It’s A Wonderful World

Lol!  They spelled my dad’s name wrong.

Love you daddy~ Happy Fathers Day!

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Posted by malaysiantoday on 2009/6/18 13:26:10 (62 reads)

For Father’s Day this Sunday, we salute dads who have made such an impression on their children that they have decided to follow in his footsteps and pursue a career just like his.

While he didn’t bloat up like a melon carrying you for nine months, he was there to rush out when your mom had strange cravings. While he probably didn’t wash your scraped knees as you learnt how to manoeuvre a bike, he was the one who taught you how to ride in the first place. He may not have been the one who picked up your dirty laundry, but he was most likely the one who taught you how to smile like a million bucks and cajole Mommy to do it.
Fathers (who may, arguably, be some of the most under-appreciated people ever) may not do all the things Mothers do, but they sure are great for a wise word or two just when you need ‘em, or for teaching you the big and small things in life.
So, come this Father’s Day (that’s June 21, for the forgetful), let’s revisit some great dads –dads so great, kids wanna’ be just like them. Three father-child teams share their stories to pay tribute to their rock-steady Dads, who may not have had so much publicity as Moms (think Mother’s Day frenzies, and compare them to the relatively quieter Father’s Days celebrations) but are nonetheless, the foundation upon which their families rely.

Hussain Moiz, 25, had a very strange reason for wanting to pursue medicine. When he was only a wee lad of six, he grew fascinated by anatomy and medicine through Hari Raya Haji. “My interest was piqued when I saw the insides of the slaughtered cow –it got me thinking: if this is how a cow looks inside, what about the inside of my own body?”
That, and his dad, of course: Moiz Siraj, 58, who runs a clinic in Kota Tinggi, Johor Baru (his hometown) and has been a doctor in the general practise for 25 years.
Currently in his fifth year in Manipal Unversity in Melaka, Hussain says that he spent his whole life watching his father as a doctor and witnessing the satisfaction his father feels when he helps a patient. “The feeling is amazing –and I appreciate it more so now that I am a medical student. There is also that sense of respect that one gets as a doctor.”
“My father has always been open-minded, and he never forced me into anything. I admire his passion, his dedication and his ability to priorities and balance both work and family,” he shares. “If I were to use five words to describe him, it would be intelligent, open-minded, disciplined, dedicated and strict.”
Hussain, who plans on taking the path of being a surgeon (his interest in human anatomy plays a big part here), also says that his father’s joy in running the clinic, tending to patients and being a doctor has spurred him to pursue this field. “He has guided me in my education and my life from the get-go, and he has always encouraged my interests. He has such a broad understanding of what medicine is that he is always ready to help me when I need him.”
However, things were not always that peachy –when he was much younger, he and his dad had more than their fair share of disagreements. “But as I grow older, I have become more and more like him. People even say I am a carbon copy of him –in the way I talk, and the way we look. We’re both stubborn and action-orientated.”
“Still, things that I never used to understand in my younger days I understand now, and truth be told, I cannot thank him enough for all he has been through and done for me and my siblings,” he says. “Thanking is not enough –if I could be a father to my son like he has been to me, I would be grateful.”
Now that he and his siblings have left home to pursue their studies, his father looks forward to their visits home. “I can see the shine in his eyes when we come back,” he laughs. “He has truly been both a father and a friend to me.”
Another cool fact about his dad and him? They are both sports-nuts. In fact, his father once played rugby for Johor state in the seventies, and even until now, plays sports enthusiastically. “I try to get involved in the sports he has played.”
Hussain just wants to thank his dad with all his heart, and simply says: “Happy Fathers’ Day, Dad.”

Lavinia Lim, 25, an architect, has five words to describe her father, Adrian Lim, 54, who is also an architect. “He is a hardcore birdwatcher!” she jokes.
“But honestly that pretty much says who he is. Besides architecture, he absolutely loves nature, the outdoors and photography,” she says. “It’s his hobby. He will go great lengths to take a beautiful picture. He takes fantastic photographs that will have me staring in awe.”
Having always had an interest in the arts, Lavinia was initially uncertain about her path towards architecture. “I was not sure, because I love art in general. Honestly, architecture was the last thing on my mind,” she says. “Even despite my interest in building, culture and interiors, I grew up seeing my architect father getting moody and tired from his job.”
Hence, perhaps due to her tendency to be indecisive, her father voiced out his opinion about her education and career path.
“My father knows how indecisive I can be, but he never forced it upon me –he just voiced his thoughts and since I found it to be sound and interesting, I’ve pursued architecture ever since.” But as Lavinia grew older (and wiser) she began to realise that nothing comes easy.
“I admit, that along the way I have been on the verge of quitting due to stress, negative thoughts but like the trooper he always is, my father will always be there to give me encouragement and advice when I needed it,” she says, “even if he is thousands of miles away (she was overseas previously).”
Her father, she adds, never forced her into the studying of architecture, and left her to her own devices until such time she need his help. And, even as she experienced failure, he never admonished or scolded her. “He encouraged me never to give up and to always strive for my best,” she says.
When it came time to put her education to use, she admits that in the beginning, she was not keen on working for him. “Somehow, I had a feeling that a father and daughter team just cannot work together especially when we live under the same roof!”
Disputes, she says, will be brought on a personal level and worse yet –being around your own boss 24-hours? “Just awful,” she jokes. “But I have realised it is not as bad as I had thought, and that being an only child can bring out the overprotective worrywart in him.”
“He is so terribly worried about my safety that he is completely oblivious to how repetitive his warnings about the big, bad world really are!” she laughs. “But I understand this; he just really loves me and wants nothing more than for me to be safe.”
“My father has taught me about the importance of saving your hard earned money, about self worth, about character building and most of all, about safety,” she says. “Definitely about safety!” This father-daughter team is still working together in his architectural firm –it’s been around two years now that they have worked side-by-side.
When asked how she resembles her dad, Lavinia says that she resembles her father in very few ways. “Maybe our faces,” she says. “In fact, we are both very different people. He’s shorter, strict, louder and fights for what he believes in. I’m taller and ‘softer’, so to speak.”
Lavinia still plans on continuing to work with her father for hopefully years to come and has a special message for her ‘boss-dad’:
“Dear boss,” she says. “You can be a worry freak and nag me about safety all you like, but I will still love you, because I know you only have one child to pour all your love into. I’ll give you extra hugs soon (my boss loves hugs), and Happy Father’s Day!”

Nur Jannah Mohd Raziff, 22, is a medical student currently pursuing her studies in the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom, and she has followed in the footsteps of her father, Mohd Raziff Mohd Yunus, who is the CEO of the National Heart Institute. She has a brother who is also pursuing medicine, and a sister who has chosen the field of engineering instead.
“Ever since I was young I had always wanted to pursue medicine; partly due to my interest in science (especially the wonders of the human anatomy) and also because of all the exposure I had to the medical field through my parents,” she says. “I’ve always followed them to work, or hung around the hospitals after school. I think that was when I fell in love with medicine.”
Nur Jannah says that her decision to become a doctor was with the huge influence from her dad. “Since my father became involved in the healthcare profession, I’ve learned about what it entails and what it can offer,” she says. “Through my dad I’ve been exposed to the profession from inside and know what it’s really like, not just the glamour of being a doctor but also the down side of it.”
Nur Jannah credits her determination to be in this highly sought after and challenging field due to the support and encouragement from her father –in fact, from both her parents.
“My father has always supported me in all my decisions and helped me figure out what I wanted to become and work hard for it,” she says. “He and my mom taught us (she and her siblings) to develop our interests early on in our lives and that by working hard and smart we can achieve any ambitions we may have.”
Nur Jannah speaks glowingly about how her parents have been her support system all her life. “My father plays a very big role in my life – both my parents do,” she says. “Often, I seek my parents’ advice before making a decision or if I’m faced with a problem. They are the first people I will turn to in a crisis.”
She laughs as she says that she sometimes secretly thinks her father is a workaholic, but admires and looks up to the way he never lets work prevent him from spending time with his family.
“My father has been an excellent role model for me, by being a dedicated family man who never fails to spend time with his children no matter how busy he is, his hard work and for the passion he has for whatever he does.”
“Five words that will describe my father: loving, dependable, funny, wise and understanding,” she says. “My father is very loving and never fails to show it us, and I can always depend on him when I need help. He makes lame jokes sometimes, but he always likes to crack a joke. He is also always spot-on with his advice and he is also my lending ear –I can talk to him about anything: politics, sports and even about relationships.”
Growing up, Nur Jannah took a leaf out of her father’s books by working hard and never giving up. As the eldest child, she witnessed how he handled and faced tough times, and how he works ever harder each time. “He taught me to never compromise on my beliefs and to stick to what I think is right, regardless of the nay-sayers –but I have also learnt to respect others and to never take advantage of them.”
“It is because of my father that the responsibility of being a doctor and working hard for it is something I appreciate.”
Nur Jannah has a message she wants her dad to know: “Dear Ayah,” she says, “I love you very much and I am grateful that I have you as my father. You’re the best dad I could ever ask for. All of us are very proud of you and we hope we’ve become the people you’ve taught us to be.”

So this coming Sunday, wake up earlier than your dad (instead of your usual 10am lie-in) and make a cuppa’ of his favourite tea. Burn some toast for him (dads will most likely eat anything as long as it is cooked with love!) and just tell him how much you appreciate what he does for you. So even if you did not follow in his footsteps, at the very least, your love will follow his footsteps to work, perhaps putting a spring in them, arthritic knees and all.