atok and opah came visiting..

Abah was flying to Pakistan for three nights, therefore to keep us 3 girls (Mama, Melissa, Kak Ika) 1 strong boy (Ikmal), 1 remaining makcik ( our maid Anis) and 6 furry anak-anak angkat (our cats) company.. Mama went to Mak Yang's house in Subang Jaya last Tuesday night to pick up Atok and Opah and their entourage (our other maid makcik Mazita and Pakcu Boy's maid makcik Susilo).. and brought them home to Bukit Beruntung..

Atok and Opah have been living with Mak Yang and her family since July last year, eversince Atok got a stroke and immobilised for a few months and now still undergoing therapy. The right part of Atok's body especially the right-hand is still weak. Atok now uses a tongkat to walk around, but would forget to use his right-hand all the time.. Opah and Mak Yang would always need to remind Atok about his liftless arm.. jangan lupakan tangan lagi satu tu..

Last Tuesday was 28th August, a few short days before Merdeka day on 31st of the same month. Atok and Opah have been very politically and socially aware about the happenings around Malaysia all these years through watching tv and reading the newspapers, but Opah has been more and more vocal and emotional about the issues she came across with eversince her retirement from teaching more than a decade ago..

And with Atok becoming less interested in reading the newspapers (page to page, line by line, for hours on end like he used to do before the stroke) due to his slow-ability to hold up and turn the pages, or watching the tv-news because of poorer-hearing and maybe boredom for having nothing else to do due to his frail-conditions.. Opah has made her grandchildren more the subjects of her concerns..

So the past few days my children have been 'forced' to watch the national tv1, tv2 and tv3 for hours on end.. ie. no more cartoons on astro-channels 60, 61, 62, 63 for Ikmal and Melissa, or channels 17, 70, 71, 72, 76 for Zulaika, or channels 10, 11, 18, 40, 41, 42 for Mama.. Atok and Opah have conquered our viewing space!!!

With 3 tvs around the house, Mama and Abah should have provided more than 1 Astro in the first place.. right??? But 'no we shouldn't', Mama decided when we first moved here to this new house less than two years ago. The reason? 'I want my children to give and take and learn the concept of sharing and compromising'...

And with that concept 'successfully' embedded into the minds of the 3 children.. Ikmal, Melissa and Zulaika (and Mama included..) we have let Atok and Opah to have free reins of which national channels to watch during the past few days. The children have had to watch (together with Atok and Opah) drama minggu ini (present-day versions), debat perdanas, berita jam 8, senario-repeats, bersama-mu programes, etc.. on top of the various merdeka-programmes leading to the big day. And for the first time in my children's life, they watched the Merdeka live-celebration parades from start to finish.. wow..!!! Impressive!!!

To Zulaika, Melissa and Ikmal.. Selamat Hari Merdeka!!!