Wednesday, June 30, 2010

When You Are 62

1. Some 62 years ago at about 0908 hr on this date I was born to a coconut tapper father and a housewife in the village of Parang Puting, Pengkalan Chepa, Kota Bharu, Kelantan. Being the first born in the family I was pampered like any other child to spoil my later adulthood. I was told by my late grandmother that my late uncle Pak Teh Hussin would not leave the house to go to work without seeing me in my sleep. It was only after seeing my innocent face that he cycled to work. However, my late grandfather didn't tell me what my late father did before he went out to do his chores.

2. I was spoiled from my childhood until my adulthood by members of my family. I gathered that was the way the last generation showered their love. Of course when my sister Latifah born in June 1952 and my cousin Eshah born in 1953, the close family attention went to these girls.

3. I started schooling in January 1955 at the Sekolah Kebangsaan Parang Puting which is situated on the road from Kota Bharu to Sabak at the 6.5 milestone. I remembered thefirst school very well; the walls were made up of bamboo, the roofs of nipah attaps and the floor is bare sand. I could not remember whether I had shoes or not, if I had they surely became dirty of mud which we called the Malayan snow. I used to carry one slate board and one slate pencil to school on which I wrote every subject matter from arithmatic to religious studies. I was quite good in school coming 5th in Standard One and from Standard 2-5 on top of the class.

4. I took the Special Malay Examination in 1958 hoping to enter the English school in Kota Bharu in 1959. I came out 4th in Kota Bharu District 4 and was posted to Merbau English School where I stayed until December 1961. In January 1962 I enrolled at the Sultan Ismail College and studied there until I completed Upper Six Science in December 1968. In the school I was a little active playing some games, though didn't excel in any; was a school prefect, president of Interact Club and Deputy President of Science & Mathematics Society. The president of the latter was Wee Chan Hock.

5. I entered the Faculty of Science, University of Malaya in May 1969 without knowing what to do. I did economics, chemistry, biology A and biology B in the first year; eliminated economic in the second year; and did all biology in the third year. In the final or Honours year I specialised in botany .....and botany I professed until to-day when I am 62

3 comments:

N.A. Rahman said...

Terima kasih kerana berkongsi pengalaman Prof.. Saya sangat menyokong jika Prof. menulis buku biografi atau ada pihak lain yang melaksanakannya. Menjadi sumber inspirasi kepada orang yang masih 'hijau' dalam bidang ini seperti saya.

N.A. Rahman said...

Selamat hari lahir Prof.. Semoga Prof. sentiasa sihat dan diberi kekuatan untuk melaksanakan segala 'misi' yang masih belum selesai.

pakteh said...

Saya sudah hidup 62 tahun masehi dan lebih daripada 64 tahun hijrah tetapi saya masih banyak perkara yang penting ingin laksanakan untuk teman-teman yang lebih muda. Saya mempunyai angan-angan untuk menulis suatu autobiografi ....sudah mula tetapi tangguh dan tangguh ...mungkin suatu hari saya teruskan bukan apa sekadar berkongsi pengalaman yang tidak seberapa.