I was really busy with work and attending to family matters. It was indeed a happy moment when all my children were able to attend Aman's wedding. The last time we were together, was back in 2006, before Aman left for Egypt to study medicine .
Yesterday morning Aman flew to Cairo with his wife.Both families sent them off at the airport.Aman and I took the bus from Ipoh and on arrival at the airport, a young man hesitatingly approached us.
'You speak English,' he asked Aman. Aman was quite reluctant to answer because he was taught to be careful with strangers.
'We do,' I answered and I asked whether he had any problems.
My motherly instinct was right. The nineteen-year old boy came to Malaysia to find work and after a month of labour in a furniture factory in Ipoh, he was found medically unfit and his visa was terminated.His employer used his hard-earned money to buy him the flight ticket home. He looked lost and unhappy so I asked Aman to buy him some food . We chatted and he told us about himself. He was the eldest in a family of three. In Nepal, he worked as a rafter (carrying people across the river using rafts). I was quite impressed with his command in English and his willingness to find work so far away from home. I asked Aman to make sure that all his documents were in order and consulted the information personnel about his flight which was due the next morning. We departed soon after.
Later that day, while en suami, Aman and I were heading towards the surau,the Nepalese boy approached us, beaming. 'Thank you friend,' he kept saying. He also introduced us to his countrymen who worked in Selangor, whom he met at the airport.I was glad that he was not travelling alone. I wished them luck and to have a safe journey home.
The encounter with the Nepalese boy made me ponder how difficult life can be. To make ends meet, he has to use all his savings to find jobs in our beloved country. Unfortunately, it did not turn out well and he has to resume work as a rafter when he gets home. Maybe, when he has enough money, he would further his studies and his life will be much better after that.
