Throughout my life, I have been given some good advices, intentionally or unintentionally, by the people I encounter. This particular post is meant to thank those who have cared enough to share their words of wisdom with me.
Words of Wisdom 1:
There was this one time that I was very angry at somebody or something. I could not remember what, but it definitely involved a person. I was having tea with my parents after the event and I had sort of suggested bad things that I would do to the person as reciprocation to what had been done to me. And my father immediately said in a very soft tone as if he just wanted me to hear it, ‘Jangan! Biar orang buat kat kita. Jangan kita buat kat orang.” (Roughly translated: People can do bad things to us, but we must never do the same to others.)
Words of Wisdom 2:
When I was having hard times in Reading trying to complete my PhD, one of my friends, Zai, always said this phrase to remind me of my inner strength that I didn’t seem to realize I had in me..“Allah tidak akan menduga kita dengan perkara yang kita tak boleh tanggung.” (Roughly translated: Allah will not test us with the things that we cannot bear.)
Words of Wisdom 3:
I used to be so ambitious at work. Constantly, I felt the need to try many things at the same time especially in the first few years that I was back in the university. In the end I became so stressed in balancing my work and life until the day a good friend of mine, Ann, told me this.. “Dahlia, in the end it is the family that counts. Even if you put so many hours at work, when you die, your employer will still need to search for a replacement. But your family will always miss and remember you. You are irreplaceable to them. So, you choose.”
Words of Wisdom 4:
Once, when we were having tea downstairs, my friend, Reeza, told me that she will always try to buy food sold by people at the petrol stations or restaurants, and so forth. She said, she will buy them and then give to others. That way, she will be able to receive and give at the same time. I think this is not a bad idea at all, don’t you think so?
Actually, in life, we will continuously be offered with advices. It can be good advices, bad advices, or irrelevant advices..depending on how you see them at that point of time. It is up to us whether we want to follow or reject them. Still, for me, I feel assured as long as there are people along the way that are willing to remind me when a reminder is needed. After all, I am a human, and humans tend to forget.
Advice is what we ask for when we already know the answer but wish we didn't. ~Erica Jong, How to Save Your Own Life, 1977
