This one is to reiterate that when Allah invites you to be His guest, nothing will stop you from being His guest. It was a blessing for me to perform hajj in 2010.
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“Alhamdulillah, Puan dipilih untuk menyertai rombongan haji pada tahun ini.” Those words were the happiest things I’ve heard for a long time. I actually wanted to jump for joy once I heard “Alhamdulillah” after the person identified herself. But, I had to settle with a small silly dance on the seat in the cinema while waiting for Shrek to begin.
“Kenapa Mama?” Haikal asked. I told him I would tell him after the movie ended.
Back tracking a few months, when the Company came out with a circular to invite its staff to apply for the hajj trip, I didn’t even hesitate to send my application, knowing fully well that priorities would be given to retirees and long serving employees. I thought I would just try my luck because should I wait for Tabung Haji, which I registered a couple of years back, I would only be able to perform hajj in another 15 years or so. I was hopeful, but I prepared myself for possible rejection.
Fast forwarding a few weeks, an email came out for all bakal jemaah haji to receive the letters of offer. My heart soared but I was still cautious and ensured my feet were still firm on the ground. It turned out that there were 130 applicants for a quota of 120 participants – I was being KIVed due to the number of years of service in the Company. My heart sank a bit but I remained hopeful and prayed that somehow or rather I would be accepted. I would not give up hope until it was confirmed otherwise. And should that happen, I was determined to try again next year. So, I went to the first course organized eventhough I wasn’t sure of my fate yet. And somehow, I had a really good feeling after attending the course.
Another week passed with no news and I was getting a bit apprehensive. But, I assured myself that no news was actually good news. And true enough, the phone call received was right on time.
I’m thankful to Allah for giving me this great opportunity. I intend to prepare myself fully for it. I know there will be many challenges along the way but I will pray that everything will go smoothly. I know fully well that leaving my precious little darlings for 40 days will be my biggest challenge but I also know that Allah will always be there to take care of them. With that knowledge, I’m appeased.
And yes, so the journey begins...
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