A maid named James

I'm on MDS again, season 6, ever since March this year.

For the uninitiated, MDS stands for Maid Dependency Syndrome. My whole household has been upside down, so is my schedule, but thank god for my sister Acik, at least the kids have a guardian at home. Sometimes my other sister the kids call Mak comes to the rescue when Acik is not available.

Nevertheless, after raya, both of them won't be available anymore. Acik will be starting her new job in Penang while Mak will be moving to Vientiane, Laos, to be with her hubby who just transfered there. So I won't have any more domestic support after this, and time is running out. The maid that I was promised to come last two weeks got deported back upon reaching KLIA. Gosh, my MDS is getting severe by the day.

So, when my agent called yesterday saying that there is someone available immediately, I was simply elated. He said he can send the maid as soon as I say so. But, there was a big BUT. He said the maid is no ordinary maid. He's a man maid.

I was like blur and blank for a while.

"What do you mean he's a man?" I asked the agent.

"Yes, a MAN. Lelaki!" he said.

"Huh?" I still couldn't get it.

"And he's Mat Salleh some more.."

Huh? A man, Mat Salleh some more. Biar betul this agent.

"He's actually a Mat Salleh, named James, doing some research for his thesis, and willing to be a maid for 6-8 months. Your requirements seem to fit his profile request" explained the agent again.

Hmm...my mind suddenly raced for all the possibilities. An educated maid, not bad. Why not? My kids can learn English faster as they would be forced to speak English all the time, perhaps pick up his slang too. Homework-wise, I wouldn't need to worry anymore, he could take care of it. Maybe after this all my kids toys will be catalogued according to type or theme, maybe even my wardrobe could transform as well. WHY NOT!

I quickly texted my hubby. Surprisingly his answer was "Why not, you trusted me with the maid when you were away out-stationed, so now it's my turn to trust you".

I was like doubly elated! But somehow thinking 'biar betul?'

Then I immediately instructed the agent to send the maid last night. When he arrived in front of my house, I thought I saw a silhouette of a tall lanky man standing besides the van. The light was dim and I couldn't figure-out how James look like. But I believe I saw a structure just like Taylor Lautner. Adoi, should I really take this maid in? Nanti Dad cakap apa? Nanti what would the neighbors say? But I'm desperate!

"Come in" I gestured them to my door after opening the gate. Slowly James seem to appear from the shadow. I can't wait to see how this James is like.

Suddenly I heard a loud ring, so loud that suddenly I realized I was on my bed! It's sahur time!

Aaaarrrrgghhhhh!!!!

Reminiscing Ramadhan

I remember Ramadhan used to be a long and enduring month when I was smaller. Unlike before, this Ramadhan just flew by in a wink of an eye. It's already the 17th day of fasting, and in less than 2 weeks time we'd be hearing takbir in the air.

When I was about 7 or 8 years old, we stayed in my Mak's kampung as Apak was assigned to the very remote school in Kuala Tembeling. It was difficult for us to follow him as that place was still deprived of the basic facilities. Hence, we stayed at my arwah Uwan's place.

The Ramadhan that I remember vividly was when I think I started my full puasa. Boy oh boy, I was weak by the time I got back from school. At that time, the rambutan trees around the house were blooming with ripe, fluffy red-haired rambutans. It as really a monumental effort to refrain myself from reaching those fruits. At that time, the kitchen was still on stilts, and if you stand at the kitchen balcony, you could just grab those ripe rambutans. I just stood and stare at those dangling fruits after school, imagining how the juicy flesh would taste in my mouth in that hot afternoon. Luckily, I managed to brace myself through those hot afternoons. I remember having a feast at iftar when Mak actually prepared fresh rambutan juice, with the fresh flesh of the sweet juicy fruits. I can't recall the rest of the menu though :)

After iftar I followed my Uwan to the nearest surau for Isya' & Terawih prayers. It was filled with the nearby folks who were actually my relatives. The prayers were led by my eldest uncle, arwah We Zakaria, who used to be the kampung's Imam and Qadi. I remember the surau was dimly lit, with a gasoline lamp I think. There was no electricity in that surau as it was not the official surau.


This is the sample of the gasoline lamp - for my kids who have never seen something like this (Picture courtesy of Google images)

I also remember the prayers were long and I would always wish that it would end immediately so that I could savor all the nice kuehs that the womenfolks have brought for moreh. I obediently stood next to my Uwan and followed all the prayer movements, only to recall being shaken up by her "Along, bangun, bangun, dah habis!" during my sujud. I actually felt asleep!

Now, when I bring my kids for the prayers, I always wonder if they would feel the same. But then, we always do 8 rakaats and would leave by then. As for the fasting, my 3rd child Amir is always the one whining all day, calling me at work complaining about his hunger and thirst, and still is. He's going to be 8 soon, and so far has fasted for 14 days. Not bad with all the whining and complaining.





My two girls waiting for Isya'