The best part

Bismillah~
Assalamualaikum...

So, today...we went to Taman Mini Indonesia Indah or TMII for short. It was planned a long time ago but only now that we got the time to go there. Hurm, more or less the same things, went to Taman Budaya Tionghoa, tgk ikan air tawar, taman serangga and kupu2, musium perajurit, tgk cite T-Rex jap, tgk 4D theatre, replika rumah2, cable car..balik.

And the best part is...the sky. It's when I saw the clouds while in the cable car that I became hyped up. It was so beautiful I couldn't stop talking about it. My friends who were in the cable car with me most probably shut themselves down as I was babbling away about it. Let me just show you what I saw.

The first picture, I captured it right after the cable car started moving towards the other end. So, I didn't get to see the bigger view of the clouds. I just saw the sun behind that shark-head-looking cloud. It was beautiful enough to get me started talking. And as the cable car moved farther away, to the opposite side of taman mini...I saw this, the bigger picture. 

Subhanallah~ I felt like crying. I'm so blessed. =) And suddenly, all the mishaps seems like nothing as I have this to appreciate.You can't see it clearly from these pictures (maybe you can click on the picture). Basically, the light from the sun was obstructed by the clouds to reach land, so it casts shadows. Hope I can see that every minute of every day. Actually, I just have to look closely and I will see it. =) Oh, so many reasons to smile~ ^___________________________^ 

Stargazing...

Bismillah...
Assalamualaikum~

Stargazing has always been my hobby. Moon gazing too. But not sun gazing, I'd be blind by now, ahaha. So, yesterday, I went to Kuningan and only went back after maghrib. And the sky was dark by the time I reached my neighbourhood. I had to walked a few hundred meters before making it to the house. I looked up at the black sky and searched for the stars. It took me a few second to actually see them. One after another, appeared out of nowhere. It's like they are visible only to those who look for them. If that's the case, I'd be super grateful that oh-so-many stars in the sky appear just for me (the person who looked for them).

During my school days at TGB, I looked at the sky almost every night. On my way to class, there's this open space with no roof on top that I had to pass through. That was the place where I had the chance to star-gaze while speed walking to class. Among sweet memories I had in TGB, stargazing was one of them. Sweet memories I made with myself. The time I felt calm, happy, carefree, etc. Imagining how vast the world beyond Earth is.

This past few days, again, I had the chance to see the night sky. And luckily there's very little clouds, so I could see a wider view of the sky. Meaning more stars! And the night I came back from Kuningan, I saw the Big Dipper! That was my first time spotting a constellation after years of stargazing. Yeah, I'm not really an astrology freak, so I don't know much about constellations. Maybe I've been staring at it my whole life, but I just didn't notice it. Who knows~ But I'm very sure it was the Big Dipper. Seriously, I love looking at the moon, the stars, all the beautiful creations of His. Alhamdulillah~ =)

I saw this!! XD

One day, if possible, I want to see aurora borealis. I wish.

A stroll down the beach....

Bismillah...

Assalamualaikum~

Alhamdulillah selesai sudah integrasi 1 untuk blok 23. But forget not Asyiqin, you have mini OSCE in two days.  I didn't do very well the first time, so I need to be at the ready for the second one this month and hope for the best. I stayed up all night yesterday, only to have less than 30 minutes of sleep for the last 32 hours. I couldn't even climb up the stairs without wobbling. My bag felt so heavy I almost toppled over a few times. Then, after the exam...a class. I slept for a few minutes in class before I was jerked awake by the noise the other students were making. And not long after that, the class ended. It's time for me and my housemates to head home.

As we were walking out of the class, I speed-walked (didn't bother to wait for any of my housemates) coz I couldn't hold the sleepiness any longer. I needed to sleep. But I was too tired, I decelerated and walked a steady pace. I looked at the sky, it was not blue. Not as bright as usual. It was grey. Rain is bound to fall tonight, I thought to myself. So, I walked alone (not really alone, just nobody by my side). Looked at my feet, one step after the other. Felt the wind blowing through my face. It reminded me of the beach. So, I walked even slower. My housemates in the distance. I didn't want to catch up to them. I wanted to be alone. Flushing everything out of my head. Imagining myself strolling down a white sandy beach. Avoid stepping on seashells or shards of glass.

In reality, the path I was taking was far from what I imagined. It doesn't smell like the ocean. No white sand. No seashells. Being sleep-deprived really made my mind go wild. I was in a far far away land. I need to go somewhere, where I can sit and don't think. At all. Just enjoy the scenery and the time. Not worrying about anything. Just me and Allah. If I could survive that, I would have done it. Swimming all day and sit by the campfire by night. Oh, so carefree.

I imagined waterfalls in front of me. Cold clear water. Little fish swimming in the splashing water underneath. Rainbows (yes, multiple) over my head. Trying to grasp it, if possible keep it in a jar. A jar of rainbow. If only~ Ah, imagination.

I should be sleeping right now but instead, I'm wide awake. 34 hours and counting...

I didn't realize it before.

Bismillah...
Assalamualaikum~

The thing that I've been asking people about, searching for answers...at last, I got it! I figured it out. How? It's by being on the other side of the story. When you're in that story, you don't feel anything. But when you're watching/reading the story, you'll feel all sorts of emotions from it. I didn't get it before. I was curious, how is it that people can see what I can't see? I kept on thinking but to no avail.

So, I tried a different approach. By being them. See it through their eyes. And I think it helped. Well, it didn't actually prove anything but at least this gives me peace of mind. Rather than continuing to brainstorm, urgh very tiring I tell you. And I have so many other things to do.

Okay, now that that's settled, I can do something else. Huhuhu...

*****

My dad once told me..."you shouldn't say something like that in front of these people". Something like that? These people? Actually, the story goes like this...me, dad and mummy were at a driving range coz my dad wanted to practice hitting golf balls and after 90+ balls, he asked me to try. I didn't want to because I know I wasn't good at it, but part of me wanted to try...just once. So, I agreed. Tried hitting this one ball but failed numerous times. I was fed up, I blurted out "ishh, benci la main golf!" in front of many golf enthusiasts, including my dad. And he said the aforementioned phrase. I was like, what's wrong with that? I didn't understand what I said wrong.

It isn't as easy as it looks. 

(tongue-twister! try saying that 10 times in a row)

Then, today...I understand why. The same thing happened. But this time, I'm one of the 'golf enthusiasts'. Hearing a person say like that about something we like, something we're pursuing, something we're into...is hurtful. Even if we have no rights over his/her opinion about it. So, the moral of the story? Brainstorm and figure it out by yourself. Huhihuhi...

Lalala~

Reminder...

Bismillah...
Assalamualaikum~

I've reached Jakarta...for the umpteenth time. And the part I like about coming back here is...sitting at the window seat of the plane. Having the chance to witness the picturesque views from up above. The clouds, the sea, the sun, shadows of clouds cast by the sun on the surface of the sea and land, layer after layer of clouds, raindrops, cars and motorcycles the size of ants down below, different yet beautiful shades of colours showing the merging of sea and the beach, the waves, the horizon, and if lucky...the sunset/sunrise.

The main reason I like all those things is because it always reminds me of our Creator. The complexity of it all just shows how little and helpless we are without Him. How shadows are cast? How clouds can bear water and release it as raindrops? Why is it released in raindrops and why not like the waterfall? How is snow formed? It boggles your mind just thinking about it. But that's how Allah makes it work. It's amazing. A constant reminder if we truly look. Alhamdulillah~

It's amazing to see all the clouds are gathering themselves to cover the land, give shade for the humans from the scorching heat of the sun. And yet we still complain coz there's no wind. Tsk3~ Humans...

(gmbr xlawa, kamera xbawak, pikasa xmau bukak)

***

I was having a tough day and the day just got worse and worse by the minute. I found out that once again, I'm the only Malaysian in my group this semester. Plus I've been grouped with the person that most of us 'despise'.  I'm the only one in group B in this house. Yes, what are the odds of being the sole 'survivor' in group B? 1 out of 14! And I'm the one! (Yeah, it's no big deal.) I should be proud to be the selected one. The SPECIAL one. But being the only one in everything just made me sad. Haip! Be strong Asyiqin! Yosh!
\(^.^)/

And then, another thing happened...my lotion spilled out of its bottle into my bag. My pencil case, book, purse all covered in lotion. And I blurted out an almost-scream...."Oh nooooo!!!" And then I realized, 'oh Asyiqin how ungrateful you are as a human. This is how Allah wants it to be. Accept it and deal with it', I said to myself. I'm so glad the only words I uttered was 'oh no' and nothing else. I so regret the feeling I had this morning, this afternoon, this evening. Oh Asyiqin. Bad girl!

***

Yeah, I'm not done yet. People say, don't compare your life with others because you don't know what they've been through in their journey of life. And I agree, but it's very hard to do. It's true that maybe in some ways other people's life seems much better than the one you're having, but we don't really know the absolute truth. Do they display happiness and 'prosperity' to others sincerely? Or are they faking it? Are the smiles and laughters real? We can't know for sure unless we're that people. Even if all those laughters, happiness, 'prosperity', smiles and everything good are real as they can be, they are also human...they can't run from making mistakes. Maybe we just can't see all the unhappiness, sadness, frowns and 'poverty' because we are 'forced' to see all the things we don't have (the positives). As if we're the only one suffering and nobody else in this world will ever go through it. You want what they have. As if it's a race to please yourself. But know dear self, the only one we should be racing for is Him.

Everything happens for a reason. I believe that. Like that incident where my lotion spilled all over my bag, well...I found out later on while washing the bag that it has a hole. Maybe it happened because I need to sew the hole and that would probably save a lot of my time blabbering about how stuff in my bag go missing. Hurm~ Maybe... And I sincerely believe that what happened in the past is for the better of our future.