A Sleepy Shopper

Insyirah, dozing off in the shopping trolley while we were doing our grocery shopping. Kids get away with taking such power naps whenever their eyes feel like it. The simplicity implied behind their behaviours and actions reflects such purity and innocence, of life yet burdened with responsibilities and problems, of mind yet tainted with troubles and draining thoughts.

How blissfull...

Cheeky Little Monkeys

Hannah and Insyirah posing as Minnie Mouse and Daisy Duck respectively. Was running some chores earlier this afternoon and the 2 insisted to tag along. They turned out to be quite a handful and yours truly ended up feeling a bit stretched at the end of the day. I take my hat off to my mum, who somehow has managed to look after these 2 cheeky girls every day when we're at work. You're the best mum!

A Football Prodigy

I bumped into this piece of news about this new football prodigy, currently plying his shimmying and dazzling dribbling of the ball in France. His name is Madin Mohammed and really amazing bagful of tricks and skills this boy has. The skills he has is way beyond me, even if I spent every day of my working hours of 8am - 5pm 7 days a week, 365 days a year for the rest of my life. Simply incredible, that the media has begun to dub him as the next Zidane. Judging by the skills he shows in the video above, I can't deny that. He gave me thrill doing those mazy dribbles of his the same way I felt when I watched Zidane did a bagful of the same tricks in the Champions League final match between Real Madrid and Juventus in 1997.

Awesome!

A New Pet In The House

I have been wanting to get Insyirah a fish for a pet for some time now. I have noticed that she's taken a particular fondness for our swimming scaly friends of late, most noticeably after she had gotten herself to watch that ultimate movie about fish (for kids at least), Finding Nemo. So, while waiting for our turn in our now monthly appointment to see my wife's doctor on Saturday, we took the opportunity of the long hours of waiting to do a number of chores, which included exploring the fish and aquarium shop that was located not that far from the hospital.

We had intended to get a number of marine fish similar to those fish you find in the aquarium of that dentist in Finding Nemo, but the owner of the pet shop somehow advised against it, reminding us that tending salt water fish is no easy feat and would require us to get a bigger aquarium to make it feasible. Bearing in mind that there's a very distinct possibility that i might be the one ending up having to look after the fish, i thought the advice was rather reasonable. Perhaps it isn't such a bad idea to start with a more common variety of aquarium fish before we venture to the more exotic ones. So we settled for a pair of goldfish, one each for Insyirah and Hannah. The girls somehow typically named the pair Nemo and Dory.

Insyirah and Hannah were predictably excited when i was putting the aquarium up, assisting with filling the tank with water. Since then, they have consistently been checking on the fish. Yesterday evening after we came back late for dinner, Insyirah made sure she stopped by the aquarium to see the fish were doing. She spoke to the fish, sort of asking if they were ok and comfy. After feeling they were ok, she wished them goodnight and turned the lamp of the aquarium off. Half way up to our room however, something seem to have come over her and she stopped in her tracks and went back to the aquarium. Both wifey and i thought her behaviour was rather baffling.

We then heard a clicking sound as though a switch had been turned on. Apparently, Insyirah had gone back to turn the aquarium lights on again.

"Why did you turn the aquarium light back on, sayang?", i asked my daughter gently.

She quipped back, giving a look of concern, "Fish is scared of the dark, abah. Scared of ghost!", her eyes wide when pronouncing the ghoulish word. Hehe...

Nemo and Dory. Welcome to the household!

So Much To Do...

... But so little time. Work has been piling up so fast of late i don't even have the chance to reflect what's happening. It's just a matter of getting things out of my out-tray as fast as i can at the moment, and chasing the deadlines that have been set for me. At this rate, i doubt i can even complete all that is in my plate now, even if i stay up 24/7 doing them. Must keep going... But i'm feeling so mentally and physically tired at the moment...

*sigh*

Rest today, and fight tomorrow. I think i'll catch that winkie now and preserve enough energy to face another tough day tomorrow.

Night-night.

Amazing News!

I read this interesting article from Yahoo! This would definitely give a great sense of hope, not to mention relief, for people like me who is not just on the border line between being overweight and obese, but also finding that time is increasingly a premium to be spared for a decent exercise. If this article is anything to go by, then it means that I won't really have to spend that much of a time to get fit again.

I have been on a stress-induced bingeing spree this last couple of weeks. Very stressful work schedule has driven me to pig out to get enough of the 'happy' inducing food chemicals that you would usually find in unhealthy food like donuts, oily and greasy char kuey teow, and coffee mixed with sweetened condensed milk, just to name a few. And now suddenly, I find some discomfort already getting into my new pants that I had made to tailor after the fasting month last year, having successfully lost almost 4 kilos at the time. And now, I resemble a lady who is due for labour anytime soon.

So let's see if this article has some truth in it. Maybe I can start by some quick sprints on my exercise bike every morning now. A healthy body breeds a healthy mind. With work expecting to peak come March, I need the best of both body and mind to face it.

I'm A Hostage

I am in a meeting at the moment, although my heart is screaming to go home. Been going home so late this last week I don't get to spend enough time with Insyirah. Wifey was planning to go out tonight and take Insyirah for an outing when the boss told me to stay back until 830pm. It is 8.45pm now and meeting doesn't look like ending soon.

:(

Unspoken Thoughtfulness And Decency

In human relations, I believe there are certain things that go without saying. For instance, when you're sitting in a bus and you see an elderly man, or maybe a heavily pregnant lady - someone whom probably deserves a seat more than you by virtue of their condition or age -standing with much effort because there is no available seat on the bus, would you wait for someone to tell you to offer your seat to them before you do? Or should it come more naturally to you offer your seat instinctively to them the moment you see them board the bus? I'm not surprised if a big chunk of those people out there would wait to be told - if there's anyone out there with enough guts and decency to do so that is - instead of sensitively doing what is right.

Such scenario as the above if considered out of decency and selflessness, would lead you to opt for the action that breeds out of respect. Then our society would probably be a better place to live as the weak or the elderly would get the respect they deserve, without having to blushingly claim that such respect be afforded. Really, it is not something that is written as black and white, although our public transport does make it clear sometimes to give such priority. And really, it is not easy for the affected to just go and stake their claim without feeling a tinge of embarassment. After all, shouldn't respect and decency be practiced without saying?

I'm still raging from a similar experience this last couple of days. And in my case, i had once unashamedly staked my claim before, only to receive a reply, to the effect of "i didn't know you deserved it". And of late, i've been afforded the same shitty treatment again. Some people are just so full of themselves it makes me grimace. It hurts me to think that i may not feature in that person's calculation of respect and consideration of decency.

Oh well...

Here's to human decency and thoughtfulness.

Keeping The 'Smiths' At Bay

I don't intend to lose the fight just yet...

Of late, I have been the feeling like I'm playing the character of Neo played by Keanu Reeves in the classic cult film trilogy of The Matrix, squaring off with hundreds and thousands of multiplying Agent Smiths, feeling like I'm constantly on the verge of losing the fight. For those who are not too familiar with the Matrix movies to make sense of the metaphor I'm trying to make, here's another one. Imagine a clown performing a juggling act who constantly gets thrown more and more juggling items, bigger and heavier, every now and then that after some time you have that feeling that the clown will eventually drop something to the ground, resulting a big mess all over the place.

In short, I have been feeling totally overwhelmed of late by the frantic pace of stuffs and events that have come my way, mostly finding their roots from the office. If there's anything I've come to reflect more than any other of late, it's about whether all this frantic chase of deadlines and incessant pressures are all worth it. What's the carrot for all this trouble anyway? An overdue promotion with measly pay raise, and with more hard work to top it off? And to rub salt to the injury, they make it bloody difficult for you to pass the assessment for the promotion to begin with.

I feel like the lagging rat in the brutal rat race that I have no chance of winning, with a whip lasher constantly lashing its whip behind me to run faster and further. And to be honest, I am beginning to feel more and more certain by the day that I do not want to continue the race anymore. I feel like taking the leap out and finally do what I really want to do, although the problem is at the moment it is not yet very clear to me how I can do that whilst at the same time bring in the dough for my family.

So in the mean time, until I can learn to fly like Neo in The Matrix, or find a portal somewhere where I can transport myself to another world that offers me a better life, I just have to keep fighting and keep all the Agent Smiths at bay.

Morning At The Beach

I aroused early in the morning today hoping to catch sunrise. Unfortunately, the sky at the horizon was too cloudy to enable me to witness the grandiose event of beginning of day. By the moment the sun showed itself rising above the clouds in the horizon, it was already rather high. Nevertheless, it was still a sight to behold.

The sea is such an amazing and overwhelming sight to behold. Standing there at the beach, the cold wind blowing in my face and the sound of waves incessant in the air, there's such a sense of tranquility. The thought of Debussy's La Mer easily came to my mind. It is amazing how beautiful the sight is, and how such experience could have escaped me for so long.

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

This year, Chinese New Year brought a greater significance to my family than the usual customs of oranges and the blaring sounds of lion dance performances. For the first time, we got an insider's view of how the Chinese celebrates it.

My brother's wife, Farah is half Chinese and since her Chinese roots are in Kuala Terengganu, we decided to coincide our annual trip to the East Coast this year with Chinese New Year so that we could kill 2 birds with one stone: It is a good time to get to know the rest of Farah's family better. And what better way and time to do so than the time when all the family get together for their new year's gathering?

I must say the experience has been most enlightening. I've realised there are quite a number of good things that can be learnt from the Chinese community as far as family relations are concerned, and how they value and cherish such relations. Additionally, it also amazes me how easy it is for our families to blend together, across the divide of race and religion. We sat and chatted together, and when we later posed for a picture together, we weren't a picture of 2 different races, but of one big family. All I can say is that I have been richer by the experience. Heck, I even got a number of ang pows yesterday from my new Chinese relatives - so literally speaking it is also true.. ;)

Here's to a prosperous future and beautiful relationships that crosses the divide of race and religion.

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

The Lady In Craving

Wifey has been cravings for long sandwiches of late. Hence, we've been having dinner at Subway over the last 3 days. I guess I can't complain. Just over a month ago I was having cravings for char kuey teow and instant noodles almost every other night. In my case it was stress-induced. At least wifey can claim that her cravings are healthier, and of course offers much more class.

I read somewhere (I think it's in Singapore) this guy lost over 50kg eating Subway sandwiches 3 square meals a day over a couple of months. Talk about consistency! With my Weight Loss Challenge in danger of becoming another white elephant project, it might as well be worth a try. It is interesting to note that the Subway branch we went tonight is located within the vicinity of a fitness centre and all the fitness buffs come to have their dinner there in flocks.

Hmmm... I wonder where I'll have dinner tomorrow. I guess it'll be no doubt where, if wifey has it her way again... ;)

A Picture For The Memories

A picture of wifey and Insyirah while we were in Cameron Highlands a couple of weeks ago. Insyirah looks a little rapper with her standing pose. The climate up there was cool and refreshing. An ideal getaway from the usual hustle and bustle routine of the city!

A Test Of Something New

This post is a test. It's a beginning of a new blogging era if it works. :)

Happy New Year 2009

Although 2009 is already 19 days old as of today, I hope it is still not too late for me to wish everyone out there a Happy New Year!

The year 2008 has been most eventful and wonderful, for me and those who are close to me at least. Nothing really extraordinary happened, but when you've got your loved ones, your health, a job to ensure the paycheck keeps coming in and a shelter to live in, you can't really say it hasn't been good. Not extraordinary as I've said, but more than enough to make me feel grateful to the Almighty for the other blessings he's given me that could prove elusive to some others. Just read the news at what's happening in Gaza at the moment, and you'll understand what I'm saying. Imagine the price the Palestinians are willing to pay for a quiet night's sleep without the deafening sounds of bombings and the eternal fear. My prayers are with them always.

As far as the resolutions of last year went, there have been modest achievements. If there's anything I've learnt over the last year, is to set ambitious yet realistic targets, and build upon them. Get to know myself better, and work on my strength. I enlisted the things I intended to achieve last year specifically, although looking back while still in 2008 it made me think why I set some of them. Maybe I need to consistently relook and rethink my plans. I guess the theme for 2009 is flexibility, and to be more agile. Only recently has it dawned on me how straight I am as a person. I need to be flexible in learning new things while maintaining what's good in the name of my religion and family.

Here's to a hopefully beautiful year, for everyone, in everything that we do, in every dreams that we aspire to achieve.

May the Almighty keeps us in His blessings and protection always.

Amiin.

The Gunners Fumbled Again

The season that had started so promisingly, is beginning to show cracks that is threatening to derail not just the team's chances for the whole season, but also the near future of the team.

Yeah, we had lost some really calibre players in the off-season before the season even started. But then, the young players performed encouragingly and deservingly of some plaudits that they received then in the beginning, seeing off teams that their predecessors would have fumbled against with aplomb and swagger. Yeah, there were those Fulham and Hull occassions, but then we thought there were just early season jitters.

Stoke came next, and on the back of a precarious draw against Tottenham.

But then we beat Man United next in a most breathtaking match, and people though we were back. I had then begun to look forward to our future games with more enthusiasm. The Gunners to go all the way now? I couldn't be blamed for being optimistic.

Then the naive side of the team showed again against Aston Villa last week, and the whole optimism that was in the air after the Man United match crumbled again. And last week, the revelations made by the now former captain William Gallas of internal strife gave the young team another smack in the face. And last night, we got swept by Man City's team in construction aspiring to be another Chelsea.

The professorial Frenchman will have a huge task taking the team out of the mud they're in at the moment. In Arsene we trust!

With all the above happening in just a third of the season gone, Arsene Wenger has a gargantuan task ahead of him to bring the team back on track. Heck, I've always had faith in the thoughtful Frenchman, but for the first time ever since he surprised me and almost everyone else in the footballing world by bringing the Gunners to the title from nowhere in 1998, my resolute faith is somewhat tested.

Only time will tell if all Arsenal's fan out there will have reasons to celebrate come May 2009.

Catching Up On Lost Times...

It has been a long while since my last posting.

And how ironic it is, that my last posting spoke about the progress of my resolution for the year 2008, and how I was beaming with pride at the rate of updates I had been posting on my blog up to that point. And all of a sudden after that last post, I just lost all interest to write.

Perhaps it was the well-worn excuse of being busy with work. Or maybe, I have just been preoccupied with the rest of what my life has been throwing at me. Incidentally, the last 5 months did not pass without the most exciting of events. If those events were anything to go by, I would have posted over at least 30 additional posts to mark them. Perhaps I have just been too busy enjoying life than commemorating it here.

Ever since I started this blog over 5 years ago, I noticed that there are moments when I really do have things to write and share, and I could easily transfer such thoughts or tales into the pages of my blog. In some moments, I just have too many things running in my head, that whenever I find myself in front of the screen of my laptop, I just do not know what to write or where to start; such is my mind's incoherence. Over the last 5 months of my hiatus is however the worst of any kind of writer's moments; I just had nothing in me to share, or write. It was as empty and hollow as a television channel that has just ended its transmission for the day.

I am not sure if this is me returning with more regular posting as before. Writing comes more naturally to me when I know there's no expectation (self or external) for me to do it.

Anyways, if I may, the following are some of the events that took place over the last 5 months in my life. I can only represent them with pictures and short snippets for now. Who knows, I might feel good enough to tell more about it later.

Vacation in Langkawi

This vacation was the second in a series of vacations that my family had and will be having (tak habis-habis lagi!) in the year 2008. It is little wonder that as of today, I have practically no more annual leave to spare by the end of the year!

This picture was taken on top of Gunung Machinchang. We went up the mountain in a cable car, and for some reason I felt a great sense of scare! Might well be my last ever ride in a cable car!


We were up on Gunung Machinchang until sunset. It was my first sunset experience, and, it was a sight to behold.

A Weekend in Genting

We spent a weekend in Genting Highlands in July 08. It started out to be a promising break for us family, but turned out to be a most wonderful and enjoyable experience for all of us. Insyirah had a real ball of a time, and the climate was cool and perfect over our stay there. Little did we know fun could be just a few hours drive away from home. Too bad the place is synonym to gambling though...

Insyirah was a picture of excitement and pleasure all the time we were there. Here's a picture of her and wifey in the caterpillar train that moves above and around the Genting theme park.



In Genting's Snow World. Any apprehension I had about Insyirah not liking the place was gone the moment she took to playing in the snow with glee. She was obviously dwarfed in the snow suit available there though. The most touching part was when we left the Snow World, and she gave me hug of gratitude saying, "Thank you Abah. I love you Abah". Made me melt right away.

Summer in the UK

We were in the UK for 10 days in late July for my brother in law's graduation. The trip left a gaping hole in my finances as big as the Eurotunnel, but it also turned out to be a most memorable trip for the whole family. We were there for a total of 10 days, and covered Manchester, Brighton and London in our itinerary. I even managed to make a visit to my old school Radley College in Oxford. It's been 10 years since I last visited the place.

Insyirah and me, lying on the vast fields of Radley College. Insyirah enjoyed running around the vast compound of the school, and even quipped "I want to study here Abah". Well, that can only happen if the school ever becomes co-ed!


A picture on London's Tower Bridge. I had shown Insyirah pictures of the Bridge ahead of our trip to London, so that she would know she's in London the moment she sees the building in person.

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri

And last but not least, a Hari Raya wish to anyone out there who is ever willing to drop by this blog of mine, and making this place a merrier place. A sincere wish from my family and me.

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri!

My 2008 Resolutions: A Review

The famous saying goes, time and tide waits for no man, and before you could even ask "what happened?", the year 2008 is almost 1/3 through. It feels like it was only so recently that I made a posting on my resolution at the beginning of this year, and walla, what do you know? It's already April and there's exactly 256 days left to the year.

Whoa!

Back in my studying days, countdowns can have quite an unnerving effect. I know some of my more nerdy friends used to make countdowns on the number of days before the beginning of the year end exams, which never failed to make my tummy turn. Which is why I never made a point to track the time I had left before such big and important events like my exams, interviews, or presentations. It was like my way of running away from reality and not wanting to acknowledge the eventual truth / reality that I would have had to face until it finally came, by which time of course it would have been too late for me to make any difference about.

Therein lies a long standing inherent problem about myself, which I've only recently came to comprehend. I run away from problems, and I am a coward when it comes to confronting harsh realities.

However, that's another story which I shall share with you some other time.

In the mean time, having gone through 1/3 of the year, I feel it's appropriate for me to review where I am in the scheme of what I've resolved to achieve in the year. Success is hard to gauge if it is not measured, and if I really am resolute about my resolutions, I need to know where I am as far as achievements of my resolutions is concerned.

1. To become a better Muslim
If I may be honest, I am rather ashamed that I have not made any significant progress in this respect. I should strive harder to at least achieve what I had set to achieve in this respect early this year.

2. To be a better son, husband and father
I don't know if in the eyes of my parents, wife and daughter, I have really become any better. But I have learnt to be more considerate and patient this year. I have been listening more than I talk. Problems can resolved better when you resort to listening and understanding others instead of talking or lecturing too much. Like a good friend of mine once pointed out, we have one mouth and two ears, but we somehow choose to talk more than we listen...

3. To be more organised
This is like having to move a big heavy rock from its resting place over the last 30 years; it's bloody heavy! My middle name could even be Disorganised! I have tried to improve in this respect. I need to plan better and spend more time on working this out. Short term target: Keep my workstation at the office neat for 1 month.

4. To lose weight
I had intended to record my progress here on a weekly basis. Later I decided to make it a bi-weekly exercise due to seemingly lack of progress that could be achieved in 1week to post any meaningful progress. It has been over 2 months now since my last update on my weight loss challenge and progress is akin to human population on the moon; non-existent. I have however resorted to an intervention plan this last couple of weeks to boost the effort a little bit, which I hope will spring in some results this next couple of weeks. I shall share with you what the plan is only if it reaps success. Malu la cerita sekarang. Sekali no change jugak...

5. To pass all my remaining ACCA papers in one sitting
I did pass the exams I sat for in December 07, after attempting it for the 3rd time! So the omen looks good for my next sitting in June 08.
To do: A set of past year paper for each of the paper I'm sitting for this June 08 on a weekly basis until the exam day. From this weekend onwards.

6. To learn and excel at my new working place
Still work in progress. Not much to comment as yet...

7. To have more regular postings in this blog
This posting inclusive, this year has witnessed the 3rd highest postings made in a year in this blog since I first started blogging. Horay to that, and I hope it will continue till the end of the year.

8. To develop a new hobby
Nothing as yet. I have not even had a look at the bike in the store room. Been too busy really. Maybe an easier hobby to undertake now? Hmmm...

9. To inculcate a habit of reading
I have managed to read a book thus far, and I've even made a commentary about it here. Been moving at a snail's pace with the second book though.

So much planned, and now so much to do and so little time. I had better get cracking...

My Virtual Kopitiam

I recently discovered something fun on the internet. It was actually advertised as one of the advertisements on my Adsense, and being the games buff I have always been, couldn't resist clicking the link and found out what it is all about.

It is a sort of management game, which from the look, feel and theme of it, I gather is created by a Malaysian. Malaysia Boleh! and bravo for that. It never ceases to amaze me the things the people in this country are capable of conjuring up, and this game is something quite to marvel about. I mean for a game that you can play online for FREE, I was somehow expecting a game with lousy interface and very poor playability. Well, it IS a management game so there's not much you can ask in terms of playability than the game already offers. I am no games expert but the game's options and variety of play can be rather addictive once you got the hang of how it is played, which also isn't that hard to learn.

The game is called iKopitiam, and the idea is to start and run a kopitiam (which is really a Malaysian-styled cafe or coffee-house. Like Starbucks or Coffee Bean, with an old all-Malaysian, village flavour to it) in a kampung area initially, with the option of expanding the size of it and eventually moving the whole kopitiam to an industrial area for the ultimate business expansion. You have the option of choosing the drinks to sell at your kopitiam, and the types of hawkers to sell food. And money is not the only issue in managing your resources; you also have to consider the space of your kopitiam and a range of other indexes to consider like popularity, cleanliness and the rate of services the kopitiam needs in order to staff it efficiently. I've only discovered the game late Friday night and have gone on to create my own virtual kopitiam called Kopiwan (how original is that?), and I have to say I have been rather hooked playing it since.

The most important aspect of the game it seems is popularity. And among other things, the popularity ratings of a kopitiam can be significantly boosted by VIP visits, which really are virtual visits by friends (or blog readers of mine) and family. You can help me to boost the popularity of my virtual kopitiam by clicking here, or simply click on the 'Visit My iKopitiam' link on the sidebar. You will only be asked to order a drink and a food / service from my kopitiam once you've clicked the link, and presto, my kopitiam's popularity will get a boost!

So come over to my kopitiam. I'm open to suggestions how I can make it better. I am already dreaming of a kopitiam empire in an industrial area!

Virtual kopitiam today. A business empire tomorrow... perhaps!

"It's Gone!"

After performing my Maghrib prayers with my parents in their room, I returned to my room to get ready to go out for dinner. I was greeted by my wife at the door, who looked distressed. Something was amiss.

“What’s going on?”, I asked.

Wifey had walked away from the door almost immediately she had opened it, and responded distressfully, “Your wedding ring is missing. Insyirah was playing with it while I was in the toilet”. She was searching through the curtains leading to the balcony as she responded.

“I left it on the dressing table”, I responded, almost duh-like and obviously not affected by the stress and alarm that wifey was exhibiting.

“I know”, annoyance beginning to surface in her voice. “Insyirah climbed onto the chair at the dressing table and was messing up everything on it. When I came out I made a check of the items that were on the table, and to my horror I couldn’t find your wedding ring!”, she concluded in one breath.

Only then did my attention turned to Insyirah. She was standing motionlessly in the middle of the room, her teddy which she only recently became closely acquainted with held close to her chest in her two small hands, looking down on the floor. I deduced that wifey had already grilled her about the ring already.

“Insyirah, do you know where Abah’s ring is?”, I asked my daughter gently.

Nervously she looked up at me, and with one of her hands that was up to that point clutching on to her teddy extended out, with the palm showing upwards she replied, “It’s gone”.

She was now looking at me earnestly, giving me the look of someone who knows she’s done something naughty, and was apprehensive of the consequence that she might have to face. I was now searching on the table where I last left my ring. I asked Insyirah once again, while I continued with my search. “Did you play with my ring just now? Where did you put it?”

Like a broken radio, she chimed again, “It’s gone”. You could almost sense guilt in the way she answered.

“No point asking her abang. That’s all she’s been saying when I asked her the same. She kept on saying, ‘It’s gone, it’s gone, it’s gone’!”, annoyance apparently creeping on wifey.

I was slowly overcome by guilt. Really, it was my fault rather than this little girl that my wedding ring is now misplaced. I should have known better to keep it well out of her reach like in the drawer or something, rather than out in the open like that for her to play her games with. Father and daughter were now feeling the heat of wifey’s wrath. My eyes were fixed on Insyirah, feeling rather sorry for her. She took her eyes away from the floor again to look at me, still not moving from that same spot when I first came into the room, and probably sensing that I was going to ask her again, she prompted again “It’s gone Abah”.

I opened the drawers and searched the table again. At that point, I heard the sound of small metal falling onto the floor. My eyes quickly located the sound my ears had sensed, and I found the ring still moving in circles from the falling impact, right behind Insyirah. The ring must have gotten stuck to her sleeves or pocket and fell off from her.

I moved towards her and reached for the ring. “Insyirah, there it is! There’s the ring! It must have fallen off from you!”, I took the ring from the floor near her small feet and showed it to her face.

Her expression changed so suddenly upon discovery of the ring. The frown on her small face was immediately replaced with a look of relief, and covering her mouth with her small hand in a gesture of excitement, she responded “It’s not gone!”, and laughed out loud in relief. I gave her a hug just to give her the extra reassurance, although I sensed she was clever enough to know that she was already off the hook.

My precious...

It amazed me how my 2 year old girl could comprehend the seriousness of the situation, and how she could feel she was responsible for what had happened. I gave her a kiss on the forehead, and stroked her hair. In a matter of seconds, she was away from the spot she’s been rooted to in the last 10 minutes or so and went about the room doing the usual stuffs a 2 year old girl would do.

Moral of the story:
1. Make sure you keep your fine and valuable possessions in safe places, and far from the reach of your children, especially if your children are still at the age when a wedding ring has the equivalent sentimental and monetary significance as a Spongebob soft toy.
2. Don't get upset with them for any losses incurred due to failure to follow moral of the story no. 1 above. Be fair to your children, and own up to your own mistake. You can however show them that you're upset that you've lost something you value very much. That would teach them to determine what is valuable and what is not, and teach them to be more careful the next time.
3. Tell them you love them nevertheless, and as upset as you are over your loss, keep things in perspective. This will teach them the right values, and the art of being forgiving.

The above is also an excerpt of an entry in my new holiday blog, A Break to the East Coast.