Thursday, June 18, 2009

Cliffordians reunited at last !

Life is full of surprises and coincidence. For the past 15 years I've been trying to reconnect myself with my classmates and friends in my secondary school. Time passed by so fast and many things have changed and it seemed impossible to find my fellow Cliffordians. I never give up hope because something tells me that one day I shall find them. Thank God there is Facebook.com, I finally managed to rediscover long lost friendships.

Once a Cliffordian..always a Cliffordian

I was very surprised to get a message through facebook from my pet sister Kak Liza. I met her when I was in form 3 and she was in lower 6 at that time. She used to be my partner for a pantomime presentation and MC for a couple of events in school. We share quite a lot of memories together in school. Since I studied in an all boys school, I did not get to know a lot of female students. However, having co-ed form six students in the school gave me a different perspective of a relationship . Having the chance to make friend with my pet sister has widened my view of friendship. The last time I heard from her was when she joined the armed forces. I never thought someone so soft and tender like her would become an 'iron lady'. To Kak Liza (Norhasliza Hashim) I am really thankful for all the wonderful memories we shared together and encouragement you gave me! At least it helped me a little when I got to a female dominated TESL programme! For your information I was very close to enroll myself to be an army officer after SPM, however my parents disagreed to that and they wanted me to choose teaching career instead. I guess it is my destiny to become a teacher and I am enjoying every second of it.

The enigmatic old building of Clifford secondary School

My next surprise also came from facebook.com when my former classmate and dormate Naim added me in his contact list. He was the only guy that I share the same name in school. Naim is the name that my family members use to call me. In fact, some of my relatives didn't even know that my full name is Naiman. Anyway, since we stayed in the same class and the same dorm, I was quite comfortable using my full name to differentiate us. We both were the members of silat association. It seemed like an avalanche of joy when I got to rediscover my old friend Rosasmawi Ismail. I have lost contact with him since I got posted to Labuan. When I look back at the Class of 1994 photo (below) I think I have managed to piece half of the puzzle and I believe I will complete the big piece of the puzzle soon. My hope is that one day we all shall come back to Dewan Hamdan (the school main hall) as Cliffordians...True Cliffordians!. It is sad to learn about the lost of my three friends Zulkifli a.k.a Malek, Zulfikar and Rosli a.ka. Bros (Al-Fatihah)

5v1 Class of 94 in memory

The two weeks holiday was not really a holiday for me as I had to rush back early to Terengganu. This year's preparation for SBP Tens was the worst in my history of coaching, the students got back a day before we headed for Kluang , Johor. I did not expect much since two of my key players suffered injuries and one player fell ill. Well, they managed to achieve beyond my expectation. Even tough they got to the 4th Division (Shield) the team played well and they made it to the quarter finals. I'm glad that with only 14 players, we survived without any injury. Congratulations to my Lightning Brains! Next time we'll go for more!

Lightning BRaInS Super 14

Two big events take place this week. The Malaysia-Asean School Linkage Program which I was invited by SMK Lembah Bidong to be one of the facilitators (thanks to my wife) and also The Co-curriculum Day of SBP Integrasi Batu Rakit.

My former student Aisyah from Labuan who happened to join the Malaysa-ASEAN School Linkage Program

What a small world! When I was offered to teach a group of students consist of ASEAN students. I did not really know what to expect. I did some preparation and rehearse the lesson a little bit (since I wanted to make a good impression to my wife's students and also to the ASEAN students). I waited anxiously in the class. The moment the ASEAN students walked into the class I immediately reccognized a familiar face and a familiar badge. She was my ex-student from Labuan. I remembered teaching her when she was in form 3 and now she is already in form 5. Even though it has been two years I had left Labuan, Labuan shall always be a part of my life. I really treasure all the good times and bad times. Labuan will always be close to me at heart.


Alhamdulillah all those sweet memories of the past are coming back to me in a different light. I'm glad I have made it this far and I'm also glad to know that all my friends are also doing well. To all my friends and students, may Allah bless all of you with a happy and fulfilling life and that one day we shall all be reunited in heaven.


3 comments:

amiechomel said...

I just can't see you NOT as a teacher. You're born to be a teacher laaa... If you are an army officer, hmm... will I still be your wife? Well, who knows right?

Anyway, I'm happy for you! It feels so good to meet old friends, i know that feeling!

Unknown said...

Thanks for being my most loyal blog reader dear! I guess what I wrote in this blog is the feeling from within. I'm glad that I have met my good friends again.

fizz said...

hi naiman..this is teacher zulaikha..glad to know u still remember me.. will link u to my blog soon..

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