mourning a friend's loss

izham's mother passed away on monday, 29 June 2009.

he called me that morning to say he could not attend our work group because his mother was very, very, very ill and he needed to go back to Kelantan to be with her. he also mentioned that he could be away a few days. he just returned from Kelantan early that morning. a couple of hours after that, another collegue of mine told me that his mother had passed away.

izham is my colleague at the new office with whom i share a room, with another colleague too. it has been a little over 6 months since i knew him. i have grown fond of him, his brotherly gestures, his jests as well as his most resourceful nature. he googles everything, even.... 'wear your heart on your sleeve'.

i had known that his mother had been ill and he had been constantly visiting her in Kelantan. i loved to ask him about his mother. his eyes lites up when he spoke of his mother. the story that most touched my heart is....he used to send flowers to his mother every year on Mother's Day. it was the same florist who would deliver them to her, commenting on how lucky she was to have such a thoughtful son. He said that it was the comment that really pleased her instead of the flowers. this year, he did not send her flowers, instead he went back to be with her.

i mourn a dear friend's loss, the woman i never knew. may she had lived life to the fullest. may the almighty Allah pray grant her peace and ease her eternal journey to jannah. Al Fathihah.