T.H.I.N.K.I.N.G. O.F. L.I.F.E

I always thought that I had it pretty hard. Living without a dad. A dad who only came home on weekends. But when I stayed with Kak Fitri and her family, my thoughts changed.

Kak Fitri is the last child out of 4 girls. All she ever wanted was for her dad to see her graduate, but now it can never come true. Kak Fitri is taking economics at a nearby Islamic University. Before her dad died, she kept failing her exams. Every month she took exams, but never passed. A month before her dad died, Kak Fitri was supposed to take her test, but she put it aside. Then her dad died. The next month, she took her exams and passed with flying colors. How her heart broke, how sad she felt! She felt so mad, because her dad left without seeing her graduate! If only she had taken the test earlier. After she told me her story, I realized that I was such a snob to think that I had it rough. I mean at least my dad was still alive, at least my dad saw me graduate, at least my dad can still support me.

But what I liked the most during my stay was that even though Kak Fitri’s dad died, his spirit, his motivation still lives in that house. Whenever Kak Fitri wants to do something, she would always tell me how her dad taught her how to do this and that. It’s like everything she does has a connection to her dad. His teachings live through her. Me?? I’m not so sure.

What I really learned from this family was that how long you have been a Muslim, does not measure your iman. Kak Fitri’s family used to be catholic. After converting, her dad still didn’t know how to read Quran, but he was never embarrassed by it. Their iman is strong. The knowledge they know is so broad, Masha Allah. And it’s all due to the masjid nearby. Kak Fitri explained how the masjid has taught her family a lot about Islam. From zero to the real understanding of Islam. I was shocked! I have been a Muslim all my life, but it seems as if Kak Fitri’s knowledge on Islam way surpassed mines.

Besides that, I learned a lot about banking. Kak Fitri and her mom opened up a business. The bank is quite far and the villagers have to travel a far to pay their bills. So Kak Fitri and her mom decided to become an agent. The villagers can pay their bills to them, and they will send the money to the bank. I had fun learning how to input and output data. The funniest moment was this time when a man came up. He wanted to pay his bills. In order to do that I have to type in his name. So I asked him, “Sir what is your name?” So he started spelling his name. I froze..I was blank. The alphabets in Indonesia are different from Malaysia. Lastly, I had to ask the man to write his name on a piece of paper.Kak Fitri and her mom just laughed.

Dedicated to Kak Fitri, who has taught me a lot on life.