Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Pembantu rumah ku

I want to talk about my maid, Neti today. Bukan apa, rasa tak best kalau besok-besok I mention her nama dengan perasaan amarah. Masa dia dok elok tak mau cerita, cerita buruk mau pulak canang kat orang. So not nice lah kan...

Neti ni is only 1 year younger than me. She is divorced and childless. She did mention to me that she wishes to marry because she wants to have children and I accept that. She is young still with plenty of opportunities to start a family. So well... I won't be having her for long then. Never mind lah..

Anyway, truth to be told, I like her. I really do. She is not the best housekeeper in the world, well… neither am I really but I she is a loving bibik to my kids and a bloody good cook.

She can make santan-less curry beautifully. Her asam rebus is to die for and her tom yum is much coveted by my children.

One thing I really, really really appreciate though (and this I say with my hand on my chest, eyes closed with so much emotion and feelings..) is her inability to gossip. Sure she can participate when instigated by me, but never would I come home and she would be having kittens waiting for me with a piece of juicy news..

This trait to me is important as well… my first one was such a gossiper, sampai hal aku sekali dia pi cerita kat orang. My mummy memang dah pesan, maid kalo rajin cerita pasai orang, pasai kita pun dia rajin cerita jugak. Pok sekali baru tau. Menyampah. Kalau semua true stories, well… walaupun sakit okay lah jugak but kalau 99% cerita merapu yang direka-reka untuk bagi orang ternganga, itu yang buat my blood go upstairs, okeh ?
.
Dah lah tu punya tak puas hati, dah balik tanah tempat tumpah darahnya, she still stirred things over here by writing a letter to the orang jahat to further stoke the fire. And orang jahat being orang jahat, well... percaya aje. What to do. My stance is, kita jumpa aje di akhirat, na ? Habih cerita.

My second maid, which is actually my first really because I employed her as soon as I returned to Tanah Malaya but then I gave her to my mom after a few months sebab we do not really like having a maid. But she worked with me again after I sent the sort of first maid home. So all in all she worked with us for a bout 5 years. Anyway, number 2 ni was treated like family. Handphone hilang, mak aku ganti. Kena demam denggi kita orang ke hulu ke hilir bawak hospital. Siap muntah dalam kete and atas my sister’s lap lagi tapi tak kisah. Kalau bertekak ngan kita orang, nombor satu but we took her as family so tak kisah lah.

Dia ni pun kuat bergossip gak and 5 tahun duduk dengan kita orang langsung tak dikenang after kena hasutan for 5-6 months. All our kindness was forgotten. If we truly were bad, why you stayed with us for 5 damn years ?

In my time of need, when I needed support the most, number 2 turned her back on me and feed the orang jahat stories about us. Motif orang jahat tu toksah ceritalah… dah namanya orang jahat kan ? I do not know cerita apa yang keluar, but I was ostracized, well not to my face but you can feel it and stories do get out.

After she was sent back, she did attempt to see my mother once but my mom refused to see her as according to my mom, number 2 hurt her precious and oh so angelic daughter. Aku le tuh.

Ha ha.. sorry… Masuk bakul suruh hubby angkat… kah kah..

Insya-Allah, Neti won’t do the same. She’d better not. I could be wrong but oh please, don’t lah Neti.

Once I came home early, about 12 I think and found the house empty. I wondered where she had gone to but thought nothing much of it. Soon I heard her talking outside. I was at the kitchen sink, washing my hands when she passed by from the outside and almost went into cardiac arrest when she noticed me.

“Saya dekat sana kak… Sama pembantu orang sebelah….” She stammered.

“Err… okay….”

“Saya pergi kedai kak, beli top-up….” She added nervously.

“Err…. Okay….”

Her guilty look irritated me more than anything.

“Neti… kalau awak nak pegi kedai… pegi lah… Saya kan tak apa-apa… Awak mau cakap-cakap sama orang sebelah pun okay… Asalkan majikan dia benarkan…. Takkan lah awak nak ke kedai nak berkawan saya tak bagi, Neti… Awak kan tahu.. ?”

Sengih je dia.

People always asked me why I give my maids so much err… muka. Well, coming from a worker myself, I would go bonkers if my boss banned me from talking to my colleagues or talk on the phone. And I would definitely go nuts if I am not allowed the liberty to merayau sekali sekala.

If she ever decided to go to the other side and be the source of my heartache and anger, well that is her choice. I cannot stop her.

But for now, she is okay and I like her. But if later on you hear me raving and ranting, well at least, I had been fair and acknowledge her plus points first.

Here is hoping for me to like her forever !

Ha ha.

10 comments:

liadevega said...

Kitorang pun tgh berkira2 nak ambil maid in the future, hopefully dapat yg sebaik yours.

Cik Puan Kamil said...

So far so good lah... Insya-Allah kita tak diduga dengan maid yg perangai ntah apa-apa..

Norliana Abdul Rahman said...

you are good employer lah myra..
aku pun mcm hang.. tak berkira maid nak cakap dgn sapa.. nak pi mana.. asal keje siap sudah.. hopefully diorang tak de la take us for granted kan?

hopefully maid aku skang ni dok diam2 lah keej dgn aku at least untill sofeya is 4..

aih lia... sejak bila hang nak berjinak2 dlm dunia maid nieh?

Cik Puan Kamil said...

Then u r a good employer too, Konot.. Jangan depa pijak kepala kita dah na...

Sheik said...

kawan opis aku ada sorang ni..dia bagi maid dia public holiday setiap hari ahad. terbaru maid dia kata nak kawin. kawan aku buat saringan takut kena tipu dgn jejaka indon hidung belang.

lepas tapisan lulus, siap kawan aku tu sponsor kenduri kawin buat kat rumah dia di cheras...

well, layanan semacam itu utk maid yg faham makna demokrasi. kalau tak paham jgn cari pasal buat begitu...lebih baik jadi kominis...hi hi hi

aku tak pernah terbayang hidup ade maid sebelum ni...tapi bila sampai masanya...jeng jeng jeng...kena la amek jugak kot..hi hi hi.

p/s: maid hang mana nak reti gosip, dah hang cakap PENANG ingat dia faham ke? dia angguk2 pura2 paham je tu..

Cik Puan Kamil said...

Well bayang2kan lah sebab nampak gaya percakapan org rumah hang macam akan ada requirement di masa hadapan.

Eh.. aku cakap indon versi aku tau dak bila aku cakap dengan dia...

Sheik said...

Well,

General Mom already briefed Mr President about hiring maid. Mr. President basically agreed (gila tak nak agree!)

hang cakap BM pun pelik, aku tak boleh bayang hang cakap indon lagu mana...hahaha

Cik Puan Kamil said...

Apa yang peliknya BM aku ? Cuba cerita sikit ?

Anonymous said...

Myra,

I understand why u treated yr maid in such a way... U r such a good person Myra. Tak bagi2 muka pun, maid lari jugak kan? bagi muka pun lari jugak kan? baik buat baik, kalau maid betray kita sekalipun, at least dapat lah pahala tak aniaya orang.:-)
Minta2 Neti will be loyal to you always. Kalau buat peel jugak, bukan salah u pun..dia yang sasau.

Cik Puan Kamil said...

Dear Anon... u so get me... Kalau kita buat baik kita selamat dak walaupun dia lari..

Kalau kita buat jahat lagi lah dia lari.. kah kah..

Thank u for ur understanding...