Apabila Anis Derma Darah

So there I was at the masjid, walking towards my car when I saw a blood donation area that they have allocated in the masjid. 

I was like... اللهُ أَكْبَرْ! I have been thinking about donating blood for some time and here it is! I headed straight towards that area and took a form. After checking my blood pressure etc, I went to another counter where I had to hand in the form. 

That kakak looked at me and asked, "Pernah derma darah dah sebelum ni?" 

"Pernah. Sekali. Lama dah," I answered. 

"Ok... Buku bawak?" she asked. 

I never realise how important it is to carry along the derma darah book everywhere with me until then. I, of course, answered, "Tak bawak."

So she gave me a new book. Now I have 2 buku derma darah....with a lot of empty pages. A LOT. Pressure pressure. 

After that kakak gave me my 2nd derma darah book, she directed me to a chair. So I went there, and sat happily. Yes, I was happy to finally be able to donate blood after a long time. 

But...that happiness ended rather quickly. 

Yeah. I saw the nurse holding a needle and coming towards me. 

"Oh noooo!!" I screamed in my head. 'How could you forget that THIS involves needle, Anis? What you think they're gonna magically tap your vein and then blood comes out just like that?! What planet did you come from?!' I was scolding myself. 

I closed one eye, and another one looked at the nurse. 

The nurse looked at me and said, "Genggam tangan bagi kuat sikit. Ini untuk bius ye." 

Whhhaaa...? What? Bius? BIUS? So this needle is not it? There's another needle waiting for me??? 

So after motivating myself that it was not painful and I shouldn't be scared of needle, I did it! 350ml of O blood. 

I left the masjid feeling so blessed الحمد لله. So blessed with the health that Allah swt has given me. When I was filling the form, I am reminded to be thankful to Allah swt even more. Health is something we all tend to take for granted. We forget to thank Allah for the healthy body He gave us, free from sickness and diseases. 

Let us all be thankful to Allah for our health. Let us give back what He has entrusted us in the world. Don't be stingy to donate your blood, because let's face it, it is not yours. It is all Allah's. Give back to those in need for the sake of Allah. Now that, is being thankful. 

My second derma darah book. Tak pasal-pasal ada dua buku. 

Aku dan Cream Crackers di Bulan Puasa

So there I was at work, doing work (oh wow) when my stomach started growling. 

It was the second day of puasa and being a grown woman, I cuti so I couldn't puasa. 

My desk is quite open and people pass by like all the time. 

I glanced at my cream crackers in my handbag. "How do I eat you in this situation?" I said to the crackers.

Then I remembered I brought that Naga sweater I always wore back in Naga. So I put it on, put the hoodie on as well, sneaked that cream crackers into the sweater and zip it up. 

Dengan berhati-hatinya, aku menyeluk mencapai cream crackers yang nampaknya begitu lazat sekali. Looking around and ensuring nobody was there (at least no men), I pulled it out, covered it with my other hand and stuffed the whole cracker into my mouth. Yes, THE WHOLE CRACKER.

So then I covered my mouth using both my hands. Slowly and steadily, I chewed. 

YES! Nobody noticed me! I'm quite good at this. So I took another one and another one... 

It was during my last chew that I looked up the ceiling and saw a CCTV right in front of my face. 

Sekian. 

Goodbye

July marks a big change in my life. I said goodbyes to a lot of people who are very dear to my heart. 

My best friend Azimah Aziz has moved back to Penang after living and working for 3 years in KL. Allah swt brought so many happiness, so many goodness and love through her for me. I could not express how happy I am for her, but at the same time, the thought of saying goodbye to her brought sadness to my heart. I miss her everyday. 

Another goodbye was to my colleagues in Naga. Allah swt had brought into my life, blessing me through their love and good hearts. الحمد لله. 

Yeah. I said a lot of goodbyes in July. People come and go in your life and no matter how sad you get, you just have to deal with it. Life goes on. 

The important thing is to always remember that Allah swt will never say goodbye to us. He never abandons us. Never dissapears from our side even for a second. He is always there.

It is us who always abandon Allah swt. It is us who always say goodbye to Him without even realising it. 

Let us all be reminded that at the end of the day, He is the most loving, the most merciful. And that the end of the day, He is the one who will never say goodbye.