As an Arabic tutor at a local university in Singapore for 10 years now, I was not a foreigner to questions by my students which were out of the ordinary. In the classroom, language learning is not merely one of learning and memorisation, but also involves interactions, clarifications and exposure to Arabic culture. I remember … Read more
Guest Writer for The Ocean’s Ink My colleagues had to work through the night and into the early hours to contact registrants on our Hajj System so as to offer the additional places to perform this year’s Hajj. The Saudi Hajj Ministry had kindly reinstated our annual quota over the reduced 407 places initially offered … Read more
When I first announced that I intended to learn riding and get my Class 2B Motorcycle Licence, my father wasn’t too pleased. I was met with objections around me; people who meant well and have seen or heard one too many gruesome incidents that involved riders as victims. The risk with riding, as they say, … Read more
This post was written in 2017 on the writer’s personal social media sharing platform. Article and photos republished with permission. The year was 2017. Whenever I told my non-Malay/Muslim friends (or even some Muslim friends) where my children were schooling, a common reaction would be, “Do they cover the same syllabus?” “Are they on par … Read more
Tweens, Pre-Teens, Teenagers – whatever the term of reference – refer to that stage of life where one is no longer a child but not yet an adult. We have all gone through it, albeit, differently. As a parent of a young adult, teens and a tween, I constantly remind myself that my children are … Read more
I have had several requests asking me and my wife to share our ‘secret’ parenting recipe that led to the excellent achievement of our daughter in both her Secondary 4 religious studies as well as the O-level examinations recently. Firstly, I must say that I am of very little direct influence on my daughter in … Read more
Artikel ini pertama kali diterbitkan pada tahun 2018 di lelaman Berita Harian. Isu masyarakat yang menua akan terus menjadi cabaran utama kita di Singapura, terutama dalam kalangan kaum wanita. Dengan peningkatan jangka hayat, ini bermaksud lebih ramai wanita akan hidup lebih lama, sekaligus mendedahkan mereka kepada pelbagai kos kehidupan dan kesihatan yang kian meningkat. Dalam … Read more
This article was first published on 27 May 2021 in response to a sexual harassment incident that infringed on some female members of our local asatizah community. Amidst the challenges our Muslim world is facing on the global and national front, we are once again shaken by the existence of an appalling online poll, which … Read more
This article was written in Ramadan 2022. The first 10 days of Ramadhan have passed and for many of us, we wonder where it has all gone. If we are breastfeeding or taking care of little ones, we might be feeling regret or resentment that the time had all been spent mostly to nurture and … Read more
This article was first published in April 2021. Life is always a struggle whether we are married or not, albeit in different ways. I feel that the lenses we see marriage today can be rather foggy. We fail to see that marriage is driven by something innate created by Allah to help us achieve tranquility … Read more