Al Fatihah

i just got news that my granduncle, Haji Nik Abdullah Bin Nik Yaacob has passed away last night. Ayah Lah, as we've always called him, was my late grandma Nik Esah's younger brother who lived in Pattani, Southern Thailand. according to arwah my grandparents, arwah fled/migrated to Thailand during WWII when he was working on the railway track. Ayah Lah married pattani born Nik Saodah and they were blessed with 2 sons & 2 daughters and lots of grandchildren. he was very soft spoken, just like his brothers & sisters, being the typical older generation Niks...

i was brought up by my grandparents and we (me, my grandparents, my moyang, my aunty & uncle) lived at rumah asal Arwah Nik Yaacob & his wife Hajjah Cik Rafeah in Pasir Mas. Ayah Lah's sons - arwah Nik Ayi & Nik Din went to secondary school in Pasir Mas and stayed with us too, so there was one big happy family at one point of time. Due to the political unrest in southern thailand since those days sometimes posed some difficulty for him to visit us or for the siblings to go over. i still remember the days when the time was really bad in Pattani, the siblings would have to keep vigil and anxious about his well being. he couldnt attend arwah my grandpa's funeral cos at that time, it wasnt safe at all to leave his home.

whenever he & family came over to Msia, the siblings & their children would treat him with respect, ada jemputan makan and stay over at the siblings' house. kalau pergi shopping, mesti nak kena beli 'bocong air' (thats our term for vacuum flask) Thermos brand, nothing less!

i still remember clearly the sadness when its time to leave, all happening on the 'majestic tangga hijau' - they would hug each other, for fear that they would never get to meet again.

Al Fatihah.... you will be missed by many...