MEE ARANG PAYA JARAS & PAKCIK MULTI-LINGUAL

No, the mee arang is not black in colour. Mee arang is an Achenese hawker dish cooked with coal - people have been known to insist that anything cooked with coal tastes better. My son Harris and I decided to try Mee Arang that one day when we were waiting for my husband to show up from work. It is quite unique, at least to me, as it is rather different from the mee goreng Mamak that I'm used to. Try it for yourself, I'm scared that I will not be able to do the dish justice by trying to describe it here.

The second time we decided to have the Mee Arang at the shop at the corner in Paya Jaras (near the Pasar Malam), a Pakcik, in his late eighties joined us as the table. He was not eating, he was just resting after a shopping spree at the Pasar Malam. We exchanged smiles but did not say anything - he smiled back and I immediately thought of Iyaz, our seven year old who is starting to loose his milk teeth, so sweet and innocent was the smile, straight from the heart. When our mee arang came, my husband did the usual "Makan, Pakcik...". Pakcik replied with the usual, "Sila, sila...", then, he launched off and did not stop talking for about an hour.

He spoke of his travels all over Malaysia, his experiences, his acquired wisdom throughout his life, his children, his grandchilden, his recent cataract operation and his multi-racial friends. We were in the mood, so he had our undivided attention. [I'm tired, I'll continue later...]

ANAZ TURNS SIX, GOING ON SIXTY

Anaz is number six and Anaz is turning six tomorrow, 29th April 2008. Last week Anaz asked me again, "Mak, kita dah cukup duit ke? Anaz nak beli game...". He knew from my expression what he needed to do immediately, next, he launched off : "Ya Allah, bagi lah Mak aku duit, Mak aku nak bayar hutang, aku nak beli game, Ya Allah, Amin."

Anaz does not understand the meaning of luxury because when he was two, my business started going downhill, now he will be six, we are still unable to bounce back yet.

I'm grateful to Allah for putting me through this test. I have learned to appreciate more. And I've become a better person in many, many ways. Most of all, I'm at peace with myself because I found God.

It is four years now that we are in the dumps and money is very scarce and hard to come by, ever. To top it all up, the business debts are so huge that I'd be lying if I say I can sleep at night most nights. If not for the faith I have in God, I would have gone cuckoo thinking of all the financial problems our family is facing now.

Anaz, like the other five of my children is God's ultimate gift to me. Anaz is such an inspiration. He said something that strengthened my faith in God, ever more. Once is a while, I would ask him, "Anaz, when is God answering our prayers to settle Mak's debts?". He replied in the most convincing manner, "Allah tengah loading tu Mak."

I told my husband about the remark which resulted in him grinning from ear to ear..."See, tak sia-sia main playstation and letting him you-tube with me".

Anaz, Mak knows that what you said is true, that Allah is in the midst of 'loading' the good tidings for us, Amin.

I've Decided...

For someone who claims that she cannot use the pen or pencil properly anymore because of having made to rely on the computer to `write', I have been ashamed at myself for not heeding my children's call to blog and face-book. For the longest time, I resisted starting a blog of my own and I continued to dream about having my thoughts published in paper-based publications. Starting today, I'm a changed person -- I will now post my thoughts on my blog, "For All That Matters...".

I'm pleased with myself because I finally found an overriding theme with which "For All That Matters..." will move forward. My theme is Human Inspirations. Once in a while, I may dabble in politics but we'll see.

Finally, for all that matters, I would like to use this blog to share my life's experiences with my six children - Ayuni, Nadia, Izura, Harris, Iyaz and Anaz.

LET’S SHELVE ‘KETUANAN MELAYU’ ONCE AND FOR ALL

There is no `race’ in God’s eyes. All human beings are equal and are but His servants.

Consider this observation:

"The extinction of race consciousness as between Muslims is one of the outstanding achievements of Islam, and in the contemporary world there is, as it happens, a crying need for the propagation of this Islamic virtue."

This statement was made by a non-Muslim scholar.

To me, it does not matter who uttered those words, what is important is the value of the content. I find it highly relevant in our Malaysia -- forget `Ketuanan Melayu’, period!

And in Malaysia, if Melayu = Islam = Ketuanan Melayu, we are headed for the hellfire, bros and sis, for we have put ourselves as being superior to other races, but God does not recognize races, He recognizes good, fair and just human beings.

‘Ketuanan Melayu’ confirms that Malays are insecure. That feeling of insecurity is real but it is our own doing. A lot of times, we hear the Malays saying “Aku nak bagi project kat dia tapi takut dia tak deliver, so baik bagi kat Cina, sure deliver”. The Malays are the very people who would look up to the Mat Sallehs but at the same time scorn, “Ingat apa, Mat Salleh terror sangat ke?” Do the Malays strive to be as good or better as the Mat Sallehs, the Chinese, the Indians? No, most of the time, they coyly retreat, bask themselves in self-pity and blame others for their shortcomings.

Forget ‘Ketuanan Melayu’, fellow Malays. Let’s strive with all our fellow Malaysians to be good, fair and just human beings, God willing, our lives will be richer.