16.3.2015.
Faizul invited me to his daughter's wedding when we met at Ramli's son's wedding early this year. When he later sms'd me, I sms'd back "no card, no come". The card came by courier, to make sure I received it.
I mentioned it to Sam when I called him about something else, so Sam called Faizul about it, and that's how Sam got invited. That was fortunate. Otherwise my car might still be stranded at Kamil's Petronas station this morning.
Knowing the Sunday evening traffic to KL, I told the wife to get ready to leave for the Dewan Endon, Putrajaya, for the function, by 6 p.m. As usual we were 20 minutes late. I still had to fill up the car first, so we went to Kamil's petrol station. But after filling up, the car wouldn't start. So I called Sam, knowing he was coming to the same function. He said to try this and that, which I did, to no effect, so he said he'll drive up to help.
By now it was almost 8 p.m. We exchanged several calls to give directions, but Sam still managed to drive past the petrol station because he said the signboard was obscured. Anyway he finally came, fiddled with the gear shift as he turned the electronic key, and presto ! the damn thing started. So that was the trick.
Dekna had come earlier to collect her mother and they went home. Sam and I decided we should still attend Faizul's kenduri. So we went back to the house to fetch the wife.
Hanif, my s.i.l. had laboriously drawn a map to Dewan Endon. Sam pored over it under the reading light as we entered Putrajaya, but like the last map Hanif drew when I had to fetch Dekna from work, this map fared no better. After realising that we had passed some spots for the second time, we surrendered and stopped by the roadside to ask a guy who had also stopped his car. Sam got down, but he got another guy in a second car to finally take us to the Dewan, driving behind his car. That was about 9.30 p.m.
Li Aik Kheow had twice called during all this time. He had arrived at 7.30 because he said the invitation was for 8. I related my predicament and asked him to wait, and that was about 9 already, things haven't started yet.
Faizul, Sam , Aik Kheow and I go back a long way. Around 1985. Faizul was the longest. He started working under me when I joined Angkut as GM in 1985, but I knew him when I joined Felmil in 1980, when he used to represent Angkut at the weekly sales meetings. Aik Kheow was one of the northern transport contarctors for Angkut. Sam was in Port Klang in 1991.
When I joined MISC in January 1991, I was stationed at the North Port, Port Klang. After about a year, as we expanded, I asked Faizul to join me and serve at Butterworth, our new branch. To recruit more sales staff for that branch, I had personally interviewed and recruited Rozanna. As fate would have it, Faizul, at that time divorced from his wife, not long after that married Rozana. So you could say I gave him a job and a wife ! When the news reached Felda HQ (at that time the Chairman of Felda was also Chairman of MISC), words indirectly reached me that someone at the top didn't like this particular situation,and it was said that either one of the couple should leave. I commented to several of my senior staff that in that case all the couples (and there were many from among the more senior staff) in Felda should do the same.
If Faizul didn't join me I think he'd be one of the top guys in the Felda Group; but basically he'd stay put in Felda. Having moved to Butterworth and doing the transport work that was different and in the new environment, doors opened to his enterprising mind and training. Now he's a shareholder of the new company he's with, resides in up-market Bukit Jelutong, and drives a spanking new BMW 7 series.
Aik Kheow said he's going to China in a few days. He seems forever going to China. He'd had a heart procedure last year I hadn't heard about. His wife also told mine that he'd had a prostate operation as well. But at 64 he seems outwardly robust enough. I told him he's one of two old Chinese friends who have maintained regular contacts with me.
I'm glad I came, very late as it was. I even met Kamil, the owner of the petrol station where my car stalled, and I told him about it. You see people with growing families, all moving forward. We look back with fond memories, perhaps, and cannot escape thinking about what might have been. We should savour what we have.
On our way back to Seremban we lost our way again.
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