Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE tradition of cutting hair to fulfill a vow goes back in time. The reason, as my guru explained it, is simple: The hair is the only part of the body that we can offer to God without mutilating ourselves.
Anything else we offer is not an intrinsic part of ourselves.
This reflection was occasioned by the reading of an article in the Straits Times of Sept 1, 1957. It said that a Kedah Umno Youth leader by the name of Mohamed Zakaria kept a Merdeka vow by cutting his hair at midnight Aug 31 in Alor Star.
He had not cut his hair for two years, swearing that he would only visit the barber on the day Malaya achieved independence.
The report said as the clock struck midnight, Kedah Umno deputy chief Mohamed Zahir snipped off one lock of hair and that as it fell, Zakaria shouted "Merdeka". A waiting barber did the rest.
The same issue talks about a communist terrorist, Siew Fong, 29, surrendering on the morning of Aug 31 because: "Today is Merdeka Day, and with independence already achieved, there is no more reason for us to continue our struggle."
He was the first terrorist to surrender in independent Malaya. Siew gave himself up to estate conductor E.V. Kunji Raman at Nova Scotia Estate near Telok Anson (today’s Teluk Intan).
Kunji Raman (Kunji, by the way, is one of the names the National Registration Department frowns upon) told the estate manager who told the district police chief who came to take Siew away.
On the same page were some quotes from Malayans about how they felt. Regimental Sergeant Major Mohamed Noor of the Malay Regiment wept as the Duke of Gloucester handed over the constitutional instruments to the father of the nation, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra al-Haj.
Mohamed Noor said: "For a moment, I forgot that I was a soldier. I was deeply touched by the Duke’s words. There was also the thought that the British had now relinquished their power over Malaya. But when the Tunku declared that we were now free and equal as the people of other free nations, I could not help but cry for joy."
Housewife Che Halimah Endot said: "When I return home to Kuala Terengganu, I shall tell my children of this historic event so that when they grow up, they can be really proud of the country."
Student Pang Kee Jual said: "I am proud to be a citizen of this new independent nation."
Civil servant Gorbex Singh said: "We shall now look forward to real unity in this new nation of ours."
I think most Malaysians feel the same way even today. We can be united if we are willing to treat each other not as Malays, Chinese and Indians but as Malaysians.
