September Morn' - Part I (Farewell, my dear teacher)

Cikgu Norbibi and Cikgu Wan Tik
in the midst of KB76ers during lunch in 2003 in PJ. Also
seen in the picture is Sapurah who passed away in 2010

September morning arrives with mixed feeling on my part.

Cikgu Norbibi passed away late afternoon Friday (yesterday) on Merdeka day. It was sad news since the past few days I have been fed info that she has awaken, though still very weak. On her FB, her daughter reminded her friends that she was asking for forgiveness. To note, I put a 'like' on that posting. There was no apology to be given from my side to be honest; she had done me no wrong throughout her life. In fact as her student, I was not able to ask for her apology if I had been mischievous in her class during those teen years.

Actually a couple of hours before, I saw in my news feed that almarhumah had like a page on dieting. I thought I should put on her wall, remarking that "Hey cikgu, you are back!" on something like that.

But I thought it was bit rash to put such jolly remark there when she had been down for weeks.

So I did not.

Until I saw a posting on FB, and immediately texted cikgu Nik F to confirm, and soon text from Cikgu Fatanah also confirmed the worst fear.

Unfortunately too that she was to be buried immediately that night somewhere else too (i.e. not in PC). The word unfortunate is for the writer, not almarhumah. I was ready to take the 6.35 am flight the next day to attend her burial had it taken place today.

But it was not meant to be, I guess.

Damailah cikgu di sana. Kami mendoakan agar ruh cikgu sentiasa dirahmati dan dimasukkan kedalam syurga. Alfatihah.

Not her best picture, but you can blame it on the photographer, in which
case the photographer will blame it on the analogue camera. Here she was in
2003 with Ku and Aya, and the rest of KB76ers in PJ for lunch.

I had visited her on the way back to KL way back in 2003 when she was Pengetua MRSM Kuala Krai at her official residence. I do have a couple of pictures with her, but at this moment, I am unable to locate them due to some reasons.

As noted by a friend Aya in a conversation last night - bit-by-bit, pieces our childhood are breaking and fading away. Cikgu Wan Raimah passed away last Ramadhan, and now in Syawal Cikgu Norbibi. The connection to our childhood years are being taken away in rapid succession. Prior to that, Cikgu Azizah passed away a few years back, and for all three of them, I am glad to say, I managed to visit them a couple of weeks before their passing.

Alfatihah for my three cikgu.

Obviously there are many more remaining, and there is no guarantee that the former students would not be the one following their footsteps earlier. I feel it with more urgency as I was telling someone that we should be celebrating Raya with them, while we are all still alive and healthy.

Before silence sets in.