VETERAN actress Liza Abdullah gets nostalgic during the festive season, recounting the simple days of Hari Raya during her childhood, Berita Harian reported.
“The tradition of sending out greeting cards felt much more sentimental and emotional. We used to send only physical cards with handwritten heartfelt messages but now everyone has switched to virtual cards,” she said.
“It’s easy and fast, but the feeling is different.”
Even the atmosphere at night felt different now, she said.
“We used to play with firecrackers, which were legal at the time.
“We would hang lanterns around the house and decorate the trees, all of which became beautiful and meaningful moments that we cherish to this day,” said Liza, 62.
She said that her childhood Raya celebrations used to have a more community-driven feeling with neighbourhood friends going from house to house without any worries.
“But now, celebrations are mostly limited to close family members.
“Kids today rarely visit homes of people they don’t know. Back then, even strangers were treated like family.
“We used to know almost everyone and felt safer.
“Now, many are considered outsiders, so children aren’t allowed to go out freely. That’s the difference,” she added.
> A single mother, who fell on hard times, could only collect RM3 over four days of begging at a sidewalk in Kota Baru, Kosmo! reported.
“I cannot afford to buy Raya clothes for my five children as I have no stable income after separating from my husband two years ago,” said Siti Mirinda Suraya Che Man, 36.
She resorted to begging at a sidewalk with three of her children, aged between 20 months and 10 years.
“I came here hoping to collect donations, but I only managed to get RM3 over four days. Thankfully some kind people have donated rice to us,” she said.
Her family, who is from the nearby district of Pasir Puteh, was hoping to seek funds to buy Raya clothes and basic necessities for the festive season.
(The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.)
