Today is 9th June. Just 4 days ago Sabah was hit by this medium earthquake that was traumatic enough for the Sabahans. As you guys know, we used to believe that our country was safe from all kinds of severe natural disasters. We never had to worry. Now all that became a history.
I still remember, on Friday morning, at 7.15, I was sitting at the sofa. My usual routine before going out from the house. Usually I used that time to say my morning prayer. All of a sudden I felt the sofa starting to shake, the kind of movement that I thought caused by some wild animal below the sofa, or maybe the sofa was breaking down before my eyes. It was so unthinkable. I got panic and I quickly stood up and went to the door nearby. I held on the grill for support, in case anything happened. I looked at the sofa and tried to examine why did it move. Then before I could do anything, I actually felt the ground moving too! Oh goodness! It was so fast and I could feel that I was "surrendering" anytime - in case something really massive was going to happen. A voice screaming in my head telling me that This Isn't Real. This never happened before and No, it was not happening. WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT!! If I could see myself in a cctv, I must have my eyes wide opened, in total shock. After it ended, I was breathing hard, relieved that it has ended before something worse happened. If you ask me, Yes that was very traumatic.With some news of hearing trumpet from the sky and some other signs of apocalypse, I almost thought, THAT'S IT! IT'S HAPPENING NOW!!
From there, every day feels really long. With all the news coming in about victims who perished, about the landmark might Mount Kinabalu that was in bad shape after the earthquake. In fact, all the victims are the ones who were at the mountain that time. We have lost some innocent lives, including the mountain guides who touched the hearts of Malaysians, after their contribution being acknowledged all over the world. They are indeed the real heroes on this tragedy. Barehandedly they went and save as many lives, and 4 of these heroes have fallen in their rescuing mission. I cried so hard watching and reading about their sacrifices.
Plus, many of the native Sabahans believe that this tragedy was caused by some incident that happened days before that. A group of tourists did something really offensive when they decided to go naked on top of Mount Kinabalu, despite being warned by the guides. The Sabahans believe that Mount Kinabalu is a sacred place where all the souls rest. Our ancestors believe in this for centuries and we accept that as part of the legacy of our people. Many of you who have climbed this mountain, should know about some dos and don'ts when you are at the mountain. You cannot do or speak foul, do not take anything but photographs, do not leave anything but footprints. Ask around and hear for yourself that it's better off people obey the rules of this place. They believe that we might offend the souls or the keeper of the mountain, known as Aki Nabalu and something bad will happen. In the midst of building anger at what the tourists did, suddenly this earthquake took place. I know what most of you think, that there's no way these souls are higher than God. If you ask me, I rather not argue about this. I have this thing called #Respect. I have long accepted the fact that I am not that smart to be able to understand everything. What I don't know or don't understand, doesn't mean they don't exist.
For now, I pray that there's no more disaster like this. It's heartbreaking. I really thankful that I have God to rely on, or else I'd be like really lost in uncertainties. I'd feel hopeless about live cos I might be clueless about my direction if it's really the end of the world. As you can see the header of this blog, I have made it in remembrance of tragedy. We are still in mourning. Sabahans from all walks of life are grieving together with their loved ones. Especially for the deceased mountain guides namely Robby, Valerian, Ricky and Joseph, you guys have no idea how proud we are with you for putting others's lives before your own. Thank you for making others see the warriors in our people. Rest in peace in the eternal life that is promised by our Saviour. You guys will always live in our memory. Condolences to the climbers who did not survive the ordeal. We do not always understand why God permits something to happen but we just have to trust in His will.
Stay Strong, Sabahans.
