Jazakillahu Khairan...... Ya Ummi....

I'm 17..........................

And my mom is 42...................

Yet..... she looks younger than me.......
A lot younger...........

And as time passes, I grew older.
And I wonder, Are our age distinguish as to by how close we are from death or how long we have lived?

15 March 2010, 9.00pm

We (my family and I) just wished ummi a happy 42th birthday. there wasn't anything grand or cakes or shopping malls or anything as such, it was just a simple birthday with Nasi Beriyani and Ayam rempah (me and my dad cooked it, I already know how to cook!).

As much as I could see it, the differences between my mom's face when she was my age and when she was now hadn't change much. To me she still looked like a teenager, maybe even more teenager than me. What was her secret I asked: She cherished life, she enjoyed what she did and was, how my dad would put it "in control" of what she wants.

After all the parties and celebrations and games we did, I crawled back under my bed sheet, tired: fatigue.
Then as I was staring up at my dark ceiling sky, someone knocked the door. It was Ummi.
She asked whether I wanted to follow her out for a stroll. And this time, I will drive.

Having receive my L driving license, by law, I was eligible to drive as long as there is an experience driver next to me.

I drove the car, going through the junctions and traffic lights. it wasn't as if I this was my first time driving. I usually drove all the time, illegally, to malls, schools sending my siblings, to wet markets and places where my parents are too busy to send them.

I drove till the SRI Ayesha school building. It was night that time at Taman Tasik Cempaka, but the lights were bright and you could see families strolling through the area with there children playing at the playground. we walked around there, hopefully nobody thought that we were a couple, considering that I have the face of twenties and my mom looked like a teenager.

Ummi told me how she would cherish these small moments, because she knew, as I also knew.....

This might be the last time I will celebrate her birthday with her........

* * *

Suatu Hari seorang bayi yang "belum siap" (premature) sudah meraung untuk dilahirkan ke dunia. Dia bertanya kepada Tuhan yang Maha Pemurah lagi Maha Mengasihani, "Para Malaikat mengatakan yang masaku belum tiba, masih tinggal 3 minggu sebelum ku pergi ke dunia seterusnya, oleh itu ya Allah, bantulahku, bagaimana saya hidup di sana sedangkan saya begitu kecil dan lemah malah belum bersedia"

Dan Tuhan menjawab, " Saya telah memilih satu malaikat untukmu. Ia akan menjaga dan mengasihimu"

"Tapi di sini, di dalam syurga, apa yang saya lakukan hanyalah bernyanyi dan tertawa, Ini sudah cukup untuk merasa bahagia"

"Malaikatmu akan bernyanyi dan tersenyum untukmu setiap hari. Dan kamu akan merasakan kehangatan cintanya dan menjadi lebih bahagia"

"Dan bagaimana saya bisa mengerti saat orang-orang berbicara kepadaku, jika saya tidak mengerti bahasa mereka?"

"Malaikatmu akan berbicara kepadamu dengan bahasa yang paling indah yang pernah kamu dengar, dan dengan penuh kesabaran dan perhatian, dia akan mengajarmu bagaiman untuk berbicara sehinggakan satu dunia akan mendengar kata-kata kamu."

"Saya mendangar di Bumi terdapat banyak orang Jahat, siapakah yang akan melindungi saya?"

"Malaikatmu akan melindungimu, walaupun ia boleh mengancam jiwanya"

"Tapi, saya pasti akan merasa sedih kerana tidak dapat melihatMu lagi."

"Malaikatmu akan menceritakan padamu tentang Saya, dan akan membantu mu ketika hendak pulang kepada Saya."

Saat itu, suasana di Syurga begitu tenang sehingga suara di bumi dapat didengari dan sang anak tanya perlahan...

"Tuhan jika saya harus pergi sekarang, bisakah kamu memberitahu nama malaikat tersebut?"

"Kamu akan memanggil malaikatmu Ummi"

Thank you............... Ummi....