I'm still alive....

....except I am totally consumed with my Malay blog. It's like greeting a long lost lover - my love affair with Bahasa Melayu. From crooning old Malay songs to watching old Malay movies, I'm doing them all now.

What an irony! I was so entwined with my Malay culture when I was growing up - taking part in endless cultural activity after another - be it traditional malay dance, dikir barat, Malay debate. Straight into hostel at Uni, I was the only Malay girl in the whole place. I hardly listen to Malay radio, Malay tv programmes bore me and I just noticed how thin and insubstantial Berita Harian looks besides the other national papers. Malay films of that era with all their slapstick and low production values grated my nerves. Imagine this ~ a scene in one of the Malay programmes.. one doctor telling his patient's husband "Isteri awak mendapat tonsilitis - Barah tekak" (Your wife has got tonsilities i.e. throat cancer).

I got sick of the misconception some have of Malays and I was sick of some of the world views held by some Malays. In other words, I became alienated. Don't get me wrong ~ it's not like I am ashamed of being Malay. It's just become a minor part of me. And when I started my travels here to London, it became dormant. Other than speaking Malay and craving malay food, I speak and breathe English.

It was not a big thing - just two of my old friends encouraging me to write in Malay. A tiny spark that rekindled my love in my heritage. It spawned my malay blog and for quite a while, I'm totally obsessed; seeking malay songs on youtube, finding out who is Mawi, caring about siti nurhaliza's wedding and finally in a long long while, I decided to foray to the wilderness and bought two new Malay films . One was not bad at all and the other was totally enjoyable.

So forgive me, my dear sriperwira blog. It is not that I have forgotten you. :)