We got to know each other in mid-1993 via the Holiday Inn Group computer system, Holidax. I hated him when we met for the first time in July 1993. I rejected his countless pleas to meet him after that first date. Somehow, he managed to con me into meeting him again on 29 Nov 1993. On that day, I learnt more about him. We talked and talked for hours that I simply did not realise it was already 10pm. That day marked our first real date, having our first real conversation, sharing our first laugh with no hint of sarcasm at all. On that day, I knew I have begun to fall in love with him.
Our tumultuous love affair of 4 years was finally sealed with an akad nikah on 29 Nov 1997 at 11.30am. Why tumultuous, you may wonder? Firstly, he was from a different faith. Although he was used to the Malay way of life as he was born and raised in Malaysia, asking him to learn Islam and to convert was a totally different story. I did not force him neither did I coax him. He was very willing to learn more about Islam and I attended every lesson with him at Darul Arqam no matter how tired I was...Secondly, most of his siblings did not like the idea of him marrying a Malay gal, although his mum was neutral about his decision. My father was against my choice of a husband too...Thirdly and the final reason, he was a work-permit holder and by marrying him, even with consent from the then Ministry of Labour, would mean that it would not be easy for him to get any employment permit here for the next 5 years at minimum.
Somehow, we survived and are still surviving. 4 kids furnish our marriage. I have relatives and some friends (if I can call them "friends") who want to see our marriage crumble. Whatever is the reason behind their ill intention, only Allah knows. We persevere. We stand by each other. We brave the storm. And we are now into our 12th year or marriage; Syukur Alhamdulillah.
I do get pissed off with him when he shows me a sour face when he's tired. I do get pissed off with him when he nags at me for some little things that I may overlook. And I do get pissed off with him when he's too strict with our kids...But all these pale in comparison to the love that he has been showering me. He may be quiet, he may not say out that he loves me as often as before, but I know he loves me a lot. He works very hard for our family, he allows me to go out to work, he allows me to go out with my friends, he allows me to make decisions for our family and most importantly, he allows me to handle his money ;-)
I cannot ask for more. I realised that I love my dear husband too much that I cannot even imagine life without him. We may not be rich but we are comfortable. We may not have luxuries but we are contented. I do so much for my family cos he told me that I'm better at handling stuff than him. But when he does little things for me, I would be so happy that even a bar of chocolate presented to me by him can move me to tears. So emo lah, tis Liz...Nevertheless, I'm so grateful to Allah that our marriage has weathered whatever nonsense people have put us through. We are Liz Syafiq for 12 years now and I pray that we can continue our journey together till the end of time. Amin.
