Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Saya Anak Malaysia JUGA!!

Not an entry by me, but I'd like to keep this article as I love it and I'm sure alot of us can relate to this:

The Star Online

Monday August 31, 2009
Hello, stranger!
By PHILIP GOLINGAI

Peninsular Malaysians could do their part by learning more about their ‘cousins’ in Sabah.

OH, you’re not an Indian. I always thought you were an Indian,” an avid reader of The Star said when I was first introduced to him in a cafe in Bangsar a few years ago.

“Huh?” I said, almost choking on my cafe latte. “How did you come to that conclusion?”
Philip Golingai and Vera on their wedding day in Penampang in 2007. Inset: Their daughter Apsara. – Photo by ANNA RINA

“Golingai does not sound like a Malay or Chinese name therefore you must be an Indian,” explained the 30-something man from peninsular Malaysia.

In his challenged mind, there were only three races in Malaysia. And consequently he failed to consider the “dan lain lain” (others) in his racial profiling of my surname.

If he did, he might have thought outside the box (or in the Malaysian context - outside the coconut shell) and come to the realisation that a Golingai might be a Bajau, Bidayuh, Iban, Kadazandusun, Rungus or Sandakanite.

I made up the last race. There’s no Sandakanite race. Nevertheless, there are Malaysians who think Sandakanite is an indigenous ethnic group from Sabah.

And since we are on the topic of race, let me share a conversation I have from time to time with orang semenanjung (people from Peninsular Malaysia).

Uncle: “Where are you from?”

Me: “Sabah.”

Uncle: “You must be an Iban.”

Me: “No, I’m a Kadazandusun.”

Uncle: “Oh, Pairin punya orang (Datuk Joseph Pairin Kitingan’s people).”

Me: “Yes.”

(FYI: Malaysian Ibans are predominantly found in Sarawak, Sabah’s neighbour.) Yes, there are orang semenanjung who are katak dalam tempurung (a frog inside a coconut shell) when it comes to basic knowledge about their fellow compatriots living in the island of Borneo.

Recently, sabahforum.com, an online forum to discuss issues related to Sabah, enquired: “What are the funny questions asked about Sabah?” Its readers’ responses are typical questions a Sabahan encounters in Peninsular Malaysia.

“Do you visit Malaysia often?”, “Is the ringgit used in Sabah?”, “Did you come to Malaysia by train?” and - the all time classic - “Do you live in trees?”

But to be fair, not all orang semenanjung are ignoramus. There are some who have intimate knowledge of all things Sabah. For example, my Penangite colleague knows where to find the best char kway teow in Kota Kinabalu and why a non-Sabahan politician keeps going to Sabah.

One of the biggest misconceptions Malaysians have of Sabah is when the state joined Malaysia. I must confess that I too was ignorant of how Malaysia was formed. Either I slept through my secondary school history class or the history books overemphasised Merdeka (August 31, 1957, the day Malaya gained its independence).

My introduction to Malaysia 101 was during the height of Parti Bersatu Sabah’s “Sabah for Sabahans” campaign in the 1980s. Pairin’s PBS harped on the 20-point agreement (including safeguards on matters of immigration, religion, language and education) signed when North Borneo (as Sabah was known then), Sarawak, Singapore and Malaya formed Malaysia on Sept 16, 1963.

The sore point for many Sabahans is August 31, 1957 and not Sept 16, 1963 is emphasised during National Day celebrations. In that birthday snub, they feel that Sabah’s contribution to the formation of Malaysia has been neglected.

And to answer a question which has become a mini-debate in sabahforum.com, Malaysia is 46-years-old and not 52.

I’m four years younger than Malaysia. And I’ve lived about half of my life in the Klang Valley. I like to joke with Sabahans back home that I’m working and living in the capital of Malaysia to reap the benefits of being a Malaysian.

Currently, I’m working and living in Bangkok. And the favourite question Thais would ask me especially when they see Apsara, my 10-month-old baby who resembles a Manga doll, is: “Are you Japanese?” When I answer, “Malaysian”, the typical reply from Bangkokians is “Malay?”

If I have the patience, I will explain that Malaysia consists mainly of Malay, Chinese and Indians. And if I have the time, I will explain about Malaysia’s “dan lain lain”.

“The Kadazandusuns and Iban of Borneo are like the hilltribes,” I explained, referring to the indigenous communities such as Akha, Lahu or Karen living along Thailand’s northern borders.

And through my conversation with them I realised that Bangkokians too have their racial stereotypes. They look down on the hilltribe communities as they think they are not Thai but people from Thailand’s northern neighbours.

And some of them think that the hilltribe communities live in trees.

Sometimes we learn to appreciate the peace in Malaysia from the outside. And I’ve done that during my assignments to cover religious and ethnic conflict in Malaysia’s immediate neighbours - Protestants vs Muslims in Poso, Sulawesi in Indonesia, Catholics vs Muslims in Cotabato, Mindanao in Philippines and Muslims vs Buddhists in southern Thailand.

When I hear the gripping stories from the victims of religious and ethnic violence, it makes me think what would happen if Sabah was not part of Malaysia.

Of course, we can still work on creating better understanding and real knowledge among Malaysians on both sides of the big pond so that we can bridge our differences and become truly 1Malaysia. But still, I can honestly say with love and pride: Three cheers to Malaysia. And, as we say it in Sabah - Aramai ti! (let’s be merry!).

Philip Golingai is The Star’s Thailand correspondent and the editor of Asia News Network, an alliance of 21 Asian newspapers.

****************************************************************************

Well, now comes my part of the story. Some of the most stupid questions or remarks asked were; What currency is used in Sabah? Or When did you move to Malaysia? (Sabah is still Malaysia -.-")

Ever since I moved to Peninsular Malaysia, I have never stopped getting these remarks. They just ring at the back of my head, but over the years I have learnt to keep myself from giving a sarcastic remark (because I don't believe in embarrassing people).

In the first few days of my university during induction, people often stared at me and started speaking English to me and ask where do you come from, Vietnam? And when I reply, no, I'm from Sabah, they always say, oh, no wonder... I received this quite a few times and started to get curious myself. Why do people always say no wonder? I decided to ask a friend, and she said that, it's because I look different. I'm not chinese, nor am I Malay, hence what Philip was saying in the article, why didn't they think of the 'other Malaysians'? Why does it always have to be, you're either Malay, Chinese, Indian or you're international. What if you have a Portugese heritage? Or Iban, Kadazan, Dusun...or what Philip referred to as Sandakanite, one of them is Sungai, which most people think is probably just a joke. It's a real ethnic, and I'm IT! Seriously, my birth certificate says so.

Having a Borneo background, I have always had the opportunity to learn about new cultures, traditions and ethnicity. Not one wedding is the same to the next wedding I attend to in Sabah. I will always be amazed with new things I discover from one wedding to the next. It's a fusion of traditions united together and personally, I feel that people who refuse to see, learn and believe that the world is a wide place have a lot to loose. Especially those that are rigid to think, things should only be, or are only as they are.

I remember in my primary school days. My ethnic background is Sungai and since I lived in Kota Kinabalu, people were not very well aware of this ethnicity. The kids used to laugh at me everytime the teacher points it out. But when I go back to Sandakan, Sungai is a very common ethnicity. It shows how large Sabah is. Mind you, I still do get the jokes on that to this day, everytime I say my ethnicity is Sungai. They would usually say, Are you sure it's not laut? (Sungai=River, Laut=Sea).

When I went to college in Labuan, I learnt some major new things. Sarawak! Little did I know, growing up in Sabah, that Sarawak is as rich in culture and ethnics as it is in Sabah! There is bahasa melayu Sarawak, which I learnt to speak almost fluently over the years. And I'm pretty sure my Sarawakian counterparts also learnt about Sabahans! I remember some of us talking saying that either Sabah or Sarawak malay language sounds abit like Malayan (term used for Peninsular Malaysia). In fact, we were trying to speak a common language to be understood by each other, which is what we know from the TV, melayu semenanjung.

Speaking of calling Peninsular Malaysia, Malaya, this is the argument. On 31st of August 1957, MALAYA became independent, not MALAYSIA. Malaysia was formed in 1963, which in turn makes Sabahans feel that it's pointless to celebrate 31st August. To make it worse, 16th September is not even commemorated! We Sabahans have grown a slight dislike towards the West of Malaysia because of this imbalance, when in fact if we wanted to compare the cross-sectional area of the land and possibly the population, us East Malaysians consist of probably half of what Malaysia is. Nevertheless, I can see that it is slowly improving. The government TV channels have already started to have documentaries on East Malaysia, and we are also being recognised now in Parliament and the entertainment world. All there is left to do is for us, especially our friends in West Malaysia, to become less ignorant, and more aware on our existence and contribution for our country, as what we call as Malaysia.

Not MALAYA, not BORNEO, but MALAYSIA.......

Sunday, August 02, 2009

The Path Not Taken

This title sounds familiar. I think it was one of the literature subjects we had to study in school for the English subject. It fails me when I try to recall what it was. Was it a short story? Was it a poem? The actual title was, The Road Not Taken. Nevertheless, the title explains the context of what is told within the literature content. Need I tell you what I am about to blabber?

See, there are a so many points of my life, if I had not made that choice, life would be very different today. Of course, I can't reveal all here, but what I can tell is those that had lead me to where I am now, on this bed, in this small town, doing what I do now.

Growing up, most people would experience life without much choice for themselves. Especially in this community, the parents are most likely to make those life choices for you. Even so, I think I contributed to some of those decisions made by my parents. Had I not decided to sneak out that one cold night, I would not have been caught, had I not been caught, I wouldn't have moved to the other side of the world. Had I not moved, I would not have gone through the school that lead me to go to college, and next, achieved that scholarship, that was responsible for the job I am currently doing. Some may beg to differ as to these series of events happening. That one night, may or may not have determined my current position now. It's scary to think about really.

If I were to point out another event in my life, where my decision at that point of time would have changed the course of my life, I would pick one of my favourites, which led to my current love life. It was an extremely hard process, one decision had to be made after another. Pick a point, decision to choose the company to do my internship. I had four offers at that time, even the mother company of my sponsor. How did I make that decision? I had two factors influencing me. The distance from my then boyfriend and the excitement that job offered. The interviewer told me I would be travelling and have my own assignments. Whereas other companies, didn't even bother to see or call me first. Of course the other choices had its own advantages. I would be living at home and wouldn't have had to go through the hardship of renting an apartment and chasing buses that are usually already full most of the time with only the internship allowances that I had.

Yes, I chose the hardship, knowing myself, being an insatiable being when it comes to life achievements and self satisfaction, knowing I did that by myself. My first main factor collapsed right before my eyes, my then boyfriend left me for someone else and if I were to think about it, my second factor were merely a distant experience, as I am currently working in a different industry. Had I chosen my mother company I would have had the chance to learn more on our facilities earlier. Despite these main factor failing me, I can see that, had I not made that decision, I would not be engaged to the person that is perfect for me now. This ring on my finger holds a value to that decision I made years ago.

Speaking of life choices, I can see how it trails to how it has shaped my life path now. Although, one choice that I made makes me wonder to this day. Had I chosen the path not taken, would I have more drive in my life now? Would it have destroyed everything else that was stable in my life, for the sake of self-satisfaction? Had I declined that offer, would I be happier doing what I have passion for, or would I have made the worse decision of my life?

I have lived my life, choosing the braver choice, jumping off the cliff, only to be greeted with the greatest thrill of my life. Have I grown wiser that I chose the safer choice in the end? I can't say that I regret that decision. But deep in me, I can feel a longing, to know what life would have been like, had I chosen that path in life. Would I be happier? Would I be more successful? Would I have had to pay a larger price in other aspects of my life?

Those who know me well, will know what offer I am referring to. To this day, I sometimes lay at night, thinking, what if, I had gone with my heart then. Would I have fulfilled my life desires, or at least being in the right path towards it? Because now, I feel safe.....but empty inside

Friday, July 24, 2009

The Loner's Manifesto

We do not require company. The opposite: in varying degrees, it bores us, drains us, makes our eyes glaze over. Overcomes us like a steamroller. Of course the rest of the world doesn't understand.

Someone says to you, "Let's have lunch." You clench. Your sinews leap within you, angling for escape. What others thrive on, what they take for granted, the contact and confraternity and sharing that gives them strength leaves us empty. After what others would call a fun day out together, we feel as if we have been at the Red Cross, donating blood.

Excerpt from Party of One: The Loner's Manifesto by Annelli Rufus

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

No facebook-No TV

Why? Because 60% of my free time consists of these two. The other 40% would probably be going out, or extra sleep. 60% of my FREE TIME. Free time is defined by time spent doing other than working, sleeping, travelling and being in the bathroom. Plus, I am getting obsessed with facebook. AND the TV. Okay, TV, since I pay for it, I can watch it, but I need limitation on the hours. Tonight, a NO. TV only on weekends and Desperate Housewives night. How long do I keep this up? Maybe a month. I want to have time to rest and to explore things I have been intending to explore. If I spend too much time on these time consuming activities, I am going to miss out on life! So here's a start..

NO FACEBOOK

NO TV

as a start...for TONIGHT..

then I will play it day by day.....

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

I don't have 'my girls'!

I want to put in this entry before I sleep tonight. But it's a wee bit too private to publish as it poses one of my insecurities. Then again, I don't want to waste a long piece of writing ;)

See my whole life, I have been secluding myself from the world for a reason unknown even to myself. There is a possibility that if I talk to a psychiatrist he would know why I do such things. As I would recall growing up, I didn't always used to be so. Going as far back as I can remember, I was in Primary 1 and 2, I had this girl who forced me to be her bff. If I didn't do exactly as she told me too, I would get some kind of a beating from her. And somehow, I remember her name till this day. In short, I was bullied. It carried on for 2 years till Primary 2. One day, I stood up against her that one time that she scratch me all over my face and head. I fought back that time and I remember her not bullying me again and even changed school! I honestly don't remember why she changed school.

My memory can zoom forward to a place and time that I became this bitchy girl in primary school. That must have been primary 4 or 5. I don't know how or why I have managed to establish a gang of girls and managed to create a so-called opposing gang that we would have a fight with [not physically of course]. I remember creating a 'hate' short story that I wrote about the other girls from the other possey. This somehow got out and got in the hands of my teacher and then I was called to the disciplinary teacher's room and was punished? I can't remember how, but I do remember that the disciplinary teacher was hot *batter eyelashes*. I was in primary school, and yet I was already feeling attracted to the teacher!

Well, my life took a turn in that same year. I moved overseas. There I had to start life again. I know I was young, but it has made a dent in my memory on how 'weird' the people there perceived me, and how I was..once again..bullied. The girl who befriended me, just wanted to lash out on her supposedly bff, saying that she has a new bff. [owh well, I dated her elder brother years later...so I couldn't care less ahah]. Somehow or rather, I managed to snap out of the ugly awkward duckling phase. I got real friends [or ONE true friend]. Then came secondary school.

Year 8 and 9. I don't why the memory is so vague for me, but I do remember being very secretive of my personal life. I had lunch with people from different classes, and hung out with different people outside. I never really had a 'posey' as you would call it [except for the primary school incident]. Then came this phase of my life that I was a 'bad' girl and hung out with 'the greebos'. People with hooded jackets and walk with their heads down. How I ended friends with them, I'm still wondering. I think I remember, I just casually talked to this stranger while walking to school because I was curious about something [or someone]. Which leads me to think, am I friendly, or am I just forward? I discovered a whole other life then, and there was an incident that some parts of my life was leaked around school. That was the first time that people started to know what I was about. Not to mention, I did make good impressions with my teachers then.

My life took another turn at this point. Back to Malaysia. Yet another awkward phase of my life. People are more friendly I guess and I made a different set of friends in no time, although I was very quiet..I think. See the problem with me is, I can't maintain to be in-touch with people once they are far away from me. It's sad really. With this group of friends, I had a long running friendship, relationship and activities. Even so, I kept myself away most of the time and only became close after school was over! It lasted so long, but lately, when we all started working and getting married, somehow it just started to drift...or I started to drift..

Came university days. Again, I attracted different sets of people, but what intrigue me most was, I had one or two very good friends, and that was that. And I led a totally different life from them. I wanted them to have other friends too. [Hey, writing this has rooted my problem]. I don't know what it was that made me that way. Part of the reason is probably because, I went to that Uni alone..I didn't know anyone. But with that being said, I went to primary school, & secondary school alone too. I was fine then. A few years down the line, still the same ol' same ol'. Internship..even then I didn't make great friends! Final year, and then first job.

First job. I made great friends then. But they were not girlies! Yet again another set of guy friends. Did alot of things together. That was fun. And yet, life took another turn within the same year. I changed jobs and moved states altogether. I didn't expect anything. And guess what.....nothing happened! Yes, I met great work colleagues and all, but...........knowing myself, I need to be an outsider. I need to find friends outside the circle.

Well, this entry has the purpose of putting my mind as ease when I am thinking, I do not have 'girlies' nor a posey, which makes it hard for me to do a hen night etc. I have many many different sets of friends, many of which are guys and heck, most of my other girlies are married..Sigh...how did my life end-up this way?

Wednesday, July 08, 2009

"Speechless"

Your love is magical, that's how I feel
But I have not the words here to explain
Gone is the grace for expressions of passion
But there are worlds and worlds of ways to explain
To tell you how I feel

But I am speechless, speechless
That's how you make me feel
Though I'm with you I am far away and nothing is for real
When I'm with you I am lost for words, I don't know what to say
My head's spinning like a carousel, so silently I pray

Helpless and hopeless, that's how I feel inside
Nothing's real, but all is possible if God is on my side
When I'm with you I am in the light where I cannot be found
It's as though I am standing in the place called Hallowed Ground

Speechless, speechless, that's how you make me feel
Though I'm with you I am far away and nothing is for real
I'll go anywhere and do anything just to touch your face
There's no mountain high I cannot climb
I'm humbled in your grace

Speechless, speechless, that's how you make me feel
Though I'm with you I am lost for words and nothing is for real

Speechless, speechless, that's how you make me feel
Though I'm with you I am far away, and nothing is for real

Speechless, speechless, that's how you make me feel
Though I'm with you I am lost for words and nothing is for real

Speechless
Your love is magical, that's how I feel
But in your presence I am lost for words
Words like, "I love you."

Friday, July 03, 2009

Star-struck!

Star-struck


Adjective Fascinated or greatly impressed by famous people, especially those connected with cinema or theatre


I got the idea for the title from a friend of mine who wrote about another star. I wanted to write this blog to let go of the death of my star.


Back when I was living in the UK, I had this obsession with a star. I would listen to his songs day and night, write out all the lyrics of his songs in my little notebook, and buy all his magazines, so I can paste his posters on the wall. True enough, I remember one side of my wall was posted ceiling to floor (or where my bed starts) with his posters, from all his concerts, or just photo shoots. I did a drawing of his face and worked very hard at it. It really did look like him. My mother didn’t mind, because I am guessing that she too was a fanJ. It came to a point that my siblings too loved listening to his songs; I played it enough for them to love him. I remember feeling gutted because he went to Malaysia in 1997….while I was in the UK! Nevertheless, I reserved myself till maybe I will be able to afford to see him.


And then came a point of my life that everything changed. I was at another part of the world and life was hard to adjust to. Of course I had to grow out of the obsession. I have never been obsessed with any other star, as was I obsessed with him. Of course, there were other stars that I was just star-struck with. But usually, I couldn’t care less of their personal lives. They reserve that right for themselves. It applies to my star, but he was the only one that I cared to find out where he was born, grew up, who were his wives, and who were his children.


And then came the day that he died. I was at my mother’s house. I remember while I was half asleep, when my siblings were hustling about wanting to switch on the TV, is it true? Is it true? He died! I was thinking, it had to come, everyone dies! But then when my mother was telling me, “Nira, he has died, your dearest has died! [Kesayangan mu sudah mati]”, it struck me. Somehow I felt a block in my heart. What is this I am feeling? I needed to know what happened. I was waiting for the news all day long. I was quiet no matter what my mother was saying. “ Nda kau menangis, Munira? Kau kan nda berenti dulu dengar lagu nya”. My sister was saying, “ I think I started to like to listen to him because of Munira.” “Yeah, me too!” my brother added. Everyone was talking about him all day long. “Mana nda, kalau kamu dalam perut lagi Umi sudah hari-hari dengar lagu nya tu dulu!”. Well, that’s probably why. I was serenaded with his songs even before I understood what it was.


The day passed. As I was driving home with my siblings late that night, I confessed to my sister, “You know, in fact I am devastated by his death. But I can’t cry because of what Umi has been saying all day long, that I loved him. I didn’t want to seem lame by crying”. “Well, you won’t be lame if you cry now,” she replied. I am thinking, no, I can’t still. But I kept my emotions buried as the week passed. I wouldn’t stop listening to his songs. Then came one night that I burst out crying. I called my fiancé’ about it. Of course he didn’t know what to do with me. He found it weird but of course, being a dear he didn’t say that. It was me that said, you must find this weird…and he said yes! Hahah...but I understood. I found it weird too. As I mentioned before, usually, when I like a star, I couldn’t care less for the personal life. But with him, I don’t know…I am...what you may say…STAR STRUCK