"Tolong" | Open | Seashells

Bismillah.

So we learn, sometimes, some things, it's not just about finding them, but it's also about opening them.

Open -  even the sound of the word open carries a positive vibe, don't you think so? Oh by the way, when I was at a clinic this morning, I noticed four posters which have got five tolong on them. Tolong in the Malay language and in the context of the posters means please. Tolong also means help. Pronounce it like this: tow low-ng

I don't mean to poke fun at my own language but when I read all four posters with five tolong-s on them I thought the word sounded a little funny. Or was it just me being a lil sick today. LOL.

Having read all posters, I truly empathized with the doctor and her staffs because the posters sounded like a "cry for help" so that the patients and their companions would be more civic-minded.

Poster 1 says: Please [tolong] keep the clinic clean.

Poster 2 says: Please [tolong] write your name and ID number each time you visit.

Poster 3 says: Please [tolong] don't be noisy and please [tolong] be patient.

Poster 4 says: Please [tolong] mind your children's behavior.

They are really begging for cooperation there! But I guess, sometimes, people need to be told exactly what they should do. Like the poster below. It's a saying by the venerable Imam Ghazali which I did not know until a friend dreamed about it and related the story to me. He dreamed of an old lady quoting that words of wisdom. It was a good dream for him but let's not go into details.

It's telling us a basic thing like those notices at the clinic. That we should not only look for seashells but we must open them, cos there might be pearls inside. That the real purpose is to find pearls and not just stop at the seashells. That we have to take one step further, make one more effort - open.

May Allah Al Fattah open the door to beneficial knowledge for us all. May Allah open the door to goodness for us all. May Allah open our hearts to be a receptacle of His Light, Beauty and Wisdom.

Ameen.  

p/s
Tolong say a prayer for me : )
Know that, you [my dear genuine readers/friends] are counted in my duá.

Allahumma tawwil umurana
wa soh hih ajsadana
wa nawwir qulubana
wa tsabit imaanana
wa ahsin aqmalana
wa wassiq arzaqana
wa ilal khairi qaribna
wa 'anish sharri ab 'idna
waqdhi hawa ijana
fid deeni wa dunya wal akhirah
innaka ala kulli syai in qadir

O Allah, grant us a long life
make our body healthy
enlighten our hearts
strengthen our faith
broaden our provision
bring us near to goodness
keep us far from evil
fulfill all our wishes
pertaining to our religion, this world and the hereafter
for You are the Most Powerful over all matters

Ameen.

KL 25th October 2016
Happy that we have got a mosque in KL (Masjid Kampung Baru)
that displays a myriad of colors to match the light show at the KL Tower.
It's no doubt a shi'ar of Islam, that we are progressive,
open to new ideas and modern.
[Click to enlarge and spot a brightly lit mosque.
Yes, taking photos of the KL night scene is my favorite pastime.]

The newly refurbished Masjid Kampung Baru in KL
Am proud of my kampung (village) or rather city : )