Eco Tourism And Friend With Principles (Part 2)

ii. Friend With Principles:

Last weekend our group (about 35 of us - ex Tunku Bendahara's Special Malay Classes) went to Tasik Kenyir. I have heard of the place but never been there although its in Malaysia. The trip there with old friends was enjoyable and the long distant was covered without a hitch.The Tasik Kenyir is a man made lake (for hydro electricity purposes) and its a huge lake covering an area about the size of Negri Sembilan. And in it you could find about 360 islands (previously these are mountain peaks). At the Gawi jetty one could see boathouses moored by the side and in nearby islands one could see chalets, government research buildings, etc. In its haydays thousands visits the lake weekly and tourism related business was roaring then. The place is cool, calm and inviting. Its a beautiful place.
But, whats interesting to us was that we met a long time friend there. Almost all of us have not seen him for a long time. The last time we were together was way back after LCE examination in 1964. This friend of ours had a colourful and sorrowful episode in life - i.e. careerwise.
After LCE he got married and join an organisation to begin his career. Years ago we heard he was doing very well in his career - being promoted now and again and reached the top of the scale in record time. He still is holding the record now. After 18 years of productive work, contributing heart and soul to the organisation, and producing creative assets that are being use and exported till today, he was asked to leave the organisation "for your own good" and for "the good of the organisation" He left and got only the EPF money to his name. Nothing else what-so-ever.
This led to his second career as a Restaurant Operator to keep his wife and kids alive. This business lasted a few years. Stiff competition and undercutting drove him to closure.
Next, he left KL and move far inland to Tasik Kenyir. Living on a self build boathouse he slowly develope a business evolving arround eco tourism. After a few years, he was a succesful operator, in fact the most succesful operator at Tasik Kenyir, complete with a few speedboats, boathouses, jetskies, and the like. His speciallity was to take small group of tycoon for Kelah fishings. Those were the days.
We talk with him for hours on our first night at Tasik Kenyir. But, what interest me most is his principles. I just want to summarise here some of his principles.

1. He was once flying in a heli with our belove exPM - Tun Mahathir. He was at the rear and making an arm-throw type fishing net (jala). Tun asked him whats he is doing and commented that he is good at making it. His reply - taklah pandai sangat Datuk Seri, tapi ada sedikit asas dan setelah berulang kali membuatnya, lama lama pandailah juga. (jika kita membuat sesuatu berulang kali lama-lama kita akan jadi pakar membuatnya).
2. Education - should be followed until the end, ie PhD's level. Even if you are good or the best at doing something, without paper qualification to back you, you will not be listened to.
3. Careerwise - be your own boss. Never be a servant to others.
4. Property - (amat malang jika ada ketika nanti orang Melayu di Tanah Melayu tidak lagi mempunyai tanah sendiri). Do your utmost to own property, esp land and landed property. Don't just be satisfied with inheritted property.
5. Birthdays - its wrong for parents to celebrate sons/daughters birthdays with gifts, cakes, parties, greeting cards etc. The sons/daughters birthdays should be the day the sons/daughters remembers their mother and the argonies she went through then: the life-death battle to deliver, the pains that accompany pre-deliveries, the abstaintion period of limited eating and drinking, the sleepless night to nurture the babies, etc etc. The mother schould be remembered, respected and honoured by the sons/daughters on their birthdays by asking for forgiveness, giving of mothers favourite food, gifts etc. The mother who delivered 5 kids for example, should be able in her twilight days to enjoy at least 5 times a year the memory of the bond of love between them, and the happiness of receiving rememberance gifts, etc from the sons/daughters.
(In Islam : syurga dibawah telapak kaki ibu).
Suffice for now. Plan to visit my Tasik Kenyir friend again. Soon may be.