An Ode to Camaraderie

1st of June marks my registration in UiTM Melaka, thus begins then a new chapter of the story we call Life. It has been a long, winding journey since the days of MCKK and surely many memorable events has come and passed. Even then, there are an abundance of memoirs and people left engraved in my heart. Most of them are from the alma mater, but I've met a lot of interesting personalities along the way.

The past few months spanning from the arduous days of Asasi till this very second I'm breathing has been an emotional and spiritual rollercoaster ride. Only held onto the ride by my faith to Him, and a helping hand from my comrades, I was able to survive and thrive to this moment. Well at least I can finally say, I couldn't have done it without you guys.

Stepping into the new chapter, the anticipation of new challenges are unavoidable. Three years plus another four for degree and a few more for Masters, but that's another chapter waiting to be unfold in the future. Even then the path ahead lies with a cornucopia of ups and downs. There is no speck of doubt that an impetus is paramount in plowing through this obstacle.

I was blessed enough to have good company in this course of life, and I cherish those who I've met along the and are always close, and they have become my impulse to succeed in this future studies.

From left: Nurzam, Yours Truly, Rifqi, Nasir, Faiq, Azim, Aiman, Safuan, Izzat

These are the people who ignited the spark. The drive. The energy. This is the Editorial Board of '12 (minus Izzat on the right). These are fantastic people to be with. For instance, Nurzam, our graphics designer, one of the best there is, always a good friend and classmate. Affectionately known as Hamster by our colleagues. Then there's Rifqi the coffee enthusiastic lead photographer, also SIC. Very good musician. Drove me once to Chief's because I had no transport after the MUET test. Some say his body burns coffee like a combustion engine and that he thought that Star Wars was a documentary. All we know is he's Rifqi Ghazali. The next man on the list is Megat, or better known as Chief, simply because he's the chief. More on him later. Faiq is the imported character in this story. The one photographer from Thailand. His head is literally harder than diamond, after so many ordeals with the goalposts and the 'longkangs'. The next bloke in the lineup is Azim or Qays as most of them know him, the most successful financier since the inception of this A-team. He raised 50k from scratch in half a year. Highest collection of all time. Also worth mentioning he's a BMW fan as well. Aiman is the person that never lets you down. He's the always-dependable person. The wacky one in the group, he never fails to entertain the company when all is going tight. Then comes Safuan aka Sapu aka Benny aka Jimmy Hopkins aka Vega aka Sapudor. Yep, all those nicknames are valid. Toughest cameraman on the block. He auditioned for Hulk recently but got turned down because the female crew kept hitting on him. And there's Izzat Zalis, or Jack. Those in the debating circle would already recognize him. He was featured in the school's magazine in '12. He's always there for me since his enrollment  in '11. Technically legally a hotstuff. Girls, I have his number feel free to ask for it  :P

What were we looking at?

Where were we? Ah, yes the man himself. The brain of the team. He's Megat Nasir. The man is two-parts-Tony Stark-to-one-part-Nathan Drake. Nothing could describe him better than The Prodigy. A person with relentless pursuit towards knowledge, he's the one calling the shots during the development of our magazine. A distant brother and a great friend. We have always said our minds were linked with Bluetooth. He's always there when I was at my lowest. No matter what the conditions were, he never failed to lend me a hand when I slipped and fell. Especially when I failed my Chemistry paper, and was dismissed. I will always remember his support throughout this journey.

Looking young

This almost-nose-picking bloke is Khan Hamidy. We call him Khansdos. He's the first person I knew back in MCKK as he registered the same moment as me, so we got to know each other in the office before making our way to the dorms. Very funny guy. Plays rugby thus the very bulky physique. He's just completed his Engineering foundation at PALAM.

From left: Adib, Aidil, Khan

One of our memorable moments is when we registered at the same day, then five years later after so many exams and tests, we said our farewell to the alma mater on the same day and headed off back home at the same moment, because I hitched a ride in his dad's car. It was as if we were destined to come and go at the exact same time.

There's the shades

Never without his shades is Mag Malik, the wise one. He's the inspiration towards going through Masscom. The one with the advice. He's the matured one among us. Probably because he's slightly aged than me but that doesn't matter, he's still young inside, full of energy.

I often turn to him and Mr. Dad to ask for some of their invaluable opinions on certain choices in life. Still undergoing degree in TESL. he has very high knowledge in the language background, namely linguistics.

He's not a hitman

To me, he's like a brother whose always there with his never ending support. An eccentric writer himself and a massive fan of Youtuber TheRadBrad, he aims to put Malaysia on the map where Let's Plays are concerned. I'd like to join and become co-presenter as well, but that fantasy would take a lot of years to become true.

And there's the sage of life skills, Redzuan. Pardon me for the dated picture but he still looks good. A master in FIFA, he's the brother with the tips whether it be in FIFA or in life. Once called me a hobo for picking me up in the middle of nowhere. I promise you, it was literally in the middle of no where! Blame RapidKL for not following its prescribed route.



My time in Asasi wasn't time wasted.

A1 up to A5 in its entirety

This is the whole lecture hall with our Physics lecturer Prof Hj Ahmad, who reminds me of Dad. It's been a while since I've met these people. Heck, the last time I've met them was the final time I met them when I said my good byes and signed my resignation forms. It was a forlorn moment as I knew meeting these people again would be next to impossible. Even if we had our misunderstandings, we got back together closer than before. These wonderful people have already received their results last week. I pray that the future is bright for them, and I'm certain it is paved with success, especially for the likes of the front row usual, Mas, TJ, the boys and all the other students in this picture. Even though I didn't had the chance to get to know all these people long, I knew these people are close together, like a huge family with a colorful background. I had the opportunity to be deskmates (?) with Johan, awesome genius that bloke. There's also Suraya whom I knew because she's always at the front end of the hall, where Johan and I sat especially during Chemistry. Not forgetting the Class Reps, we have Izzat from A1, then former Class Rep of A2, umm, me, then there's A3 whom I haven't recognized. From what I've heard A3 doesn't have any singular Rep, as they have each for every subject. Might be the case, if not plausible. Then there's the most approachable leader in the hall, representing A4 is Najib Khaidir. His remarkable leadership skill is most likely because he shares the name with the Prime Minister, or because he's a natural leader. Most likely the latter. A5 is represented by Dan, which I usually chat on our PSN accounts.

From left: Front row: Zahid, Din, Ikhwan, TJ, Fydo, Acap, Paeh

Second row: Mekjah, Lia, Jaja, Miss Sabrina, Liyana, Tina, Sandy, Tykah, Sh Husna

Third row: Mizz Nina, Alynn, Damia,  Sab, Mas, Ainaa, Atim, Zue, Azuin, Hajar O, Ecah, Diyana, Idayu

A few weeks left before I head off to UiTM Lendu, I would just like to thank all of the people who was there by my side. Hope we will meet each other again in the future.

'Till then.

Pictures credit in order to Rifqi Ghazali, Khans, Mag and Farah Asyiqin.