Letter to my brother

My dearest youngest Brother,

To tell you the truth, your transfer in January 2008 came as a surprise. I was not expecting it until later next year or at least the second half of 2008. And to learn from Mother the 'actual reason' (is it?) behind your transfer takes the cake. I would have never imagined.

I would say that all this while you have always been there for Mother, in her time of need. You were there when Angah stirs up some problem a few years back. I remembered how Mother told me that you cried when you are unable to be by Mother's side at that time because of your exams. I was there.

When I talk to Mother a few days back to ask about you, she cried and says that you told her the reason why you applied for a transfer. It was because of us, Angah, Uda and especially me. You told Mother that you can't take the pain of seeing her cry after all the grief that we, your elder brothers, put her through.

Mother says the last straw is when I called Mother the night before Raya, to tell her that I will be driving straight home and not dropping by Mother's house. You thinks that is disrespectful to Mother. Have it ever occurred to you brother, it was only because we don't want Mother to wait for us till the wee hours of the morning. I reached home at 3am. It is selfish of me, to expect Mother to wait up for me, don't you think?

My dearest youngest Brother,

I don't blame you or question your decision on the matter but I do think the timing is a bit awkward. Mother told me, that she remembered how you told her years back, of how you want to be the one to take care of her, and take her wherever you go. Unfortunately, this time around, it seems like that you have deserted her. Have you forgotten about that?

You can be stronger than this, and not taking the easy way out. In these times, you should stay closer to Mother and offer your unconditional love. I know you are an adult now, but believe me, life has just begun. You will be marrying next year, and hopefully have a family soon. Things will get a bit sticky, with extended families and all. Well, one day you'll understand.

Even if you blame me for cementing the decision that you take, I will not blame you and I do believe that life has its own way to settle all problems. And, experience is always the best teacher. You are embarking on a new journey of your own and I still wish the best for you, my brother.

Lots of love,

Your eldest brother.

Oops...

The day started normal enough. I arrive at work quite early, and proceeded to park my car. As it is still early, I was thinking of grabbing breakfast. Suddenly I saw someone I knew well was looking over her belonging, searching for something it seems. Sensing distress, I walked over and asked, "Is there something wrong?". She looked up and replied "I cant seem to locate my keys. My car keys." she continued ".. and I left my spare keys inside the car".

Well, blimey. How do you deal with that? Well, I told her that I'll help her but most probably it'll take some time. She says that she would need to be somewhere else by 9am. Hmm, thats a predicament. Should she take the train? The bus? How is she coming back? She says she had looked everywhere and most probably she had dropped it somewhere.

Ouch! OK, what can I do? I offered her a lift to the place she needs to be (a good 30 mins drive) and offer to drive her car there this afternoon. Sent her there, be back in office around 10am and forgot all about it till this afternoon. She had told me the exact location of her keys, now I need to find someone who can help me to unlock the door.

Went to the nearby town, manage to locate a locksmith and he says he could open the door for a small fee. Drove him there, show him the car and apparently the whole thing took him 15 minutes to settle. Ceh, locating him takes longer than that. Negotiate the payment, got a 20% discount and got the car started, locked and relocked (testing it). All seems fine. Phew! Need to send the car later to her...

It just shows that you can never be too careful with your keys. Have you ever lost the key to your car/house/office/etc?

Now you see it, now you dont...

This footage was taken at Bangsar area, sometime early last month...

Well, it was really serene, nearing dusk when I was (somehow) attracted to the tree. The weather is cool, just after the rain, with rainbow at the end of the horizon. Birds flies on and off that tree... such beautiful scene.

Makes you kinda realize that you are NOT the center of the universe as you would like to think you are. You're just a small part of it. PERIOD.