we should never underestimate the power of doa..
To Nad – hang in there ok. You’re in our thoughts, more so this month and frankly, when at bonda’s dining table, I feel you right there with us, in spirit - always….!! Love ya sis…
A good Ramadhan Al Mubarak to all…
ok, just to share ;
Penghayatan Ramadhan
Matlamat berpuasa
- Puasa - lapar itu bukan matlamat. Jika ibadah puasa tidak dihayati sepenuhnya, kita keluar dari bulan puasa, kosong.
- Syaitan “di ikat” pada bulan ramdhan tu satu konsep sebenarnya. Kita diberi panduan bagaimana melawan nafsu dan godaan syaitan.
- Terlalu banyak peluang dalam bulan Ramadhan untuk Allah ampunkan dosa kita. Rugi tak memanfaatkan bulan Ramadhan.
Bersahur
- Syaitan influence kita supaya sahur awal. Besar pahala melewatkan sahur sebenarnya
Berbuka
- Kita berpuasa kena hayati kelaparan - bukan sebagai matlamat tapi pembentukan rohani - janganlah banyak makan ketika berbuka. Makruh terlalu kenyang.
Solat di masjid
- Solat jemaah di masjid dilihat dalam keadaan sempurna sebab Tuhan ambil overall, dari segi kyushuk, bila saat ini kita khusyuk, saat lain org lain pula khusyuk, jadi bila solat itu diangkat, ia dianggap sempurna.
Beribadah dalam Ramadhan
- Ssetiap malam Ramadhan Tuhan lepaskan 1000 penghuni neraka. Jadi kita mesti menggamit panggilan Tuhan - bayangkan setiap malam ada sebanyak 1000 free tickets!
- Nabi ajar dlm bulan puasa mintak 3 perkata semasa doa -
i. Agar amalan diterima
ii. Bebaskan dari neraka
iii. Ampunkan dosa
- Jika seorang Muslim itu, berdoa pun tidak dalam bulan ramadhan - teruk sangat lah tu.. tanda kita takabur pada Tuhan
Niat puasa
- Dengan bangun unuk makan sahur sudah cukup untuk ditakrif sebagai niat puasa.
- Walaupun begitu, Ustaz tak berapa cenderung ke arah satu kali niat untuk puasa sebulan. Lebih lagi wanita, sebab ada masa putus puasa.
Solat tarawikh
Tiada bilangan tarawikh yang bidaah, semua ok. Cuma elok bila bacaan panjang, dibuat rakaat sikit, dan bila bacaan pendek, rakaat banyak.
Lailatul qadar
- Amalan minimum untuk ibadah lailatul qadar, kena ada 3 perkara beriku :-
I. Isyak berjemaah
Ii. Tarawikh
Iii. Subuh berjemaah
- Bila buat kesemua yang tiga perkara ini, sudah dikira melakukan amalan lailatul qadar bukan hanya kena qiamulail baru dianggap ibadat lailatul qadar
- Diingatkan janganlah keluar 10 malam terakhir. Orang kita last 10 nites tu lah nak beli baju raya lah, nak jalan tengok lampu lah, kena buat kuih lah dan bermacam alasan lain untuk tidak solat tarawikh
. Kita perlu tangisi kekesalan kita pada Tuhan.
- Bangun malam tak semestinya pukul 12 tengah malam. Memadai bangun awal sebelum sahur
And finally,
Ciri orang yang munafik dlm bulan ramadhan
1. Sahur awal
2. Tidur lepas subuh
3. Tunjuk letih
4. Lambat sembahyang
5. Makan banyak
6. Tidur banyak waktu malam.
Anyway, there goes the plan for a movie with my precious angel…
So this year, Ramadhan will be without my dearest sister in town. The now OZ celup sis of mine will be missed, along with her kuey teow putih, beef stew, daging mu’az etc etc.. (jgn nangis sis…) Chances are she will still be away when syawal comes along too, unless of course she decides to flee melb for a short rendezvous, I donno laa..
Ok, sis, as promised, no group photo this raya, unless that computer savvy sil of ours can superimpose your cute face. Hey, just this morning, it was realized that ayahanda cc’d his mail to your ag address, and Fred said hey who knows, maybe you ARE in town, perhaps you were a stowaway on your hubby’s flight! Ha ha…
Last nite I caught a bit of this malay drama, (nope, I still don’t watch malay dramas, shame on me..but hubby.. yea, he’s a true anak melayu kan..) and there was a scene where this family was putting up those lampu kelip kelip as puasa month began. And when a neighbour commented “orang pasang lampu bila nak Raya,” the mom replied. “tu lah orang kita, nak sambut Raya beriya-iya, sepatutnya nak sambut bulan puasa la start seronok – nak buat ibadat.” Which got me and hubby thinking..maybe we shud go look for our light set in the storeroom and go pasang them soon too..!
So, anyway, in anticipation of Ramadhan, I felt it’s nice to share one of those “reminder” pieces, you know. Hopefully, we will gain more out of this year’s ramadhan..and develop more than just hunger and other temporary deprivation lah kan..Personally, I hope I can learn to be kinder, more so to my kids, and be able to instill in me higher degree of tolerance; to certain situations and certain people that I cross paths with. Of course my other wish is for hubby dearest to kick the habit, once and for all..Wishful thinking?? Well….surely there is no harm in wishing. And hoping…Who knows, one of those nights in this blessed month, the skies open up and God answers my prayers..betul tak? Kan ke berdoa bulan puasa ni mustajab..Besides, if there is one thing I’ve learned, is that we should never underestimate the power of doa..
To Nad – hang in there ok. You’re in our thoughts, more so this month and frankly, when at bonda’s dining table, I feel you right there with us, in spirit - always….!! Love ya sis…
A good Ramadhan Al Mubarak to all…
ok, just to share ;
Penghayatan Ramadhan
Matlamat berpuasa
- Puasa - lapar itu bukan matlamat. Jika ibadah puasa tidak dihayati sepenuhnya, kita keluar dari bulan puasa, kosong.
- Syaitan “di ikat” pada bulan ramdhan tu satu konsep sebenarnya. Kita diberi panduan bagaimana melawan nafsu dan godaan syaitan.
- Terlalu banyak peluang dalam bulan Ramadhan untuk Allah ampunkan dosa kita. Rugi tak memanfaatkan bulan Ramadhan.
Bersahur
- Syaitan influence kita supaya sahur awal. Besar pahala melewatkan sahur sebenarnya
Berbuka
- Kita berpuasa kena hayati kelaparan - bukan sebagai matlamat tapi pembentukan rohani - janganlah banyak makan ketika berbuka. Makruh terlalu kenyang.
Solat di masjid
- Solat jemaah di masjid dilihat dalam keadaan sempurna sebab Tuhan ambil overall, dari segi kyushuk, bila saat ini kita khusyuk, saat lain org lain pula khusyuk, jadi bila solat itu diangkat, ia dianggap sempurna.
Beribadah dalam Ramadhan
- Ssetiap malam Ramadhan Tuhan lepaskan 1000 penghuni neraka. Jadi kita mesti menggamit panggilan Tuhan - bayangkan setiap malam ada sebanyak 1000 free tickets!
- Nabi ajar dlm bulan puasa mintak 3 perkata semasa doa -
i. Agar amalan diterima
ii. Bebaskan dari neraka
iii. Ampunkan dosa
- Jika seorang Muslim itu, berdoa pun tidak dalam bulan ramadhan - teruk sangat lah tu.. tanda kita takabur pada Tuhan
Niat puasa
- Dengan bangun unuk makan sahur sudah cukup untuk ditakrif sebagai niat puasa.
- Walaupun begitu, Ustaz tak berapa cenderung ke arah satu kali niat untuk puasa sebulan. Lebih lagi wanita, sebab ada masa putus puasa.
Solat tarawikh
Tiada bilangan tarawikh yang bidaah, semua ok. Cuma elok bila bacaan panjang, dibuat rakaat sikit, dan bila bacaan pendek, rakaat banyak.
Lailatul qadar
- Amalan minimum untuk ibadah lailatul qadar, kena ada 3 perkara beriku :-
I. Isyak berjemaah
Ii. Tarawikh
Iii. Subuh berjemaah
- Bila buat kesemua yang tiga perkara ini, sudah dikira melakukan amalan lailatul qadar bukan hanya kena qiamulail baru dianggap ibadat lailatul qadar
- Diingatkan janganlah keluar 10 malam terakhir. Orang kita last 10 nites tu lah nak beli baju raya lah, nak jalan tengok lampu lah, kena buat kuih lah dan bermacam alasan lain untuk tidak solat tarawikh
. Kita perlu tangisi kekesalan kita pada Tuhan.
- Bangun malam tak semestinya pukul 12 tengah malam. Memadai bangun awal sebelum sahur
And finally,
Ciri orang yang munafik dlm bulan ramadhan
1. Sahur awal
2. Tidur lepas subuh
3. Tunjuk letih
4. Lambat sembahyang
5. Makan banyak
6. Tidur banyak waktu malam.
Monday, September 11, 2006
Arief oh Arief
Ok, in case you’re wondering what’s been happening since my 12 year old dropped that bombshell last week, here’s the latest.
With no shame whatsoever, I am happy to say that he has changed his mind..! yippee…!! Well, for now – but I sure hope it stays that way. Why the change of heart you ask? Well, it started quite simply when he went to school with all relevant documents photocopied except for his father’s salary slip. (Incidently, when we went to the neighborhood photocopy place that nite, we met at least 3 or 4 other fellow Year 6 boys who were there with the exact same intention he had..!). Daddy dearest makes a decent living but no salary slip – so I photocopied mine. Apparently, Arief’s teacher wanted father’s salary slip…and from that point on, I slowly talked to him.
His dad had no problems agreeing with me, so finally we managed to talk him out of the idea…yeay, mission accomplished..! Surprisingly, it wasn’t too hard to get him to buy our logic. Initially he did not understand the fuss but later he seemed contented with all that we had to say. So for now, he’s staying…
I hope he can understand our rationale...and also the fact that the herd mentality just won’t do –deciding to go largely because all his friends seem eager to do so. With him, even under our noses he can be quite a challenge. Just yesterday I saw him with his gameboy which I had hid months before his exams. Lo and behold, he was merrily playing with it yesterday afternoon…much to my amusement. When asked, his initial response was, “Arief terjumpa.” Yeah, right…..! I had it tucked away, way inside one of my little cabinets. Finally, he sheepishly admitted, “Ha ah, Arief cari..” Hello, you could have asked me first if you can have it back now that the exams are over, or at the very least, ask where I kept it..! You see, I am willing to bet he had known all along where I stored his gameboy…!!
So, yup, he is definitely staying…For the moment, at best it’s a toss between DJ and DU…ok, where shall it be…follow Adam, that nice kid but little Romeo in the making to DJ or the seemingly more responsible Clarence to DU….?? Btw, IJ is moving elsewhere so I guess no more cute stories of him asking girls to go steady….
With no shame whatsoever, I am happy to say that he has changed his mind..! yippee…!! Well, for now – but I sure hope it stays that way. Why the change of heart you ask? Well, it started quite simply when he went to school with all relevant documents photocopied except for his father’s salary slip. (Incidently, when we went to the neighborhood photocopy place that nite, we met at least 3 or 4 other fellow Year 6 boys who were there with the exact same intention he had..!). Daddy dearest makes a decent living but no salary slip – so I photocopied mine. Apparently, Arief’s teacher wanted father’s salary slip…and from that point on, I slowly talked to him.
His dad had no problems agreeing with me, so finally we managed to talk him out of the idea…yeay, mission accomplished..! Surprisingly, it wasn’t too hard to get him to buy our logic. Initially he did not understand the fuss but later he seemed contented with all that we had to say. So for now, he’s staying…
I hope he can understand our rationale...and also the fact that the herd mentality just won’t do –deciding to go largely because all his friends seem eager to do so. With him, even under our noses he can be quite a challenge. Just yesterday I saw him with his gameboy which I had hid months before his exams. Lo and behold, he was merrily playing with it yesterday afternoon…much to my amusement. When asked, his initial response was, “Arief terjumpa.” Yeah, right…..! I had it tucked away, way inside one of my little cabinets. Finally, he sheepishly admitted, “Ha ah, Arief cari..” Hello, you could have asked me first if you can have it back now that the exams are over, or at the very least, ask where I kept it..! You see, I am willing to bet he had known all along where I stored his gameboy…!!
So, yup, he is definitely staying…For the moment, at best it’s a toss between DJ and DU…ok, where shall it be…follow Adam, that nice kid but little Romeo in the making to DJ or the seemingly more responsible Clarence to DU….?? Btw, IJ is moving elsewhere so I guess no more cute stories of him asking girls to go steady….
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