ONCE A SDARIAN ALWAYS A SDARIAN

For most of us, those who had gone through the life offered by Sekolah Dato' Abdul Razak (SDAR), be it in Tanjung Malim, Sikamat, Seremban, or Sungai Gadut, Seremban, we are friends, chums, buddies, comrades (call what you like) forever, even when we were from different batches and have never studied together

That is what Sdaras are all about. We live exactly as our motto: ONCE A SDARIAN ALWAYS A SDARIAN.

For us the batch of 67-72/74, we were very very close, almost like brothers. As we age (some age faster while a few never seem to grow old) the invisible bond inexplicably grows stronger.

When one falls sick, the news is spread wide and fast between us and some will rush to visit, giving moral support.

When one's child gets married, the great day will almost certain will be filled by many of us.

When one passes on (a few of us passed away recently), doa and tahlil will be organized and donation for the bereaved family will be made according to one's financial capacity. The motto: Sikik soghe (Kelantanese dialect meaning a wee bit by everybody).

I remember when a few of us went missing (MIA), all of us tried our best locating them. One very talented guy in doing this is of course our very own Computer. With his ingenuity, he found our Arshad Dol (my best buddy).

Sadly too, ver few just don't want to (due to their own personal reasons) be related to SDAR. Very sorry for them.

A few kept their private life to themselves, including their health status. One such guy is arwah Razak Ismail. He passed on after a period of coma without anyof us knowing.

A few faced sickness boldly without even grimacing. He was non other than arwah Dr Abdul Manaf Hamid. He went through heart by-pass operation, kidney failure, loss of sight and hearing and finally bilateral limb amputation. He continued teaching Medical students till his very last breath...a wonderful teacher indeed.

There was also arwah Nawam, the silent one. He passed away a few years ago, without many of us knowing. Ismail Shamsuddin aka Pak Mat, diligently went around Serdang area tracking his family.

On the 7th raya, he found them. She told him that arwah Nawam suffered from Systemic Lupus Erythematosis (SLE)....

After leaving our alma mater, we went through life in a variety of ways. No matter what financial and social status we finally are, the bond that tie us together is a strong one. We are still great comrades, sahabat till we die.

With that principle, two great reunions were organized - one in Port Dickson and the latest was in Kangar.

As our wise Pak Mat said, from now on it may be difficult to organize such a gathering...but we will try to do something, to get in touch with everyone till that very day.

I know I have not been as mobile as I would like to be, like some of us, especially those in Klang Valley. I have missed many of our reunions and teh tarik sessions, but deep in my heart, I'll always be with you all. Tempat jatuh lagi dikenang, inikan pula tempat bermain ( Even places we had fallen we remember, what more places we had played).

I hope and pray that we will continue keeping in touch for a long long time to come and may our children and grandchildren continue this tradition.

ONCE A SDARIAN ALWAYS A SDARIAN