Farewell to a Friend

Early in the morning of 6 September 2008, it's the unpleasant news of a friend who passed away unexpectedly due to his leukaemia which was very recently diagnosed by his doctor. The last I met him was during the wedding of one of his children at his house in Kampong Raja Uda, Port Kelang, and he appeared his usual self, full of life though he had retired from his government job in the Royal Customs for more than six years. I remembered him well as he was Nasimah's office colleague and he was the typical highly energetic and confident person whose ways could be bordering on the unorthodox and rather outlandish, which is rather uncommon for his departmental norm and practice. But still as long as he doesn't break the law, he would be quite adventurous with his antics. I also recalled that he has a daughter who is handicapped, but somehow he did not send her for any special school for the handicapped perhaps due to the fact that he wanted her to be with the family throughout and I learned that she became a teacher to the local kids in reciting the Al-Quran. I have been fond of telling Nasimah that in life, we must be prepared to accept death as a matter of course because our Faith teaches us so, that when your time comes it will not be a second too early or too late, you will be called to meet your Creator. The word " Redha " shall only be well understood when such things happen to us, especially when death happens to loved ones. Recently I have appointed the as-Salihin Trustee Berhad as the administrator of my will upon my passing away, and Nasimah too signed the same. Before signing the Will, we had all members of the family gathered together to listen to the explanation of the executive from the trustee company of the contents of the Will and what it means when the inevitable thing happens to both of us, Nasimah and I. We want to be prepared for such an event, so that it would not be such a hassle to our beneficiaries to settle the question of inheritance later on. Most Muslim families regard talking about death as taboo which in Islam is the opposite, because there is a Hadith which conveys the meaning that one must work hard as if one is going to live forever and must perform the Ibadah as if one is going to die tomorrow. It is a wonder why many refuse or ignore this al-Hadith which is one of the legacy of our Beloved Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.). We went together with Nasimah's former office-mates Connie and Zarah in the rainy weather pretty early, at about twenty past nine in the morning and arrived at about ten o'clock. There were already a sizable crowd, and I joined the Tahlil being recited by an Imam. I only knew one of his close colleague at the house and he was seated next to the wall in the living room. The body of my late friend was on the bed facing the Qiblat in the Hall. There was hardly any room then, but somehow I squeezed in between the others because I want to be together with those who came to pay their last respects to Allahyarham Mohd. Zan b. Ali. After the Tahlil, I sat outside the house because the rain gathered it's strength as if to weep his passing away too! He was wise to choose that neighbourhood to build his home, because the old spirit of the Kampong is still portrayed by the people. His burial was after the Zuhur prayer and many of his former colleagues in the Royal Customs were there to pay their respects. Farewell my friend! your journey to Hereafter is just beginning and every person will also past that way when his time is up, perhaps tomorrow, day after or many many more years ahead, only ALLAH S.W.T. Knows all.