2020 has been a whir whirl year for almost every
single soul in this universe. It has been so challenging that it tests every
tiny bit and strand of our nerves and veins inside us. With the pandemic
Covid-19 that hit the world, no one is excluded from experiencing it even the
newborn baby. But I guess when things don’t turn out the way that we hope for,
we just need to make the most out of that even if it is a misery, an utter
agony.
For the past few months during the pandemic, I
experience mixed emotions going through in me. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by
sadness without no definite and traceable reason. I did feel completely empty
inside my soul. The other time, I just did nothing except for sleeping almost
all day long. The lists don’t stop there and that was just a few that I can
recall. I guess it is so hard to make peace with the reality—I am in DENIAL
phase!
However, as I started to realize that the existence of
everything serves its own purpose and reason, I slowly accept the fact that
Allah is indeed Merciful and this is just the test to test our Imaan. I begin
to count my blessing and try to be the better (Insha Allah will be the best)
version on myself. Maybe this is the silver lining behind the occurrence of the
pandemic. Not to mention that the MCO happened during Ramadan that I am pretty
sure it becomes one of the most unforgettable experiences for all of us.
Cut story short with the blabber, here are the few
things that I did as to add up to my new and existing experience.
1.
I started writing
a journey that is something that I have been thinking of doing ever since the
MCO started. And yes, I did it!
2.
I managed to
Khatam the Holy book of Quran within 3 months and that was such a great
achievement compared to once a year before this.
3.
I also never
missed the Tarawih prayer and I even try to do the 20 (+3) rakaat.
4.
I learned to
continue expressing my feelings through writing poems (English and Malay) in a more beautiful way.
5.
I try baking my
favorite cake and it was so scrumptious at the first try.
6.
I add on to my
skills by editing video and photos using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro
software.
7.
I listened to
spiritual and self-development Podcasts on Spotify.
Side
note: These were just a few out of the countless experience I had during MCO.
All in all, the MCO was truly an opportunity to
accommodate myself with various skills and experience that some might not be
available before this.
Pro
tip: Let’s see every circumstance as a mean for us to grow, to get closer to
Allah. You will find it more adventurous. It’s the process that matters.
Experience
for ERTL
Because of the pandemic that going on all around the
way, students are one of the categories that are included and affected by it. This
has shifted from the traditional or face-to-face class to the online class.
IIUM at the same time has come out with the Emergency Remote Teaching Learning
(ERTL) in line with the announcement and amendment made by the Ministry of
Higher Education.
Honestly, for someone who prefers the traditional
method of learning, it is not convenient in the first place. This is mainly
because of my short attention span that I easily get distracted when the
lecturer keeps on talking virtually. However, as time goes by, I started to
adapt to the online learning as that is the only choice I have. Truth be
told, ERTL has taught me to be more appreciative of the moments before the
whole COVID 19 thingy. The chance to go to class, to sit together with friends,
to discuss assignments in the group, to present in front of classmates, and a lot
more of situations a normal student would always experience.
I believe we always need to find the silver lining
behind everything that happened. We all just need a little bit of time to make
sense and process with the information that we have. Whatever it is, never lose
hope in Allah’s mercy.
On
a short note: I always make dua to Allah that please never let me depend on
myself, instead, please make me always have the full conviction in Him and
always be dependent to the one and only Allah.