2021, a year of growth

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

After 2020 tore me apart & broke my heart, 2021 happened to be the year of growth & healing for me:

- finally completely healed 💪 - bcus I woke up 1 day & decide I can't hurt myself this way anymore

- then I moved to a new city

- got the chance to be in a career that completely transform my life-personally, professionally & financially

- & it makes me become more financially stable, expand my investment portfolio & pamper my loved ones

- write consistently in my blog again (to remember moments in life for me to read in tough times) 

- invest most in my myself: mentally & physically ♥️

- had a little few adventures & travelling with loved ones

- eventually open my heart & learn to love again

- big miracles happened in my family

- prayed to Allah more than ever asking Him to guide me every step of the way

My wish & prayers for 2022 are to always achieving 120% in all aspects in life especially in sales 😂, to take good care of all the blessings I already have, begin another new journey I've always wish for & to consistently be a better person than I was yesterday, every single day 😊

May next year will be a miracle

Till then, 

Adlina

4 months that changed my life

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

A year ago, we all knew how heartbroken I was (Read here). I was feeling so hopeless with life, thinking I might not able to do anything but stuck where I was standing forever.

I kept going back to things that hurt me. I don't think I could move forward to have a better life. I was dwelled with so much pain from the broken relationship and tough career.

Until one day, when I woke up from sleep, I told myself, "I can't hurt myself this way anymore".

That day, I decided to change my lifestyle, removed bad habits and whatever that could make me remember the pain. One big step I took was applying for other jobs on Jobstreet and LinkedIn. I applied for hundreds of jobs and attended few interviews. 

Miraculously, one simple click on Jobstreet made me moved to a different city and start anew. It brought me to a position where my curiosities were fed, my eagerness to learn were supported and I found the right guidance I was looking for. I went back to the same company that once rejected me. However, now I came back at the right place and the right time. 

My Science degree (which I thought won't be useful), experiences I went through and my personalities - finally linked with each other and fit well at the right place. 

I once thought I will never love again. I tried few times before but I just couldn't. Nevertheless, there was one night I prayed and God finally opened my heart again to know others. He let things happened when I was wiser to handle my own feelings. 

People always said life could change in a split second. Yes it could, whether in seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, or years. Time is very subjective. Sometimes things you fought for years won't happen but what you did in short time were accomplished. As long as your heart is ready to accept any possibilities, put efforts and keep praying, everything will flow naturally. 

These 4 months taught me; to always be brave taking chances, never give up, always give your best shot and keep asking for the best from God. We'll never know what God has in store for us because we always plan, but God always the best planner. 

Besides my own prayers, I had endless prayers from people around me. I believe many of happy things in my life & me surviving those gloomy days were from their answered prayers. 

Till then, 

Adlina

2021: November memories

Assalamualaikum and Hi, 

Can't you believe it's December already! November flew even faster than October. But I'm glad since my schedules were fully pack that I was busy all Month. 

In the first week, I spend the long weekend in first week with the fam. First time going back after 3 months. Took my siblings to Sushi bonanza, had breakfast and lunch outside (sponsored by Makcik Ija), met my uncle and grandmothers too, & had 1 day out with my father and brother to Alor Setar. 

This trip was special because I have some deep conversations about life experiences with my grandmothers and parents - which I will highlight in one more post. 

In the second week, the whole team had lunch together at Asiari (thanks Boss for the treat, but he said nothing comes free), participate in treasure hunt and won consolation prize. 

I had staycation at Hilton KL Central with Monash girls in the third week. It was unexpected last minute decision. We had great time there, catching up with each others' lives and had Swiftie session together. Despite our busy schedules, I was glad we were able to slot in some time after a year since our last staycation. I will review about the hotel in another post. 

Towards the end of November, I managed to hit my first 100% after 4 months 🥰🥰 it was a calm month at first but a sprint on the last week. My heart was on adrenaline pump during the last 2 days before closing 😂

Everyone did so well and deserve a good rest before December. I asked my boss to let me went back to my hometown. 

I went back by taking ETS after work on Friday. The next morning, I went for a hike with the family at Bukit Telipong. The view was so beautiful can't be described by words or pictures. We took the truck because we don't have the energy to hike from beginning as I just arrived home last night. The trail looked easy but I think the distance is quite long. It took 1 hour to arrive to the top by hiking and 15 minutes by pickup. You can see the Perlis, Kedah and some parts of Thailand from the peak. 

On Sunday I went for unplanned walk in booster dose accompanied by Abah since work wasn't so busy. The next day, had an impromtu trip to Big Field for a cup of coconut ice cream. Finally I had my last progression report on Tuesday and alhamdulillah my superiors decided to confirm me earlier due to my outstanding performance. Later that night I went back to KL by bus and arrived safely today.

A fully occupied and blessed months ❤️ I am truly grateful for everything 💞Everything went smooth because of the prayers from everyone too. This month too I opened back my heart again. I hope December will have more miracles, blessings and will be the best month of the year.

Fighting 💪💪

Till then, 

Adlina

2021: October without tragedy

 Assalamualaikum and Hi,

Time flew so fast and now it's the end of October already. As usually I want to remember all the happy moments here so that one day it will brighten my days whenever I came back to read this post here.

In first week of October, I managed to finish The Atomic Habit book. It kind of surprising for me because I only read in the bus when going to work. It's a really good book which I planned to review but don't have the time yet. That week also was the first time I met everyone in my team because we had to do swab test. Since we're working alternately from home, we never met each other all at once. We went lunch together few times too at nice places (Read the reviews here). I also met my big boss for the first time too. I already amazed with my supervisor and now I highly respect both of them. They're very talented human beings. And my team too we're made of amazing hardworking people. I can't be grateful enough to be here.

In 2nd week of October was my dad's birthday but I couldn't go home. During this time I was busy with learning new stuffs to accelerate my sales. And the effect of that, I kind of lose focus and my sales went a little bit low. That's a really tough time for me because it's so hard to rise again. I had the thought of giving up because what I did wasn't easy. But I didn't. I took small steps every single day. I started reading a book about cold calling techniques. Ohh, I also read a book about female brain because I wanted to understand myself more. However, my progress in reading was a little bit slow this month.

In the 3rd week, government announced interstate travel was allowed again. Yeay! Of course I went back to my hometown to see my family. I missed them so much. I watched the last 2 episodes of HomeCha with my brother and it took me a while to moved on. We also suddenly went on an impromptu trip to Penang to see the big family. And you know what, the unplanned and unexpected things in life were always the best thing that happened.

I went running by the beach with my brother for the first time in 26 years. It's so nice! The view was so breathtaking so I stopped running in the between to enjoy it. I can see the small island and the two Penang bridges from here. It's the best feeling ever. After that I had breakfast with my family. We ate Nasi Dalca that we brought from the famous stall near my grandmother's house (Read the reviews here). 

After that, my aunties whom I never met since last year came. We had a long time chit chatting with each other and exchanged stories about life. I guessed this was the best part because they shared their experiences and I learned a lot from them. That's when I thought about the gap we usually have between the youngsters and the elders (or maybe it's just me). They too have been where we had been, thus if we closed the gap we can learn so much from each other and that can save us a lot from disasters in life. 

In the afternoon, we went to my another grandmother's house which also I haven't meet in a year plus. Besides keeping up with each other's lives, we went through the old stuffs and reminisced all the good times we have. My grandmother was a sentimental person so she kept many stuffs for memories like the albums with photos from ages ago and we also found the vintage cameras from her time. Before we went back we took photos together as memories.

My aunties treated us for lunch with briyani rice from Restoran Hameediyah. It was sooooo gooddd. I never was a Nasi Kandar fan so maybe that's why Nasi Briyani was good for me. I bought Bubblebee for all of them for desserts (Read the review here too). Before we went back, we stopped by at FamilyMart because my siblings never been there so they wanted to try a lot of things. I was to happy to treat them although they spend a lot at a convenience store. At night, I took bus from Penang to go back since I'd be working on the next day.

At this point my sales still consider low so I had consultation with my supervisor and he asked me to increase my calls and engagement with customers. I did that and I tried to make some calls on weekends although it was so hard to do that on weekends. 

During this weekend, I also felt a little bit lonely being here because being in a place far from city was totally different. My friends and family weren't here and as an adventurous person I had nowhere to go. Before this when living in the city I could go to anywhere my feet brought me. Now it's totally different I don't even know where to explore and everywhere I used to go were far. I hope things would get better soon as it always be, in shaa Allah.

In the last week of October was where miracles happened. The customers I've been followed up with before this suddenly placed orders. The things I'd took time to learn now suddenly gave results. The strategies I learned suddenly worked. It might took some time but it worked now. Alhamdulillah. I managed to perform so well beyond my expectations. 

After closing day, I went back to hometown and spend time with my family to recharge.

Now it's November already, I hope things will go well and even better. I wish in these last 2 months of year 2021, miracles will happen. In sha Allah.

I've grown much too but there's so many areas I still need to improve for myself as a person in career, for my family and future. 

In shaa Allah, He will guide us :)

Till then,

Adlina

3 months as a salesgirl

Assalamulaikum and Hi,

Today marked the 3rd month I've started my career in telesales. I just want to write here so that one day when I read back I'll remember the journey I've been through in my early days. Or maybe when I feel lost in my career I'll find this and gain my strength back.

As a girl from customer service, being in sales is totally new thing. In my previous job, I have to RECEIVE CALLS and PUT IN the orders I received and solved certain issues. Now, I have to MAKE CALLS, FIND orders aka SALES and solve whatever issues related to that.

And it's not easy though. Someone said to me that only 30% people are talented while the 70% are successful because of their efforts. And I'm 100% I'm not from the former.

Some of the things I learned for the past 3 months in telesales are;

Make the calls

The first important thing is making calls. It's the first step to communicate with your customers that you've never met. Like my boss usually said, your call is like you visiting them but virtually, so to make them remember you and your company is by making call. Recently I read a book about cold calling techniques, it also stated that the way to make more sales is my making more calls. There's one time, I called a client just right before he stocked up. If I didn't make the call at that time, I might lose my client because he could go to other supplier.

Building rapport

Relationships with customers are the most important especially when you are only dealing with them online. You don't know how their places looked like, what they are feeling at that time so connecting with them online are crucial. I also learn about the term probing with customers to get to know more about them. Always follow up with them to initiate conversations with them to gain details.

For this part I still need to improve in a lot of things by learning from my seniors and superiors. 

Strategy and planning

Besides those two, this part is the most important two. In my first month, I just go through all the customer list without analysing any data. Over time, I started to learn about purchasing pattern and that's when sales started to kicking in. I learned all these through training with my superiors using Excel. And it always amazed me on how these things work. Also build and keep database of your customers.

Focus, discipline and be matured

Personally, as for myself, these are the things I've learned. I once lose focus and lack in discipline in making calls, that's the point where my sales starting to slow down. When I managed to control all these back, my sales started to grow again. As for being matured is on how I carry myself. I should be confidence, brave and wiser so that people. That way, I will trust myself first before anyone else did.

Have good attitude

Good attitude will always bring you somewhere so do practice having one. Sooner or later it will. 

Never ever give up

There were times when I really really really wanted to give up. Like I really did. But I told myself, just make another call, just send another message and just plan again.

I always believe great things will happened just before or when you're at the verge of giving up. Don't give up yet because you're just near to closing the deal.

After 3 months of hustle, a girl with no sales experience like me eventually finally reached the target which qualify me to receive commission.

I didn't put money first but the joy learning new skills and gaining knowledge. Money comes after that. I think I have passion in this field and trust the products I'm selling.

Another point to add on is to find a good mentor. I've found them and that's where I learned the points I've shared above.

And this is just not the ending but only the beginning. 

Let's strive harder, be better and help more people 💪

Till then,

Adlina

Cheapest bookstore in town

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

There's a bookshop in Klang Valley that I really love. It's The Bookxcess. They are somehow linked to Big Bad Wolf. They have many outlets but the ones I've been to are in Summit USJ back in uni days and Amcorp Mall last year.

Somewhere is October or November last year, I went to Amcorp mall with Husna. At that time it's been two months since we last met and many major things happened in life. We had breakfast at Secret Recipe and exchanged life stories for almost 1 hour. Once we finished our food it's already around 10am so we went up to look for the bookstore.

It was quite huge and beautiful. The design was every modern and the lighting was so nice. The books were very cheaper by more than 50%. I don't know how they managed to sell at that price but it's a good thing books since the books were affordable. There were all types of genres here. If you couldn't come here you can always buy at their website. 

We spent around 2 hours strolling around and bought few books which cost us less that RM50! 

After we're done there we went to a Muslim book store called Dakwah Book Store because Husna wanted to buy Al Quran with translation. The books here were good too and I'll definitely come again to buy something here.

Once we're done with all the books, we wanted to perform Zuhur prayer but there's no surau opened because of MCO at that time. So we decided to go back early. Before going back, we went to Family Mart to have some drinks and take pictures.

The books we bought and exchanged with each other

The booknerd lady

Husna and the books

It was a good day and I hope we will always read 🌸🌸

Till then, 

Adlina

Life is a series of test

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

When I told my mom about me writing my blog again, she actually encouraged to write more. I was writing for my memories but she said write good things and lessons in life too as they might reach someone who needed them. 

Recently I have conversations with my mom about the difficulties in life. Whenever I experienced any issues I will always tell her since she's really a good listener. My mom is a teacher so her students come from different types of family backgrounds. She will share her students' stories for me to learn and take the lessons.

I came to understand one thing, "Life is a series of test". There will always be test in your life, one after another, and it won't stop because this life was made to test each and every one of us. It's just the matter of the kind of test we're facing and how we deal with it.

Let's take me as an example. When I was a high school student, I was worried about my SPM results and scholarship. When I was a university student, I'm worried if I can't graduate on time. When I'm a fresh graduate, I find difficulties in finding a job. When I found a job, at certain point I'm no longer happy and have to deal with office politics. When I found another job, I have to struggle to meet certain targets and expectations.When I'm already stable in all these I struggled to find someone to share my life with. And it will endless even when I already become a wife, mother, grandmother, manager or retiree. Whenever we reach one stage, there will always be a test or more that we have to face. When you're single or married, poor or rich, happy or sad and many other situations, you will always be tested.

And thus I believe life is a series of test. If this life was made to be perfect, we're not in this world but in Heaven.

Back to my Mom's stories, whenever she told me what her students faced, I will feel like what I went through was very small compared to others yet I still complain. What I'm trying to say is everyone has problem whether it's big or small, but don't let it consumed you because there's always solution to every problem.

Think it as this way. This life is like a puzzle, we have to find the right pieces and to put it at the right place. No matter how long it takes to be done, you will eventually finish it. But never stop doing it despite how hard it is. Someone also said to me, if plan A doesn't work, you must have plan B or C or D and many more. In other words, we have to be flexible. Like Hiro from The Big Hero 6 said, "Try to look things from different angle".

All you need is perseverance to remain 💪 and keep going like Dory from Finding Nemo said, "Just keep swimming".

That's how life is a series of test works. You have to pass one test and then solve another. You will cry, stumble and fall but you will eventually finish it all. When we're done with all the test, we'll be in the Heaven already in shaa Allah :)

My Sunway memories - Memorable places

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

Besides Sunway, there were other places I used to go explore back then.

• Subang Parade

This mall has been here since my mom's uni days. As for me, I always went to Subang Parade on weekend because it's less crowded than other malls. They also have restaurants other famous mall usually have. I also often watch late night movies with friends on Wednesdays night because the price was RM or RM9 on that day. When there is Sushi Bonanza I would come here too to avoid crowd. It's not one of my favourite malls but it's a mall that I have memories with. So Subang Parade deserved to be remembered here.

• Nasi Lemak Opah

Nasi Lemak Opah is one of the famous Nasi Lemak in PJ area because it's cheap and the taste is quite nice. I usually went here with my housemates whenever we craved for it. Not sure how it is now because the last time I went here was in 2018 maybe.

• Selera Jaya 223

Out of all Nasi Lemak I tried in Klang Valley, this is the very best one! The delicious nasi lemak was served on banana leaf on plate, together with fried chicken and half runny fried egg. Anddd the priceee is RM5.50 only.

• Subang Jaya Lake

I always went here to jog. The view was so picturesque and it's not so crowded. It's a good place to escape from hectic town.

• Upstairs cafe

I only went here once with Husna because she liked to eat pancake and this place was famous for having amazing pancake for breakfast. And it's soooo deliciousss. As someone who didn't like pancake, this one was very good. I ate Aglio Olio pasta too which was amazing too. Price was at that time for me quite okay for the quality they served.

• Food court at the Highway

There's this food near the Highway near road to Sunway Pyramid. I don't know how to describe the location haha. Nina's brother first brought us here when we first started our study here. Later on it became one of the place we used to hang out because the food was cheap and it's nearer to our house. I like the sotong kangkung and tauhu bakar. But the food I often order was the honey chicken wings.

• The Curve/Ikea

Ikea Damansara was linked to The Curve so technically we will go to those two places together at once. I loved going to Ikea for the experience and the food. I always imagine about my dream home whenever I walked past their showroom. As for the food, it was so good. My favourites were the famous meatball, cinnamon rolls and their RM1 curry puff. Another one that I like was their hotdogs which cost RM2 only. It tasted so much better if you paired it with their mustard sauce.

• Public transports

My favourite of all favouritessss. I came all the way from Kedah which doesn't have public transportations (as far as I remember there's only buses that nowhere to be found).

I can't remember how I started using public transport but they brought me to so many places. Each train stations I've been too have have link to some of my memories. Each Grab ride always give me something to remember such as good advices or life stories from other people.

The love I had for public transportation made me don't even thought of buying a car. You can ask me anything about public transportation like the routes, timing and I know I can answer it. But it's kinda disappointing because our public transportation still wayyy behind. I know there are people who don't want to buy car because it's expensive but they don't have any other option because of our country is still lacking to provide efficient and accessible public transport to everyone.

Maybe there are other places I should write but I couldn't remember since it's been too long already. Perhaps I'll add more if I suddenly remember. One thing for surely, I will always remember these places deep in my heart ❤

Read more about my life in Sunway during foundation and degree here

Till then,

Adlina Maisarah

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

I always came across this questions during most of the interviews I attended after I graduated. And I just realized it's been almost 5 years since I left university.

I was thinking back about all the answers I used to give to recruiter but I couldn't remember anyway. Maybe I should dig back into my old stuffs for me to see.

But what I roughly remember I did said I wanted to grow and be an expertise in the field I'm working in. Looking at me now, I'm still not an expert yet but my experiences are leading me somewhere.

Back when I started my career as a SL1M trainee, I worked in chemical laboratory but I didn't do much testing. Most of the time I was focusing on doing reports which made me learn how to write and deal with data. From there I realized I wanted to learn to use Excel in details.

Few months before my training ended, I got an offer as a customer service specialist. When I first started working, I thought it was just about answering queries from customers only, but it's not. My main tasks were to process orders given via call, email and fax. Since most orders came from calls, I got the chance to polish my communication skills. I also deal with client representatives a lot and I enjoyed building rapports with them. We also keep in touch up until today.

When I decided for a career change, I applied for many related positions and ended up in telesales. I thought telesales is just about doing sales online only but I was wrong again. It's beyond my imagination. We have to analyse data to ensure our targets will be achieved. And we did all that using Excel. We also have to build good relationships with customers and always follow up with them. My experiences with client representatives before made it easier for me to develop the relationships with other representatives and clients. 

What amazed me was all skills I've gained from my experiences throughout my career were linked to each other in my current job. If I didn't have any of those experiences, I'm sure I won't be here. And I believe whatever experiences I'm gaining now will also be useful in future too.

To answer my question, Where do I see myself in 5 years, from 5 years ago? I think I am where I am supposed to be, growing and learning. I've found my passion and things I love doing. I just need to nurture them. There's a lot of things I need to improve in my career  and I'm grateful now I'm at the right place to do so. 

We couldn't see future but we can plan - hence for the next 5 years, I will focus on gaining and polishing more skills as well as be and expertise in my field. On top of that maybe I wanted to climb the corporate ladder too.

In terms of personal life, I have grown so much too since last 5 years - but mostly growing a lot this year. I improved my appearance, knowledge and the way I think too. I travelled a lot before Covid 19, now I'm planning to travel more when things got better. And I started to jog recently. For me this part surprised me most because I never imagined what myself look like as a person 5 years ago.

In terms of financial, I continued saving money as before but I also learn how to invest them. I paid my study loan too. Don't have much commitment yet at the moment. The only thing I thought I might have but don't yet was having my own house.

In terms of relationships, I now have my circle of friends small and closest to my family. I thought I might be married by now but I ended up being single anyway. Anyway I'm happy with my life. Maybe I'll get married when I found the right guy at the right time (finger crossed please pray for me!)

What happened today might not be like what I expected 5 years ago, some of it were accomplished while some still pending. 

In these 5 years too, they are many many times I overthinked. Thinking things that are beyond my control. Fortunately, I also learn to control my thoughts now. I realized this quite late but it's better late than never. There's always room for improvement. Always and and always.

I believe planning is a great thing, but you have to be flexible if any of your plan didn't go your way 😊😊

That's my reflection for today. 

Till then,

Adlina

An update on life

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

Hello Octoberrr! September ended so fast just in a blink of an eye. I think it's because I was so busy and still adapting with my life.

In September - went to see my sister and Husna, had my first progression report and at the end of the month I start building new habits.

After closing I had time to sort things out for work and my life. In working life, I started to see where I went wrong and trying to fix it. I'm currently trying to engage with all our clients to get to them better and build relationship. As for strategy and planning, I need to completed everything my superiors told me. Additionally, I learn Excel in a little bit details - such as the shortcut and VLOOKUP. They never failed to amazed me! In shaa Allah with these two things, I will able to achieve my targets. I want to keep learning and be better at what I'm doing. I'm glad I'm at the right place with the right guidance.

I also finally finished reading The Atomic Habit by James Clear. I don't know was it from there that I decided to sort out, build and add on my habits. 

I actually started to jog, consistently for a week - except for 3 days when I went to office. It wasn't easy but what kept me going were by using some tricks on myself;

1) I want to scroll my phone and stay in bed so what I did was I told myself - Let's scroll the phone while just walking. At least I just showed up for myself. In the end I ended up running and walking.

2) I like morning run so I told myself let's run in morning only and take breaks on the days I have to go to office.

3) I loveeee the cold shower after runninggg. It felt so refreshinggg. I always hated cold shower but it's so nice.

This week alone I managed to run 11km breaking my life record hehe. I hope to run more next week. I also learned not to judge yourself because you don't know what you're capable of doing.

Another habit I managed to do was waking up early consistently. I woke up at 4.30-5.00am now. But I'm still sorting out things I should do after I woke up. Sometimes I just woke up and pray and then stare at the sky. I still haven't figured out that part yet. 

Despite that, I'm still clueless about my night routine. That one still in progress. One thing for sure, I slept early for at least 5 to 6 hours per day.

This weekend I went out with my friends. I had good time catching up with my friends. I took MRT to go there. I was so excited to hear the announcement they made as well as the sound of the train. Now that I knew ways to use public transport, I might delay my plan to buy a car.  

Today I went for breakfast with my housemate. I just knew tosai tasted so much better at the restaurant. I usually had it takeaway so it's no longer crispyy. On our way back I bought latte at Mcdonald for RM2 only (always bought it during sale only hehe). Then my housemate wanted coconut water. While searching for it we discovered a gem - nursery with so many plants and fresh salted fish tooo. After we arrived at home we made porridge and air fried the salted fish. It's so niceee especially if you eat it with garlic chilli oil and dried seaweed.

Talking about that, this week I made vegetarian dumplings and froze the so I can eat whenever I feel hungry. I also know how to make Sushi and kimbap. Not so good yet but it's 70% already.

Back to my Sunday story, after lunch I cleaned my room, took a long shower and watched Hometown Cha Cha Cha. In the evening I wanted to do some calls but I was so tired so I ended up watching another show on Netflix (a good one! I'll share later). 

As for now I managed to write consistently here at least once or twice a week. However, there's still loophole I have to fill in for reading because I didn't read everyday.

I guessed that's all I wanted to share this time. I just wanted to remember these smallest things in my life so I won't forgot how they will shape me one day :)

Till then,

Adlina

A year later..

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

A year ago, something happened that broke me apart entirely. Long story short, I got left behind by someone who I truly loved and trust. 

I tried to save this relationship. Maybe he tried too. But things ended between us. I have to respect the choices he made for himself. And I no longer want to fight for someone who doesn't choose me. 

Of course it hurts because I was the one who got left behind. At that time, all I did was cried. I felt life was dark and I lose hope in everything. It was the most unexpected thing happened to me. Something that never crossed my mind. And the journey for me to heal myself is a very long process. 

At first I hated him. I spend quite some time in hatred. I always questioned why he did this to me and how all these happened. I guessed it was because I didn't get any proper closure. Most of all, I hated myself most. I kept regretting everything, and wished I've made different choices before.

Nevertheless, this post is not about him or what he did to me. It is about me and how I went through this chapter. 

Firstly I'm very fortunate because my family and friends were very supportive. They didn't encourage me to hate him or regret everything. They asked me to turn to God instead. I only do the latter. At that time Covid cases were rising so we had another lockdown. So I spend most of my time praying to God and reading Al Quran. Most of the time, I cried to God telling him everything I felt. I believe in all my life, during this heartbroken state I was the closest to God.

I didn't see anyone. I just stayed in my room. I didn't eat too because I didn't have appetite. But after I gained my appetite I decided not to eat too because it's a good time for me to diet lol. I lose 10kgs!

After a while, I started reading books. I pickup the theme about letting go (Read my reviews here). I wrote about my feelings in progress in my notebook for me to read someday. At this point, I know I will recover but I just don't know how and when. Other books that really helped were those written by Amal Nadiah (Read my reviews here) 

In December, the border to cross state was opened again. I decided to go back to Kedah. Initially I wanted to spend 2 weeks only and will come back if the company started to operate from office again. But they didn't call until the day I resigned. I think I made the right decisions because I need my family most at this time.

I started blogging again. Before New year, I wrote in my notebook to fully let go and forget everything by March. But I failed because I still remember the pain, still unable to accept that his heart changed and mostly I was unable to forgive myself. During this time I have gained appetite to eat, started exercising and spend time with family. I also started reading books from different genres because I feel bored reading about letting go (this is a good sign). I started wearing contact lens too! 

When Ramadhan came in April, I put my best effort to obtain the best from this holy month. After Ramadhan ended, the only thing left was I'm still unable to forgive myself. The pain and memories came once in a while but it was manageable. 

I was quite busy in May because of Ramadhan and I decided to have a career change. Therefore, I applied for jobs and attended few interviews. 

In June, I got offer from another company so I tendered my resignation. Since I only have one month at home, I utilized my time wisely with my family. I no longer have time to remember the pain or anything related to that. 

I went back to Selangor in July. I was afraid I might struggle to forget again if I go back to the city where everything started but I was wrong. Luckily, the few days staying there turns out to be the time for me to really let go. 

A month after I moved to my new place, I realized I have fully moved on - no longer remember the pain, or him and mostly, I no longer hate myself. 

When you fully redha and grateful, God will grant you with many more gifts in life.

I have improved a lot as a person. I started wearing contact lenses, dress up femininely and I even wear high heels now! I started reading and again write consistently in my blog. I appreciate the little things in life. It gets a little bit lonely sometimes because now I'm living alone. But I know God has better plans for me. And I put my whole trust in him that things will get better from here. 

Right now I have a job that I love with good environment, family who always be there for me, friends that supported me and I have Allah too. I'm so thankful for everything. I know He will give more. 

It has been such a long journey for me to go this far. 

A year ago, I thought life will be messed up for me. But it didn't. Life has become the best I ever had so far. 

A year ago, I think I will remained in regrets forever. But it didn't. I am at a better place now. 

A year ago, I think I will hate myself forever. But I didn't. Instead, I love myself most and have changed in so many ways to a better person and still improving. 

A year ago, I think I will never love again. But now I'm ready to open my heart again when the right time and the right person come. 

A year ago, I resented everything. But now I accepted this is just another phase of life. I believe this is part of God's plan for me. 

It took me almost 10 months to completely heal myself. It's very hard to accept things that are not meant to be, but once I trust everything happens for a reason, I can accept things easily. 

The truth is, I lose a person but I gained a lot more than what I lost. If this didn't happen to me, I might stay the way I am before until now, clipping my own wings to fly. Thus, I'm forever grateful for this heartbreak. Sometimes the best way for us to learn is through pain. 

I also learn instead of hating, learn to forgive and let go. It's not for the other person but it's for yourself. The longer you held on to those, you will feel the greater pain. The person who hurt you is also a human that made mistakes. And human's heart can change in a a blink of eyes. Just learn to accept what is meant to be yours will find it's way, what doesn't will never be yours no matter how much you tried - in other words, Redha. Don't play victim because there's no right or wrong in things involving feelings. Move on and live your life happier than before. 

Whatever happened in this life, will not last forever. The pain you felt today will dissappear, sooner or later. The pain can either break you or make you stronger. You choose.

Take your time to heal. Don't force yourself. You will be okay eventually.

When people said time heals, I kinda disagree. But when I was going through all this, yes time does heal. You just gotta trust the process. You will stumble and fall, but you too will rise again. I didn't expect it will only take less than 1 year for me to heal. It wasn't easy but it becomes easier because I choose myself. And I don't want to live with regrets anymore. All of us are humans who make mistakes. But we can learn from them.

Don't live your life dwelling on something you can't change. If one thing doesn't work, there are still million things for you to work on. 

I always think life is purely black and white, but it's not because there will always be gray area in between. This chapter has taught me to be wiser - to trust your guts, put limit in your trust and expectations and most put yourself first before others.

We have a long journey of adventures ahead of us. Why would you let yourself live in despair and sorrow when you still have much more to achieve? You should be happier and the happiest. Because there's a lot of source of happiness out there - especially within yourself. Find that and all circumstances you have will feel small. 

Seek guidance and strength from God. Because whatever you do, will only happens with His will. My mom always said find God and He will take care of everything for you.

Right now, I'm grateful beyond measure. Everyday I thanked God for everything He gave me. But I won't lie that the scar in my heart still remain. It's no longer wounded as before but it's still there. It will come once in a while just to remind you of what you've been through. Nevertheless, I know someday it will be gone.

Another thing I realized how I make progress is through the songs I listened. When it first happened, I listened to terribly heartbroken aka all the songs that can make you cry. But gradually it changed to songs about regretting. Now my songs genre has changed to normal music I used to listen too or motivating songs. 

Ohhh and the closure I was seeking from him, I never get it. It took some time for me to realize, the closure that I need was from myself. When I fully accepted everything wholeheartedly, it's actually a beautiful closure I've been looking for. 

Let go and let God. 

Let's live to life to the fullest and be happy okay? You will see greater things in life Fighting! 

Goodbye to my "If Only" chapter

Fighting!

Till then, 

Adlina

Another week in KL

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

It's middle of September already! This week we have Malaysia day on Thursday and since I was allowed to work from home on Friday I decided to visit my sister in KL. So on Wednesday I took Grab from office to her house.

On Malaysia day, I went to meet my friend, Husna whom I haven't met in 9 months. We went for breakfast date at a cafe called If Only. I love the name so muchhh as it kinda resonates with me. The cafe wasn't too crowded and the food was quite delicious. Then we went to KLCC for a coffee date. It was a short time meeting her but we had quality time together.

After Zohor, I took Grab to another mall to have lunch at Sukiya with my sister. She was extremely obsessed with Sukiya now. As for me I like everything there but my stomach no longer able to digest a lot or food at the same time now. But I like the vibes there because it's like the scene I watched Kdrama. 

After lunch we went for a walk in the mall and around the MRT station. I miss the sound of MRT and walking everywhere. Even when at KLCC I was so excited to hear the sound of LRT announcement. It kinda made me feel I miss the town vibes too.

On Friday I spend time working and my sister cooked lunch and dinner for us. I spent my Friday night watching the last episode of Hospital Playlist 2 (will review this soon!). 

I started by Saturday morning at 9am and spent some time doing work. Later in the evening we ordered Johnny's tomyam broth and desserts. We made our own steamboat with the meat and seafood that my sister had. We watched the famous movie "How to lose a guy in 10 days" while eating. 

At night I had session with the Jannah Striving Sisters club and I couldn't believe it's been 5 weeks with them! One of the things we discussed that struck my heart was about Abu Hurairah who spent only 4 years with the prophet but he became of the person who narrated most hadith. This portrayed that in short amount of time, you still can strive for the best despite of how late you start.

After the class we had supper with the leftover tomyam and watched Hometown Cha Cha Cha. 

Since I slept at 12am, I woke up a bit late on Sunday. Besides talking to my sister, I finished the The Way Of The Hot & Spicy series on Netflix. I was planning to finish the Atomic Habit book but I wasn't in the mood.

In the evening I went to the mall with my sister for lunch at DubuYo. We went to shop for some essential stuffs after that and we actually spent quite a lot. But it's okay because it didn't happen all the time.

We also redeemed our RM2 coffee on McD app. Then we bought Baskin Robbin ice cream for RM3 only because we purchased the shopee voucher. It feels so good when you bought things on promotion. We wanted to stroll around more but I had to go back.

After Maghrib my sister sent me off to Grab. Overall I had a great weekend with my favourite people. I loved being in the town like always. 

I guessed that's the end of my weekend. May next week will be filled with excitement, eagerness, happiness and me reaching the target in my work 💪

The egg truffle burger and Beyond Meat burger (this one is vegetarian but tasted so good) 

Cappuccino and Latte from 8Ounce Coffee

Mandatory background 

Nice interior

Me loving the walks (even in heels) and the MRT 

Goodbye sister see you next time

Till then,

Adlina

Luckin Kopi with my bestie

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

Somewhere in September 2020, right before another lockdown, Husna and I went out together to explore some places.

We decided to go food hunting while we still can. At that time, one of the viral cafes is the Luckin Kopi. Since Husna is a coffee lover and I love to try new things, we decided to give it a try.

I Googled how to go there because I don't drive and Husna don't want to drive. So I found out the cafe was located near LRT Pasar Seni. We met at LRT Station and went to LRT Pasar Seni together. 

Once we arrived we kind of lost because not sure where was it. Then Google Maps came to rescue! It was just 300 metres from LRT Pasar Seni. One way to know where it was, you can see many people lining up in front of the cafe starting from 8am.

The map

When we arrived it's about 9am so the queue was quite long a bit. We had to wait around 45 minutes before we could go in. Another tips; come before 10am. After that the line will be soo longg.

Once we get in, we were brought to the seats upstairs. I like the vibes. The interior was wooden deco like our ancestors house but it was designed and arranged in a modern way. 

We ordered the 5 States Kopi - Ipoh, Kedah, Johor and another 2 I can't remember. But basically the difference were in the bitterness and sweetness. I like bitter coffee more. 

Anyway since we haven't eaten, we ordered some food to. I ordered Nasi Lemak Sambal Petai and Salted Egg chicken rice. Both were good too but Husna and I came to agreement that if you want to order the coffee set, don't order the salted egg chicken rice because it will make you feel bellyful and they didn't match. One more tips: if you come here to drink the 5 states coffee, don't order heavy food because it will make you full. I saw many people ordered a lot of food and coffee but didn't finished all. Don't waste your food and drinks okay? 

For me the Nasi Lemak and 5 states coffee were really good. I think their toasted bread might taste good too but we didn't try because our stomach was full already. 

As for the price, I think it's okay. Not too overprice and worth for the food quality and the ambience that we get. 

Overall: 4.5/5

The food we ordered

We finished the all of them! 

My food hunting buddy. The vibes here were so nice rite? 

Ps: I wish this Covid 19 ended soon so we can go food hunting without any worries! 

Pss: Happy 64th independence day!!! The reason why I wrote this post BECAUSE I think the biggest reason people are united is FOOODDDD

Till then, 

Adlina

A random Saturday

Assalamualaikum ands Hi,

I usually planned carefully what to write but this is a random post. 

Well I have quite a good day today. Woke up at 5am for prayers but I fall asleep after Subuh because I stayed up watching At The Dolphin Bay until 1am. Then I woke up again at 10am because I forgot that I switched off all alarms on weekends.

I spend my whole day finishing the series and went out to buy groceries in the evening. We went to Tesco. While shopping I just realized my weakness and happy place is supermarket. It's like I was in my own world looking at all the rice, mayonnaise, eggs, ice creams and all other stuffs. I really loved groceries shopping. We spend almost 2 hours day. 

Once arrived home, we unpacked all the stuffs, cooked dinner and then I rushed to sharing classes with my friends. After that I watched latest episode of Hospital Playlist 2. I just loved that drama so very muchhh. I normally sleep at 9 or 10pm every night, latest at 11pm. But now I'm currently wide awake so I decided to write because I have a lot of thoughts in my mind.

Life is an unpredictable journey for us rite? I've never think I'll made this far but I did. I always want to give up on everything. But after a lot of things that I went through, I promise myself not to give up. 

It's just a bad day, it's not the time yet but keep striving because you're closer to what you're looking for. If I give up today, I will certainly lose everything I might have tomorrow. 

I think maybe that's for now. May everything will end up well and we will always be blessed 😘

Have a good rest and sleep earlyyyy. 

Take a guess how much these cost? There are still a lot of stuffs at the bottom. 

The viral Gardenia bread. I think the taste suits Malaysian taste well. 

Till then, 

Adlina

The start of something new

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

After closing one chapter and bidding good bye to the city, I moved to a new place that I've been few times. It's still in Selangor but it's just not in the place where I can walk everywhere, or completely accessible by public transport.

I love it here too. It's calmer here. More trees and everything green. Everything's cheaper here. People here are nice too. I haven't stay here for a long time but I like it here already. I believe God put me here for some reasons. 

I like my new job. It's very challenging and it involves a lot of planning, thinking and excuting (just like I wanted riteeee), but I also struggle a lot to meet the target. I'm in good hands. Everyone here is very nice, supportive and encouraging. I got what I asked for. I enjoy every single day. I have lesser time on social media. I ate well (I think I gain few kgs already). My new home is a good place too. I like looking at the beautiful views of nature. The sky here is so picturesque. 

After 8 months of working from home, my body kind of shocked because I moved a lot. I also wake up at 5am every day. So my body feels tired because my muscles rest a lot since last year. 

Moving to a new place is a good thing. It makes me view life differently. I think I already change a lot as a person. No more overthinking, no more expectations, no more rushing. I just give the very best I can, and I trust God with the rest. Every single day when I wake up, I prayed God will ease all my affairs, then I give my shot for the day. I also had feelings of keep wanting to be a better person each day and I push myself to be one, one step at a time, but no pressure. Just be better than yesterday each day. 

To anyone who read this, please pray the best for me. I wish the same for you too. May He ease all of our affairs. 

Till then, 

Adlina.

Good bye city life

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

Last time I wrote I got a job offer from Company H here. However the company is located very far from the place I used to be. So I have to move out again. This time it's quite hard because it's during Covid.

After I arrived in Selangor on 21st, I went to my client's office and my company to return all their belongings. During the journey to the offices, I saw the roads I used to take, the malls I used to go and argh it kind of break my heart a little bit. I haven't been here for 8 months and when I came back, I was about to leave I again. I didn't have time to say good bye.

On 22nd I went to get my first jab and rest at home. I spend time with my sister and housemates before moving out on Sunday. Since it's Covid now, the only option I have was to use Lalamove service. I took a small van from the city to my new place and it costed around RM130. I think that's quite a good price since it includes carrying my stuffs too.

While I was in the van, the driver passed through all the places I used to go. When I saw my all time favourite place, Sunway, tears started running down my cheeks. I can't help myself from not being emotional. This is the place I've been growing up since I was 18. There's too much memories with everyone here, and they're only good memories only. And I guess that's why it's hard for me to let go this place (my friend Husna also feel the same too, so it's normal hehe).

I still remember there's a day in 2020 when I was too heartbroken and everything in the city felt so overwhelming, I prayed to God while looking at the city through the window;

"Dear God, this city now feels too overwhelming and painful to me. Please bring me to somewhere more peaceful and calm. I want to start over there."

And then boom! Almost a year later my prayers were answered in a way I didn't expect. I was begging to leave then I was the one crying badly because I was too attached to the city hahaha.

Anyway, I just want to highlight how much I love the city. I love the public transport. I love the sound of the train. I love how I can see the city from the train. I love to travel everywhere by train. Actually I love everything about the train except that it's packed in the morning. I love walking alone in the crowd. I love discover new places with my friends. I love to food hunting. I love waking up early in the morning on weekend to go out. I love going to cinema alone and with others. I love staring at the big buildings. Now I love all the bookstores too! I love having conversations with my friends while we're exploring places. We used to sit at restaurants for hours talking to each other. I love Masjid hopping in Ramadhan. I love to look at people everywhere. I love the malls. I love how we always go to different malls every weekend for window shopping but actually we're just walking around and talk about random stuffs. I love how we know every inch of the mall and how each mall is very special. 

If it's not in pandemic, I'm sure I already took the train after work to the city and explore places with my loved ones. I feel so glad I always take the chance to do whatever I want before even when I was so tired or don't feel like doing anything. 

Because it's different now, it's far more dangerous there and I don't know when I can go there. Many places are closing down too. We don't know when this pandemic will end since it's like neverending. Maybe that's why it feels so different. 

I was attached to these places because of good memories I have. I guess the best way to detach is to build more beautiful memories at other places. But this Covid thing ruined everything so for now let's just survive first. 

So my dear city, good bye. Thank you for all these beautiful years. I will miss you dearly. I'm glad I spend my youth there and learned a lot. Maybe one day I will come back or maybe not. But you're always have a special place in my heart. Very very special one ❤️

Ps: Hopefully my hijrah to another place will be the beautiful start of new beginnings. Aminn. 

Ice skating in Sunway Pyramid

Tarawih in Lembaga Tabung Haji

Masjid KLCC

The sky in Kelana Jaya

Kelana Jaya's view from my office

Early morning in KL Sentral

The forever always busy KL Sentral. Not sure how is it now. 

The walkway I used to take to office

The view taken from LRT Kelana Jaya station

The road to Sunway

Good bye my favourite place

Till then, 

Adlina

Books : Dumped & Tuesdays by Amal Nadiah

Assalamualaikum and Hi,

Today I want to share about books that are very special and unique. I followed the Amal Nadiah on IG for quite some time but I didn't know how and when. When she published her first book, I'm not interested to buy at all. Then while I was browsing books at the bookstore, I saw her book and flipped through few pages. The next thing I know was I had both books in my hands.

I love her books because her writings are very different. She talked about how she view world, love, life and everything else. Her thoughts and her stories are somehow motivating that it reminded me life is a journey full of bumpy roads.

Her first book, Dumped, is about the author who got left behind by his boyfriend on her birthday. And the stories goes on with her next relationships. Along the way, she tell stories of how she grew over the years and through all the challenges. She travelled a lot so it's nice to learn about other countries too. I guess it's a great book for growing adult but it's an amazing book to help you go through breakup.

I bought this book before I had my breakup but I read it afterwards. It gives me strength and hope beyond what I expected. I wish I had read it sooner so I valued myself more than a relationship.

From MPH Publishings

Her next book, Tuesday, is a perfect for those who got left behind without proper closure. Very interesting because it was narrated just for a day in Paris. I can relate this more with myself because I didn't get and I wish for a proper clousure. But the ending should be how you accepted that it wasn't meant to be and forgive yourself because it's nobody fault.

Anyway I don't want to spoil it but they're really very good books! Go check them out :)

Ps: I like books based on other people stories/narratives. If you have good suggestions, do comment below.

Till then,

Adlina