A day I will always Cherish

Oh my God.
I can’t believe what happened on Saturday =). It was one of the most memorable and happiest days of my life.

Mak and Ayah came on Friday and we all slept at a hotel. I thought Mak, Ayah and Aida je yang datang sbb Mak kata Aimi ade program. But to my surprise and delight, Aimi came too! Hehe.. The sad thing about it is Ahmad tak ikut sekali. He had a motivational program with Syukri Abdullah.

Anyhow, I woke up early the morning of the graduation. I couldn’t contain my excitement and pleasure. It was so cold, and our room didn’t have hot water. Brrrr.. Sejuk nye! So I took a bath with ice-cold water that froze you to the bone. I guess that’s why I was so jovial that morning! Haha..

We arrived earlier than expected, bertolak dari hotel kul 6.45 and arrived at Bukit Jalil around 7.15. As I had to be there by 7.30, the rest went to have breakfast at a nearby kafe.

I went off to find my friends.. When I arrived, I saw Ju with her family. Mak aiii.. baju mcm pengantin! We all semua ejek die “Lepas ni nak pegi nikah ke?” hehehe.. But everyone was so beautiful that day. Semua vogue and bergaya. The guys semua pakai suit, wah.. smartnye semua org! It was so wonderful seeing smiles every where you went =).

Before registering; me, Ju, Kak Anne, and Kak Ayda helped each other with our robes. Mine was extra hard so I went to find Mak. Hehe.. Bile lagi nak manja2 ngan Mak. Hehehe.. Then it was time to line up and get into position. In my campus, I was number 4 after three other guys. Biase lah, org nama start dari A. Hehe.. That time was so memorable, everyone helping each other with their robes, of course la everyone wanted to look their best that day.

When the Graduates Procession started, I started to feel nervous. Seram sejuk semua org, dah lah the dewan was so cold. It was a good thing for our thick robes, if not mesti dah menggigil kat situ. Hehhehehe..

As I entered the Stadium, I looked at the spectators, trying to find Mak and Ayah. It was a good thing they were easy to spot. Hehe.. As we all entered, rupanye Aimi said that the camera man focused on me. So my face was on the big screen above everyone. YaAllah, malunye! Ntah ape2 my expression.

Then came the Academic Staff Procession, when our lecturers came in, we all (meaning the IIM graduates only) clapped our hands so loud that my hands hurt. Hehe.. We are so wonderful to have such dedicated and hard working lecturers.

The session started with speeches from the UniKL President; Dato Seri Dr. Ibrahim Saad, then came the speech from our beloved and most supporting Chancellor; Tengku Makhota Tengku Abdullah (Pahang). It wasn’t long before it came to the presentation of Degree and Diploma.

When our time came, as the first row of graduates from our institute stood up to get in line, the rest (meaning the supporters of IIM laa hehe..) clapped and cheered out loud. Bestnye YaAllah..

My hands were shaking, my feet didn’t feel the floor, my heart was pumping hard, I had butterflies in my stomach. The day before that, we had a rehearsal and they told us what to do and what to say in front of his Royal Highness. We were to “angkat sembah” then say “dijunjung kasih tuanku”. At that time, everyone kept practicing and repeating the sentence. Hehehe.. So, as I stood in front, waiting in line to go on stage, I took a deep breath. YaAllah.. Seramnye!

When my turn came, I walked on the stage with a huge smile. I can still see it in my mind, how it all went. As I walked down the unstable steps of the stage, I released a huge sigh, in my mind “Fuh, first phase complete”. Then as I walked along the spectators, ready to sit back in my seat, I was stopped by one of the people there. “Adik ni Amirah Dayana ke?” “Ye saya”, I answered. “Adik tolong pergi kat tepi belah kanan tu ye”, said the kakak.

So I went to the place she showed me.. Not knowing what was in store for me. When I reached there, I was stopped again by a guy this time. He asked me,”Amirah Dayana ke?” Again I said yes. Then to my absolute surprise, he switched on his camera and shoved a microphone in front of me. “Huh?? Ape ni?”, I asked myself. “Kami nak interview adik. Nanti tolong cakap nama, asal dari mana, cara study.. Nanti saya tanya awak jawab ok?” I was speechless. Baru je nak calm down from the nervousness of having to go on stage, tiba2 org nak interview pulak. Knape takde sape yang warning dulu? Adoiii..

So with no choice, I practiced what I wanted to say. Sempat repeat my sentence lagi, then to overcome my nervousness I made a joke with the cameraman. Hhehehe.. Nak hilang gementar punye pasal!

He switched on the camera and I was blasted with a strong light in my face. The reporter asked me questions, awal2 tu seram jugak, then as I got used to the camera I smiled a bit and relaxed. Then last2 tu die pegi tanya soalan lain pulak. Hampeh btul laa. It’s a good thing I’m used to think quickly and answer “surprise” questions. Tu semua practice from the confrontation from the lecturers during presentation time. =)

That wasn’t the only interview mind you. After talking gibberish in front of the camera, another reporter came over to me and interviewed by hand pulak. He asked all sorts of questions, how I studied, what motivated me, my life goals. Fuh.. Then as I was talking, other cameramen took candid photos. Sabar je laa.

After all the interviews, I went back to my seat, only to be stopped again and quarantined. All the award recipients had to sit at the back, far away from the rest. The ceremony continued, until of course the last presentation of Diploma was completed. Then the quarantined graduates were asked to stand up and line up beside the stage again. When we all stood up, a cheer came up. I am not able to express how I felt at that moment. I was so happy, I was speechless. All I was able to do was smile.

My hands started shaking again, I couldn’t think straight. As we were brought in front, we stopped beside the Academic Staff. It was a good thing a few of my lecturers were seated near me. To hilangkan my gementar, I talked to them and tried to joke around. Congrats were sent my way with huge and proud smiles from each and every one of them. I’ll always remember that moment.

As I stood at the steps of the stage, again I took a deep breath. As I walked up the steps, I heard my name being called for the President’s Award. I walked up hardly believing it was me on that stage. I reached Tuanku and he smiled. Tahniah Amirah =). Smiling back, that’s another moment to cherish. As I walked down the unstable steps again, I had to run a bit to get back to the other side of the hall (which was a LONGGG way) coz I had to go up again for another award. YaAllah.. malunye!

Nasib baik sempat sampai… This time I was to accept the Council Award. As I walked up the stage again, my name was announced again, and a loud cheer came up. Clapping of hands, even a few stood up. I am so honored. Thank you to each and every one of my friends who stood up for me. I am forever grateful.

Hey, ok la.. tengah kelas ni. I'll continue later okey =)
See ya!