I remember the time when...I devoured at my wedding...
Last 29th of January was our 4th wedding anniversary. Both me and wife had been wanting for a quick getaway. So, this year's surprise from me to wifey (and kiddo) was a quick getaway. More on that in a separate entry.
In some places, it is impolite or improper for a bride or a groom to be eating so much. In other words, we need to control our behaviours while eating in front of the guests. Not only do the newlyweds are forbidden to be chewing so loudly (obviously), we are also expected to be eating only in small portions. This means, no bone crunching or shell crushing or soup slurping is allowed. Despite how hungry the newlyweds may be, our plates should only have some rice, with some gravy and a few pieces of meats (which preferably be stripped down from the bones by the maid of honours).
Looking back on the day I got married, I kinda' forgot about these 'rules' (despite having received a few reminders from my aunties beforehand). Because of that, I ate like nobody's business. It only hit me when my cousin's wife, who sat across the table, raised up a bowl of rice and said to me insinuatingly, "Nak tambah?" (You want some more?) before she laughed.
Yikes, that was embarrassing! It became talk of the town for quite a while. I got teased even to this day (if somehow, a related topic is brought up). My cousin even said that he had never seen such a hungry groom in his life before.... Hahaha... well, what to do? I'm not really good at following rules plus, I like to eat!
Anyway, I realise that I've never really shared my wedding photos before, so here are some:
Went back to Muar again. I just couldn’t resist of meeting up with her. We had our lunch together with her brother (but he turned up a bit late, so I had a few minutes just with her). We brought each other’s photos, and talked about things. I gave her a box of Ferrero Rocher chocolate and she gave me the VERY SPECIAL belated birthday presents…then we ate our lunch, talked…talked…
My engagement date with Ija has been fixed to be on 20 March 2005. I had decided to give her something extra special in addition to what we (me and family) already bought. I burned 2 sets of CD’s for her. One is a Zikir Munajat CD by Ustaz Dr. Badrul Amin Bahron so that she can listen to Al Qur’an recitals and praise God while she was driving. The other set consists of 3 cd’s, having 17 songs on each cd. The songs varied from the oldies to the current hits, such as Abba’s Lay All Your Love On Me, Richard Marx’s Right Here Waiting, Maroon 5’s She Will Be Loved, Kelly Clarkson’s Breakaway, Extreme’s More Than Words, Titanic’s My Heart Will Go On, Berlin’s Take My Breath Away and Hoobastank’s The Reason. The 51 songs came from my years of CD collections. I also created the CD cover myself, something that I learned to do by trial and error.
All the invited guests showed up at one of the biggest days in my life. A few of my aunties, uncles and cousins. It was a commemorative day plus great foods from both parties. As much as I would like to say more, let it just be in my memory box.
That morning, my parents went to Ija’s parents to discuss for the date of our engagement day. The discussion went well. By now, I already talked a few times with Ija, getting to know each other better. She somehow made me……hmmm..I think, the feeling was indescribable, let it just stay within me.
Later that evening, I caught the movie Hide and Seek starring Robert de Niro and Dakota Fanning. It was surprisingly good with some really eerie moments, especially since it involved a kid with her rather dangerous imaginary friend. It was a psychological thriller, threw in with a good amount of good acting and great sound effect. Okay, some critics may think Dakota is quite stereotyped. But I think that girl knows what she is doing and enjoying it. For a kid like that to be so consistent in all her movies/tv series, she manages to build her reputation right from her early start. I mean, 90% of kids actors out there, they just be themselves when they act, I mean they are still kids. But Dakota is one of those kids who takes acting seriously. She totally immerses herself to be the characters she plays in.
It was a fine Sunday morning. We had set our first date to be at KFC in Muar. Actually I met her for the first time last Hari Raya (a Muslim festival last December but that didn’t count because there were a whole lot of other people there). She said she would feel more comfortable if she could bring her brother along and I agreed. It was a fine date and I got along with her (and her brother). I also gave her a present for her belated birthday.
October and November 2004 - My mum had been sick and there were times when she lied down all day in bed, could hardly talk. One day, she came to me asking about when I would be calling this one girl. Her name is Nor Hariza Eisa. You see, her father is the brother of a relative of mine. I never met her or her parents before. But my family is quite close with her father’s three other siblings and her granny.
What crushed me the most was when mum said that it was ok if I didn’t want to get married; knowing that I already bought a condo was good news enough for her. Right now, she didn’t want to bother so much about other people. She just needed to concentrate on her health and to prepare herself to meet God.
It was not that I didn’t want to settle down and have a family of my own. It was just that I would prefer if the girl was not introduced by my family members. Should things didn’t work out, there’d be a lot of things at stake here. Not just the relationship between me and the girl, but also between our families.
Furthermore, I still had this fear or should I say “unnecessary worry”. I was thinking if I were to marry a girl (anyone), I would not just marry her, but also her families and friends. Say, the girl liked me for who I was, but what if her families and friends didn’t. In fact they might think I was not good enough for her. Talk about low self esteem huh?
Putting that aside, after examining the ‘productivity’ of me finding my OWN girl, I realised that it had not been a successful quest. With the exception of one girl who remains as a friend, for the rest of the girls (not that many hee….), we didn’t even survive our first dates. One girl even had the pleasure of making me feel so low, by comparing me with her previous boyfriend.
God (Allah) had said that every creature on this earth was created in couples (i.e. everyone would have his/her own partner). So, I was thinking what if Nor Hariza was destined to be my soulmate, and for some reasons I let that opportunity slipped by. Therefore, I had given up the one partner that God had promised me to be with. I would end up die as a virgin hehe (trying to be a bit humourous, don’t think I should be over sentimental here).
So, the day came - I rang her up. I found out that currently Doctor Ija (her nickname) was working at Hospital Tangkak, although still staying with her family at Muar. We talked very briefly, since I sensed it was not the right time. She had just finished her ‘on-call’ earlier that day. But we continued ‘talking’ via SMS for the next couple of weeks. The feedback that I got (from reliable sources) was that I was a funny guy. Well, maybe I was (beaming with pride). The other reason was that if I were to discuss something serious (as in should we be more than just friends?), I would prefer to meet her in person, instead of via SMS or talking to her over the phone.
The Oxford Dictionary says "boulevard" means wide city street, often with trees on each side. As for me, "boulevard" is the path that I thread my way through in life. At times, the trees give me protection from the hot sun above. While at other times, no amount of trees can comfort me when it pours. Come rain or shine, the road continues to provide me with the journey of life until it reaches its destination.
People say I'm sweet, kind, a gentleman, caring, romantic and observant (let's just concentrate on the good attributes). I love those who matter to me, and care about things that count. I'm a Malay Muslim and proud to be one. I DON'T think Islam should be judged by those nasty followers. Islam should be judged by the religion itself; its teachings and the purpose behind them. I mean, humans will still behave like humans right? Usually, regardless of religions that they embrace. It is also in my nature to please, since I believe that TO PLEASE EVERYONE IS AN IMPOSSIBLE FEAT, BUT NOT TRYING TO PLEASE ANYONE OTHER THAN ONESELF IS A POSSIBLE DEFEAT (own quote). Apart from sharing the things I read, watch and listen to, I'd also share my thoughts and feelings, and express my views on certain issues. Last by no means least, I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM EVERYONE OF YOU OUT THERE ABOUT ANYTHING! If we knew each other 'in the previous life' and had lost contact, or we hardly contact each other nowadays, do email me or comment on my entries. Feel free to explore my blog & website (http://members.fortunecity.com/abdunmy/). Cheerio & Wassalam.
Sometimes, to boldly go (where no one has gone before) at warp speed may cause you unnecessary troubles.
Own quote, based on Star Trek
Lesson from the quote: Rushing to reach your destinations or goals may get you there fast, but may not always be the smartest thing to do!
"Note The Quote (Malay translation)"
Kadang kala, perjalanan (ke tempat yang tidak pernah ditujui) pada kelajuan maksimum boleh menyebabkan kesusahan pada diri sendiri.
Rekaan sendiri, berdasarkan dari Star Trek
Pengajaran: Terburu-buru untuk sampai ke destinasi atau matlamat hidup mungkin boleh membawa kita ke sana dengan cepat, tetapi langkah itu tidak semestinya yang terbaik!
You have to find something that you love enough to be able to take risks, jump over the hurdles and break through the brick walls that are always going to be placed in front of you. If you don't have that kind of feeling for what it is you are doing, you'll stop at the first giant hurdle.
George Lucas (Film Director and Producer)
"Favourite Note The Quote 2"
A sign in a mosque on the need to switch off handphones:
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Penguin Rush
