Beautifully Imperfect

Look at relationships from different lights to the eulogy of a woman who has just lost her husband..

Memories that hurt

It was a dark and a lonely night. It was way past her usual bedtime. But her eyes are still lively, maybe due to the gourmet coffee concoction she had earlier that night.

It was the memories that kept her awake. Memories that swirls around her like a gloomy mist. She choked, fighting back tears. Slowly the chapters unfolded, visioning each scene like pictures of a story book, page after page.

She’s hurt herself. Again and again. It was neither that she was naïve nor ignorant. Her eyes welled up of tears. It dripped down slowly, one by one. She started sobbing hard. Reached out for a tissue, two, and three..

She took a deep breath, held it, and let it out slowly. It was then that she was reminded of this:

''O ye who believe! Celebrate the praises of Allah, and do this often; And glorify Him morning and evening. He it is Who sends blessings on you, as do His angels, that He may bring you out from the depths of Darkness into Light: and He is Full of Mercy to the Believers.''(al-Quran 33:41-43)

.

.

.

She smiled.

Nak makan susah..nak minum pun susah..

He was struggling to hold a spoon with his right hand. The spoon has a large handle, easing him to grip while trying to scoop up pieces of uncooked macaroni. He scooped, lifted up the spoon and poured back the macaronis into its bowl.

I watched with interest.

The boy is around 14 years of age, has small yet a

sturdy looking body and a nice smile. He speaks slowly yet clearly, mixing Malay and English in the process. With his 'old-school' spectacles, he looked a little smart and cheeky at first glance.

He then tries to lift up an empty plastic cup to his mouth, imitating drinking. Done. Now he tries with another smaller plastic cup. He struggles a little. But managed.

'Cawan yang kecik ni susah sikit la kak..' He said, but repeats the exercise.

(This photo has nothing to do with the story :p)

Just a few months ago, this boy was running around the futsal court, happily and energetically kicking and chasing the ball with his friends. Little did he know that today, a simple task of eating and brushing his own teeth would be considered a major obstacle.

'Kak, Dr tadi suruh jalan jauh sangat..Rekod Dunia ni kak..huu' He said.

What he meant by 'Jalan jauh sangat' is 3 rooms away...

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-Venue: Occupational Therapy Room

-The boy is suffering from rheumatoid athritis

Ibrah:

-Kadangkala manusia seringkali terlupa mensyukuri nikmat-nikmat kecil kurniaan dan pinjaman yang Esa.

-Jangan putus asa untuk berusaha, rajinkan diri untuk isi roh kita supaya sentiasa bersemangat untuk 'bergerak'. Kemalasan kita adalah penyebab Islam ditindas...

The Brick

A young and successful executive was traveling down a neighborhood street, going a bit too fast in his new Jaguar. He was watching for kids darting out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no children appeared. Instead, a brick smashed into the Jag's side door.

He slammed on the brakes and backed the Jag back to the spot where the brick had been thrown. The angry driver then jumped out of the car, grabbed the nearest kid and pushed him up against a parked car shouting,

'What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing? That's a new car and that brick you threw is going to cost a lot of money. Why did you do it?' 

The young boy was apologetic.

'Please, mister...please, I'm sorry but I didn't know what else to do,' He pleaded. 'I threw the brick because no one else would stop...'

With tears dripping down his face and off his chin, the youth pointed to a spot just around a parked car.

'It's my brother,' he said, 'he rolled off the curb and fell out of his wheelchair and I can't lift him up.' 

Now sobbing, the boy asked the stunned executive,

'Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He's hurt and he's too heavy for me.'

Moved beyond words, the driver tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the handicapped boy back into the wheelchair, then took out a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the fresh scrapes and cuts. A quick look told him everything was going to be okay. 

'Thank you and may God bless you,' the grateful child told the stranger. Too shook up for words, the man simply watched the boy push his wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk toward their home.

It was a long, slow walk back to the Jaguar. The damage was very noticeable, but the driver never bothered to repair the dented side door. He kept the dent there to remind him of this message:

'Don't go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention!'

Allah whispers in our souls and speaks to our hearts. Sometimes when we don't have time to listen, He has to throw a brick at us. It's our choice to listen or not.