It is 1pm, third day of Raya. Im still in my towel, joyfully whistling Hari Raya song while vacuuming the floor. My cats stared at me looking annoyed. I must say, this pandemic version of Raya is not so bad after all.

I said to my nephews and nieces, now you have a “I remember when” story to tell the future generations. I remember when….. we didn’t celebrate Raya due to the pandemic outbreak back in 2020. They’ve heard so many I remember when stories from me before – I remember when we didn’t have mobile phones, I remember when we didn’t have internet, I remember when we didn’t have smart phones, I remember when we didn’t have YouTube… – and each time the stories never failed to get that intrigued look on their faces. Ok, ok, actually more of the look of horror than intrigued. I must agree, life without Internet is a scenario more horrifying than a zombie apocalypse.

Now, for anyone who thinks that this was the first time a crisis forced a Hari Raya celebration hiatus, let me tell you that it was not. Not, according to my mom’s I remember when archive. It was in 1963 at the aftermath of the December 1962 rebellion. Curfew was imposed as government forces were clearing remnants of the rebels with the shoot-to-kill order. Many of the rebels were killed, among them were people who my parents knew. It was a sad sad period in Brunei’s history.