A Tribute To A Wonderful Dad

Tomorrow is Father's Day. I'm sure most of us would have already thought of how to celebrate this day with our fathers. Some might even have celebrated it today because there is a possiblity that tomorrow evening all the restaurants would be packed. Most people would be having dinner as a family to celebrate this day.

As for me, I will not be celebrating it because my dad passed away four years ago after he succumbed to an illness. However, there are many memories that my siblings and I had with him.

First and foremost, I would like to thank my dad for his farsightedness. Why do I say so? Well, he saw English as a very important language to master and he wanted all his children to be able to converse in the language well. Hence, he made sure that we took the subject seriously.

Besides that, he together with my mum had influenced my siblings and I in such a way that we have all grown up to be independent and successful adults. He played a great part in moulding us into what we are today.

What I am doing today is also partly his influence. I remember receiving a letter informing me that I was offered a place at a certain college. I had made up my mind not to go initially. When dad got to know about it, he was very unhappy. He told me that it was not easy securing that place. Many people would have killed for it.

With the economical situation in our country today, I am truly glad for his advice. If it wasn't for his farsightedness, I would be worrying about being retrenched today. Now I do not have to worry each night when I go to bed that I would not have an office to go to when I wake up the next morning.

My dad was a disciplinarian and he made sure that we followed every rule he had set for us, like taking our studies seriously and for us girls, no dating or going out when our exams were near.

He was also a man of few words. I wouldn't deny that we were a little fearful of him when we were young as he would never think twice in rebuking or punishing us if we did wrong. However, we respected him for what he did because he believed in not sparing the rod and spoiling us.

As a father, he made sure that we were never in want. He worked very hard to provide for us and whatever we needed, he would go all out to get it for us.

On the other hand, he was not someone who was all work. He would take the whole family away for holidays and I am proud of the fact that I have learnt a lot of things and gained a lot of knowledge from all these trips.

On days when he was busy and could not be away from work for a long period of time, he would take us to the nearest beach during the weekend just so we could spend time together as a family. I truly value his effort in trying to keep the family together and as a result, we, his children grew up in a very loving and close knit family.

These are just a few of the instances that I am sharing here. There is so much more to talk about him and I know I won't be able to finish it in one sitting. So, I'll just leave the rest to some other time.

Finally, I take this opportunity to wish all fathers out there A Very Happy Father's Day.

jennyiyan's recollections...

Best Aunty Award

It's the school holidays again and I get to spend a lot of time with Iyan and Ilynne, especially Iyan. Though it's the holidays, he has to attend a holiday programme for writing and today is the last day. He happily announced to me, 'Finally, my holidays begin'. Now he is so into football and for a seven going on eight-year old, he knows a lot about the game. You can mention a name, and he'll tell you which team the player is from. I'm amazed at his knowledge. In fact, I've learnt a lot about football from him. His favourite team is Chelsea and his favourite player is Frank Lampard. Besides this, his command of Bahasa Malaysia, which he had zero knowledge until he went to school last year is also improving. It's funny listening to him speak the language. He would say, 'Popo, ada orang di outside .' Yesterday, he told me, 'Taiyee, you are the best aunty in the whole wide world.' Imagine my pride at that moment. If only there was an award for that category, I think I would have beaten all the other contestants flat. That made my day

jennyiyan's recollections...

Happy Mother's Day

Today everyone all over the world celebrates Mother's Day. Well, I often ask myself what this day means to me? This is a day to specially remember my mum and all the things she has done in bringing me up. I know it wasn't easy bringing such a playful rascal like me up, what with four others in tow, all craving for her attention. We were especially close to her as our father was always away because of his nature of work. I remember when we were younger, we would pool together our pocket money and would secretly get something for mum. It wasn't much, but I know she was touched by our gesture. When I say that today is a day for me to specially remember my mum, it doesn't mean that I don't remember and think of her every other day. It is actually good to have such a day where we really stop doing other things and take time to specially remember our mums in a very fond manner. Of course, I know my mum would not want my siblings and I to spend much just for this day. For her, as long as her children are happy and doing well in life, she's a happy and contented woman. I'm sure all mums share this feeling. So, mum, Happy Mother's Day to you and to all mothers Happy Mother's Day to you all too!

jennyiyan's recollections...

A selfless act...

I received a phone call from my sister an hour ago informing me that Iyan has hand foot and mouth disease. It broke my heart knowing that he has it as this has been one of my greatest fear for him ever since he started going to school. He told me yesterday that he had a sore throat but I thought little of it. Told myself it could just be a minor one. My sister took him to the doctor this afternoon and it's confirmed. Yet what I'm proud of is that despite his pain he still thinks for others, especially his popo. He told his popo to stay in the room and don't come out in case she gets infected by him. Then a few minutes ago he called me on the phone to especially inform me that there's a flu in Penang and he wanted me to take care of myself and make sure I did not get it. Such a selfless boy... I'm so proud of you, my beloved Iyan.

jennyiyan's recollections...

Insight

I'm back after a long absence. I just couldn't find the time to write as I've been very busy with work. I don't even have the time to indulge in my favourite activity - reading. Finally, I have the time to do all the things that I like - reading, surfing the net and blogging among others before I'm busy again. Speaking of work, well, we recently had a new boss. As always with a new boss, everyone will scramble to get into the good books of the boss. Well, not everyone of course, I was exaggerating. Numerous things will be speculated by those who claim to know or have heard about the new boss. He or she is like this or that. He or she likes this or that and he or she dislikes this and that. Phew! What an earful! I can't help but marvel at these gossipmongers, if this is the apt word to describe them. Where do they get all these info? Even before the new boss reported for duty, word had been going round about the boss. By the time the boss reported for duty, we sort of had an image of him or her, which, of course was unfair! We had managed to turn the boss into a monster rather than someone who was sent there to help manage the institution. I acknowledge, there are many types of people out there who are capable of doing anything. I personally feel that some of them have the wrong profession. Some of them should have been spies or working with the CIA. As for me, I don't care much about what they do or say as long as they do not include me. I will listen to all these, well gossips are always juicy, right? But I would rather take my time to get to know the boss. For me, I'll continue working the way I have been doing and I don't care about the rest. It's not in me to butter up my boss. I just don't have such talent. Some would bring back gifts for the boss when they go off on a holiday. Some would enter the boss' office and voice their dissatisfaction for others just to show the boss that they are doing their job. Some just love to be seen in the company of the boss, lapping up everything that comes out of the boss' mouth. Then there are those who are appointed heads of certain department who would just delegate their work to their subordinates while they brag to the boss that they have done this and that. They have gotten their heads too big and have forgotten that without the subordinates who have been slogging for them, they would be nowhere near where they are now. Everyone has his or her limit. One day he or she will just burst and there goes the friendship. What profit is there? For me, I believe in democracy. I believe in discussing things and taking into consideration others' opinions before we come to a conclusion. I dislike people who delegate their work to others while they just sit aound gossiping about others. Some who have their heads too big just lose their humanity and love and care for mankind. In a recent incident whereby one of my fellow colleague's loved one passed away, the immediate head telephoned her at home to remind her that she had not completed her work and that she had a deadline to honour. Excuse me! She had just lost a loved one and the funeral had not even been conducted. Can't it wait until after the funeral? Or can't you just help her complete it since you are so free? Or better, since you are so good at delegating your job, why don't you just take the task and delegate it to the others? It's not that she's having a gala time at home. Where is the love and care for fellow colleagues? What has become of humanity?

jennyiyan's recollections...

Family and friends

I had to leave Iyan again yesterday to return to Penang because I work there. How I dread the moment I had to leave. One of my colleagues told me to just apply for a transfer back to KL where my family members, including my beloved Iyan are since I'm always missing him so much. It's not that I don't want to work near home. It's just that staying away from home has its good points too. I find that by staying on my own, I have grown to love my family more and not take them for granted. I not only cherish the time that I spent with them but also each other and there's also less bickering among us siblings. I have learnt to appreciate mum's cooking more as I don't get such good and healthy food when I eat out. I have actually been staying away from home ever since my school days and this has taught me to be more independent. Of course, when I was in school, my parents would take me home from the hostel at the end of each semester and send me back when the hols were over. But over time, I grew to be independent and could take the bus home during the weekends when I missed home too much and once every fortnight, my friends and I would take the bus to town just to unwind. There were curfew hours and we had to be back at the hostel by 6pm but that did not stop us having fun. When I went to college, my parents did not have to worry about taking or sending me back to the hostel anymore. By then, I was more matured and could take the public transport. When I began to work, my first posting was to a small town in Terengganu, at the border of Kelantan. There was no shopping centre or even a cinema for me to go to. The nearest city was about 50 km away. I couldn't imagine myself surviving in such a condition. I remember missing my family tremendously, but with the help of friends I managed to overcome my loneliness. We would gather after work each day and exchange news of our workplaces. We had a lot of fun just sitting around chitchatting. Sometimes, during certain festivals where we couldn't be home, we would gather and celebrate together with the little means that we had. It could have been a simple gathering like a barbecue, or someone's birthday, yet we had lots of fun being together. That is why I treasure all my friends. One of my colleagues told me that she does not trust anyone anymore because one of her so-called friends has hurt her. Well, maybe she has not been in a situation like mine. In my situation, we have to learn to give and take. Yes, a friend might have hurt our feelings, but we need to learn to forgive him or her if we want to have a happy life far away from our loved ones. I wouldn't say that I have put friends before family but I wouldn't deny that there are things that I share with a close friend and not with my sister. Yet, that doesn't mean that I don't share things with my family members. For me, my family members still and will always occupy the number one spot in my heart. Ultimately, family members are the ones who will stick by us. Their love for us is unconditional.

jennyiyan's recollections...

Iyan

I remember the first time I set my eyes on a cute little baby the day he was born. I never knew I had so much love to share until then. The moment I saw him, I just wanted to hold him closely and protect him always. I vowed never to allow anyone hurt him physically. He's the apple of my eye, the love of my life and that special someone who will cause me to break all rules. Each time I have to leave him brings me heartache and I'll be counting the days till I next see him. And each time I go to a shopping complex, I will think of what to get him when I return home to see him. At times, I miss him so much that I just could not hold back the tears. When I talk about him, it is always with pride. For him, I will do many things that I do not normally do, like I've learnt to cook his favourite food - salmon teriyaki, minestrone soup and mushroom soup, just to name a few. It's a joy to see him grow from a baby to a toddler, and now he is already in the primary school. How time flies. He celebrated his seventh birthday last week, on the eighteenth. He is none other than my favourite nephew, Iyan. I think it is still not too late to wish him a happy belated birthday. We were out together just now at the shopping complex and we always have fun when we go out. I remember many a time he would be rushing to the washroom right after eating to answer nature's call and I would have to help clean him up. He would make me wait for him outside while he does his 'business' and only when he says, 'I'm done' will he allow me in to help him clean up. Sometimes we would just laze on the sofa at home watching his favourite shows or he would be playing games on his psp or ps3 and I would be reading. For me, these are very special moments. Spending the little time that I have with him. How I wish I could spend more time with him. I just want him to know that he is very much loved by all his family members. Iyan, Taiyee wish and pray that you will grow up to be a fine, young man. An individual who is not only confident, wise and successful but respects and loves his mum, dad and mei-mei dearly, not forgetting popo. Taiyee will always cherish the time spent with you. Indeed, you are very special, not only to Taiyee but also your mum, dad, mei-mei and popo. 'Happy belated birthday, Iyan'.

jennyiyan's recollections...