Baby Hatch Part II

Some of you would remember that cat did wrote a posting on the Baby Hatch issue a few months ago. Firstly, cat would like to thank all those who has supported the cause as this is one of the topics that touched cat's heart and which cat supports with all her might: The fate of an unwanted child.

As an update, Malaysia's first baby hatch was finally launched on 29th May 2010 by Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil from the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development after a long debate on the issue since February 2010. It is certainly a big step in trying to prevent the abandoning of unwanted babies in dumpsites and garbage bin..or even worse.. finding the remains of a newborn child in water tanks and public toilets. A sad fate indeed and one which made it seems like we are going backwards to those pagan days.

The baby hatch.. a small first step in saving a life. Cat really hope that those desperate mothers would now have an alternative (with the existence of a baby hatch) instead of simply taking the life of an unwanted child.

What will happen to the babies? The baby hatch , which is managed by OrphanCare (an NGO), helps to match and place the babies with suitable adoptive parents and assists to expedite the adoption process. At last, no baby should be left to die just because the mother doesn't know where to turn to.

Then ..why does cat seems sad? Cat should have been the happiest person because that the Baby Hatch idea is actually now opened after she has been giving her full energy and support to it. Why? Because there's a side of it that cat has never thought of before.

Cat has forgotten her own lesson: there's always 2 sides to think of..even when the idea is good. It's the issue of a muslim mother is required to give the baby birth certificate. Previously, cat was neither pro nor con with this issue with a bit of reserve that this will prevent unwed Malay mothers to leave the child at the hatch.

Cat should have taken note of the other problems that arises in later years. This is one of the lessons that cat should have picked up during the volunteer part at the orphanage. A child with no background, even adopted, will have problems in obtaining an identity card as the names of parents are not there. If you are an indian adopted by Chinese parents, how do you prove to the authority that the birth certificate was not falsified when the certificate has a Chinese name on it?

The other part is the question of lineage.. how do you know that you are not marrying your own sister or brother when you do not even know where you came from? Lots and lots of problems..

Cat does acknowledge that the hatch is not the solution for all the problems but it does help to save a life. A life is a life.. and you should save whoever you can. Only that it still needs some rethinking on it on the part where what will happen to these children later on..

Hmm..

Signing off,
Cat

Reaching For The Sky

If

by Rudyard Kipling

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you.

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or being hated, don't give way to hating,

And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;

If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat these two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

If..such a big word. With an if, anyone can become king, beggars can become kings..

The hardest thing would be : to change that 'If' to reality..

Big Girls Don't Cry

Cat has always been at her best when she's busy.
When she's concentrating on her work or when she's driving, she keep her feelings aside and just think of work. Auto pilot : smiling, solving problems, answering calls...the ever efficient cat.

It's when she's on her own, alone, that the weight of whatever that was bothering her becomes unbearable. The heart feels so painful..like it's going to burst. Drowning, not enough air in her lungs.

She keeps saying to herself over and over again that big girls do not cry. She wanted to be brave and not be a burden to anyone. Alas, the emptiness creeps in and the tears that she kept inside, came flooding out.

Gosh Cat, stop making a depressed face. Laugh like you always do. Don't Cry.

Bittersweet

Sadly, we sometimes do not seem to realize what we have until it is gone.
Only when we lose something, we are reminded of its value and wished that we had better appreciated it.

We falsely convinced ourselves that everything around us will remain constant, especially the people around us. We tend to take those around us for granted until they are no longer there. Only then do we see how big their impact really was on us.

In the heat of an argument when hurtful words fly, it is better that we stop ourselves in our tracks and think: 'Will I still say the same thing if I know that she'll be gone tomorrow?'

For a few moments in my life, you made me feel as if I truly meant Something to Someone..

Empty Spaces

The head is throbbing, temperature rising and the eyes are strained.
This would be the 3rd day. Food looks bland and one bite, just one,  would make the stomach wants to throw everything out again.

It has taken Cat half of her energy and strength to be silent and keep on walking. Not turning around to see if someone is still standing there, watching Cat leave. Juggling between doing the right thing or letting things be as it is. The memories of all things said and done..that would be the only thing left. Without that, there is only empty spaces.

Tried to write..but it's all coming out as random, inconsistent thoughts. Mind keep running back to those hopes and plans that has never been fulfilled and those happy times that were from the past  It takes all the effort to finish a post..and the result seems out of context and bland.
Maybe it would be better for Cat to start writing a textbook... bland and boring, kan. Cat must still be ok if she can still make silly statements as above.

Who else can Cat talk to about just anything. Whose opinion can Cat ask and who can Cat share Cat's silly ideas? Who can make Cat smile when Cat is sad?

People say that fasting would make one stronger and nearer to God. Cleanses the system and the mind.. Just as well..since cat is not eating, let cat just try fasting.

"When a problem hits you, open your heart to God and say "Inna lillahi wainna illaihi rajiuun."
"God,Ya Rabbi, I accept this trial with open heart, as what has been due to me".

Signing off,
Tired Cat

Green Fingers

GREEN FINGERS
She was holding her two hands in front of her. Looking at the palms and turning them around. Looking at them again, nearer..closer. Hmm.. do you see what she sees? :p No? Well, she also sees nothing unusual on them. These hands are no different than yours. Definitely. :) Affirmatively 

But.. there's a mystery here. If our hands look the same..(same texture..only the softness or the hardness is different of course.. :p) but why is it that all the plants that she planted died? Hmm..a great mystery there. Why does the flowers keep on blooming with all sorts of colors at the neighbor's garden next door?  Why are there no ants or snails on the other side of the fence? We are using the same fertilizers, same composts and same soil.. Isn't that a great mystery?

'The answer lies in having green fingers', says the lucky neighbor.
'Green fingers? Those are only fictions, aren't they? Where is there a person who has a magic touch that can make anything grow in her/his garden?' says me. There must be something that I can grow too.

Chillies? No..doesn't work. Cat's tail? Only for 2 weeks..Roses? Let's do Not talk about it. :p hehehe. Orchids? Only the pots are there..filling up with green grass. Ouch.. Sunflower? It just grew to the height of a..mmm...She has lost the words in comparing it to anything. Maybe she can never be a farmer :) Maybe she should just cement the whole green area and put plastic flowers there.
Hmm..


P/S: How about this for a solution . :) She will plant CACTUS only from now on. Seems that she can grow cactus very well at the office :p hehehe

Plants

Someone was talking about bananas and i was thinking why do we keep on looking at one type of fruits only these days when we heard the word 'local fruits'.

Where are the other fruits? Have Malaysians stop producing them? Is there a shortage of land or plantation to grow them? Or.. have all those rare fruits been eaten by elephants, squirrels and monkeys ? (Hehee..just a joke.)

The below article might shed a light a bit on this issue:

The production of rare fruits is rather limited due to low number of trees available for each species. However, some of the potential rare fruits are sold at night markets, 'pekan sehari' or along the roadsides. Most of the rare fruits are seasonal, but there are also species that are non-seasonal, producing fruits throughout the year. These rare fruits are usually grown in home gardens or orchards. Among the fruits that can be found in home gardens are Cermai, Ceri Terengganu, and Durian Nyekak.

One of the 'rare' fruits that cat would like to recall to memory is the one called 'Cermai'. I do not know what the English name for it is but scientifically it's called 'Phyllanthus Acidus'.

Even if you do not know any latin words, you can still make a quick guess on how the fruit taste like just by hearing the latin name: Yes, the Cermai is acidic and sour. It looks as small as a peanut and turns yellow in color when it's ripe (see photo).

Pregnant women just love this fruit as the sourness helps to keep the morning sickness away. Others prefer to eat 'Cermai' only when it has been pickled (put into a jar with a bit of salt and lots of sugar and water). This will certainly take away half of the acidity and leave you with a sweet & sour taste. Nice, kan :)

Kids love to collect the tiny fruits and uses it as an ammunition (easy to put in your pocket). Ammunition against what? Against the big fierce dog that lives further down the road (orang nak pergi mengaji pun susah.), against all the 'snails' eating the veggies, and against any big bullies.

Maybe that's also one of the reason the Cermai is less seen nowadays.

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MIMOSA

In Malay, mimosa is 'pokok semalu'. There seems to be 400 species of it in the whole world, but the one that capture's her eyes is the one called : Mimosa Pudica.



This plant..ehem.. cannot be eaten. (Even goats which are known to eat anything, avoid the plant). It's a simple plant, which some will categorize it under the grass family, with soft purple flowers. The mimosa can be found in the bushes, nearby to the drain area and places that does not have too much sun.

The unique thing about it is the way it protects it self. The small leaves will fold itself when someone touches it or if it's exposed to strong light. And you can't pull it out using your hands, because each of it's leaf has smaller thorns. If you try to jerk it from the ground, you'll get cuts in the palm of your hand.

She found this plant just outside the house when she was throwing out the rubbish. It made her think of how lucky this plant is. Even though God has made it in such a way that it can only grow in secluded places, it's also given a very effective way on how to protect itself. It surely doesn't need the protection of the bigger trees in order to survive. And best of all, it helps to beautify the area where it grows.

Doesn't it sounds nice to know in advance what is your purpose in life and to know where your strength lies? Hmmm..


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