Back to the Future : Love our Nature

Tupah is a recreation park located around 30km from Sg Petani town. Since school days, it has been a great fresh water picnic spot for me and my family beside the Chandi Batu Pahat, which is located another 15 km. It was once covered with big trees making it a cool relaxing place. The water is always cold and fresh, flows from the nearby mountain, the so call highest peak of the northern region, Mount Jerai which is the background scenary of this place. It has public facilities , but somehow poorly maintained, for the last 20 years, like most of the free recreational park.  Like most, not all of course.

I had camped there for nearly 3 times with my friends, enjoying the nature.  My friends and me used to create our own song during the camp called "Thrash Tupah", a lyricless and coherence melody, sang repeatedly with Kapok guitar, sitting on the stone, looking stone. Looking stone only , but we didn't do drugs.  By then, we were already 1Malaysia. Malay, Indian, Chinese. We camp, we ate , we swam, we fish and we slept together, without feeling any prejudice to each other. We shared  stories that I believe not many Malaysians have heard before. Imagine,  three major races talking about their cultures, sub-cultures, stories like that. Undercover stories and stuffs like that. Who dares to share now openly? So if Datuk Najib wants to find icon for 1Malaysia, I have a group of friends who pioneered this spirit, more than 20 years ago. We were taught about this concept while we were in Scouts. Scouts are brothers, regardless of race, religions or your skin colors. As simple as that. It is just not about acceptance, we simply live together.

Today, I took my kids to this place. And my parents whom always like sight-seeing, joined our simple picnic. Few weeks back, I promised my kids a swimming pool kind of vacation but anyhow we went to Cameron Highlands. What a pretty screw up trip ! Reached CH around 11pm, no vegatables to cook (already late , 11pm, all shops almost close). Took off the next morning after having had one of the most expensive breakfast "gerai type " food in Malaysia. So, this trip to Tupah, a day before Ramadhan is meant to give them the chance to get wet in a pool as promised. Without having to pay for a 4 stars hotel rate of course.

After 20 years, of course, I wouldn't put a high hope for this place. Understood the urbanization process. Anyhow, not much of an urban area. Just a UITM campus built nearby, many years ago. One thing for sure is that the green jungle scenery is now like 50 percent dissapeared. After clearing I dont see much progress or development. Not sure what is the purpose of clearing the trees. I do see a work in progress for some sort of water conservation project. Just a walking distant from our picnic spot today. Earlier, we drove to the end of the road towards the army camp. Not many shops were in business. We were looking for the famous Rojak or Laksa but none were available. Only some "goreng pisang" and ice-cream hawkers. I nearly break something at the bottom side of my car while ascending on a very steep slope. I was trying to search for a more suitable picnic spot. Away from the Mat Rempit groups (wild motorbikes riders).

Like any other recreational park, Tupah is a symbolic area for those who love nature. It is a place where  nature brings together friends and my family. Unfortunately my kids today couldn't really  see the actual serenity and the green forest as what I have seen in the past. The water now is also flowing slowly and lesser compare to the past.  Rubbish are everywhere like nobody business.

And today, most people are worry about the water quality and the risk if Leptospirosis disease. Few cases reported out in Kedah district. The mother nature is really frustrated with us. On the way back to Sg Petani, I saw a big billboard next to the Sg Petani Utara highway entrance. The message reminds the people about the need to take a good care of our tourist attraction centers. Which include the recreational park of course. Both public and authority should play a more vital role in preserving the nature.

Link to for details of this place.

http://northern.malaysianaturalheritage.com/?p=149

To buy of not not to buy

Like any other kids, I know that one day I had to face the reality that they will be released to the real world on their own. No choice that I have to let them socialize , be with friends and spend time outdoors. In fact now, there are. They attended morning religious school at 7.45am, then go to their relieve nursery at 11.00am , then leave for school at 12.30pm until 6.30pm. And during night, they attended the Koran reading class until 9.30pm. And yet , they still insist to go for tuition.  They are now 8 and 9. When I was at their age, I guess I have much more longer free time compare to them. I already had a bicycle own my own, small bike, enough to take me to the nearest grocery shops to buy daily stuff for my mom to cook. The most famous items were grinded coconut or my mom calls it "Kelapa Parut" , fish , vegetables etc. In the afternoon, I will cycle to my friends house or the nearest soccer field, we will play together until dawn, or until one of the kids told us that our parents are looking for us. Then we shall stop and go back home.  Those days,  back in 80's, most of the games were outdoor , even though I used to own video games and stuff like that  , but still, outdoor adventures were much more fun. I do remember, how i beg my parents to buy me a bike. Almost daily follow up until I got one. Those days, not having one means you are out of the social network.

Few years back , my wife bought them a small bike each, which only last less than a year, before the accessories were vandalized and removed, by them. No more brakes, handles were also being broken off and spoilt tires. Now they became scrap metals at the backyard of our house. Recently the desire in them to have another set of bike came back, since some of their peers are riding here and there. I told my wife that sooner or later, these kids will go into the real world, that we would have no choice than to release them. I just hope that I could delay this process, even though it is inevitable. Delay is one thing, but most importantly is to figure out how to release them correctly and decently. Things around us are much more different than those days.  Crime rates, unexpected people, are increasing. These days people got lots of wild ideas from the internet, so you are hardly can guess what can go wrong around you. At the same time, I am also wishing them to be extroverts. Get socialize, build some network on their own and learn some leadership. These are equally important. So, to my kids, Intan and Adam, be patient , the world is always not enough. So to buy or not to buy a bike , it's just a matter of time.

Late start for 2012

2012 seems to be moving too fast and too furious for me. I don't know exactly why , but I guess there were lots of routines and issues needed to be resolved, more than the previous years of course. I wish to catch up with the time. It's already July now, and next week is the fasting month of Ramadhan.

Approximately two years ago, my father was admitted to the hospital due to mild heart attack, and then the medical team conccluded that he is having a chronic kidney disease. He recovered two months after the admission and early this year, he had another angina attack , and again recovered. Syukur Alhamdullilah for the speedy recovery. Also thanks to those people who had involved, friends and families. Most and foremost, my mother who had been there every single seconds. By default or not, she delivered the result. She definitely deserved the biggest appreciation from all of us.

This year, I didnt celebrate father's day and mother's day as the previous years. I didn't even wish to my parents. I somehow came to know that these celebrations are actually againts the Islamic practice. Anyhow, this is not brought to be official as national TV and media still promote the Father's Day and Mother's Day. A day after this year mother's day, I went to see my mother, I showed her the fact that I happened to see in youtube. Also some facts and fatwa about this in other websites. I did ask around too and many agreed to the call. My mother kind of cool and accepted the fact. In the nutshell, based on the explanation by the ustaz, Islam promotes everyday as Father's Day or Mother's Day, not just a day in a year.

So for those who still have parents around, this is the time you should celebrate parent's day. It's everyday, every single minutes of your life. Those whom parents already passed away, your prayers are the source of celebration , the replacement of your never ending loves towards them. I understand that every single individual has their own definition of loving their parents, and I am surely not a person to tell others what need to be done. Its your life, your choice. But I like the phrase I read in my friends Facebook, "what comes around, goes around". Like my first message in this blog, time flies very fast, too fast and too furious, you would never expect that your old days arrive very soon, and too sad to find , by then, that your childrens don't celebrate parents day , and probably history repeats her story. So, its really, really your choice.