I did not know anything about the missing plane until an old friend smsed me about it as he thought he had a friend's family in the flight. I very seldom switched on the TV and I usually would catch up with the news from the newspapers the next day. I heard it over the radio but I did not comprehend anything about it. I immediately searched the internet and thus I found out about the missing plane on the 8th March 2014. What could I do but pray and I knew everybody who heard about it hoped that it was just a malfunction and the jet was safe. I honestly believed that everything would be alright. I wanted a miracle to happen for those waiting so that they would be happy.....
Then, all the speculations were let loose. Everybody seemed to have a theory about it. Of course we all had questions. Firstly, why did the plane deviate from its charted route? What actually happened on board the plane? It was anybody's guess but as days went by and the insinuations, inconsiderate and thoughtless remarks, insensitive comments .... whether through the internet or media were too much to bear reading. Imagine a child reading things written about his or her father, families reading about their relatives .... I hated it and I just stopped reading about it.
What was the saddest part to me was how Malaysians did not acknowledge nor gave credit where it was due. Our government, in its limited capacity to handle a crisis of such magnitude, was not being encouraged or supported by its own people. In fact, they were the loudest critics. I heard the criticisms, the accusations, the blame game - but I did not hear of any other suggestions or ways on how to handle this unfortunate incident. I did not care about politics but it was sad because never in Malaysia's wildest dreams did it imagined that it would have to face this humongous situation. Of course they fumbled. They made mistakes. They had to consider what to inform and what to hide. They fell but they picked themselves up and faced the situation as best as they knew how. There were no guidelines to follow. No SOP to lead them. Clearly it was out of our league. Put yourself in their shoes. Would you be able to handle it better?
Over the days, finally, it was announced that the search for the elusive jet ended at the Indian ocean. Such a vast and turbulent stretch of water. Not land where one could easily locate whatever debris. Allah, the Almighty, showed His might and power. What with bad weather, strong waves, uneven and uncharted waters ... as the SAR team said that it could take years just trying to bring back the debris. How developed was the technology of humans that it could not be used to find a plane? How little and minute we are in the eyes of Allah. All He did was to make ONE plane disappear. The whole world just could not confirm and verify if the debris scattered over the Indian ocean did indeed were part of MH370. They were confounded by this mystery.
The media - television and radio went all out to show their share of grief for MH370. There were none the usual programmes for a whole week. It was all about grieving by talking about deaths, how to handle deaths, how to cope with grief ....whatnots. I honestly did not see the logic of it. Maybe because I would prefer to just withdrew and grief in private. Let us give these people space and privacy to grief, accept and come to terms with their loss. It is never easy especially in this extraordinary situation and where the whole world is watching you. I would hate people invading my privacy. Let us just show some respect for them. Be a friend, if you have one on the plane. Pray for them the strength and patience to let go and carry on. Not easy, mind you, speaking from my own experience. Yes, life goes on .... slowly perhaps, one picks up the pieces. I would suggest that the media stopped repeating everything about it. They do not need reminders. They have enough to last a life time. Let them forget for a while ....
This is my own thoughts and feelings. I still hope they are still alive somewhere. I still pray not only for them but also for the living. If you have nothing encouraging or nice to say - then do not say anything. Silence speaks a thousand words. A prayer is all they need now. Somehow I still believe in miracles .... Allah is magic ...
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