Monday, October 13, 2008
Different worlds.
In 2004, a British journalist was shot down in Gaza while trying to save some Palestinian children caught in a line of fire. The Israeli gunman was sentenced to 8 years of prison, 4 times the usual sentence if Thomas Hurndall hadn't been British.
The world that we are living in still watches on as Palestinians are 'shooed' out of their homes. I watched the documentary with a different sense of disbelief. Eid would have been so different to how Malaysians celebrate it. I didn't realize how big and off-key we celebrate it in Malaysia until Ak pointed it out to me. It was his first Eid there this year.
He is right though. What's with the dancing and the disturbing hip hop rap by baju melayu clad boys on TV? Women with pink hair in tight kebaya twirling around to Raya songs, just like drag queens high on ketupats. What's that all about. I am so not proud of that.
What I am proud of though, is that he can point to almost any food and it will be halal. Also I am proud that from the 13th floor of Seri Maya he can hear the Subuh athan loud and clear. I am proud that as messed up as it is my family, each one of them loves him dearly.
I actually don't need to convince him to migrate to Malaysia, he's already said to me "say when and we will move", but will Malaysia treat him well? Will the bureaucracy let him down?
I want no regrets, I just can't let him down.
The world that we are living in still watches on as Palestinians are 'shooed' out of their homes. I watched the documentary with a different sense of disbelief. Eid would have been so different to how Malaysians celebrate it. I didn't realize how big and off-key we celebrate it in Malaysia until Ak pointed it out to me. It was his first Eid there this year.
He is right though. What's with the dancing and the disturbing hip hop rap by baju melayu clad boys on TV? Women with pink hair in tight kebaya twirling around to Raya songs, just like drag queens high on ketupats. What's that all about. I am so not proud of that.
What I am proud of though, is that he can point to almost any food and it will be halal. Also I am proud that from the 13th floor of Seri Maya he can hear the Subuh athan loud and clear. I am proud that as messed up as it is my family, each one of them loves him dearly.
I actually don't need to convince him to migrate to Malaysia, he's already said to me "say when and we will move", but will Malaysia treat him well? Will the bureaucracy let him down?
I want no regrets, I just can't let him down.
