Pak Lang Go West

The message read `Pak Lang has gone West, Al Fatiha’. I know Al Fatiha is meant for someone who demised, but gone West. Could this be a new term for people who had just kicked the bucket? Ending of the message was `I am sure Abah will be sad’, with this I now can confirmed that gone West is cessation of living.

Pak Lang is one of Abah’s brothers, Abah has a peaceful set of siblings, and they are very close to each other, you will never hear Abah bickering about his siblings, and the nicest thing about them is that they will always find time to visit each other.

I remember Pak Lang being one of the poorest of the brothers, but he had a big heart, his house was just like an extended hut (before his children were able to support him), however, when you come and visit him, there was never once that the wife will not serve you something to eat, be it even the most tasteless biscuits.

Pak Lang stutters good time, we had so much fun imitating him, but he is such a caring person, he has good memories of each and every one of his nieces and nephews. Whenever you give something to him, he will accept it with a sigh, like as though we go such a great distance to give something to him, he is ever so grateful.

Pak Lang has a favorite chair in his house, this chair is already so tattered, but he will keep on replacing the broken seat with a new plank of wood over and over again. He sits on this chair all day long, if he is not helping his wife or tending to his garden. You can see that he was deep in thought, looking beyond the beautiful field of mountains, beyond everything that an individual’s eyes can grasp; he was just traveling the world on his train of the mind.

How can I ever forget Pak Lang, he is one of the best uncles one could have. I will miss Pak Lang for sure, miss making fun of his stuttering, and miss my favorite fried mee hoon that only Pak Lang’s wife knows how to make. It was only in his house that mee hoon is fried with anchovies and nothing else, because they don’t have anything else to fry it with, yet they have a big heart to invite anyone to eat.

Go, Pak Lang, go to the West now, you have been a good person, for all the time that I know you, I hope what you were deprived of here, you are getting it there now. May you rest in peace Pak Lang and may the Lord bless your soul.

Al Fatiha…………………………………….