Kendong Again

Kampung Kendong, although you are not the place where I grew up in, we treat you like an old home, making plans while you are still standing. We try to find our favourite place to stow away for a mid-day nap. The best places would usually be on the sofa seat hidden in the faraway guest hall. You could basically hear nothing. If nothing was a sound, it was only present when you went back home to Kendong. 

We celebrate breakfast, at the earliest hours of 7am after prayers and a 20minute round of tug of war with the cousin next to you cause you could not place your duvet.. Instead it lies safely intertwined between the legs of your barbaric younger cousins. Kids.

In between breakfast and dinner.. A long pause of sunlight that is too bright for you to go out and enjoy. But the day's washing seemed to be doing so well. I'll just wash my stuff back home, I say lazily.

Come late afternoon where the humidity makes your hair stick between layers of your neck, the demand for iced drinks rises. Younger kids would make any excuse to go for a ride.. Ice-cream! Ice-cream you'd shout at them and tip them heavily with a 50 ringgit note. Ice-cream soda, too. I pedal Atok's bike down the empty road and stop by the massive green field. Kids playing football and hitting on me. Im old enough to be your mom.

The skies speckled with stars, night time falls and everyone looks forward to the evening agenda. Is something good playing on telly? Did someone bring home a big stock of firecrackers? Whats cooking..are you still hungry?! Reminsce the previous years when everyone was single or the fat cousin was as big as a lonely lamp post. Burst out laughing till your bugger comes out of your nose. Wipe it secretly under the concrete pillars of late Atok's front porch.

Mika now sees the world differently, it must be a generation gap thing but I beg to differ. You get bonus points for day dreaming about His creation. The trees, the monkeys, fruits you adore so much. Next year, we'll go on a fun trip and hope to score big points as I plan to dwell and relive the prophet's days in seclusion..maybe not so much of his fear..

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"Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of the night and the day are signs for those of understanding...Who remember Allah while standing or sitting or [lying] on their sides and give thought to the creation of the heavens and the earth, [saying], "Our Lord, You did not create this aimlessly; exalted are You [above such a thing]; then protect us from the punishment of the Fire..."

3:190-191