Month Of Ramadhan and A Funeral

We are already in the third week of Ramadan. The month where Muslims all over the world fast during the day hours and devote themselves to the Almighty much more than they do in other months of the Muslim calendar, and especially so in the last ten days of the month. In the evening, after dusk, most will spend time in the mosques and prayer houses praying in congregation and submitting to the Almighty, seeking His forgiveness and blessings. Other times various supplications are made to Him including glorifying Him and His Prophet, reading the Holy Book or doing deeds to the community, the poor, orphans and others, all done with sincerity in seeking His blessings. It is said that there is one night, within the last ten nights of the month, where the Almighty bless those who submits to Him with blessings equivalent to a thousand months.

Apart from doing the above I was busy throughout, running errands and doing chores that are never ending. However there is one chore both Ram and I enjoy doing now. It is looking after little Najla. It is not a chore really as it is something we really enjoy. Sita’s live-in maid who has been looking after Najla ran away (We found out later that she had gone home perhaps to spend Ramadan with her family). So we volunteered to look after Najla while Sita make some other arrangements for Najla. We told her not to rush into things. Najla should be ok with us. Sita comes back over the weekends and leaves Najla with us during the weekdays when she is at work. Najla is always like an angel during the weekdays when she is with us but when Sita is home in the weekends she quickly turns into a moaning, crying baby difficult for her mum to handle, and is very demanding of her mother. We understand that. Its normal for little kids to demand their mothers’ attention and time one way or another.

Last week we had a funeral to attend. My uncle, Mum’s younger brother, passed away in his house in KL just before the breaking of fast. He was 76 last May. Some years ago he had to be operated on to remove a tumor or growth in the brain. That tumor or growth had affected his vision and stability and at one stage had made his face swollen and badly distorted on one side. He was ok after the operation and was very cheerful, but only for a couple of years. There was a relapse and then whatever doctors did to him could not get him back to his normal self. His condition deteriorated and deteriorated fast. He was bedridden the last year and was completely oblivious to people around him the last six month. He was a uniformed army man who rose through the ranks and retired a Major. A much disciplined man who would do things around the house by himself and at specific schedules and intervals, of course certain chores were shared with his wife. Silverwares, brassware, copperwares and others in the house will be polished spick and span. When he dresses it will always be smart dressing, typical army style. I think his wife is also as disciplined as he is after all the years of being an army wife! So, it was heart rendering to see him so helpless at the very last stage of his life. He needed help for everything. The look of dismay and disappointment was always obvious when you look at him. May the Almighty protect him and place his soul amongst the chosen ones.

Mum came to see her younger brother and pay her last respects. My sister and husband brought mum from JB. His other surviving siblings, another sister older than him and several others younger were also there. Two of them are younger than me (one aunty and one uncle!!). We sat together to pay our respects and read the Holy Book as much as we can before the funeral rights were performed. There was a steady stream of people dropping by, neighbours, family and friends from near and far. Prayers were held in the mosque nearby immediately after the midday prayers followed by burial and the last rights. So ended the life of a man whom I admired for his strict disciplinarian attitude. It will only be cast in memory now. He has three children, all married with families of their own, two living in KL and one living in San Francisco, California. Any of them as disciplined as the father? I wonder………………….

MKI Ramblings Unlimited
Petaling Jaya