The 1313 Tragedy

It's 1.3.13.

And here's what happened in Lahad Datu today:

Police say everything is under control. The remaining Sulu gunmen are on the run. A curfew has been declared in Lahad Datu town, 165 km from Felda Sahabat. This is for safety reasons only.  There have been no incidences anywhere else outside the Felda Sahabat area. 2 policemen have been killed. The Sulu gunmen have lost 12 people killed on their side. The rest are trying to escape. The area is fully cordoned off. 

I'm terribly sad. We look at the history and learn from them. We look at today and care. We look at the future and say thank you. Now, which is more important? The history? Today? Future? Stop blaming and pointing finger. I write this because I just saw many negative comments on twitter and fb about this situation. Some blame government, party leaders, and even Tun Dr Mahathir. While some others who don't read perhaps, stupidly become racist. They're throwing nasty words to those Filipinos that have been living in Sabah. And there are some morons insulting Sabah and saying that Sabahans should have just surrendered to Sulu because we're not part of Malaysia. This and that, till they forget to pray.

Many individuals are involved in this terrorism whether they're from the inside or outside, but what concern me the most is today's situation. Come on guys. People are dead, their families are weeping, our heroes are fighting for justice, we're in fear and never stop praying. And those morons don't even have time to pray, as they're too busy insulting. I'm sad and so angry. Plus my brother and uncles are serving for justice in Lahad Datu right now. The whole family's really worried, but we don't stop them either because it's a responsibility. May Allah be with us all.

Deepest condolences to families of the dead fighters. Al-Fatihah....

#PrayforLahadDatu

#PrayforSabah

Words Heart Needed to Hear

my small study desk at the hostel

The fear of getting hurt again has only led you to hurt yourself. Come out now. Come out while there’s still some living left to be done. This person who hurt you doesn’t deserve to still dictate your life decisions. Your discipline and dedication to structure is an illusion. You’re still powerless because you’re letting certain incidents define your life. If you really want to be in control again, you have to learn to let go again. It’s the only way.
- Ryan O'Connell

If life can be made more beautiful with generosity, and care, and affection, there is no reason to stifle it or keep it in some confused concept of moderation. With generosity, there can always be more.

I know that all of these things make me better. And I know that I am better when I am around you, and that the real goal is to learn how to apply these lessons and desires and streaks of unabashed confidence to every aspect of my life. I should be just as generous with friends, just as confident at work, just as forgiving of my daily stresses as I am when you are with me. Because that, I think, is the greatest gift we can ever give another person: To see that life can be lived more beautifully and more honestly, and that you don’t even need to be in love to do it.
- Chelsea Fagan 

P.S: This entry might not making sense. But, citation is another way to describe one's feelings. Till next post.  

Rise from Ashes

Only a new track from Paramore could wake me from music blogging hibernation. For those who haven't knew, Paramore dropped a single recently, called "Now", from their upcoming self-titled album which is expected to be released on 9th April 2013. I'm thrilled!!

The song is different from their previous stuff, of course it is..they've grown and change, but I really love it. I'm totally hooked. It quickly settles into a distinct Paramore groove with massive guitars. The chorus explodes with energy and is a guaranteed sing-along. Hayley's vocals have improved a lot too and her voice is beautiful as ever. And she slightly sounds like Gwen Stefani in that song. Well, I've been following Hayley's updates via Twitter and Tumblr, and I saw how hard they've worked on this new album. The song Now shows that they've done a really great job. I feel like hugging Hayley right now. :p (jealousy strikes when I recall those Paramore's meeting-with-fans pictures while they're in KL last week, and I should be writing a post about the concert like Daniel C did, but sadly I wan't even there) 

I myself have memorized the lyrics since it's first released. So you can guess how many times I kept it on repeat for hours. I should have been at their concert and sing along with Hayley. Okay enough said. Overall, Now is a brilliant track and just the sort of thing to breathe life into this new incarnation of Paramore and I'm looking forward to listen to the whole album. Enjoy the song. ^^

"It just feels like the perfect way to start this new journey we are embarking on not only as a band but as a movement. To show people that you can lose battles but come back and win full on wars. You can rise from ashes. You can make something out of even less than nothing." - Hayley, Jeremy, Taylor

A Perfect Closure

So here I am in my hostel apartment on the first night of final semester, reminiscing all the memories made in holiday. Heh. I miss home already. I miss my friends. We don't just say goodbye without having something memorable to share on the last day, you know. Just to make a sweet farewell. It's not like we wouldn't see each other again, but the next holiday is way ahead. So as a closure of semester break, last Friday me and The Baks went on a trip to Kundasang.

We rented a van and Ifo's cousin, Juan, was the driver. The best moments of this trip were when we're doing fun things together inside the van along the journey. We're telling stories and riddles, talking about politics (seriously), making fun of each other, playing ukulele, singing, taking pictures and enjoying the stunning scenery of natures. It's great. So we reached at our 1st destination, Desa Dairy Farm, around 11 am. We're too early and didn't get to see the milking process as it starts on 3 pm. But we got to meet and touch some adorable calves and goats, and even feed them. I wasn't into goats because they smell like.....you know, goats.

in Nissan Urvan

lets buy some milk

Ifo wants to adopt one

we are young

Then we went to the other side of Mesilau where we saw a beautiful golf court that looked like a garden. I think they better turn it into a garden instead. Besides, I didn't see anyone playing golf. And then there's a beautiful big house surrounded by pine trees (I'm not sure if they're really pine trees) that looked like the Cullens' house. So we called it as Twilight house. 

this is not sinetron

We dropped by for a little while at a river that flows from Mount Kinabalu. It was so beautiful but dude, I could be frozen even for 5 minutes. The water's ice cold. 

After having lunch at Ranau town, we headed to Poring Hot Spring. I didn't do more than feet dipping, because I didn't feel like jumping into the pool. But I was amazed by the beauty of Kipungit Waterfall, despite feeling tired of walking through the jungle trail to get there. Then we took off to Luanti to experience the fish massage at Tagal river, but unfortunately it's already closed by the time we arrived. I was actually relieved because their descriptions about the vacuum-like fishes were quite intimidating. 

Kipungit Waterfall.
pay no mind to those mermaids

these guys have been my brothers (except Ifo..well, he's more than that). awesome day.

It's already dark and we headed home. We stopped at Kundasang green stalls to buy some fruits and vegetables. I bought long cabbages and some mushrooms for mum and sister. My dear friend, Lan, bought 2 pieces of pomelo flesh (limau bali), but I was the one who ate them till finish. :p It's my favorite. Heeee..

I was half asleep on the way back. Actually I was trying hard to sleep because I didn't want to listen to their ghost stories, but I can't. Telling ghost stories at night on a long journey? Really? They're so mean. :p

We had dinner at a restaurant in Tuaran before saying goodbye to each other. 

Although it was only a day, the trip was awesome. ^^

It's Always Worth It

I'm supposed to continue writing and publishing my holiday adventure but I just leave it in drafts for a while. Well, the holiday is going to end tomorrow and I'll be starting my routines as a student again.

The end is bittersweet, as always. Time's fleeting but a lot have happened within those moments. I've traveled, got dreams come true, had so much fun with family and friends, discovered new things, felt pain, laughed, cried, learned new language and culture, changed perspectives, became more positive, free spirit, etc. I've done all those things within a month, which surprised me too. 

I wish I still had more times to spend with the ones I love. But it's over for now. Now it is time to finish what I started, which costs me to restrain myself from all the fun things out there and only focus on my study. I don't care though, because anything worth having is worth working hard for. It's the final semester of my degree study and I'm gonna nail it. InsyaAllah, I'll be graduating this year. Amin.... ^^ 

Above all, I am happy. Happier than I've been in months, years even, maybe. I wanna take a second to document this feeling. You know, that head-over-heels, smitten kitten, fresh air is like a brand new beginning, smile at everyone you see, kind of feeling. It's days like this that I realize, even though it may be fleeting, this kind of happiness is worth every second of sadness.

It makes up for it all. Well, doesn't it always?

And that is the way life seems to go. But this is just a reminder that it's always worth it. :)