Random Helping #160: Why Patience is a Virtue
For my 25th birthday last year, I dropped major hints to my brother that I wanted a brand-new pair of Skullcandy headphones, because the one I had before had a busted cable and was collecting dust at one corner of my room for months. I had been using another pair of headphones that I got for free through a lucky bag contest back in 2013 but the quality was nowhere near comparable. So, I dropped some hints (read: literally told) on where to get it, which model should he be looking for, etc. I was so excited about getting a new pair until my birthday eventually came.
No sign of the headphones.
My brother looked apologetic and he told me that the Quicksilver store where I first got my Skullcandy in Sunway Pyramid closed down for good. I said, okay nevermind, you can still go look for one in KLCC. I even told him the exact location of the Quicksilver store. He returned home and told me glumly that even the one in KLCC closed down. Not wanting to give up, I told him of another store in MidValley.
Again, his search was futile. Like his search in KLCC, even the store in MidValley was nowhere to be found (it was only recently that I found out they moved to another location within MidValley). My sweet brother felt guilty and he apologised that he couldn't get me the present that I wanted. I told him that it wasn't his fault and it was okay. Sure, I was disappointed but it wasn't even his fault to begin with.
So I carried on using the same headphones I had been using for months. I managed to get used to the sound quality and adapted to it but I still missed the bass quality that my old headphones had. I began to completely forget about my busted headphones until my friends and I gathered for another friend's birthday last weekend. She asked what happened to my old headphones and if I had already thrown it away. I told her how it was collecting dust in one corner of my room because I could no longer use it. That was when what she said knocked A LOT OF SENSE into me.
"Yang rosak cable dia je kan? Ganti je lah cable dia. Headphone dia ok kan?"
Slowly, I shifted my gaze to her and my eyes widened in response. It was like a much-waited revelation suddenly beamed straight into my mind. OF COURSE!! WHY didn't I think of this before?! WHY couldn't have I thought of it much sooner?! WHY didn't I realise that the solution was right beneath my nose this whole time?! Nasib baik tak pegi buang walaupun ada rasa macam nak buang je benda alah tu daripada biarkan tersadai kat dalam bilik buat kumpul habuk.
I thanked her profusely and proceeded to look for the audio cables the very next day. And that was how my Skullcandy came back to life from its long dusty sleep.
This incident made me ponder over a lot of things, to be honest. Sure, it was a very trivial matter --a pair of busted headphones aje pun-- but it made me realise something really significant: patience is a virtue. I know that the phrase is so overused these days that we often miss the significance of its meaning but it was this trivial incident that brought a moment of epiphany to me. And, as silly as this may sound but I actually teared up when I realised the rationale of the whole matter.
Because Allah answered my prayer and nothing would make me cry tears of joy than when He answers my prayers. I wanted a new pair of Skullcandy headphones but He didn't answer my prayer right then and there. I thought that there was no way I would be getting new headphones and I was pretty upset by it at first until I completely forgot all about it and made it the least of my worries. It wasn't until when my friend gave the suggestion that I realised that He was finally answering my prayer.
Imagine if my brother DID find one of those stores that I asked him to look for and he had to fork out a bit of his fortune for a new pair?
Imagine if he already made that purchase and I find out much later that all I needed to do was replace the cables?
Imagine if I had been brash and threw those headphones away; thinking that they could no longer be used?
These thoughts raced through my mind after I finished performing my Isha' prayer last Saturday. And, if there are things that I could learn from this incident, they would be:
1. He was teaching me to be patient, be patient and be patient because good things do come to those who wait.
2. Prayers do get answered eventually, and sometimes in ways we least expect them.
3. He is the best planner there is and NOTHING can ever top His plans.
4. Sometimes, we may not immediately understand the wisdom behind certain incidents that occur in our lives that we deem to be unpleasant. But, over time, I believe that the wisdom would eventually unravel itself and it's up to us to make sense of it.
5. Maybe He's trying to increase my faith in Him that He heard every single prayer I've uttered all this time and that He's going to answer them during times He deem appropriate.
Wow. All of that over a pair of broken headphones. I guess it's no wonder why my friends call me a chronic overthinker. Haha.
No sign of the headphones.
My brother looked apologetic and he told me that the Quicksilver store where I first got my Skullcandy in Sunway Pyramid closed down for good. I said, okay nevermind, you can still go look for one in KLCC. I even told him the exact location of the Quicksilver store. He returned home and told me glumly that even the one in KLCC closed down. Not wanting to give up, I told him of another store in MidValley.
Again, his search was futile. Like his search in KLCC, even the store in MidValley was nowhere to be found (it was only recently that I found out they moved to another location within MidValley). My sweet brother felt guilty and he apologised that he couldn't get me the present that I wanted. I told him that it wasn't his fault and it was okay. Sure, I was disappointed but it wasn't even his fault to begin with.
So I carried on using the same headphones I had been using for months. I managed to get used to the sound quality and adapted to it but I still missed the bass quality that my old headphones had. I began to completely forget about my busted headphones until my friends and I gathered for another friend's birthday last weekend. She asked what happened to my old headphones and if I had already thrown it away. I told her how it was collecting dust in one corner of my room because I could no longer use it. That was when what she said knocked A LOT OF SENSE into me.
"Yang rosak cable dia je kan? Ganti je lah cable dia. Headphone dia ok kan?"
Slowly, I shifted my gaze to her and my eyes widened in response. It was like a much-waited revelation suddenly beamed straight into my mind. OF COURSE!! WHY didn't I think of this before?! WHY couldn't have I thought of it much sooner?! WHY didn't I realise that the solution was right beneath my nose this whole time?! Nasib baik tak pegi buang walaupun ada rasa macam nak buang je benda alah tu daripada biarkan tersadai kat dalam bilik buat kumpul habuk.
I thanked her profusely and proceeded to look for the audio cables the very next day. And that was how my Skullcandy came back to life from its long dusty sleep.
This incident made me ponder over a lot of things, to be honest. Sure, it was a very trivial matter --a pair of busted headphones aje pun-- but it made me realise something really significant: patience is a virtue. I know that the phrase is so overused these days that we often miss the significance of its meaning but it was this trivial incident that brought a moment of epiphany to me. And, as silly as this may sound but I actually teared up when I realised the rationale of the whole matter.
Because Allah answered my prayer and nothing would make me cry tears of joy than when He answers my prayers. I wanted a new pair of Skullcandy headphones but He didn't answer my prayer right then and there. I thought that there was no way I would be getting new headphones and I was pretty upset by it at first until I completely forgot all about it and made it the least of my worries. It wasn't until when my friend gave the suggestion that I realised that He was finally answering my prayer.
Imagine if my brother DID find one of those stores that I asked him to look for and he had to fork out a bit of his fortune for a new pair?
Imagine if he already made that purchase and I find out much later that all I needed to do was replace the cables?
Imagine if I had been brash and threw those headphones away; thinking that they could no longer be used?
These thoughts raced through my mind after I finished performing my Isha' prayer last Saturday. And, if there are things that I could learn from this incident, they would be:
1. He was teaching me to be patient, be patient and be patient because good things do come to those who wait.
2. Prayers do get answered eventually, and sometimes in ways we least expect them.
3. He is the best planner there is and NOTHING can ever top His plans.
4. Sometimes, we may not immediately understand the wisdom behind certain incidents that occur in our lives that we deem to be unpleasant. But, over time, I believe that the wisdom would eventually unravel itself and it's up to us to make sense of it.
5. Maybe He's trying to increase my faith in Him that He heard every single prayer I've uttered all this time and that He's going to answer them during times He deem appropriate.
Wow. All of that over a pair of broken headphones. I guess it's no wonder why my friends call me a chronic overthinker. Haha.