Almost 3 weeks  I now base in this provincial town of Serendah. A small town with few population of Chinese, Indians and Indigenous People; apart from majority of them are Malays. So far, life has been pretty nice and this far, I am adjusting and gelling with the simple life here quite alright.

As far as my professional life is concerned, everything so far is all fixed in the jigsaw puzzle. The Headmaster, the senior administrators, the senior teachers and the pupils give good cooperation and very helpful. I guess it’s a normal procedure to be in a new place to respect and humble yourself and seek guidance from the seasoned players in the new place; like what the Malay maxim used to proclaim – “manis mulut orang pun selesa.” The teachers are very helpful when the greenhorns ask questions; so far (,”). The kids are alright- I mean kids being kids; there are times they are being mischievous but once you set the rules, it should be OK although repetition is quite routine!

As far as my personal life is concerned, I am quite lucky to be able to get a nice place here. Not far from the school and not far from the commuter station. There are bank, grocery shops, foodstalls and many more just around the corner. It’s just like Jitra except that it’s more tranquil. Every night in the middle of the silence of nights, you can hear frail railways glitches of commuter and old train from distance; it gives the ‘authentic’ element of an old small town. The provincial town is surrounded by hills; so every morning is so cold. The place also boasts a secluded waterfall and so-called ‘Perigi 7’ claimed to be a dwelling place for mythical elves (‘bunian’). Besides that, there is also a modern village of the Indigenous People located nearby.

On whole, my life here in this small town Serendah is alright. Instead of a room I was scouting, I got a house with an affordable RM250 per month. And I’ve got Internet access here (which is very important) and all other trivial urban facilities. So far, this is the place I was hoping for to be allocated; a country-side primary school; not in the heart of a town nor too rural that transportation deemed to be hard. This is exactly what I’ve been yearning for. I pray to Allah SWT to bless me and protect me from men’s evil intentions. As a new person, I am still learning the culture of Serendah. (,”)

Today is 1st January 2010. Marks the day I am about to begin my life at Sekolah Kebangsaan Serendah, Selangor. The first school I am about to teach. The first school in the canvas of my education career. The first school I am about to receive my payment as a Government civilian. It’s all mixed feelings now- excitement and anxiety.

I was informed by the Pejabat Pendidikan Daerah (PPD) Hulu Selangor on 30th December and was asked to take the letter by Ministry Of Education on 31st December- which is the day after. So, you can imagine how topsy-turvy the atmosphere was; everything was fast and quick. No time to be wasted. After settling all the important documents pertaining my posting, we pushed off to Putrajaya around 6 P.M. and reached my sister’s house approximately 2.30 A.M. On 7 0’clock the next morning, we pushed off to Kuala Kubu Bharu, which is where the PPD Hulu Selangor is; collect the letter and off to Serendah. I was so relieved and thankful to Allah SWT because the place is A FAR CRY from my worst imagination that I’ve always been pyscho-ing myself with for this past one year. Throughout this year, I’ve already prepared myself mentally to be deported to rural area with no electricity and no clean water; bad modes of transportation; and surrounded by wild animals (tigers, wild boars)- like what my friends in rural area used to describe. But, God is Almighty. When you put everything to His Hands, everything would be smooth-flowing with unexpected saccharine cremes! I am allocated at a town primary school where the facilities are well-equipped! As a matter of fact, my school is allocated in a housing estate compound (‘rumah-rumah taman’) and the Serendah Commuter Station is just opposite the place. What a bless. When you look your life through Heaven’s eyes and not on Earth with emotion, Allah SWT will bless you! Alhamdulillah, so far!

Allah SWT wanted to test the patience. I was told that the school’s quarters are full; I would have to scout for a rent house. For the whole day (being tired and lethargic), my parents and I scouted for rent houses but proved to no avail. With  empty-stomachs, caught in traffic jams under the scorching hot weather  and countless detours, tantrums were on the peaks. So, we decided to go back to Pak Ngah’s house at Batu Arang, Rawang. Luckily since Pak Ngah was an ex-army and he had a lot of army friends at Serendah, I managed to secure a rent house with a VERY GOOD affordable price! A million thanks to Pak Ngah’s friends – Pak Cik Man & Pak Cik Din.

So this upcoming 4th January 2010, I will begin my first day there. So far, the people at PPD told me that the Headmaster is a very reputable person as a caring person towards the staffs. So far after I reported myself there, everything seems OK. I pray to Allah SWT that my life there will be smooth-flowing; although I am sure that there will be a  lot of emotionally and physically challenging events in the upcoming calendar as a teacher.  To all my KPLI friends who will be starting the education career like me, I bid “Good Luck!”  Insya Allah, I hope I can weather all the challenges in this career. May the Year 2010 which marks the first year as a Government Civilian goes well. Like the lyrics in “When You Believe” from the OST ‘Prince Of Egypt’ that always motivates me when I am down – ‘There can be miracles when you believe.’

There can be miracles, when you believe
Though hope is frail, it’s hard to kill
Who knows what miracles you can achieve
When you believe, somehow you will
You will when you believe