I once had a beautiful marriage and a lovely home. A union that lasted for more than 15 years. Along the way, my husband and I shared a son, many wonderful memories & long lasting friendships. Some of those friends were there from the start and they still are with me right now.
The ones I plan to feature today is first and foremost, my ex landlord and landlady. Jeffrey & Diana Lim.
She is a florist, he is a real estate agent. They have two sons and are already grandparents now. When I first met them, I was 19. Far away from home and had just started my first job. I saw an advertisement pasted on a wall at Giant supermarket Kelana Jaya, offering a room for rental. I called up the number stated and made an appointment to meet up with them for an interview. I needed a place to stay badly, as my training as a flight stewardess was going to start in a week's time. A friend had fallen back on her word to share a place with me, that made me terribly disappointed and upset as I lived in Ipoh and had to commute back and forth looking for a room, therefore I was getting desperate. I guess it became a blessing in disguise and indeed worth the wait.
I went over to their house at SS7 Kelana Jaya with a family member and straight away fell in love with the couple's warmth and hospitality. The fresh flowers displayed by the dining table was what stole my heart. I knew then, that I wanted to stay there. I was lucky that they agreed to rent the available room to me and that took a major burden off my shoulder. It made life easier too, as I ended up only having to walk to training school, as their home was only about 20 minutes away.
They are a lovely couple. They treated me with utmost respect, included me as part of their family and took care of me as one of their own. A few years later, when they bought themselves a new home, I was again invited to stay with them, which I did until I bought myself my own home at the age of 23. When I hear stories about my friends having to move from one place to another due to incompability with either their landlords or housemates, I thank my lucky stars all the time for having put us into each other's path. Till today, they still think of me and sometimes, calls to ask if everything's alright. I have been blessed.
This is Rania Risham. I knew her when I was 17. My neighbour in my hometown who now is a family friend. Her home was where I used to go to, to celebrate Hari Raya each year. Their Indonesian maid was like a big sister to me. She lived with them till Rania finished school. Till today, Rania visits her in Medan whenever she has the time. She is way younger than I am..a *baby* infact when I first got to know her and yet, she was such a huge help right after my divorce. She was the one who helped me to drill holes, fix my taps and some electrical appliances, taught me how to change my first light bulb ( yes..I am hopeless..was pampered for far too long ) and is one of Ryan's favourite big sister. She'll bring us around, slaps me back to reality when I start talking silly and has been a tremendous part in ensuring that my life went back to normal. What a blessing!
Dianne and Phoebe are Jacqi's cousins. Both are in white. When I lost my first pregnancy, Dianne ( short hair lady ) sent me a heartwarming letter that brought me back to life. Back then, I have not met her yet. When I had Ryan, she, Phoebe and Jacqi were the biggest donors from baby clothes, cribs, playpens right up to baby strollers. We saved a lot of money not having to buy the essentials. What made it more special was the fact that these ladies specializes in handmade stuff. It made the gesture more meaningful and I felt so blessed :)
This was once a place I called home. I was pregnant with Ryan when we moved in. We bought the place when we lost our first baby. It was all that I have ever dreamt it to be. My safe haven. ( We had a lovely garden too with flowers blooming all year round ). One day, unfortunately, everything was taken away from me. It was the biggest lesson of my life. From then on, I stopped being attached to material stuff and buildings. Home was wherever I am. With pain comes love and that is when I found out who my true family and friends are. I am happy to say, that again..I have been blessed ♥
Life is good when you know how to appreciate the little moments, learn from the experiences, accept what is laid by God for you, let go when it is time for you as well as others to move on and continue healing. If you only know how to find the good in each circumstances, you will be able to find plenty to be grateful for and believe me when I say that it gets better with practice. It is a lonely journey but one that needs to be walked alone to fully appreciate the success of discovering what is on the other side...
When you reach out for good people, they reach out to you too.
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Agreed! xoxo..
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