Awakening

00:17 Nala Mazia 0 Comments


H A P P I N E S S

A simple, common word. It’s nothing fancy, nothing grand, nothing posh. You hear it from people of all kind. Everyone can say the word. Everyone can use the word. College degree is not required to get acquaintance with this word. Sounds trivial. Sounds flat. But this word is high on demand. Everyone is craving for it. Everyone seeks it, driven nuts in order to find it. But, it’s just a word. What about it?

You too, I know, is heading to happiness, at least you think you are. But, are you? Do you even know where you’re heading? Happiness is intangible. Happiness is abstract. Happiness is a conception. Ah, perhaps you know! Happiness is... uh, right. What is it again? You know it, but you can’t really put it into words. It’s there, but not quite. How clear your destination is! Happiness. Thus, how will you reach it? Sorry, buddy, google maps ain’t got you nowhere this time.

What is happiness, really? Uh, wait, is it real? Ah, don’t know what to think!

Hey, don’t despair, my friend, let’s contemplate!

You may feel lost now. No worries, you’re not alone. Multitudes out there are still looking for happiness. They may look fine, but who knows inside there’s just a void raging to be filled. Many have wandered through continents, crossed oceans, climbed mountains, yet happiness is still nowhere to be found. Let me tell you a little secret, no matter how far you go, if you don’t know where to look, you will fail. Some may have been ascetics to find happiness, but again, let me tell you. If you don’t know the key, no matter how long you meditate, you won’t succeed!

Now, if you want to know what the key is, take your phone. Open Snapchat. Use the front camera. Apply any filter you like. See anyone there? Or you can just stand in front of a mirror. Or a spoon, whatever, to see your own reflection.

Yep, it’s in you! You hold the key all along, my friend. This key is special, it needs wielding. Just as how Excalibur is only forged to be wielded by Arthur, this key can only be used by you!

Now, let’s find your key.

Still cannot find it?

Well, then maybe you’ve been looking in the wrong direction!

You might always be thinking that happiness is when you get what you want. That sounds to be the true concept of it. But, really? If you can never have what you want, then you can never be happy? Oh, how sad. Luckily, it’s not that. That is what I meant to be the wrong direction.

Happiness is not about getting what you want. Not at all. Truth is, my friend, it’s about loving what you have and realizing how blessed you are to have it. I’ll let this soaked in to your brain. Let’s do a little reasoning. When you have all that you want, but you’re not grateful for it, there’ll always be something lacking. This won’t take you to happiness, but to greed instead. However, if you’re grateful and feel blessed to have it, happiness is yours! If you know how to be grateful, even when you have nothing, you will still hold that happiness.

Slapped? Nice to know you’re awaken.

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The Mortal Manual: Not Just a Temporary Fix

17:20 Nala Mazia 0 Comments


Greetings, everyone!

I wish you a marvellous day. Some days we are on cloud nine, and some other days we just hit the ground. That’s how life is, so buckle up and enjoy the ride! If we are prepared for the ups and downs, surely we will survive and feel content whatever happens. Talking about ups and downs, I remember someone who underwent the up and down only in one day.

One fine day, a little boy walked out of his classroom carrying wide smile on his face. It was the end of the semester, and all his efforts were paid. He aced in class, and achieved the highest marks among the others. Proud and grateful, his father bought him a present. A really sophisticated toy, which the boy had been craving for. The toy needed to be manually assembled, but that didn’t matter for him. He couldn’t wait to get the toy to function. Along with the package, there was a manual book. However, the boy thought he didn’t need that manual to get his toy work properly. It was piece of cake to assemble the parts. After hours, he successfully joined the parts, and the shape looked exactly like the picture. However, when he tried to run the toy, it didn’t work as it should. The latest features and the advanced technology it had only went to waste. The toy couldn’t work optimally, because the boy didn’t follow the guide. Poor him, he couldn’t play with the sophisticated toy.

Let’s stop pitying the boy, and try to take a lesson from the story. The toy was designed to have certain features. It was completed with a manual to make it work to its best performance. However, the boy didn’t follow the instruction from the creator, so the toy failed to work. What can we say? This can be used as an analogy to human and Al Qur’an, don’t you think?

As humans, we are created by One Source, Allah. Just like the toy, we are also aided with a manual from our Creator. Our manual book is Al Qur’an. The complete manual guide on how to be the best of ourselves is written there. Simply like the boy’s case, if we don’t follow the Al Qur’an, we will not work properly as humans. We will be defective, and won’t reach our best feature. The Al Qur’an has all answers to our insecurities and our problems, if only we read it. Don’t be arrogant as the boy was, that we take a notion we don’t need any manual book in our life, or else we will be lost.

Al Qur’an is our guidance in life, our fix. Whenever you suffer from sadness, look for the cure in Al Qur’an. When you feel angry, take comfort in Al Qur’an. Whenever you feel broken, look up the way to fix yourself in the Al Qur’an. Instead of taking temporary fix, why don’t you take the permanent one, that is Al Qur’an? Really, guys, Al Qur’an is the greatest miracle Allah has given to us. It doesn’t only guide us in our life, but also will guide and save us later in the afterlife. So, let’s read Al Qur’an! If you cannot read it well, learn. If you can read, but rarely read it, read more often. If you have read Al Qur’an more often than reading your social media, keep it up!

Tonight, the night of Ramadan the 17th, we commemorate the Nuzulul Qur’an, the moment when Al Qur’an was descended in full content. It’s a magical night, can you feel it? I want to invite you to celebrate this night by reading Al Qur’an and learning the content. There’s no harm in doing so, on the contrary, tons of advantages you will get. Read and learn the Qur’an, and you will unlock the best features of yourself! Be your best self! May the light of Al Qur’an shine our path always :)

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Be Careful with Your Wishes

20:55 Nala Mazia 0 Comments


One day, an ordinary freshman wished to be the best graduate at her school. Three years later, she got the reward, and even beyond her imagination.

In different year, different place, a passionate young girl wrote a goal just to accomplish a boring writing tutorial assignment. Having no idea for what to write, she casually wrote, “This semester goal: be an active student journalist.” The week after, she was assigned to cover some events for a media, incessantly in a month.

One morning in a new academic year, an enthusiastic girl determined to be rarely back to her hometown. This fellow went to college that was only an hour by motorbike from her hometown, so even though she stayed in a boarding house, she always went home every weekend. She thought this habit did not help her independence, so she stated her determination. As a result, the whole semester she had to go home every fortnight, because there was always something that kept her from her weekly going home.

Those are not fictions. I witnessed those occurrences, and even knew those people personally. What can we infer from those cases?
I know Allah hears everyone’s prayers, and He will not ignore them at all. I am always aware of this, and I have experienced such blessing countless times. Every word comes out from our mouth, and even every unsaid words are wishes. It means not only the good wishes but also bad wishes that may come true. Therefore, be careful with what you wish!

Calamities as a result of our own wish do not only happen to Merida. Other stories, movies, and even real occurrences have taught us to be careful in wishing, because such case might happen to us! You may wish to live the life of Riley, or fairy tale, and they may come true one way or another. Never wish for something bad, that usually pops up when we are not in clear mind. Similarly, avoid wishing for something that is not right for us, or that we do not enjoy to do.

Just pin this in mind that words are prayers. Do not overlook the power of your words, pals! You know words can hurt someone more than a knife does, but do you know it can hurt your future? Wish wisely! :)

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Freefalling Expectations

15:31 Nala Mazia 0 Comments


Wherever we go, I hope we never leave gratitude behind. Let it accompany us along every step we take. If we spare a little time to think and look back on what we have been through, we will realise a great deal of blessings poured to us. Set aside the thought about how miserable our life is, and think of good things we have. That way, we will feel a little more grateful.

Wait, you still cannot feel grateful? Let’s take another trick. For this one, I have a recent experience. First, let me tell you I am far from pious, I am not yet meet the image of how a Muslim girl should be. I am trying to be, though. On my way there, right now, I am still learning to be grateful. Here is my story.

Ever since I was accepted in the university, I had been wishing to be a part of a language and culture learning service. The idea to be a tutor for foreigners who want to learn our language was intriguing. When the office finally held a selection for tutors, I enrolled right away. I passed the first test, I was grateful. Next phase, I passed it too, another gratitude. I had a high expectation that I would be accepted. As for the last test, I did not hear any news at the supposedly announcement day. Then, I thought maybe I was not accepted. I was a bit disappointed, and my high expectation suddenly dropped. I tried to let go, and kept thinking positive that Allah might have a better way for me. Until a couple of days later, a friend of mine told me my name was on the list of the new tutors! The rush of bliss was unexpectedly high in me. I expressed my gratitude as much as I could, for I did not expect it to happen to me. My gratitude might not be that much if I had known from the start about my acceptance.

Months had passed, and I have been doing my responsibility in tutoring. However, I could not meet the total time allotment due to my activities and my student’s. At the end of a program, I would be given reward for some rupiah, hourly basis. I learnt that my senior earned much amount of money, when the others only received one-third or so of her wage. I was amazed, she said that she was diligent and even hold tutorials every day. No wonder she got that much. Then, I was wondering, how much would I get? I did not apply for the money, but, still, who was not happy to be given money? (:p) I was feeling inferior to this senior. She was so industrious and she got that amount. Compared to her story, I felt like I did not do that much. I did a simple math out of it, and came at a conclusion that I would probably earn a quarter of her amount. Again, my expectation was failed to fly high. I was like, okay, alhamdulillah, I got a reward and I made money on myself, how delightful.

I had not taken my wage until some days ago, when I finally had time. Do you know how I felt when reading a nominal on the envelope? I was so surprised of the amount I got. It was thrice as much as what I expected! An instant gratitude, a great deal of it, hit me in joy. I did not expect to get that much, so my gratefulness was many times greater. If I had not lower my expectation, I might not be grateful that much.

Can you see the pattern from those two occurrences? I did not expect too much of something. Through some disappointments, Allah had reminded me not to expect things too high. Fortunately, I did lower my expectations, so I felt like I had got a great deal of luck. The feeling was indescribably amazing, you should experience it on your own to know. I guess that was an easy way to get you more grateful of something. Remember, guys, if we are thankful, Allah will grant us more. I hope my simple words could help you better yourself.

Simply be grateful for everything, then the life of Riley is only some steps ahead! No te rindas! :)

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