Gaddafi Oh Gaddafi!

Today is the 21st day of October 2011, me is supposed to celebrate me “unofficial birthday” today, not many knew that today is actually me real birthday. It is quite complicated actually, to think of me birthday supposed to be today but in the official document it stated 1st of January instead. Nevertheless, me “trajectory” in life had been destined to be as such – a person with two “birthdates”, so no regrets...

To reflect a bit, this same time last year, me was in Saudi Arabia where me had had quite a unique experience of waking up in the holy city of Mecca and on the same day, by nightfall, sleeping in the holy city of Medina visiting the prophet’s mosque before coming back home a few days later. Being in two of the holiest places in Islam in a day was quite a feat in itself, more so if it was made on your own birthday! This time around, in stark contrast to last year, the 21st October falls on Friday, other than going out to the market in the morning and attending the Friday prayer in the afternoon, the whole day was spent at home, alone!

A year had gone by and to recount the many things happening would be quite a chore. Only yesterday me was in Bintulu for a business meeting. It was quite a somber meeting and the outcome did dent me spirit a bit. Nevertheless, the meeting had set me thinking that in business things could change dramatically and we’d better be alert at the slightest hint of trouble if we are to survive – true enough, it was a kind of premonition that our vendor status would come to an end and we are now “graduated” to the next level of playing field! After five years of being a vendor, the insatiable feeling of not having enough is too strong thus making us craving for more…alas the reality is not as such and we have to live with what we have to sustain our business operations.

Arriving home after the tiring trip, me attention was then transfixed at the news that the deposed Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi was killed just that afternoon in his birth place of Sirte in Libya. It did not meant much except that back in the late sixties, while me was growing up, Gaddafi was me hero when he took over power after a military coup. He had been me hero for quite sometimes after that until me realized that he too made the same mistakes other great leaders made – not willing to let go and craving for more when the time is up and in Gaddafi’s case 42 years is just not enough!

Such was our human folly, alas we forget that God is the all Powerful for He is the One that give and take back “power’ from whom He wishes, for His wills cannot be undone….

After all, the “Arab Spring” uprising which had begun in Tunisia then spread to Egypt earlier in the year had ended Gaddafi’s long tenure as a leader who had been blinded by his own hunger for powers…may God has mercy on his soul.