Observations

I love to listen to other peoples’s conversations in lifts, restaurants and other public places. Of course, it’s not the most morally upright thing in the world, but there is only so much you can do to cut out the “noise” from reaching my audio receptors. And I do have a pretty good SNR reading, borrowing from the remnants of what I can remember from my comms module in my uni days.

And hence, observations can be made on certain types of people, and stereotypes are created. Some positive, some are negative. I find Malay men can talk in indulgent subjects of conversations, about family in general, about certain things they need to achieve in life. Malay women talk about the best eating places, latest shopping sale, where to find the latest handbags and stuff. Caucasian kwailos talk about the latest policies in their office which could affect what they are trying to achieve at work. Chinese ladies.. err ok, this particular Christian Chinese was actively trying to invite her friend to come to her church for a communion.

Which leads me to realize how deeply committed they are to propagate their new found faith. Chen, my old buddy, a free-wandering-spirit looking for the next best thing to achieve in life, as well as money, converted after chasing after then his girl, and wife now. He was smart, intelligent, and no doubt very much clear about life as Malay-muslim having grown up in Pilah, and having tastebuds accustomed to gulai rebung, but the speed with which he was converted, no doubt that love had a strong unalienable pull, was still something I find immensely surprising.

Perhaps it is a question of personal commitment towards truth. I find myself fighting with, against it every hour. Doing what I know could be wrong, doing what I think is not the priority, doing not the right thing – you know, the different grades of choosing the wrong path is a continuous exercise of jihad and iman. Numerous times I have lost, and currently almost terminally, so that to find a way back seems to be so difficult. Although try I must.

But I digress. These observations seem to highlight to me what I need to do. Seems to highlight to me how huge the gap is for us to overcome that merely trying to exercise methodology and approach improvements will never be sufficient. It is a moral question, one that guides choices and reinforces personal integrity towards what the truth is and exercises passion towards what brings the best for the whole, not purely for personal and selfish gains.