FOUR generations of Mohd Salleh Bijan’s family came home to Perak Tengah from all over the country to have a mass Hari Raya gathering.
Organised by the family’s reunion committee for the fourth time, the biennial gathering saw some 210 family members and descendants of religious teacher Mohd Salleh mingling with each other at the Dewan Akademi Pembangunan Belia Malaysia (APBM) in Siputeh on Tuesday.
One of the family’s prestigious members and Mohd Salleh’s grandson, former education director-general Tan Sri Alimuddin Mohd Dom, said before the family reunion idea was realised in 2004, it would be almost impossible to visit all the other families because there were at least 60 homes throughout the country to go to.
“Back then, my grandfather had three wives and fathered a total of 16 children from his marriages.
“And from there, the children gradually started families of their own. That is how our family tree has grown massively,” he told The Star during the reunion lunch.
Alimuddin, whose mother was one of the two children from Mohd Salleh’s first wife, said it was extremely important for the elders in the family to take charge of keeping track of all the other family members.
“It is a blessing to come from a large family like this one, and we do not want to lose contact with any of them, especially the younger generation.
“Hopefully, with our continuous efforts the young ones can take over one day to remember the roots of our family tree,” he said.
He added that contrary to common belief that a large family would only breed drama and distance, the Bijan family were a close-knit group.
“I hope that the youths would also appreciate this chance to form a network of contacts with their extended families.
“With so many of them branching out into different industries, I am sure that networking will be beneficial for them in the long run,” he said.
According to Alimuddin, Mohd Salleh, who came to Malaysia from Indonesia in the 1950s, had passed away in 1967.
“I can still remember how it was like to receive such depressing news when I was 15 and still studying in Sitiawan when he was in Ipoh back then.
“He was the one who gave me guidance when I needed it the most, and many valuable life lessons.
“I will never forget that he always emphasised on how important it was to work hard in life to be successful, since he came from a poor family,” he recalled.
Reunion committee chairman Mohamed Noordin Bahari said with the emergence of Internet and digital devices these days, it became more convenient to contact everyone regarding a family event.
“We have social media such as Facebook and Instagram to help us keep track of each other, and we even have our Whatsapp family group chat to know of any new members joining our family.
“For example, just this year alone, we have 10 newly-wedded couples and around eight newborns,” he said.
The hall was filled with activities as children ran around playing with balloons while the youths were engaged in quizzes organised during the reunion.
They were also tested on religion and general knowledge.
Family members also took part in a competition to guess the correct amount of beans in a container to win hampers.
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