Selayang Hospital....what a pleasant surprise!!!

I was at Selayang Hospital today to visit an ex-colleague who had given birth to her first-born, a cute boy-bundle of joy.

This is the first time that I had visited Selayang Hospital, a government hospital. I must say I was pleasantly surprised.

The hospital came equipped with a large basement parking area and despite it being a Sunday and in spite of it being peak visiting hours, there was ample parking space and we had no difficulty at all finding a parking spot.

It was raining cats and dogs when we reached the hospital ground, and I was worried that we'd be stuck in the car, but when I saw the basement parking I was relieved. As I'm still recuperating from my chest infection, I didn't want to take any chances lest I caught the flu again.

Upon entering the hospital, we were greeted with wide open space which is a welcome relief and very welcoming.

The only snag was, unlike HUKM, their visiting hours on Sunday is rather inflexible and not hospital-friendly. At HUKM, on weekends, the visiting hours are from 12.30 to 7:00 p.m, whereas Selayang Hospital's evening visiting hours are from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

My husband and I had arrived a little early, around 4:20 p.m, so we decided to go for tea at their cafeteria which is a also widely spaced out. And once again, I was pleasantly surprised that when you asked for Nescafe tarik, less sugar,  they really served you with less sugar, unlike 99.9% of other eateries or food outlet which are highly generous with their portion of sugar.

As we still had some time to kill, we sat along the corridor. And I was amused when I saw a little Chinese toddler. She was so cute and bubbly and extremely friendly. She approached a Malay lady who was seated near us, and offered her cake.

And later she came back for it, and "salam" the lady. I thought she'd walk away after that, but, she actually stopped and "salam" all the others who were seated along the same row, including the janitor who was busy emptying the rubbish. In my experience, only Malay kids were taught to "salam" but this Chinese toddler was really unique and a sight to behold.

Just before 5:00 p.m we headed for the maternity ward which was equally well spaced out. Kudos to the government for having a great infrastructure. It changed my perception somewhat of drabby, dinghy, eerie and ancient looking government hospitals.

Upon reaching my ex-colleague's bed, I was excited to see her baby next to her. He was swaddled in all pink so I thought I must have misheard her when she said she had given birth to a baby boy!!!

Indeed, Syida confirmed that it's a boy!!! New-born babies being babies, he sleeps through all the din and noise at the ward. He looks so peaceful and contented being swaddled in the blanket, I reckoned the feeling of still being in his mummy's womb.

We left after spending a couple of  minutes with Syida and her baby, Haikal. Heartiest congrats Syida. Happy mothering and breastfeeding!!!

When Death Knocked Upon a Bedroom Door

 ’Twas early in the morning at four. When death knocked upon a bedroom door.

     ”Who is there?” the sleeping one cried. ”I’m Izrael, let me inside.”

      
At once, the man began to shiver, as one sweating in deadly fever,

      he shouted to his sleeping wife, ”Don’t let him take away my life.”

    ”Please go away, O Angel of Death! Leave me alone, I’m not ready yet.

      My family on me depend, give me a chance, O please prepense!”

The Angel knocked again and again, ”Friend!  I’ll take your life without a pain,

        ’Tis your soul Allah require, I come not with my own desire.

      
Bewildered, the man began to cry, ”O Angel! I’m so afraid to die

    I’ll give you gold and be your slave, don’t send me to the unlit grave.”

  
”Let me in, O Friend!” the Angel said, ”Open the door, get up from your bed.

        If you do not allow me in,I will walk through it, like a Jinn.”

     

The man held a gun in his right hand, ready to defy the Angel’s stand,

 ”I’ll point my gun, towards your head. You dare come in, I’ll shoot you dead.”

By now, the Angel was in the room, Saying, “O Friend! prepare for your doom.

     Foolish man, Angels never die, Put down your gun and do not sigh.”

    

”Why are you afraid!  Tell me O man, to die according to Allah’s plan?

      Come, smile at me, do not be grim, be happy to return to Him.”

   

”O Angel!  I bow my head in shame, I had no time to take Allah’s name.

    From morn till dusk I made my wealth, not even caring for my health.”

    ”Allah’s commands I never obeyed nor five times a day I ever prayed.

      
A Ramadan came and Ramadan went but no time had I to repent.”

  ”The Haj was already fard on me But I would not part with my money.
All charities I did ignore taking usury more and more.”

   
”Sometimes I sipped my favorite wine with flirting women I sat to dine.
O Angel! I appeal to you spare my life for a year or two.”

   
”The Laws of Qur’an I will obey, I’ll begin Salat this very day.
My Fast and Haj, I will complete, and keep away from self conceit.”

    
”I will refrain from usury, and give all my wealth to charity, wine and

           wenches I will detest, Allah’s oneness I will attest.”

  

”We Angels do what Allah demands, we cannot go against His commands

      Death is ordained for everyone, father, mother, daughter or son.”

     ”I’m afraid, this moment is your last, now be reminded, of your past.

        I do understand your fears but it is now too late for tears.”

  

”You lived in this world, two score and more, Never did you, your people adore.

Your parents, you did not obey, hungry beggars, you turned away.”

     ”Your two ill-gotten, female offsprings, in night-clubs, for livelihood

     they sing.
Instead of making more Muslims, you made your children

                          non-Muslims.”

    

”You ignored the Mu’athin’s Athaan, nor did you read the Holy Qur’an.

    Breaking promises all your life, backbiting friends, and causing strife.”

  ”From hoarded goods, great profits you made, and your poor workers, you

   underpaid. Horses and cards were your leisure, money-making was your

                            pleasure.”

  

”You ate vitamins and grew more fat, with the very sick, you never sat.
A pint of blood you never gave, which could a little baby save.”

   

”O human, you have done enough wrong, you bought good properties for a

  song.

When the farmers appealed to you, you did not have mercy, ‘tis true.”

     ”Paradise for you? I cannot tell, undoubtedly you will dwell in hell.

   There’s no time for you to repent, I’ll take your soul for which I’m sent.”

     

The ending, however, is very sad.  Eventually the man became mad.

     With a cry, he jumped out of bed.  And suddenly, he fell down dead.

 

   O Reader! take a moral from here, you never know, your end may be near.
Change your living and make amends, for heaven, on your deeds depends.

I huffed and puffed....to no avail

11 November 2010, Thursday

WOW!!! It's been 11 days since I last posted something. That's a really long hiatus for me given that I make it a point to post on an almost daily basis.

These 11 days had actually been the longest days of my life. An acute chest infection had floored me and I was warded for 8 days at a private hospital.

Being hospitalized isn't something unusual to me, but this time it really took a toll on me. The infection seems extremely persistent and dogged and refused to desert me.

From the time I huffed and puffed at the A&E, I was given round the clock nebuliser and oxygen. And even on the day I was discharged (9 November 2011), I was still wheezing quite badly. As I had been harrassing my doctor persistently, he finally relented and discharged me.

I reckoned since it's gonna take a while before I'm fully recovered, I may as well wheeze at home, FOC!!!! My 8 days' stay had not only burnt a deep hole in my pocket, but I had missed home awfully.

Today, I'm well on the road to recovery, albeit slow, and what's wonderful, it's Home Sweet Home.