How a TV ad influence me

Credits for my friend, Murali who talks about “How are the stories around you influencing you?” in his blog, Lifetime Learning.

I just want to share just a minor (not major) story of one of the PETRONAS ads. All of PETRONAS ads have been known as touching and always meaningful by people in my country. And I’m going to talk about this particular one:

You can watch it for free at

THIS LINK

If you can’t understand the language, I guess I can give a picture of it. The ad starts with the male doctor release the old man to rest in his daughter’s house. But then, the man insisted to get back to his own home.

Anyway, his daughter asks him to come and live with her family. She even promises him to take a good care of him until he really is healthy again. As soon as he heard this, her husband ask her can’t he stay in the hospital at least until after Raya (this is a celebration by muslims, commonly known as Eid ul Fitr). Unfortunately for the husband, the public hospital is always full, so there is no way that his father-in-law should be allowed to stay once he is stable.

Then, they show several scenes of the family having dinner (actually at first it is them breaking fast, so we can say it is dinner too) and the old man keep breaking glasses and making messes and things like that.

He husband and wife have finally had it and they isolated the old man, providing him with his own table, and his own dining set, which is made of plastics. And they let him to eat alone.

And the couple finally realized their mistakes when their own children are imitating their unfair treat to the old man by saying that when they grow up, they will let their parent to eat alone while they are enjoying their meals inside of the house. Obviously they have sent the wrong message to the little children.

And now I’m telling you how this ad has influence me in a way. I do have parents, who are apparently old and they often get sick and being admitted into hospital every now and then. When I saw this ad, I made a resolution that when I’ve fully grown up (apparently I still didn’t finish my tertiary education and I’m jobless) I won’t treat them like that. I mean, that is far beyond humanity, isn’t it? I will take a good care of them.

Well, maybe that is too early to say anything ambitious like that. But then, right now, I try my best to fulfill my parents’ wishes. For example, once I was too busy with my study and I’ve been busy for weeks, and I’ve been away from home for quite a long period, I simply don’t have time for anyone. But then, my mom calls me and asks me to sit right by her side and just accompany her. Not much to ask. I mean, she didn’t ask me to hike up Mount Everest, did she? I was just going to say no but when I remember this ad, I couldn’t say no. What would I feel when my children do the same to me in the future?

Have a heart

This is a community service message delivered by ME to anyone who cares…

Years ago, someone I love suffered from slipped disc. I have no intention to explain the disease in detail because it is a boring subject, but I’ll give you some idea.

A slipped disc is when the soft part of the disc (cartilage, which made up the vertebrae in our spinal cord) swells through the circle of connective tissue. However, 20 per cent of the population have slipped disc without experiencing any noticeable symptoms.

So, the story of my beloved begins with pain at her knee. Each time she seeks doctor, the answer is always the same. You’re old, and the fluid that acts as lubricants may have running out. And each and every time, the doctor will give her an injection, to make the pain go away.

This has been going on for years until one day, my beloved paid a visit to a Chinese who practices traditional medicine. And without any help of x-ray or MRI machine or CT scan, but just to have a look at my beloved, the Chinese old man knew, the problem is not in the knee, but in the spinal cord.

Although now we know what cause the problem, we still can’t solve it. My beloved almost lost hope until yet another doctor suggests her to do an operation. Guess what! It not only has failed (due to infection), but it has made my beloved’s condition become worse.

And since then, my beloved has taken numerous medications. And none of them have any noticeable positive changes.

Hope. I guess my beloved’s hope to get well soon, has reversed impact. For a few months, we can see some changes. She got rounded face and increased fat around the neck. Purplish pink stretch marks can be seen on some part of her body. Her backaches even become more often. And what is weirder is that she had excess hair growth on her face!

Luckily, we got her into the hospital on time. Doctors said that she could be dead if it is too late. She suffered from Cushing’s syndrome where the patient’s body produce a high level of hormone cortisol. Our body won’t do that unless there is something wrong with hypothalamus (a part in our brain). So what cause this? Well, it is because of one of the pills prescribed by the doctor. No, the pills do not damaged my beloved’s brain, but it contains too much steroid. So, basically my beloved is overdose of steroid, which in turn increases the level of cortisol in her body.

If you are wondering why I am writing all about this, then I’ll tell you. Before that, please bear in mind that the doctors involve in this story is not one, or two, or three, but much more than that.

The message is if you are a patient, or your family member is ill, you need to be a little smarter. Seek second, or third (or fourth if you like) opinion before you make any decision. Your life is at stakes!

And if you are a doctor, or you plan to be one, please be responsible of whatever you do to your patient. Have a heart (not literally because we all know you do have one). Show an act of concern, not just thinking of how much profit you could make by scamming desperate people. It won't kill you to run a few test and think harder to figure out what is wrong with your patient.

Is this you?

I’ll start this entry with a story about a girl I know who seems to be happy all the time, even though she always gets sick. She has some sort of problem with her immune system. The doctor confirmed that her body is lacking of white blood cells. I will feel bad and not in the mood every time I get flu, I can’t understand why she is ok with that. I asked her what her secret is. She said that “When you’ve been used to the worst condition, it doesn’t bother you anymore. I’m grateful that I’m still alive.”

I’m stumbled. Her statement gave me an idea to write about ungrateful people who take things for granted. Take a look at the poor people who are used to just eat whatever they had on their plate, compared to those rich people who refuse to eat and throw away their food just because the food in dining hall (in our school) doesn’t fit their taste. I hate this kind of people. They are not grateful of what they have. Some of my friends said that they are afraid to have their breakfast, or lunch or even dinner with me because I’ll force them to finish everything on their tray. It’s not my fault. Is it really hard to just eat?

What about the people who don’t know to reduce the usage of water and electricity. Living in Malaysia, of course we don’t have to face the high bills, YET! Aren’t you people aware of the cost for purifying water and also the cost of generating electricity? I’m disappointed in some people, students of MARA especially when they are not thinking of the money wasted to pay the bills. It’s not their money, but the citizens’ money. Not just those students actually. Let’s face it- a lot of Malaysians are doing the same thing.

And the most ungrateful thing is when some people waste their time fooling around when they are supposed to strive hard and make their parents proud. If you think you’re one of them, ask your parents of how much did they spent on your education. Or if you are smart, just count the school fees, tuition fees, books and your pocket money that they have given to you from standard one until you’ve finish school and then university. It isn’t cheap.

I’m expressing my concern in my blog. Sorry if it bothers you, my readers. I hope that some people will take their time to think of my point. That’s all.

It’s meaningless if…

William Shakespeare wrote Life’s Brief Candle for one of his famous play, Macbeth.

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,

To the last syllable of recorded time;

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools

The way to dusty death.

Out, out, brief candle!

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage

And then is heard no more.

It is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury

Signifying nothing - (Act 5, Scene 5, lines 17-27).

Here, Macbeth is full of despair, and he is seeing life as a story and death as a natural occurrence that is to be welcomed.

I personally think that life is nothing if we don’t believe in something. If you don’t believe in yourself, would you be able to succeed in life? If you don’t believe in your partner, would you be able to live a happy life? If you don’t believe in God, would you be able to feel the peace?

If we don’t believe in something, life is absolutely nothing. It’s meaningless. We’ll be nothing but actors in a play, where our world become the stage.