IDAH turns the corner !

 Sun 23 May 2021.

Tomorrow Idah turns 71 ! That's a big corner !

We've been together for practically a half-century now.  On December 3 this year we'll hopefully celeberate our Golden Wedding Anniversary.

We go back a long way.

Our two families know each other  from Tg. Malim days in 1950. Both our fathers taught at the SITC then. That was before it was upgraded and required graduate teachers. Our parents were only SITC Diploma holders themselves. But SITC was the premier Malay teacher's college of the day. Ghaffar Baba, Syed Nasir, Aminuddin Baki, Nordin Bachik, Razak and Zainal Abidin Ali were some of the better known staff and sudents I can still remember. Many went on to bigger things in their lives. Our parents returned to the Malay primary schools back in NS, where both eventually retired.  My mother from "Rumah Empat" would visit Mak Cik Bonun at "Rumah Enam" across the college padang, and vice versa. I hadn't known Idah yet, but remember Cik Ani, closer my age because we went to the same Malay and English schools, but did not talk to one another yet.

Back in NS, our parents maintained casual contact. Mak Cik Bonun also used to visit Amok in Kuala Jempol, so Amok helped maintain that contact.

Around '63/'64 Cik Ani came to the house in Tebat Kering. Dik Di came along. I can't remember why they came, but Cik Ani told me that she would be getting married to Bang Piei. She asked if I knew him, and I said sure, he was the School Captain. 

I was a temporary teacher, waiting to enrol into the University of Malaya. I made friends with a TMS student, Nazri, who was from around Serting Ilir area, and we got to talking about one "Faridah, anak Cikgu Ujang", a student at TKS, next to TMS. So we would sometimes hang around the KP bus stand, to catch a glimpse of "anak Cikgu Ujang". Nazri must have had a fancy on her. So did another TMS student, Husain, the son of Idah's neighbour in Lonek. But I didn't know him. In fact Husain's mother had already jokingly been referring to Idah as "my daughter-in-law". But all this I learned later. A few times in our rounds, Nazri and I would catch the sight of Idah in the bus, and she would look at us, obviously knowing our interest. "Gatal !"

In 1965, my first year at the university, I met Azahari Aliff, another Tg. Malim old friend. The university student population wasn't huge like nowadays..  I had a Honda motorcycle. Azahari had a Lambretta. That university break we agreed to ride to Mentakab and  Melaka.  Mentakab was where another old Tg. Malim family friend was located. Kg. Morten in Melaka was where Azahari's house was. In between Azahari suggested we visit Cikgu Ujang in Lonek. Makcik Bonun was bailing water from a well near the window of the bedroom. It's not there now. She was pleasantly surprised when Azahari introduced ourselves. She called out Idah who was at her late uncle's house behind her house. She just gave us a casual look. We didn't stay long, and took the Padang Lalang road, inside, to get to KP and Tampin and Melaka. The "inside" roads were not yet metalled, then. Fortunately it was dry.

When in my second job in Felda hq, I stayed in Kg. Baru, with Conen. The rented house was on the same road as Kak Zawiah's house. We used to see Aji, Idah's late elder brother, walking by, all in white - must be  school uniform. One time we stopped him and asked "Fauzi ke ?" He said yes but did not offer to prolong the conversation. After  May 13, we moved to Ampang Jaya.

One day Bang Dek called. He was at the Ministry of Agriculture. He asked to arrange a meeting with Aladin, the Director of Social Services at that time. I did. After the meeting Bang Dik invited me to his house, also in Ampang Jaya and on the same road - Jalan 4 C. Later he moved to "Juwita" down the road, I can't remember the number. "Idah ada" he said, without my asking. He must have thought that I know her well.

One Sunday I had just returned from Fraser's Hill. It was late in the evening but was still light. 1969 traffic wasn't like now. Now it'd be impossible to make it back before midnight. Anyway, I was just taking off my shoes when Idah strolled in front of the house, in Japanese slippers. Evening walk, probably. She looked at me. "Hi" I said. I invited her for a short ride around Ampang Jaya.

The rest is history.

Now there's pain here, there's pain there. She shares the supplements. For the first time in 50 years we fasted "puasa enam" together. I told Wafa, our granddaughter, to say "Happy Birthday" to her "neni". "Neni" poked her head into my room. "Where's the present?"

There are 11 grandchildren now, with one more on the way. All four kids went through college and are gainfully employed, thank God. They have their own families, their own houses, and even if for the second time in a row, the Hari Rayas have been separate, we're thankful that it's been a good life, so far.

Now I've to turn the corner and get Dekna to conjure something for a small celebration.  I always do them one day in advance.

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