The satisfaction of making an old friend happy. I guess only those who have gone through it will fully appreciate and understand it. Muna lost her handphone. Thus, she lost my contact number. As it was Allah's will, we still got to meet with each other.
Shah came back to Melaka the night before her daughter's wedding. Since he lived in her area and he knew that she was my friend, he asked if I was invited to her daughter's wedding. Of course I was surprised! I called her immediately but nothing was easy. Nobody picked up the phone. It had a ringing tone but nobody answered it. Thus, after several tries, I called her house fixed number. Finally, I got to talk to her. Of course there were a lot of screaming and accusing of forgetting old friends .... she apologised and invited me to come over. InsyaAllah, I said. she wanted me to come and meet her eldest daughter whom she claimed was an exact replica of me. Seriously ??? Not in physical terms but in her mannerisms, her thinking, style of speaking out her thoughts and opinions ... hmmm... this sounded interesting.
I did not even ask Noor if he could go. I just told him we were going, whether he agreed or not. As usual, he would try to indulge my whims and fancies where my friends were concerned. So, that Sunday, we went to Muar from Melaka. We managed to find her house. She was, of course, busy as it was her daughter's wedding. We were noisy as ever. It was just wonderfully satisfying to hold each other and hug each other tight before we let go of each other as she had to greet other guests. It was not a time for us. I had to share her with the wedding reception's guests.
She thus, introduced me to Hijrah, her first daughter. She is 26 years old. A TESL teacher graduate from New Zealand. She spoke impeccable, fluent English even though both her parents were Malay educated. Muna, being my housemate in college and also a "permanent resident" of my room, learned to speak English due to mixing and conversing with me as I spoke English most of the time. She was a fast learner hence, she polished her language. Hijrah and I got along like a house on fire. It was as if we had always known each other. The age gap of almost 26 years made no difference when we were arguing our points, discussing our points of views on anything and everything. In between greeting her guests and many relatives, she managed to find time and sit at our table. The hour I was there was fulfilling, fun and enjoyable intellectual exchange. I made a friend in my close friend's daughter.
My gratitude and appreciation to Noor, who made it possible for us to meet. Alhamdulillah. For his patience and tolerance in indulging my request. For his understanding how important these people were in my life. Even though he had other errands to attend to, he put everything on hold for a couple of precious hours with my friends. I did not ask for much. I needed him to drive me as I was hopeless in my sense of direction. At least he also enjoyed them and of course, the food. :-)))
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