Monday, September 20, 2010

Trials and Tribulations

This Ramadhan and Shawal had been most trying for me and I thank Allah for putting me through a mild test of patience. He could surely put me under a heavier strain if He so wishes. Subhanallah.

Ramadhan went on very well until a few days before Aidil Fitri. I caught a cold or flu and though I tried to go to the Madrasah for Tarawih prayers I could not perform the 20+3 raka'at. At times I felt so cold and at times I was perspiring, making me unable to go to the Madrasah at all, nor perform the Tarawih alone at home. I could only manage to perform the solat fardhu without the usual 'wirid'.

Two days before Aidil Fitri with the worst of the flu over, we ( my wife , Norazlin and me) balik kampung for the hariraya. With a great determination to meet the village community I went to the mosque for Isya and Tarawih, knowing that the Tarawih in the mosque consists of 8+3 raka'at only. That was quite manageable since my flu was on the way out though I was still coughing and sneezing. Even during prayers I had to pull a hanky and wipe the drips from my nose ( with 3 movements that are allowed during prayers). I was most happy and thankful to Allah since I could perform all the prayers including the solat Aidulfirti and the Friday prayers in the afternoon.

Then my ghout started to come back with a vengeance. It gripped my ankle such that I could hardly walk without the sharp and shooting pain typical of that nasty ailment. I still braved a few hariraya visits on the second and third day of Aidilfitri, including visits to my dad's and mom's final resting place. It's interesting to recall that when I was in a hurry to visit the tanah wakafs ( dad and mom were buried in different places since mom died first and dad had to be taken back to his original home by his relatives and buried in the community graveyard when he died), I forgot about my throbbing ankle. Though limping and putting my weight on only one leg, I managed to walk the distance from our car to the graves without being aware of the pain in my ankle.

Well it's more than a week after Aidilfitri now and I am still limping around. I could hardly walk to the Madrasah without causing my ankle to throb wildly with pain. I've gone to the clinic but the pain persists. It must be a continuation of the trials and tribulations that Ramadhan brought me and I'm resigned to live through it. It allows me to do a lot of reading and thinking though. And that is certainly a blessing.

8 comments:

abdulhalimshah said...

Akhi Norzah,
Once I heard one of the ustaz saying that a very pious person would not feel good if he does not fall sick for a long time because it is possible that ALLAH has forgotten him. It is only when ALLAH remembers you that you fall sick.
So it must be for you too, because you has shown your devotion to HIM and the sickness probably is the form of 'Kifarah' which is an atonement of past wrongs done conciously or unconciously.
Better pay for all your debts in this world rather than hereafter.

Unknown said...

Salam aidil Fitri to u and family. Yes, the trial and tribulations r for real - InsyaAllah we r under HIS acceptance. I agree with u that there r times when the doctors r guessing [ i beg your pardon to doc in the family :-)] as to which medications to prescribe. We, as the patient, need to be alert on the drugs' response on us, sometimes shocking. We do need to quietly discuss with the doctor on certain recommendations like reducing the dosage or alternating intakes etc etc. I have hypertension at 39 which worsened after my hysterectomy n its manageable now after discussing from time to time with my doctor. I hope you do take rolled-oats daily with dried medtrn-fruits.Berries,banana,celery,orange,pineapple,tomato,tofu,egg,green vege,cocoa,bread, pasta and chocs (!) r OK for u. There r so much u could eat,alhamdulilllah...in moderation. Fuad sends his salam, maaf dzahir dan batin to u and family. We hope Kak Long is in good health. Health is Wealth, remember the saying?

kaykuala said...

Akhi Norzah,
Ramadhan is aptly termed testing times. Whether one is fasting or is sick physically one is not 100% then. It is ok. The worst is over and that's what matters.

I look forward to what we had happily been doing before( read: blogging again )and savour good company on dalu dalu's blog-roll.

Good times are here again and good company makes it perfect!

norzah said...

Thanks for the most comforting thought, Akhi Halim. I'm thankful to Him for just letting me suffer just little, for we have heard some macabre things happening around this time of the year. The rich seems to have the worst of it, being wiped out like flies. The viciousness of people in some other countries seems to have spread over here and the hospitable Malays are getting the worse of it. Even our neighbour, Indonesia, is taking it on us while Singapore seems to have Najib engaged in a nice ballgame, agreeing to many things that do not seem to be referred to the Malaysians at all. We give away KTM's land at Tanjung Pagar but must pay for the development of the land given in its place at Woodland. Woe, what price friendship?
I'm most happy to see you smiling away. Everything must be working well in your favor. Syukur alhamdulillah. Salam Aidilfitri.

norzah said...

Dear Sabrina,
Most welcome to my blog and thanks for the response.
Yes, the doctors are human too and their knowledge is based on research in as far as human beings can fathom the mysteries of life. Only Allah knows everything since He is the Creator and we human can only know what He Allows us to know. Subhanallah.
I'll heed your advice on taking healthy food in moderation for I must admit that I had been rather
negligent of the calories I consume during the festive days, hehehe. So, the ghout is a reminder of my negligence, perhaps.
Selamat hariraya and salam to Fuad from me and Kak Long. Yes, health IS wealth, though it doesn't work the other way round.

norzah said...

Akhi Kaykuala, yes Ramadhan is a month of testing: so many things being tested. Those who have passed all the tests have all the right to celebrate and the tone of your writing suggests to me that you're one of those who have passed all the tests with flying colors.
I got stuck a little but it's quite ok now. I still walk with a limp but at least still able to go to the Madrasah. As far as blogging is concerned no problem at all and I thank you and all our friends so much for making this blogsphere a very enjoyable world. Sure good times and good company are here again. Salam and happy Aidilfitri to you and family.

Al-Manar said...

Dear Norzah,

By the look of it was indeed trials and trinulations for. am sorry to hear that it should happen at about this occasion. I have seen people with ghout and being told how painful it can be. I have a cousin who seems to have ghout in every member of his family. Is yours an isolated case?

I wonder if there is no cure for this. Hope the attack will come only rarely, if it comes at all. Keep well my friend.

norzah said...

Nice to hear from you, Akhi Pakcik, and to know that the ghout had not singled me alone for the attack. Yes, i seem to be the only one in the family with ghout, while hypertension is hereditary. It comes off and on as a result of my own weakness when confronted by very tempting prawn dishes. So, I'm only suffering from my own indiscretion and cannot complain. Hope you had a wonderful Aidilfitri and an eventful hariraya. Selamat hariraya maaf zahir batin.