MY FAMILY QURBAN - THE LIGHTER SIDE

We Fireflyed back to Kota Bharu for Hari Raya Haji or Hari Raya Qurban. In tow with me and wife were my 2 sons, Rafeq and Raqim. Our daughter Ila had to work outstation in Perlis, filming a "komedi hantu". My youngest girl is of-course too far to fly home for Raya Haji.

My mother didn't expect to see her 2 adult grandsons to come a visiting. My mom also had her youngest daughter (my youngest sister) home from K.K. So, she was all smiles.

The family qurban was arranged on Day 2 of Raya Haji. I arrived at the slaughter late, only to see an already slaughtered cow, I assumed expertly slaughtered unlike the slaughter in Kelana Jaya back in 2007.

My brother, Mahmood and my 3 bro-in-laws were all there, including their spouses and kids. It was to be a family slaughter-cum-family raya gathering. First, let me introduce them, not necessarily in their order of age seniority.Hj Suhaimi, married to my younger sister, is a teacher. I called him the "butcher". He arrived with a sharp knife and went straight to do his business. He had practised his butchering skill a day earlier too.

This is Aziz, married to my youngest sister. Worked in Lembaga Koko in Kota Kinabalu. Can't rate him as a butcher, a food taster perhaps. As a food-taster, he made sure he handles the best part of the beef. A good tennis player but was not able to win any set off me during my tennis playing days. We loved KK and visited his family often and my youngest sister is a great cook too. When Aziz sleeps, we all will be wide awake!!

It's not often I take pictures with my siblings. This is with my youngest sister, Cik Gu Rokiah or Su (sebab dia yang bongsu). Notice I was opening my wallet. Got to pay for my bahagian of the slaughtered cow la.

This is my younger brother Mahmood. At the rate he is resting, we may not get to distribute the meat on the same day! Like me, he cycles too. Unlike me, he consumes the sweet Kelantanese food daily and the outcome showed. Me, I had my Johore wife to dampen my sweet tooth eons ago.


In the midst of the adults, we had the nephews and nieces and also grand-nephews and grand nieces. Adnin, on the left and Afikah on the right are my two nieces (Mahmood's daughters) while Nana in the middle is my grand-niece. So while some will address me as Ayah Cik, some will address me as Tok Chik. But they ALL address my wife as Aunty Muna. Jealous...jealous....

This Chinese looking Hanafi is Mahmood's youngest son. Very energetic as any boys his age would be.

A recent cycling addict below is Fifi, another nephew. He had lost many kgs since he got hooked to cycling. So, he is allowed to wallop the entire cow's head since he can burn his calories with his regular cycling.

Must not neglect all the Makchiks who came to "siang" the daging. Actually only one of them on extreme left will "siang" the daging. She's Mahmood's other half, hailed from K Trengganu, my sis-in-law la. The tall lady of-course is the Johor lady I was refering to earlier. She's my boss. Next to her is my immediate younger sister Zainun and extreme right is the bongsuest sister of mine.

When it was time to pay attention to the slaughtered cow, almost everyone played their awkward roles. We see here Mahmood starting with the simplest of the job - holding a dead cow's leg. Who can't?

Of-course he progressed to skinning. But it was too close for comfort if Suhaimi decided to release some "air".

So everybody was helping out.

And I was helping myself too!

The ladies did their part to cut the meat into smaller pieces and packing them in 1kg plastic bags for distribution.

Everything was over by noon and a well deserved lunch awaited us. There would be meat dishes of various varieties, including the sup ekor and sup tulang. Over the next few days, visits to the rehabilitation centre was necessary due to meat overdose. Some would chose to go to Elbow Hut Clinic.

But for some of my siblings who delved too much on tulang, MOHAMMAD FAUZIE was a happy man indeed!