THEY WILL ASK thee as to what they should spend on others. Say: "Whatever of your wealth you spend shall [first] be for your parents, and for the near of kin, and the orphans, and the needy, and the wayfarer; and whatever good you do, verily, God has full knowledge thereof." - Al-Baqarah (2:215)
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Saturday 30 August 2008

Life is not a bed of roses... or is it?

Wouldn't it be nice to have a bed of roses at your house? Sweet-looking, sweet-smelling roses of various colours? Must be beautiful.

Now go jump onto the bed of roses.

OUCH!! Thorny isn't it?

So life IS like a bed of roses after all. Sweet... but thorny and can be painful nevertheless.

You're probably thinking that I must be crazy to even suggest jumping onto a bed of roses... but I was just trying to give an example of how even the sweetest things have setbacks. And that's how life is.

When you're poor you wish you're rich. You think your problems will be over when you become rich. Then you become rich... and eventually you'll learn that there are other things you have to worry about when you're rich. And that not everything can be solved by being rich.

When you only have a motorcycle you wish you have a car. You think once you buy a car it will solve your family's travelling problems. Then you get yourself a car... and eventually you find out that buying a car is not all there is to it. Now you have to think about maintenance of the car... you need to adjust your budget... you may have to cut down on other aspects of your family's expenses. Oh dear... now you have more problems to think about.

When you're a full-time housewife sometimes you wish you're already climbing up the corporate ladder. You think to yourself... if only you're a somebody. When you're already somewhere at the top of the ladder, sometimes you wish you could just stay at home and not think of all the problems you have to face by being there at the top. You think to yourself... if only you're just a nobody.

Ah yes... there are times when I wish I am what I was when I wished I was what I am now... (am I making sense?:-))

Sometimes you wish you could just breeze through life without any obstacles. But really, a life without obstacles is like going to school without learning anything. What a waste....

When things don't turn out the way you wished they did, sometimes you get upset. Sometimes you get disappointed. Sometimes you get angry. And when you're upset and angry, you tend to do things, which you think, is the best course of action at that point of time. You don't think of the after-effects of your action. You don't think of the blessing behind your disappointment. You just do what you THINK is best at that point... and then at another point of your life (may be just after... may be much later...) you have regrets and wish you had dealt with it in a different manner.

Yes, things can go wrong even on the brightest of all days. You can wake up on a bright and sunny day, feeling energetic and all ready to go to work. Things can still go wrong. On a very small scale, you may get stuck in a terrible traffic jam or you may get stuck in the lift on your way up to your office. On a slightly bigger scale, you may get involved in a road accident no matter how careful you are. Or on an even bigger scale, when you least expect it, a plane may crash into the building you're in, causing the whole building to collapse...

It is only natural that whenever disaster strikes, big or small, we begin with a negative response to the whole situation. We tend to start pointing fingers. We tend to do and say the wrong things, thinking that is the right thing to do. And if someone else adds more fire to it, things get even worse.

It takes time before we can cool our heads and think rationally. Which is why it is helpful to have someone around to cool us down. Then we can begin to think of all the lessons and blessings, no matter how devastating the happenings are.

That's how life is. Full of lessons. Full of blessings.

No matter what happens to you, there are lessons to be learnt. Concentrate on the lessons, NOT on the disappointments. Easier said than done, I know... but what is past is over and done with, and no matter what science fictions tell us, there is no way we can step into a time machine to go back in time to correct things. Such being the case, we might as well try to learn something out of it.

So whenever you're stuck in a frustrating situation, don't despair. Think of the blessings behind it. And even if you can't find the blessing there and then, convince yourself that there has to be a blessing to it one way or another... a blessing which you may only be able to see much later in your life.

We are not able to tell our future. We can only plan. We need sunshine, we need rain... but only God can give us all those. Only God knows what's best for us. So while we must still try to plan our life to the very best, let's just be thankful with our destiny.

No, I'm not trying to give you lessons on life. I'm merely reminding myself there must be reasons behind all the setbacks in my life. After all, I am sure I am much more fortunate than many other people around the world.

Don't worry, be happy!

To all fellow Muslims... Selamat Berpuasa and may you have a blessed Ramadhan.

And to all fellow Malaysians... SELAMAT MENYAMBUT HARI KEBANGSAN KE 51!!

13 comments:

ms hart said...

Kak Pi, thank you, same to you- selamat menikmati Ramadhan. I still remember the way our pakcik dining hall woke us up...he would stand near to the dorm nearest to the dining hall (at Block G then) and said, "Nak, bangun nak...ni sahur ni haa.." in his very thick Nogori accent! Pas tu kat dining hall....ooooohhhh macam-macam fashion baju tidur ada...he he

O, hope your mom will get well soon.

Mat Salo said...

Ooo... I love this philosophical post, Pi but.. er, too 'heavy' for me. Anyway, I'm the type to sit around and mope, even when I was down and out. I assure you there really were such times. These days, every waking moment I just count my blessings... Sometimes I'm obsessed thinking that I'm just living on borrowed time. That all good things must come to a crashing, inglorious end. My rants probably here proves I'm over the hill, and way past my prime. If I ever was in my 'prime' to begin with.

Yes, have a glorious Ramadan Pi and hope your mother is better. And may God, in his infinite Grace, shed His Mercy on your PLWHA clients and may their burdens be lessened.

Pi Bani said...

Ms Hart:
Memang, masa tu macam ada baju tidur fashion show kat dining hall. Puaslah pakcik-pakcik dining hall tu jamu mata time sahur kan?

Pi Bani said...

Philosophical post? Alaah... posting I kadang2 berfalsafah, kadang2 falsampah... ikut mood le!
You think you're over the hill, huh? Well, at least that means you've been on top of the hill, right? :)

Have a glorious Ramadan ahead... ni mesti dah plan cuti panjang time raya nanti!

Unknown said...

Hi Pi,

We are never free of challenges. But when we accept that we will always be challenged & get on, we will find inner peace. I'm still looking...hmm..

Salam Ramadhan to you & family.

Kerp (Ph.D) said...

Hey, wonderful piece. That should serve as a reminder to all readers too.

Life a bed of roses is a real long shot but for someone who had actually gone through some storm, my life couldn’t get any sweeter than now. I’m cherishing every moment of this 2nd chance I got now. Not that it has been rosy but that I am more grateful.

Have a blessed Ramadan to you, kak Pi.

Unknown said...

Hi Pi,

We are never free of challenges. But when we accept that we will always be challenged & get on, we will find inner peace. I'm still looking...hmm..

Salam Ramadhan to you & family.

Pi Bani said...

K.Ruby:
Que Sera Sera... whatever will be will be...

Salam Ramadhan to you too.

Pi Bani said...

Kerp:
Whatever storm you had to go through has made you a stronger person now, hasn't it? Of course, you can't have 'em all but let's just be grateful with whatever that comes our way.

And may you have a blessed Ramadhan too.

Lee said...

Hi Pi Babi, noticed your new profile pic...besarrrr kuching tu! Nama dia Rimau? Or Rimau kayu? Haha.
Pi Bani, I fully agree what you posed, then again, we should live life with no excuses, love without regrets.

Pi Bani ada buat what cake for Raya? You nak saya datang tolong row, row the dodol? Ada buat kueh bingka?
Oy yes, ketupat tentu ada, ya? Boleh saya dantang? Ha ha...have not eaten ketupat ...gosh, can't even remember when, ha ha.
You stay beautiful, Pi Bani, keep well and jaga the rimau don't chew off your fingers, Lee.

Pi Bani said...

Lee:
That big kucing's name is not Rimau, but Singa!! That's a 4 month old cub. Will grow into a big lion... so definitely not making its way into my home!

Baru first day puasa lah, you already asking me about all the raya goodies? Nanti later I'll just post photos of the food, bagi you jamu mata only...

Nightwing said...

Hello Kak,

Thank you for sharing (and reminding us) about life's journey.

Salam Ramadhan to you & family.

May your mom get better soon.

Pi Bani said...

Nightwing,
Thanks and here's wishing a great week ahead!