Happy New Year 2007

My new year's resolution is....... to be happy!

Selamat Hari Raya Aidiladha

Selamat Hari Raya Aidiladha untuk semua. Semoga Allah sentiasa memberkati dan merahmati kita.

Keep the prayers going

Prophet Muhammad S.A.W. stressed that:
Only sincere prayers can change the way events unfold

and remember...

"Allah does not change a favor that He has conferred upon people until they change their own condition...” (al-Anfal: 53)

What is success?

A majority of us would think that those who have achieved their ambitions in life are the most successful and fortunate of people. Most people work hard to achieve what they want in life and usually it revolves around career and social status. Without ambition, it’s difficult for an individual to be focused in what he/she aims for in life. Without ambition, there would be very little motivation for us to strive further in life, which could result in us feeling confused about life and our direction ahead.

There are people who tend to go with the flow; they are comfortable of being ‘pushed’ along any direction life tends to offer. Nevertheless they never lack the drive to go forward towards the direction of success but probably with less passion. Then there are people who have always had a goal in mind. They work their way towards that goal no matter how difficult the path they’re choosing is going to be, they will continue in that direction. There are also people who are unable to endure the challenges, or have made the wrong choice that they have to find a different pathway to continue.

Whatever direction we’re all heading, we could never get away with difficulties and challenges, heartache and frustration. But bear in mind, it is the hardship that will eventually ‘shape’ our identity, test our maturity and perseverance.

Sometimes when things get really bad, we tend to question ourselves “why did I choose this path in the first place? Why didn’t I go for the easier ride? Will I ever make it?”
During those hard times when we have very little confidence in ourselves, pause for a while and think back to our original goal. What do we want to achieve... Think about the people who have always been there for us, people who have never stopped praying for our happiness and success. Don’t let ourselves down and don’t let these people down. React in a positive way! Accept the challenge and believe that we can do it too.

During our journey towards success, make sure we don’t become ‘slaves’ to our own goals. We must let ourselves enjoy the journey and learn from the adventure. It is the ride that actually teaches us the most about life, not the destination.

Once we’ve achieved our goal, what’s next? Make a new one! :) In my opinion, success is when we’ve achieved happiness. And… happiness is when we are able to share the joy of our success with those people who meant the world to us.

What's for lunch? ;P

French fries, squid rings, pizza and iced milo for lunch... sounds nice huh? ;) I made the pizza myself and turned out i didn't even eat it. Why is it when we put so much effort into cooking something, at the end of the day when it's cooked, we don't have the appetite to eat it anymore?? Especially when we're eating alone...

Shall we toss the coin?

Choices... Decisions... Everyone wants to do the right thing, everyone wants the best to happen. Everyone desires happy outcome in every situation. However we must realise that we live in the real world, not a world of fantasy. We live in a world where wrong decisions have their consequences, where happy outcome is sometimes non-existence. We live in a world where you have to lose something in order to gain something, where hearts and promises sometimes may have to be broken in pursue of the right decision.

Someone once told me not so long ago that if we are faced with difficult decisions and we're not sure which one is the best for us, toss a coin. If after the first toss you're not satisfied and wanted another try, then you know deep down in your heart, you've always wanted the other choice. Sometimes it's really difficult to rationalise why we choose one over the other. Sometimes it seems so obvious why we should choose something over the other but despite this, our heart feels so heavy to go ahead with the choice. Brain and heart might not work hand and hand in many situations.

It's easy to say 'just go with the flow, let the future unfolds itself'. One day we just have to choose one. Maybe deep down in our heart, we've already made the choice but it's just so difficult to let it out in the open. Or maybe it's just still very hazy and waiting for the clouds to clear away so that the answer will be crystal clear. Shall we just follow our heart?? Or shall we sacrifice our happiness for the sake of others??

Islam has an answer for this. It's just a matter of how sincere we are in our actions. Solat Istikharah is Allah's gift for Muslims in choosing difficult situations, bearing in mind our heart must be pure and sincere in asking for Allah's direction. Islam says: if after few repeated solats, we are very incline towards a decision, stick to it because that might be what Allah has chosen for us. What's best for us might not be what we've always wanted and Allah knows best.

Lightning splits the sky

I would like to share a poem i wrote about 3 years ago...

Lightning splits the sky
Thunder shakes the earth
The heart is crying
Over the knotty circumstances

Thunder shakes the earth
Water then showers the land
Over the knotty circumstances
Honesty and prejudice battle each other

Water then showers the land
Washing away the exuberance
Honesty and prejudice battle each other
Victory must go to honesty

Washing away the exuberance
Black curtains blanketing hope
Victory must go to honesty
As prejudice undermines respect

Black curtains blanketing hope
But look within, the candle is still burning
As prejudice undermines respect
Let honesty returns the pride

But look within, the candle is still burning
The inner strength never dies
Let honesty returns the pride
Let trust causes the sun to rise

The inner strength never dies
The lesson is to grasp hope tightly
Let trust causes the sun to rise
Lightning splits the sky.

By Nora

The graduation...

As expected, it was one of the happiest moments in my life. And..... happiest moments in life can only be meaningful if we share it with people we love. Celebrating my graduation and sharing the joy of the day with mama, babah, and my youngest brother was more than i could have ever asked for. Special thanks to mama and babah for being there for me all along, and thanks for being able to make it to the biggest day of my academic life. And thanks also to family, friends and relatives who have supported me all these while from near and far.

It's funny that the years of waiting and hard work all came down to that one day and the piece of paper saying i've achieved what i've dreamt of. However graduating isn't the end, in fact it's the beginning of a whole new journey...

Too cold... brrrrr

During my parents and brother's visit to NZ, I brought them around. We drove to Timaru and Christchurch, and back to Dunedin. Mostly for sight seeing rather than shopping. We had a great time. Amazing time!! However my parents decided that the weather especially in Dunedin was too cold for them hehehe... it hasn't been a good summer so far though in terms of the weather. I must admit myself the weather could still be 'wintery' in Dunedin even at this time of the year.

In Chrischurch we went punting in the park, in Timaru we visited the Rose Garden, and in Dunedin we enjoyed feeding the hungry ducks in the botanical garden haha... We also visited lots of other places and overall my family enjoyed it here. I was quite sad though when they went back, really wish i could go home with them. However i'm sure time flies by very fast...as a lovely old lady whom i met in a bus ride from Dunedin to Timaru told me last week ''the 12 months period will pass by like a blink of an eye.''

The grand arrival.... ;)

I've just come back to work yesterday after a week's leave. A very special week... when my parents and youngest brother for the first time came to visit me here in NZ. They came all the way from Brunei to attend a very special event: my graduation :) Anyway before they came i made some preparations mainly cooking coz i knew they would be starving from the long long flight to Dunedin. I also hired a car especially for them... a good time to finally use my international driving license ;) Having said that... i've never driven in NZ before... and the last time i drove was back in August when i was home in Brunei. I hired a black sporty Mazda...very cute.. My heart was pounding like mad when i first drove the car. I was so scared hehe... and i managed to get a $40 ticket for parking that car in an unauthorised parking area just a few hours after i hired it!!! So unlucky!!! Getting a speeding ticket is probably more like me... but a parking ticket??!!! Tsk tsk.. Anyway when it's time to pick my family up from the airport, i drove the car ever so slowly (so very NOT like me...and my heart was pounding crazily all the way, i was so scared driving for the first time in NZ)... I was a bit late when i arrived at the airport... i parked the car far away from the airport main entrance. Then i went to find them... when i finally found my family, they were busily getting their luggage at baggage claim! No wonder they didn't turn up at the gate where i was waiting... they were at baggage claim already... haha... maybe i was too slow for them... I felt so happy to finally meet my parents here in Dunedin... I had waited 6 years for that moment to come. I confidently told them i would bring them to my place using a car ;) but that confidence was ruined when i had a hard time trying to find the car because i didn't remember where i parked it and i had no idea what the plate number was (i hadn't had the chance to really look at the car yet u see hehe)... all i knew it was mazda and it was black haha... but of course i found it in the end and way we went to my flat. When my dad sat next to me in the car, my confidence level rose significantly and i drove the car like i usually drove back in Brunei...with extra care of course ;)

Lost...

Two words best describe my first day of work: lost and overwhelmed. The first 2 days were orientation days to familiarize ourselves with the new environment, the system, and the staff. I didn’t realize this hospital is very much smaller than the hospital where I did my training at. Good thing with smaller/rural hospitals are: lots of opportunities to do various procedures as a first year postgrad and the pay is slightly higher for similar position :P

Forgive and forget

Be Forgiving
When the Prophet Mohammad (SAW) asked his companions, “Do you wish that Allah should forgive you?” they said, “Of course O Prophet of Allah.” He responded:

Be Willing to Forget
Things that happened in the past must be left there and not be used as fresh ammunition in new situations.

Be Aware of Feelings
Prophet Mohammad (SAW) stated that Allah forgives all sins if we repent but not those we have committed against others, i.e. hurt their feelings, unless the person we have hurt forgives first

-copy and paste from islamonline.com-

Two more days...

Two more days before i start work...
Quite nervous... I'm not sure which one scares me the most and in what order...
New environment, new people, new responsibilities...
I don't think i'm ready to face arrest situations....
I'm scared laaaa

Spherical boulders

These spherical boulders are called Moeraki boulders. I went to see these boulders with some friends on our way back to Dunedin from Oamaru last year. Each of these boulders was formed similar to the way a pearl is formed around a particle in an oyster. Amazing isn't it? Another evidence of Allah's greatness as a Creator. And who are we to question Allah's ruling?

Procrastination is a serious illness

When it comes to doing things, how many of us would complete the chores on the dot? And how many would brush it off and say ''Yeah, I'll do it later, still have time''? Procrastination is definitely a serious illness. Throughout the years, i've learnt so many things the hard way. I must admit a majority of the time it was because i procrastinated. I left things to the last minute... Sometimes things that didn't appear to be important or urgent, i would simply stack it away thinking that i'd come back to it at a later time. Yeah, learning things the 'hard way' can be beneficial because it'll stick to the mind forever. We learn how to organise things urgently!! Ain't that good?? If we have a terrible time completing something... of course we'll take note of it so that the same mistake will not be repeated next time. However it would save sooooo much time and energy if we do things on time. It would also save us the stress!!! The work we do will be more organised, we don't panic, we don't tend to leave out things, everything will be done on time... And i'm sure everyone knows this fact: relaxing after a job's done is way more satisfying than taking our time and worrying about it all the way ;)

Why am i talking about this?
3 months ago when i received a letter saying i have been offerred a year's contract with one of the hospitals here, along came with it multiple forms that need to be filled in. There was one form regarding income tax and IRD numbers etc etc (I still don't understand how it works but it's regarding income tax). I did ask my future employer about that form but he said if i don't know how to fill in that form, just bring it on the first day of work and we'll fill it in together. Being an ignorant being like myself, plus my procrastinating habit, i just put the form away and said to myself "okay, that's to be sorted out later." I never saw that form again until a few days ago...
What happened a few days ago?? A few days ago my friend asked me if i have an IRD number already... and erkkk!!! What's an IRD number again???? She said i need to have an IRD number before the gov't can tax my income. She simply put it as "No IRD number, no salary, no money". That's more like it... simple and easy to understand ;) I started to panic. An application for IRD number would usually take 2 weeks (10 days the minimum). I have been in NZ for 6 years... 6 years!!!! I'm sure everyone agrees that i have ample time to apply for an IRD number. But there i was, 5 days before starting work... just knew about IRD number. To cut long story short, I made an urgent application, made some phone calls, faxed a few letters...and walaa... i got my IRD number in less than 24 hours!!! Hehehe.... Yeah I've learnt how to make an urgent application, so i know what to do when faced with similar situation next time... but it would have saved me lots of time, energy and stress if i have done it earlier. So dear readers... Please don't make procrastination our culture.

Clear blue sky

Another beautiful view of NZ countryside. Taken by me when i was doing my rural GP attachment. When mata and tumpuan ke arah urusan dunia, cubalah once in a while dongak ke langit....look at the beautiful clear blue sky... pujilah ciptaan Allah...Subhanallah... mesti hati tenang!!

Homesick today

Homesick today... Rindu towards babah and mama di Brunei.
It all started when I read this e-novel about a daughter who went to Ireland to study Medicine. She's the favourite among her 3 siblings to her daddy. One day her daddy told her she's promised to a man chosen by him. The girl however had given her heart to another guy so she disagreed strongly to her daddy's decision. She went back to Ireland to finish her study. She rarely spoke to her dad even though deep down she missed him terribly. Every time when she called home, she always refused to talk to him. When she finished her study and went home, she discovered that her daddy had passed away. He wrote her a letter before he died saying that he only wanted the best for her since she's his dearest daughter. Time went by...and indeed the man chosen by her daddy was the right one for her... She wasted her time arguing with her dad, not talking to him when he was alive trying to prove her point that she disagreed with his decision....... only to find out later that his dad's choice was the best.

What has this story got anything to do with me??? Nothing!! ;)
But it makes me realise that pengorbanan ayah and ibu jarang kita fikirkan... We only think about our kesusahan but we rarely think about kesusahan/kepayahan ayah and ibu kita dalam mendidik and membesarkan kita. They want the best for us but sometimes kita salah erti kan hasrat diorang. Apalah sangat pengorbanan kita berbanding dengan pengorbanan babah and mama kita yang melahirkan, membesarkan, memberi pelajaran and kebahagiaan selama ni.
Yeah maybe their decisions, their choices aren't necessarily the best for us... but tolaklah dengan cara baik, jangan berkasar, and if they insist, apa salahnya kita cuba menyenangkan hati mereka... But having said this, i do realise anything yang berkenaan dengan hati and perasaan memang among the toughest issues of adult life... hmmm

Opening a new chapter...

It might be difficult to summarize the last 6 years of my life in one sentence...but here goes: In summary, i have been here in NZ for the past 6 years studying to become a doctor.

Now...

I've finished my study, just awaiting for my graduation in 2 weeks time!! Babah and mama are coming... seronoknyeeee.... ;) But I'm a bit anxious, this coming Monday i'll be starting work. I have to move to a new town, meet new people, work in a hospital i've never laid eyes on... Might sound exciting to the adventurous souls out there but quite scary for me... I'm in the process of leaving Dunedin, this amazing little city which has left millions of memories. Berat rasa hati untuk tinggalkan this place, this place is like a second home for me after Brunei...
Masa ni sedang packing barang2... penat sungguh!!! Berat sungguh the barang2... rasa kan patah tulang belakang ni (*exaggerating mode ON hehe)... Emosi pun kurang stabil lately ni....
I realise that i should be happy coz i've achieved my ambition, sudah tunaikan hasrat di hati and harapan babah and mama to see me berjaya... Sepatutnya lebih bersemangat to work coz from now on i'll be able to rasa rezeki Allah hasil titik peluh sendiri...

Allahu Akbar

Sometimes we become too engrossed in our never ending work, assignments, financial problems, and other worldly problems that we forget to look around. Keindahan ciptaan Allah yang boleh menenangkan hati yang runsing, jiwa yang stressed gagal dimanfaatkan oleh kita. I've been here in NZ for 6 years and only this year i had the chance to see this amazing sight. This is Central Otago in the middle of winter.

Welcome

Assalamualaikum wbt


Welcome dear readers to 'a snapshot of my life'! I've never blogged before... What drives me to start blogging?? I don't have an answer to that. For the past few years i've enjoyed reading other people's blogs. I view blogging as a way of providing others with a snapshot of the blogger's life. Their opinions, their views, the way they live... their tears and laughters... Some just blog for the fun of it ;) Each and everyone of us is different. By sharing we can learn from each other... I've also come across blogs that share knowledge about Ad-Din... Stories that can make us think about the reason of our existence... Not to mention stories that are so funny that it cheers up our day...
Enjoy reading.... a snapshot of my life!!