Indian Christmas...

"All our bags are packed, and we are ready to go..."

(Indian dolls on display)

We will be spending the holidays from Christmas to New Year in the golden triangle - Jaipur, Agra and Delhi and a few days on the boathouse in Srinagar, Khasmir.

Happy New Year!

My Overseas Travelogue: munmus.blogspot.com

Ja's birthday...

"The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living… "

Today is Ja's birthday...

If he is still with us he would be celebrating his 23rd birthday. We would be dining out together on Christmas eve and as usual he would be ordering his favorite dish, fish and chips, what else.



Tonight after solat maghrib we recited the yaasin then later we had family dinner at Plaza Damas. Coincidence, Ja's favorite Audioslave song was playing in the background...

'I miss my baby so much...

Back pain...

"Things will happen in your life that you can't stop. But that's not reason to shut out the world..."

After the 3-hour meeting on that Friday, I was complaining of lower back pain.

Despite that, the week-end was spent in the kebun and clearing bee-hives in the chalet bathroom. Last week when we noticed a lot of bees hanging around the kitchen we thought that they were only taking shelter after a heavy rain but then when we saw the hives, then we know that they were serious to stay. Getting rid of the bees and cleaning the hives was a tough job. We managed to chase the bees away by burning coconut husks and hosing them down with insecticides. Once or twice we were chased by the swarm but we managed to lock ourselves in the car until they were tired of waiting and dispersed..

(Hubby clearing bushes behind the chalet...)

My lower back pain didn’t go away. After that sudden onset, the pain radiated to the left leg. Sometimes there will be a dull ache but most of the time there will be a sharp pain especially after sitting down for long.

I visited my physician and complained and was given muscle relaxant and pain killer which after consuming the load for a week still didn’t seems to keep the pain to a manageable level.
'
I need to treat my condition, if not I will be limping throughout my trip to India this coming Christmas!

Blissful moments...

"Our lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss..."

Over the years, we became busy with work and other things, the kids went to boarding schools, universities and later work and got married. Kebun Sungai Rambai has been somewhat neglected. Even though there was an effort to pay some one to look after this kebun and 2 more kebun that we have acquired after that, but what a waste of money.

(Resting after a hard day"s work...)

Almost every weekend now, we go back to kebun Sungai Rambai and clear bushes and lalang. The back-breaking process is made easy with bush-cutters and machineries. But still, it is tiring after a day’s hard work. But it is also a form of exercise as we sweat buckets and sleep like a log at night. And we enjoy the fresh air, the serenity of the surroundings, and the chirping sounds of birds and insects during sunrise and sunset.
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The old cempedak trees have rotted and died. Some durian and dokong trees that remain have been pruned back to provide space and light, some will eventually be removed and replaced with new fruit trees. Some fruit trees do remain as testament to those blissful moments when the kids were still young and used to play around the chalet and in the attic.

We are blessed...

"Some people believe that holding on is a sign of great strength. But it takes far more strength to let go..."

Until recent years, the thought of retiring early and relaxing is always at the back of our mind. 

When hubby decided to quit his job in the middle of this year and go free-lancing, it triggered off our retirement plan. We have worked hard, harder than necessary at times. We have saved a lot, invested in properties, lands and pension funds, more than enough for the both of us. The kids have grown up, with good career plans and owned apartments and cars. We thank Allah for the blessings of wealth and health and beautiful children.

And we decided to do things that we love most and pick up what we left. We will go travelling and gallivanting, renovate our Bidara house, look after our kebun ourselves, among 1001 other things that we want to do.

Thinking about this make me feel like dropping everything, and opt for early retirement…