20 Oct 2007

Age is catching up Kat!!

Old age sure takes the fun out of things we used to enjoy before. I was doing some gardening - weeding and repotting some plants when I had a sharp ache in my back. Wan used to scold me for bending from the waist. He says we must always squat first before we want to lift things.Well who can remember such things? And this evening when Repin and I were sitting down for dinner he groaned because he said his knee was giving him some pain. What a pair of old foggies we are!
But I think we were both very lucky we didnt suffer any aches and pains when we were on our haj. Just thinking of the walk from our tent in Mina to the place where we "stoned the devil"I wonder how we managed the walk. Granted there were hundreds of others walking with us, but even then. I remember feeling very tired though but when I look back at some of the others - many of them much older than me, some in wheelchairs and some with disabilities - it gave me the impetus to walk on. And Repin was always beside me or behind me all the time. In restrospect it was quite an adventure. Just imagine - hundreds (just our group) of pilgrims - all dressed in white, wearing the bright yellow vests to ward off the cold, marching towards the hills for the jamratul U'la. It was 6 km to and fro and none of us complained. At that time we never felt our age. God is truly great.
And yet now, just after a few months I ache all over just doing simple things like carrying Sophia, carrying pots in the garden, mopping the floor. Wouldnt it be nice to grow old without being sick or without aching bones. Scientists should look for a cure against that rather than a potion to make you look younger. I guess looking younger has more financial gain.
On another topic - I was looking at Rizal's blog this morning and he showed a video clip of Bukit Bintang. It was taken in August at the height of the Arab invasion - it looked as if it was taken in Riyadh or Dubai. Arab writing everywhere, and women, Arab women in veils walking as if they own the place. Now its not that we dont want them to visit our country - but I think we are turning over the identity of Bukit Bintang into one that is more like the middle east. What's wrong with keeping it Malaysian?

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