What is our legacy?

Assalamualaikum...

What is our legacy?

The above question came to me more than a month ago.
At the time, i was in Borders Bookstore, The Curve, immersing myself in a couple of new-released books, fully enjoyed my quality time alone there...
I have this habit of taking 2-3 books at once and bring them with me to the sofa, even though i'm pretty sure i will read only one.
So, at the time i happened to take this one book titled "Three Cups of Tea" with me. What makes me took the book at the first place is because of its striking cover: Three young girls at the age of about 9 years old, sit together while each reading a book. All three girls are wearing tudung, and they have the air of innocence on them that makes us wanting to hug and protect them at the same time.

The writer of this book is the one who i want to talk about; Greg Mortenson.

In 1993 Mortenson was descending from his failed attempt to reach the peak of K2. Exhausted and disoriented, he wandered away from his group into the most desolate reaches of northern Pakistan. Alone, without food, water, or shelter he eventually stumbled into an impoverished Muslims Pakistani village where he was nursed back to health.

While recovering he observed the village’s 84 children sitting outdoors, scratching their lessons in the dirt with sticks. The village was so poor that it could not afford the $1-a-day salary to hire a teacher. When he left the village, he promised that he would return to build them a school.

And return there, he did!

Fast-forwarded years later, and after several life threatening events such as threats from fellow Americans for helping Muslim children, a fatwa from an angry Islamic cleric for educating girls, and 2003 Afghan firefight between opium warlords, he succeeded in his mission - to build the Muslim children a school!

And he didn't stop there. Today, Mortenson had set up over 60 schools and as a result over 25000 children had been educated.

And once again i want to emphasize here that those children are Muslim, and that Mortenson guy is not!

I don't have to ask this, but still i couldn't help myself not to: How in earth this one non-Muslim guy, can sacrificed everything in his life and endangered himself, just to help those Muslim kids? Where are we? Where are the other Muslim?!

This Mortenson guy leave a strong legacy behind him. A legacy i doubt i can top in this life, but nonetheless give me a challenge and inspiration to do something good and worthy for the world.

Let's together make our presence felt, even in the smallest sense. Don't be like what 'pepatah melayu' said, "Datang tak menambah, pergi tak mengurang"

Allah creates each one of us unique in our own way. Let's explore it and use it to do some good in this world! Let's face Allah in the Judgement Day knowing we had use our ability and gift to help others and help the world to be a better place...!

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And The Champions Are...

Assalamualaikum...

Wimbledon finished early this morning (local time) with a new men's champion emerged replacing 5 time defending champion, Roger Federer.

Rafael Nadal, a claycourt specialist won his first Wimbledon (grass) title when he defeated Federer in 5 set thriller: 6-4, 6-4, 7-6(7-5), 7-6(10-8), 9-7, in a 4 hour and 48 minutes match, the longest match in Wimbledon history.

Huh, such was the intensity of the match, i still got the headache when i went to sleep at about 3 am this morning...

On the women's side, defending champion, Venus Williams defeated her younger sister Serena Williams, 7-5, 6-4, on Saturday to win her fifth Wimbledon title.

Both the winners got 750,000 pound sterling (about USD1.5 million) each, and also become the member of the exclusive All-England Club there in London...

The champions are as i predicted, and i particularly very pleased with my favorite player, Nadal for ending the reign of Federer, although i was a little bit disappointed with my other favorite, Sharapova for crashing out on the second round...

Good luck to them, and borrowing Nadal's line when he wanted to lift his spirit during the match,

VAMOS...!!!

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The Gift - The Present.

Assalamualaikum...

"Yesterday is History, Tomorrow is a Mystery. But Today is a Gift. That's why it's called the Present."

That is from a movie i saw recently. And i couldn't agree more.
As i always told myself; learn from the past, plan for the future, but live your life fully in the present.
If people asked me, i would say, the first two are the recipes for SUCCESS, but the last one is the recipe for HAPPINESS!
Ask yourselves: Did you give yourself chances to enjoy this life, NOW, rather than LATER? Or you're so BUSY sacrificing your present for the unknown FUTURE?

Or maybe the real question is, DO YOU LET YOURSELF TO BE HAPPY?!

The Key:
Do things that would make you happy! Things that would make you appreciate this life better. And that would make you feel grateful to ALLAH THE ALMIGHTY, because you are still breathing in this beautiful world, still living your precious life, and still have the time to getting immerse in all the goodness in it.

Life is short...
You may never get a second shot for anything you missed NOW...
So, let's together.. take a breath.. and start living our life...!


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WELCOME BACK!

Assalamualaikum...

A little bit late here, but still i want to say Welcome back to Malaysia to Shu, Lan and my niece Tisyia...
I hope to see you all soon as i can't wait to see Tisyia...

Bye
Uncle Z


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Wimbledon 2008

Assalamualaikum...

Today(23/06) is a big day for me. Hehe, don't make face, but today is the start of the Tennis Wimbledon Championship 2008.

Until the champion emerged next Saturday (for ladies) and Sunday (for men's), i will get to see all the best players in the world compete against each other for the most prestigious tennis tournament in the world... for two weeks time!
Huh! That's a lot of tennis and i feel excited already...

For those who are interested, just tuned to 813, StarSport Channel.
Don't miss it...!!!

Until next time...


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Change your lifestyle...?

Assalamualaikum...

Recently there are news all around that says demands for motorcycles and small cars are increasing big time...
While at the same time, the price for 'big' cars were declining...

Also recent article by a local newspaper reported that the roads and highways are almost empty compared to the same time last year...

And another report that sales by big hypermarkets and even small groceries shops are also in declines...

Well, everything just goes back to the oil price, and just to quote our 'beloved' PM; maybe this is the time to change our lifestyle...
I talked to my friend, R, once that "you smokers are the luckiest one!"
Why? Because just imagine, once they quit their smoking habit, they are actually saving like... RM100 to RM 200 per month! (hehe, you might as well become a fitness first member by that amount! Right 'R'!). Non-smokers like me didn't have that privilege...

Hmm, but talking about changing, i also already did one important change. i just took my motorcycle back! After two years, the riding was a bit shaky, but at least, it didn't empty my pocket! As for my car, either it's raining or traveling back to my hometown, it will sit in the parking quietly and comfortably...

Hey, nobody said changing was easy...!!!

Okay, until next time...!

Gym-hunting... and finally... Fitness First.

Assalamualaikum...

Weeks after i started thinking seriously for a gym, i finally decided to join Fitness First.

It wasn't hard.. the decision i mean... as i took only half an hour between thinking and signing the paper. Together with my housemate, Iidil, we officially became a member of Fitness First last Thursday night...

In summary:

1. For this month, i only pay RM99 (registration fee) as it coincides with 1 month free membership promotion.

2. Then, every month RM 175, for one whole year (under lifetime package)

3. Members can opted to pay by credit card or debit card (deduction will be made from Maybank account on day 1 monthly)

4. You can go to any of 12 Fitness First branches in Malaysia, and any other 500 branches all over the world when you go overseas.

5. There are Yoga, combat dancing, pump-body and many others under group activities, are all included in the package.

6. There also Sauna, Steam-room... and Showers of course.

7. When you become members, you will get gifts like FF bag, towel, headphone, and a container. If you are quick to make friend with the trainer there -like me-, you can get a nice FF t-shirt too.

8. You can discuss your fitness goal with your trainer, either you want to lose weight, gain weight, build-up muscles or anything... they will help you.

Hmm. Okay, suddenly i felt like a merketing exec for Fitness First and i better stop now.

I really hope to share this with as many people as i could get. If you have time and motivation, make you health and fitness your priority. How good is your money if you don't take care of yourself from now, right?

Give it a try, and you might start to see the world.. and yourself, differently...

The Inevitable Circle of Life

Assalamualaikum...

These last few days, there were string of event that made me wonder about one very important thing in this life...

First, when my good friend, Hasrul, came from Sarawak for a holiday, we joked around of who will get married first. He told me, back at Sarawak, he was being hammered with the one million dollar question of "when are you going to get married?", almost everyday! I know a little bit about that as I too, was so frequently being asked the same question. Syukur it wasn't in a daily basis..!

Second, last Sunday, i went to my ex-housemate, Apen's walimah. he was 2 years younger than me, and as would've been expected, it prompted the inevitable question to me, "when is my turn?". To Apen, I wish him all the happiness in this world, and 'thanks' because of his 'langkah bendul' made me the target once again...

Third was yesterday. One of my best friend (i decided not to mention his name here... not yet) called and after a brief chat, he said someting that really caught me off-guard, "Zahar, i'm going to be a father!" It was really a very pleasant news as he has waited for this for 2 years. Finally Allah granted him a child and I feel very very happy for him.
To Iceman, CONGRATULATIONS! And in a more personal note, thanks because you told me i'm the first to know about the news aside from your family. I'm honoured...

Fourth also happened yesterday. i had a tuition at Bandar Sri Damansara when i received the SMS. It said, "Zahar, aku dah jadi bapak. Baby boy, lahir 12.30 pm tadi..". It was from my good old friend, Hafiz from Triang, Pahang. We were always being very closed before, and i was there when his father passed away and when he was getting married last year (wow, seems like yesterday..). Later, i called him and we talk about a lot of things. lastly i said to him, jokingly, "Ha, dah ready ke nak jadi ayah orang ni?". As usual he laughed before he replied, "Entahlah Z. InsyaAllah. Walaupun rasa macam tak percaya je..."
CONGRATULATIONS to you too Hafiz. I'm very happy for you, my friend!

So, that was what happened these last few days. An almost complete circle of event, if you asked me. Everyone will face it, me included. It makes me wonder, just like my friends keep asking me, 'when is my turn?'

Roland Garros 2008

Assalamualaikum...

Bonjour... Bon week-end
Comment allez-vous?
Qu'est-ce que vous avez fait le week-end? (What are you doing this weekend?)

Aujourd'hui, la finale dames de French Open (Today is the women's final of French Open)
Demain, la finale monsieurs entre Rafael Nadal et Roger Federer. (Tomorrow, men's final between Nadal and Federer)

I don't know about you, but moi, j'adore le tennis beaucoup! (Me, I love tennis very much!)
In fact, these last two weeks, has been like heaven to me. And with the spirit of French Open, i certainly play better tennis than usual..
Ooh, and listening back to commentaries for the Grand Slam Championship kinda reminded me of my little French language i learned a couple months ago. So i tried my best to recall back what little i know and write it in here.
So, forgive me if the sentences above make little sense to you k.. hehe.

And by the way, don't forget to catch the men's final between world no 1, Federer vs no 2, Nadal at Astro Supersport (811), Sunday, for the title. I hope Nadal win!

I also want to take this opportunity to ask if there are others who play tennis out there, and lived here around KL. You know, i'd love to make new friends, especially new tennis buddies...

Paris... Je T'aime.

Pak Lah vs Barack Obama

Assalamualaikum...

As for now, every Malaysians knows about the increased oil price, hiking high from RM1.92 to RM2.70.
One word: RIDICULOUS!
Two words: UNREASONABLE & UNBELIEVABLE!!

And to think back about the whole thing, i still can't believe it could happened, especially after the BN-led government just lost the 2/3 majority in the parliament!

Didn't they get it?! the people were rejecting them. But they still manage to alienate and risk the wrath of the people, over and over again.

Hmm, things must be really, really bad up there, Huh, PakLah!

But today is Friday, and i don't want to ruin the beautiful day talking about our stinking leaders...

Because there's another leader, a great one, from the other side of the world, and has just captured the heart of his countrymen and women with his fresh and new look of politics. And he certainly captured everyone's attention, not just with his eloquence and powerful oratory skill, but also with his capacity and ability to strive against all odds to be the first black president of United States of America.

And unless you're from another planet, i'm sure all of you know who the guy is: Barack Obama.

Born from a black father (a Kenyan) and a white mother, Obama certainly benefited from his unique background that enable him to see the world from its core. Coupled with his attentiveness and great mind, he emerged from his childhood, already armed with sharpness few young people have at young age.
Fast-forwarded years later, he graduated from Harvard Law School, practice law and occasionally taught Law at Chicago University.
Then, his political career began and after strings of up and down moments, he was elected a senator of Illiois.

He wrote two books that became best-seller; Dreams from my father and The Audacity of Hope.

And then, he decided to run for president in what would be a historic race against Hillary Clinton to be the first black president or the first female president in the history of America.

To tell about the grueling and arduous series of primaries and caucuses to elect the candidate for Democrat Party for the presidential election in November; won't be enough here. But, enough to say, the 5 month process was full of controversies, when every aspect of the candidate being closely watched and scrutinized by media. Not to mention, the vicious attack from his opponent, the ferocious Clinton, who would do anything to get victory to represent Democrat in the upcoming election.

But clearly the message of 'Hope' and 'Change' by Obama, proved too strong for Clinton to overcome especially when she is represented what Obama called as the 'same old politics'.

Last Tuesday, Obama crossed the threshold of 2118 delegates to officially become Democrat's candidate for November election. As of now, he is everything that previous presidents didn't. He's young (still 46), well-educated, black, and more importantly, he brought new messages of change to bureaucratic problems in Washington.

As for me, his firm rejection of the war in Iraq and the promise to withdraw American troops from there, if he was elected president, is good enough to admire him. Plus his willingness to talk with all the 'enemies' of US, instead of going to war like Bush, makes me really rooted for him.

But the most important thing, i think, that makes people drawn to him is because he is willing to challenge the old system of politics in US and established a new and fresh one. When the old system proved to be a burden to the people and no longer can served the people properly, it ought to be changed or knocked far aside.

Maybe Pak Lah and his cabinet members should learn something from Barack Obama. While it was being very clear that he has no intention to hold on to The Ruling System Of Islam (Sistem Pemerintahan Islam & Hukum Hudud), or to follow the lead of Rasulullah SAW, in ruling Malaysia; the least he can do is to make the best out of this current secular system this country has been adopted for so long.
Sadly, even that, he failed miserably...


Don't you think...?