Saraba my dear friend...

I still cannot believe it...
I still cannot stop thinking about you...
We were supposed to meet next week...
We were supposed to meet up and you were going to introduce your sister to me...
We were supposed to talk about investments and your exciting business...
We were supposed to catch up on lots of other things...
Oh, and I was supposed to return the over due books, Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew...
The books you said would benefit us...
As the future leaders...

Ad, you were someone with high potential...
You were successful,
At this young age, you were already an assistant director...
To others, it seems like you've got everything...
But deep inside, I know you were still searching...
Searching for happiness that never came...
Or perhaps it did come, but left you...
And yet you never lose hope...
Never stop looking...

You left us last Friday at around 11.30am...
I was unprepared,
dismayed,
and shocked.

You met with an accident, you were at the passenger seat...
The driver, your sister you were going to introduce me...
Survived with a few bruises...

Oh, how your sister cried and cried...
When I met her during your funeral...
How she felt guilty...
Of causing your death...
But it was not her fault, not at all...
She was merely trying to avoid the lorry,
whom the driver was driving crazily...
And the accident happened...

Your sister didn't know me...
but when I introduced myself at the funeral,
" She said, you are Nana?"
And then she cried and cried, then said...
" My sis sms me your name and contact number a few minutes prior to the accident..."

I cried too,
As if you knew you would not going to make it to the appointment day...
As if you knew...

But you kept your promise...
You did introduce her to me...
It never crossed my mind to meet her that way...
It is the way I least desired,
No, no...not during your funeral.

As I write this, I cry...
I have been crying everyday,
But I know I have to release...
I know it's time for you to go...
I know you are at better hands...
I pray that you are happier up there.

But I know it will take some time for me to accept,
I know I will have to go through the stages of grief...
After all, I am just a simple human,
not a superwoman.

Thank you Ad for everything...
We have known each other for 18 years...
We were at the same "asrama" in UM...
We both went to Japan at the same time...
For our second time to Japan,
We became so much closer,
We became good friends.

Thanks for coming to Sya's birthday celebration in Universal Studio Japan...
Sya was very happy to meet you there...
Sya cried too when I told him that you are gone...
Cause we definitely had a blast then...
We talked and chatted...
We were excited about leaving Japan for good...
We promised to meet when we get back to Malaysia...
But unfortunately...it never came true, and it never will...

Saraba my friend...
You will forever be my dear friend...
You will forever be remembered as the beautiful,
intelligent,
helpful,
and cheerful friend that I loved so much...

Sayonara Ad...

Dragon boat festival

Dragon boat festival (Duan wu jie/Chinese dumpling festival) falls on the 6th of June this year. It is a festival celebrated by Chinese origins around the world. Zong zi (In Malaysia, Hokkien Chinese call it bakchang) is a traditional Chinese food popularly consumed during the Dragon Boat Festival, hence the name Chinese Dumpling Festival. Zong zi is made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves. They are cooked by steaming or boiling.

Zong zi is something I missed so much during my 4 years life in Japan. It requires special leaves to make the Zong zi aromatic. Not that the leaves are not available in Japan, it's that special mood that is lacking that made me put off the thought of making Zong zi.

There is no excuse for me to skip the celebration this year since my mom is more than happy to have a helping hand. So these were the Zong zi we made...

More than 60 Zong zi...enough for a few days.

This is how it looks like in the inside...

This is Zong zi with meat filling....YUMMY!