Injury Brings About Knowledge

The first weekend out of hospital and I couldn’t bear to be grounded at home over an injury. Thankfully, I already had made plans which would have kept me out of the house anyway.

I am of course pleased with my own physical progress and I guess, as much as this fasting month is one filled with trials, it is also one filled with knowledge.

I’ve always been able to speak Mandarin despite not attending formal classes due to my social environment that I grew up in. Looking too fair skinned to be a Malay, I’ve often been mistakened for a Chinese even at a young age. Entering school on a first day, I remember a boy came up to me asking in Mandarin for the time.

I didn’t know how to reply but somehow, I understood.

As the years passed by, I just began learning informally how to speak Mandarin and in the past 2 days, I finally learnt formally and was credited with a certificate. I still have no idea how to read or write but being able to speak is definitely a first step.

So what else was knowledgable for me?

Going out with my mentors and mentees for a visit on a special trip was also similarly enlightening, spiritually.

Having secured a very special and exclusive visit to Harmony Centre located at An-Nadhah Mosque in Bishan, we treaded down the hot sun with YOG volunteers nearby.

The boys, enthusiastic and clueless about what was in store for them were learning a lot in the end and for most of us, renewed our understanding and faith in our religion, Islam.

It was also to be the first time that I had performed my prayers since my accident.

Performing the ‘tayammum’ I found it rather painful to do it for my right hand using my left. I couldn’t use my palms and hence had to use the back of my hand to perform tayammum on my right.

I hope I’ll recover soon though since I’ve also been going against what my therapist have been telling me to do.