Life as we see it

My roomies were feeling bored. Last night roomie A brought the matter to attention by asking me a question: could I live not going back to Malaysia for a few years (as opposed to going back every year)? My answer was- whilst surely I would not want that to be an alternative, but if it ever came to that, I think I could live with it. She then said she had had this conversation with a neighbour and they both had the opinion that, amongst all, I would be the one who could live happily here- because I always had something to do: I had my internet, movies, manga, anime, books, and whatnots. My first constructive feedback was to laugh heartily at what I reckoned as a dreadfully silly excuse for boredom. But I immediately saw that she truly meant what she said.

“What?? But you guys could also have what I had!!”

She said she wasn’t as enthusiastic as I was in ‘these stuff’, she didn’t even care if she had a laptop in the first place. And that though she seemed to sleep a lot, it wasn’t out of hobby, but because at times she just didn’t have anything to do sleeping became the only option left. To further her case, she said sometimes, under the covers, she wasn’t even sleeping- she was playing snake on her handphone.

I interjected that that wasn’t the case, there must be something that she could do, something that she enjoyed doing.

“Back home, what do you do?”

“I go out.”

“Well then, do so!”

“Look, where else can I go here??”

“Hmm… Volga river…??”, with a sheepish look.

Ok, looked like someone had run out of places to visit in this little suburb of a city. Whilst I was wistfully pondering over this tight spot, roomie B, who thus far had been quietly revising for her concluding test the next day, entered the conversation, joining forces with roomie A. I immediately became aware of the fact that I was in the minority.

As expected, they volleyed back to the fact that I was never bored, I always had something to do. Roomie A said that she envied me, for I always seemed happy, especially in front of my laptop. Haha. They said when they went online, it was to check their mails, Friendster, the news, and that was it. I, on the other hand, had my blog, and other people’s blogs, and apparently the whole wide web at my fingertips. I responded that they could also surf around, find something interesting, or start blogging themselves! All these ideas were pooh-poohed, on the grounds that these just were not their ‘thing’. After a few rallies of fierce tennis (this is a metaphor), I came to the point that it was all in the mind, that the word boring was overrated. To them, I was the delusional one. Haha.

I just could not accept their reason for not having anything to do and was desperately searching for groundbreaking solution, when the aforementioned neighbour came in. From that moment, I knew I was facing an uphill battle, and was bound to lose. Hehe. I was saying desperate things, like knitting and cooking. When another friend came in and marveled at the fact that I didn’t get bored and could always find something to do (and face my laptop for hours), I excused myself to pray and get ready for a meeting. Quickly withdraw when you sense defeat, I say.

It must be said that I’m not always happy or preoccupied. I do get my own dose of blues attack every now and then, and I always make myself clear about it. Perhaps the one thing I can do, is not to dwell on negativity for too long and do something to raise my morale instead. Ever the dumb optimist. Yes, I get all worked up (emo, my friends say) easily, but would cool off the second after. I used to wonder if I were doing what people would call as putting up a happy front for other people. In reality, I’m putting up a happy front for myself. When you’re down, find a way to get up. Of course, you are allowed to go bananas once in a while, but only for so much.

As a matter of fact, I haven’t been my old self the minute I set foot on this land a year and a half ago. I took up a quieter front and bounded myself by a limited circle of friends. I kept a tight rein on my social activities, and ended up watching everything from the perimeter. Which wasn’t me back in school days, really. But I feel like I needed the change. Human beings are very adaptable, we can get by in the harshest of conditions, the wildest of dimensions.

And as I had observed in one of my latest entries, we will never be left out on the cold, alone. This is Allah's territory we're living on, and He will never abandon us if we seek for His company. Though I kind of jokingly said in between our conversations that, if they asked my father, he would suggest reading Al-Quran, in hindsight I truly meant it. Reading the Arabic text keeps you enthralled with the lyrical flow as the words come out from your mouth, and reading the tafseer keeps both your feet on the ground.

Roomie A, you envy me for my joie de vivre, but I envy the charm you have with people. People listen to you, and they trust you. I do.

Roomie B, your quiet appeal and wholesomeness makes it hard for people not to like you. Everyone who takes the trouble to get to know you will love you.

I still believe this is just a phase they’ll grow out of. And today, is by no means a day to get bored. Because…

It’s roomie B’s birthday! Happy birthday, dear! God knows how much I owe you with everything involving forks and spoons and tea and a sense of tidiness. Haha. May Allah bless you throughout your life.


Roomie A and B (in no particular order ;p)

Ps: Roomie A has a newfound hobby- making paper stars.