15 August 2012

Pakcik reminisces ( Pt 25 b) - The gift



15th August 1964
To
15th August, 2012




That house and those durian trees
(Click on the picture to enlarge)


His greatest gift

Do you remember

My love

Forty eight years ago

Today



In that house

That very house

Those durian trees

Stood witness



As I accepted you

My love

His greatest gift

To hold in trust


Let us pray
We will see more of today

For the innumerable gifts I owe Him
Berkhidmat kerana Tuhan untuk kemanusiaan

49 comments:

Anonymous said...


Happy 48 years together! Love you both. Insya'Allah we will see the flags on Saturday.

No 3

Uncle said...

Congratulations....

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Pakcik and Makcik. I dream of a marriage like you both.
I am wondering how old those durian trees are. I have never seen such giants.

Azmiera

Anonymous said...

Happy anniversary Babah & Mummy! Both of you are gifts to us, our beacon and our inspirations. Love you lots.

No.1

kaykuala said...

Dear Pak Cik,
How very sweet! Blissful marriage cannot be explained. Only those who are not privileged but wrought with problems in marriage will know the pressure and tension.
Those blessed with loving partners have everything they had asked for.
Congrats Pak Cik and Mak Cik!

Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri once again. Just a few more days!

Hank
P/S The durian kampong will last for years. A dainty setting you have here (which is what I miss staying in KL)

naliahmad said...

dear pakchik, happy wedding anniversary to you and makchik. it is so heart warming to see the love between older couples. theirs is a love that is quiet and calm and oh!...so steadfast.

Anonymous said...

AlhmduliLLAH for Pakcik n Makcik.The house reminds me of my late mum"s house.

wawa

Al-Manar said...

No 3,

Mami is all excited at the thought of this year's Hari Raya, knowing No 1 and No 2 will be here as well.

Love from us

Al-Manar said...

Uncle,

Thank you. I often wonder where you are. Your 'here' seems everywhere on earth!

Selamat Hari Raya wherever you and family will be.

Al-Manar said...

Azmiera,

Do not dream too much before you get that scroll which vboth of us love to see. The giant trees are almost as big 48 years ago. I am sure it must be about a century old; bearing fruit like young mothers!

Al-Manar said...

No 1

You have used 'beacon' and 'inspirations, No 2 said 'dedicated' yesterday and No 3 prefers 'love'. Has HE not given us enough that in practice we express our gratitude in our varied ways?

Let's hope this Hari Raya is not disrupted by the like of sad news of Opah's demise last Hari Raya.

Al-Manar said...

Hank,

We speak in the same vein about a blissful marriage. Do you not feel like 'pulang kampong' giving you more time work towards becoming a 'professional' poet? Then you will the kampong durian your state is famous for.

Al-Manar said...

Nali,

With the 'number' that you have been specially blessed with you will have, insya Allah, more than what I could ever dream of, something extraordinary.

Al-Manar said...

Wawa,

I am glad to see you again. Where is that late mum's house - in Pecah Rotan?

Selamat Hari Raya

naniasda said...

As Salam Pakcik,
Congratulations and Happy 48th Anniversary with more to look forward to :)

I love the house and the setting!

Anonymous said...

Salam Pakcik
Mums house is in Sabak Bernam Selangor.It is now deserted.There are no durian trees around the house.My siblings are mostly in KL.

Selamat Hari Raya to Pak Cik n family!!

wawa

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Whoa! Pakcik is a romantic and so poetic. Macam itu ke ngorat Makcik dolu-dolu? Happy Anniversary Pakcik and Makcik of Al-Manar. May you both be blessed with long and happy life. har har har *happy laughs*

Al-Manar said...

naniasda,

Thank you. Next time you take a coastal drive to KT drop by and have a cup of something with us.

Selamat Hari Raya.

Al-Manar said...

Wawa,

I honestly thought you were from around my area and had known us personally. Never mind, drop by some time you are around here.

Selamat Hari Raya

Al-Manar said...

C-f-S,

It is a far cry from a cat's love call outside my house all night long!

Thank you for the good wishes. Panjang umur jumpa lagi.

nwar said...

i remember sometime in the mid 80s, when No.1 and me were in boarding school and No.3 was still joji.. my best friend, saw you both, just the two of you, walking hand in hand, entering the Jalan Telawi KFC in Bangsar for a meal. He quipped "they are so romantic!" I have no idea what my friend was doing in Bangsar and not in the dormitory that evening, but our prep-class conversation went off topic from add.maths onto love and marriage... two adolescent buddies trying to decipher what makes a marriage tick.
Fast forward 2012, 26th Ramadhan iftar at a 5-star hotel in KL, me and my best friend re-visited the same topic when I told him today's their 48th anniversary. He re-told the KFC moment, I was surprised he remembered, and I told him they are still as romantic as ever, going for hi-teas together, watching the sunset by the beach together, etc... indeed we shook our envious heads ...and in that instant, he had an "eureka" moment, finally deciphering the 3 decade old enigma.
He gave that Einstein gaze and declared : "If you give absolute love and trust in HIM, HE will reward you... A happy marriage, a little house by the beach to grow old together in. What else do you want to ask for in life after all?" From afar, that's how he sees my "Pakcik" and "Makcik", compared to the more "material" path his parents took ... and i couldn't agree with him more.
Happy Anniversary Babah & Mummy !

kaykuala said...

Dear Pak Cik,
Perfect poem!Lots more where that came from to be revealed at precious odd little moments like this. You've as yet to take a peek of your Red okra at my Rainbow.
Thanks!

Hank

Al-Manar said...

Nwar,

Thank you for a beautiful flashback to the Alam Shah time, a time in your life when you fought home-sickness to show you were a man, yet expecting us to visit you every weekend with food!

Only yesterday I related to a person how you befriended a classmate and that friendship has developed over the years to become friends through thick and thin. If yesterday were tomorrow I would have added that today they can even afford to eat at five-star hotel - probably discussing how to be millionaires!

Your grand-Pakcik was relatively poor. But I remember today instances which depicted his love for his son despite the little money he had in his pocket. In my own way I try to repay him today for that love.

There is love between husbands and wives, between two friends, between parents and children; but it is hard to develop one from a humble creature to his creator, the Ultimate.

My salaam to your best friend. Tell him that he is luckier than he thinks. With a heart of gold he cannot go wrong.

Al-Manar said...

Hank,

Have you not noticed that at times my comments were belated? When something looked beautiful but beyond my immediate comprehension I sat back and revisited to leave comments. I was wondering what 'prompt' and 'vise versa' were about. So I followed the link at the foot of your Okra, one thing led to another, without leaving a comment for that moment.

I suppose that was how you developed the poetic skill. If I do one it is like throwing up two handfuls of marbles and see where they fall. I then pick up any pattern formed, making up one if I do not see any. How about that for skill!

GUiKP said...

Salam Pakcik,
What a beautiful portrait of a marriage; dancing to Bengawan Solo, ocasional trips to the lovely kampung house in the midst of durian trees, and ultimately blessed with three wonderful children.
May many more enchanting moments come your way AK and Ning, and have a joyous Raya with loved ones. Maaf Zahir dan Batin.

Temuk said...

Congratulations to both of you for managing the 48 years of married life so well together. May the coming years bring more happiness and prosperity to you both.

Selamat Hari Raya. Maaf zahir batin.

Pak Idrus said...

Pokcik Hassan, Congratulation. It sure have been a wonderful years together.

This one I beat you. Asmah and I celebrate our 50th Anniversary on February 3 this year.

Have a nice day.

Al-Manar said...

GuiKP,

You have always said fine words for me when you should deserve greatyer words of praidser. You are the first Malaysian to have had a paper accepted for publication in the prestigious journal JCAE ( The Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics.) The is the Olympics for the acedamicians and this is the field we ought to be fighting on.

Well done Prof, and happy Hari Raya to you and family.

Al-Manar said...

Pak Idrus,

I think it is not fair! If I had known we would have eloped across the border or up Gretna Green three yrears earlier to beat you.

Anyway I must have missed the occasion butI still wish you and Asmah all the best.

Selamat Hari Raya, maaf zahir batin.

Al-Manar said...

Temuk,

Thanks for the wishes, but Pak Idrus above beat us by two. Berdoalah dengan harapan kita semua akan diberi peluang menghayati hidup yang penuh dengan amal maarof.

Saya juga ucapkan Selamat Hari Raya dan maaf zahir batin

Al-Manar said...

Pak Idrus,

I have to add here that I tried to leave comments on your new blog format without success. As for Face Book I have my dislike for that and never bother to respond. As an example I wanted to wish you a happy 70th birthday but failed to find a place to comment! That's how clever I am.

Pak Idrus said...

BTW Pokcik Hassan, today August 17 is my 73rd Birthday and not 70th.

Temuk had managed to placed comment[s] on my blog. Perhaps you have to ask him how he did it.

Take care.

Al-Manar said...

Pak Idrus,

My apology for the error. I was writing from memory of what I visited earlier. I think Sdr will tell me how he gets there. You see I am older than you with more impaired memory!

Keep active as always Pak Idrus.

GUiKP said...

Pakcik,
No, I'm not the first Malaysian to have a paper accepted in the JCAE. There are a few others before me, although it is still very very rare. Anyway, it is good to showcase Malaysian accounting literature to a wider international audience. Let us hope it will get good citation as my other Elsevier publication in 2009. Thank you for your words of encouragement.

kaykuala said...

Dear Pak Cik,
That's just it! There are so many prompts to choose from. In fact I had drafted one based on your Red okra. Then vice/versa came by and I adjusted it to include the 4 words. So I have a verse relevant for 2 prompts,your prompt and for Poets United's prompt. By putting it in 2 or more web-sites you catch a larger audience. I'm having fun!

It's just a bit of correct English and lots of imagination. Recently we were warned about copyright infringements. I had picked lots of images from google. Apparently even then it's not safe. I told myself I may have to draw more on my love of sketching which I had long neglected and feel safer including them in my postings

Hank

naliahmad said...

alhamdulillah.
extraordinary...extra everything, i would say, pakchik...extra number, extra laughter, extra decibels, extra laundry...
that is a very nice piece written by your no 1. i always believe it does the children good to see their parents in a happy relationship. insyaALLAH, that would serve as a mould for them in their own marriages.

Al-Manar said...

GuiKP,

Should there not be a brief entry on this in yoir blog. I feel that academicians at tertiary level do not spend some time to blog and communicate within the community, exchanging thoughts and ideas. There are many teachers' blogs around.

Al-Manar said...

Hank

I never thought of the copyright infringemnet when it involves small items, photos etc.

Al-Manar said...

Nali,

Not being millionaires what things of value can we give to our children other than goodd examples, which in reality are worth more that the millions. Kata orang in 'sour grapes'. Dah tak ada dan tak mampu taklah elok sangat apa yang orang lain miliki.

Ismail aka Pak Mail said...

Salam Pakcik,

Wishing you 'minal aidin wal faidzin'. Mdah2an Allah swt berkati kehidupan Pak cik seisi keluarga.

Al-Manar said...

PakMail,

Kepada PakMail dan keluarga juga saya ucapkan Selamat Hari Raya. Maaf zahir batin.

Lama rasanya PakMail tak singgah. Ingin juga mendegar berita terkini.

Anonymous said...

Salam Pak Cik,

Congratulations!! Happy 48th Anniversary. Semoga Pak Cik and Mak Cik dipanjangkan umur, murah rezeki dan sentiasa dibawah lindunganNYA. Eid Mubarak.

AJ
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch

GUiKP said...

sure, it is a story worth telling.

Al-Manar said...

AJ,

Thank you forr tthe wishes.But giving me that world longest name, of a place in Wales,as a clue baffles me to no end. AJ, AJ.AJ ..? You win! Come again and give me more clues.

Al-Manar said...

GuiKP,

"It is a story worth telling." That is more approppriate from me to you.
Thank you any way.

Wan Sharif said...

I love what your numero 2 wrote.

Al-Manar said...

Ayoh Wang,

He was here for hari raya and told me of his meeting 'the great Ayoh Wang' somewhere in KL.

Hope things get even better after hari raya so that one day soon you will come home to settle doown.

For the first time we drove to that 'Heritage' hotel on Pulau Duyong for a wedding. We were almost lost in the 'kampong' and wondered if the site of your old home was where we stopped to ask for direction; imagine getting lost on Pulau Duyong. I could write a posting on that!

Mawar said...

Pakcik Hassan,
rakaman foto yang indah!

Al-Manar said...

Mawar,

Cuma 10 km dari UPSI Tg Malim. Musim durian mewahlah kami menikmati buah yang cantik. Suasana aman.