My sisters and I have kickstarted a podcast program titled “Gen Z meets World”! Together with my sister, Aeshah, we shall be sharing our conversation on things close to our Gen Z hearts with all listeners across demographics.
We have published our first episode where we talk about dreams and ambitions, especially those which we have during our childhood.
We hope to reach out to everyone in the world to share not only our voice, but the voice of all of Generation Z! Please follow and like us on our (Oskida) social media platforms at Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
You can tune in on our first episode on YouTube and Spotify.
Alhamdulillah, saya bersama-sama kakak-kakak telah memulakan satu rancangan audio siar (podcast) berjudul “Gen Z meets World”. Saya dan Kak Aeshah akan berbicara, bercerita, meluahkan pendapat serta berkongsi pengalaman tentang perkara yang dekat di hati Gen Z seperti kami.
Sebagai salam perkenalan, kami telah menerbitkan video pertama kami, Episod 0. Episod pengenalan ini menyoroti serba sedikit tentang kami, minat serta hubungan kami sebagai adik beradik yang membesar pada alaf baharu.
Saya memohon sokongan agar usaha ini dapat kami teruskan sebagai satu platform untuk berkongsi serta menyampaikan suara hati anak muda. Sila ikuti, kongsi serta menyukai kami di laman Facebook Oskida, laman Instagram dan di YouTube.
Episod 0 boleh ditonton di YouTube seperti di bawah:
Rancangan audio siar kami juga boleh diikuti di Spotify seperti di bawah:
The above beautiful piece of art portrays wild orchids with Chinese characters “幽兰”, which means “orchid”, is hung on the wall of our living room.
It was a gift for my mother by our Chinese friend saying that it will bring us ‘ong’; but my father had it hung at that particular spot because it is indeed a very beautiful gift.
I am a Malay and I am very proud to be one; the beautiful Chinese piece of art with the Chinese characters in our living room does not make me less of a Malay.
I cannot read Mandarin, but thanks to our dear family friend, Aunty Helen Ang, we are able to understand what the Chinese characters say; and as orchids in the Chinese culture symbolises wealth and fortune, I guess it does have something to do with ‘ong’.
People often remarked that neither my parents, my siblings nor I have the typical Malay looks, even though both of my parents are Malay; I think it is the result of our mixed bloodlines.
My maternal grandfather is a Malay with Peranakan Chinese and Middle-Eastern ancestries along the family bloodlines while my maternal grandmother came from Chinese bloodline.
While my paternal grandfather is a Malay, my paternal grandmother is a Malay with some Siamese and Middle-Eastern bloodlines.
I come from a family with a very rich history especially from the lineage of my maternal grandfather where Tun Zain Indera of Tersat, who came from the lineage of the Sultanate of Johor-Riau was my 8th great-grandfather; my great-grandfather, Haji Awang Omar bin Dato’ Mata Mata Tua Yusof was the younger brother of Dato’ Seri Amar Diraja Haji Ngah Mohamad bin Dato’ Mata Mata Tua Yusof.
As I am very proud of my maternal grandfather’s ancestry, I am also proud of my Chinese ancestry.
My maternal great-grandfather, Hj. Ya’acob Abdullah Al-Yunani whom we affectionately called Appa was a Chinese Muslim and his Chinese name was Tung Foo Piew.
Appa told us about how his father, Hj. Abdullah Sulaiman Al-Yunani sailed from Kwantung or Guangdong in the 19th century to start a business and a new life in the Tanah Melayu.
What makes me really proud about my Chinese ancestors is that despite coming from a different country with a different culture and traditions, they managed to assimilate with the local Malay community around them.
Appa said that it did not take a long time for his parents to able to speak Malay and for his father to learn to read and write in the Jawi scripture.
Appa wore his baju Melayu with ‘kain pelikat’ and ate Malay food but he also loved the Chinese style soups, noodles and tofu which we also do enjoy regularly in our home.
And despite being proud of his Chinese heritage to the end of his life, Appa spoke fluent Malay, practised the Malay custom and proudly called himself a Malay, as he met all the criteria to become a Malay as stated in the Article 160 of the Federal Constitutions.
Appa who called Tanah Melayu his homeland was happy to assimilate and had a very high respect for the Malays and was thankful to be accepted in this country as he knew life in China used to be hard, which was the reason why his parents risked their lives sailing to Tanah Melayu in seeking for a brighter future of their children.
And I am also proud to learn from my mother’s uncle that a great statesman, Tun Tan Siew Sin who was a former Minister of Finance was a distant relative of ours from my maternal grandfather’s side of the family; and that our ancestors came in the same boat to Tanah Melayu long, long time ago.
It is the respect and love for our country as well as for our fellow citizens and obeying the laws of the land that makes us a very special nation.
Feeling the joy of singing ‘Perpaduan Teras Kejayaan’ with my sisters in conjunction with the 62nd National Day of Malaysia!
Lagu yang kami nyanyikan bertajuk, ‘Perpaduan Teras Kejayaan’ (lagu tema Hari Kebangsaan 2008). Sayangi negaraku, Malaysia!
Saya ditinggalkan di masjid oleh orang yang sepatutnya menumpangkan saya ke tanah perkuburan. Van jenazah sudah bertolak dah masjid sudah lengang. Dan orang yang berjanji untuk menumpangkan saya ke tanah perkuburan sudahpun hilang entah ke mana dan saya ditinggalkan bersendirian.
GENAP setahun berlalu sejak perginya ayahanda saya, Hj. A. Karim Omar pada 28hb Jun 2018. Setahun yang amat sukar dan memeritkan. Bukan sahaja saya rindukan arwah ayah dan hilang tempat bergantung tetapi terpaksa menghadapi satu demi satu cabaran dan tekanan yang melanda secara bertubi-tubi. Namun, Alhamdulillah, Allah S.W.T. telah memberi saya kekuatan dalam meneruskan hidup walaupun terlalu banyak rintangan yang mendatang.
Inilah ranjau kehidupan kita selagi bergelar manusia. Hidup setiap insan di dunia ini pasti menempuh ombak dan badai, tanpa mengira bagaimana hebat sekali pun insan itu. Walau sesiapapun kita, sampai saatnya pasti kita akan diuji.
Kehidupan kami berubah sejak ketiadaan ayah. Banyak perkara yang menyedihkan dan melukakan hati telah berlaku. Mungkin dengan cara menulis, dapat saya leraikan kekusutan dan kesedihan di hati saya. Walaupun begitu berat dugaan menimpa, saya berdoa dan berazam akan tetap istiqamah menggalas tanggungjawab yang diberikan oleh Allah S.W.T. sebagai wali keluarga saya selagi mana saya mampu.
Masih segar di dalam ingatan saya, ketika saya dikejutkan oleh ibu pada lebih kurang pukul 4 pagi setahun yang lalu. Ketika itu saya, ibu dan ketiga-tiga kakak saya berada bersebelahan bilik ICU kerana kami tidak mahu berjauhan daripada ayah ketika ayah dalam keadaan yang tenat.
Apabila terjaga, saya sudah dapat merasakan sesuatu yang buruk akan berlaku. Doktor memberitahu kami bahawa ayah akan pergi dan kami dibenarkan berada di sisi ayah di bilik ICU. Empat jam kemudian, ayah telah pergi meninggalkan kami. Saya telah kehilangan ayah dan hilang tempat bergantung.
Alhamdulillah, saya bersyukur ke hadrat Allah S.W.T. kerana ayah pergi dengan tenang dan dengan izin Allah S.W.T, kami sekeluarga berada di sisi ayah sehingga ke saat arwah ayah menghembuskan nafas yang terakhir.
Alhamdulillah, kami telah memilih untuk tidur di hospital selama ayah berada di sana. Oleh kerana kami berada di hospital, Allah berikan rezeki masa yang lebih lama berada di sisi ayah untuk kami bersedia menghadapi saat berpisah buat selama-lamanya, walaupun empat jam itu cuma bagaikan empat puluh minit bagi saya.
Itulah empat jam yang paling berharga dan paling mencabar dalam hidup saya. Segalanya berlaku dengan begitu pantas. Namun saya redha dengan pemergian ayah.
Benar kata orang tua, kawan ketawa senang dicari, kawan menangis susah didapati. Kita disayang ketika kita berada tetapi apabila kita susah, kita disisihkan.
Sudah jatuh ditimpa tangga. Baru empat jam arwah ayahanda meninggal, saya masih dalam keadaan terpingga-pingga dengan pemergian ayah apabila saya ditinggalkan di masjid oleh orang yang sepatutnya menumpangkan saya ke tanah perkuburan. Van jenazah sudah bertolak dah masjid sudah lengang. Dan orang yang berjanji untuk menumpangkan saya ke tanah perkuburan sudahpun hilang entah ke mana dan saya ditinggalkan bersendirian. Ibu dan kakak-kakak tidak bersama saya kerana kami dibahagikan menumpang kereta yang berbeza.
Pilu, takut dan risau tidak dapat ke pusara ketika arwah ayah akan dikebumikan. Saya tidak dapat menghubungi ibu kerana telefon saya di tangan kakak. Hanya Allah yang tahu perasaan saya ketika itu dan ianya masih menghantui saya.
Saya cuba mengejar rombongan kereta yang mengikuti van jenazah kerana saya tidak tahu nama dan di mana letaknya tanah perkuburan yang dipilih oleh pak cik. Mujurlah sahabat rapat arwah ayah ternampak saya. Beliau menyapa saya kerana hairan saya masih di masjid yang telah lengang ketika jenazah ayah sudah dibawa ke pusara. Alhamdulillah, apabila mendapat tahu saya telah ditinggalkan dan mahu berjalan kaki ke kubur kerana tiada kenderaan, beliau terus membawa saya menaiki keretanya.
Rupanya itu baru permulaan. Tidak pernah saya menyangka, setelah perginya ayah, kami akan diperlakukan sebegini rupa. Hak kami dipertikaikan dan fitnah dilontar sesuka hati oleh mereka yang kami kenali termasuk fitnah ke atas arwah ayah yang telahpun meninggal dunia. Yang paling menyedihkan dan mengecewakan saya ialah ramai insan yang lebih suka mempercayai dan menyambung fitnah daripada mencari kebenaran.
Lebih menyedihkan ialah di saat saya merayu memohon pertolongan, saya disuruh berdikari dan tidak bergantung kepada orang lain. Semasa kecil saya diajar bahawa air dicincang tidak akan putus. Tetapi nampak gayanya apabila saya hilang tempat bergantung diri saya yang dicincang.
Alhamdulillah, saya bersyukur kerana disebalik yang membenci, masih ada mereka yang mengasihi, mengingati dan prihatin akan nasib kami. Banyak kata-kata nasihat yang diberikan kepada saya supaya saya lebih cekal dalam menghadapi dugaan hidup. Benar, kata-kata orang tidak akan memburukkan keadaan kerana ia hanya kata-kata. Saya cuba menutup telinga dan belajar untuk tidak terasa dengan fitnah yang dilontar terhadap saya.
Namun, tentunya amat sukar untuk mengenepikan fitnah terhadap ayahanda yang telah tiada. Juga tentunya amat sukar untuk mengenepikan fitnah terhadap ibunda yang melahirkan dan menjaga kita sejak kecil, lebih-lebih lagi yang berkorban menjaga dan memberi makan kami adik beradik setelah ayahanda pergi meninggalkan kami. Saya hairan bagaimana begitu senang mereka mengeluarkan kata-kata sebegitu.
Mungkin seperti biasa saya dianggap salah faham kerana berada di dalam keadaan beremosi selepas perginya ayahanda tersayang. Mungkin sepertimana mereka kata, saya terlalu banyak berfikir padahal sebenarnya tindakan meninggalkan saya keseorangan di masjid itu ialah satu keputusan yang terbaik untuk mengajar saya erti berdikari dan perbuatan menfitnah kami sekeluarga termasuk arwah ayah saya juga merupakan perbuatan yang betul.
Saya cuba sedaya upaya untuk menghadapi segala tekanan ini dan Alhamdulillah dengan izin Allah S.W.T. saya diberi kekuatan untuk meneruskan kehidupan saya, masih dapat saya menulis di laman blog saya dan masih dapat saya meneruskan perjuangan saya. Alhamdulillah, walaupun amat getir, telah dapat saya bertahan selama setahun; dan saya doakan agar saya dapat lebih kuat untuk menghadapi cabaran ini untuk tahun-tahun seterusnya.
The Masjid Sultan Ismail, Muar seen from the Masjid Sultan Ibrahim in daylight.
Among the districts in Johor, Muar is the district that I visited most frequently.
The bandar Muar or Muar town which was given the title of Bandar Maharani (translated as the Town of Empress) by the Sultan Sir Abu Bakar of Johor in 1887, is the Bandar DiRaja Johor or the Royal Town of Johor.
Muar is known for many unique and delicious foods, among our favourites are the Mee Bandung Udang Galah, Satay Muar and the cucur udang.
There is a pair of beautiful sky-blue coloured twin mosques, that are facing each other on both sides of the Sungai Muar or Muar River.
The older mosque, the stunning Masjid Jamek Sultan Ibrahim in Bandar Maharani was officially opened in 1930 while it’s twin, the Masjid Sultan Ismail in Tanjung Agas was opened in 2002.
Both mosques are identical in their designs; which is why they are known as the twin mosques of Muar.
At nighttime the view of Masjid Sultan Ismail seen from the river bank by the Masjid Jamek Sultan Ibrahim is very beautiful, as the colourful lights from the Masjid Sultan Ismail igniting in the dark scenery.
Please click the photos for larger images:
An angler proudly showed the fish that he caught at river side by the Masjid Sultan Ibrahim.
The stunning night view of the Masjid Sultan Ismail, Muar seen from the Masjid Sultan Ibrahim.
The Masjid Sultan Ismail, Muar seen from the Masjid Sultan Ibrahim in daylight.
The Masjid Sultan Ismail, Muar seen from the Masjid Sultan Ibrahim in daylight.
I want to thank Jackie from WordPress for returning my blog, Ahmad Ali Karim’s Weblog that was deactivated for 3 days. I am a serious blogger and I have tried to work very hard to make my blog a successful site. On February 2, 2013, I was shocked to see a malware alert on my blog.
I was really upset and scared and I really did not know what to do. With the help of my family members, our friends and my wonderful blogger friends, we tried to solve the problem but it only got worse. Then my blog was blocked and I could not write any new post which made me really, really sad.
Again my the help of my family I tried to solve the problem but it only got worse until my blog was deactivated and I could not even read my post anymore. I was very, very sad because I was so scared that I might lost all the posts that I wrote since the past five years.
My blog means so much to me because it is a compilation of my works and ideas since I started blogging when I was five years old and how I learn to be a better writer year after year; and it is a part of my learning and growing up process. I wrote about what is important to me including good values and world news that I think important and that I want to keep for my future references.
Then Jackie wrote to us and explained that my blog was deactivated due to the US law, and told us that WordPress found out about my age when they tried to help me with my problems. My parents and I did not know that in accordance with US law and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, WordPress needs parental notification in order to allow me to have my own website on because I am child under thirteen years old. My blog was available just a short time after my father wrote to WordPress, granting his permission for me to blog on WordPress.com..
Now I am really thankful and happy to get back my blog and to be able to write new posts. I want to thank Jackie and WordPress for being very supportive and I am very glad that I blog on WordPress. But the malware alert in Google Chrome is still not yet solved. I’m going to follow Jackie’s advice to contact Google and try to solve this problem and I hope that my problems will be solved as soon as possible.
I need to work harder now to get the traffic back to my blog as it used to be before these problems started a month ago. Meanwhile, I’m going to try the custom design and with that I’ll be able to learn lots of interesting things about blog designing. I’m looking forward to learn CSS coding to design my blog and I hope that I can make my blog a better site.
Congratulations WordPress for protecting the children’s right and privacy by enforcing the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and for being very supportive to kid bloggers like me and thanks to Jackie for being so wonderful to me.
❤ ❤
Ahmad Ali Karim's Weblog 