{"id":9967,"date":"2015-09-14T23:23:33","date_gmt":"2015-09-14T15:23:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jipp-world.com\/blog\/?p=9967"},"modified":"2015-09-14T23:27:58","modified_gmt":"2015-09-14T15:27:58","slug":"when-a-man-loves-a-woman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jipp-world.com\/blog\/when-a-man-loves-a-woman\/","title":{"rendered":"When a Man Loves a Woman"},"content":{"rendered":"

I was having a drink with a friend of mine in Klang recently when a stranger \u2013 who actually heard me speaking in Dusun <\/a>with my mom on the phone \u2013 stopped to shake hands with us. I casually asked him to join us but he just waved off. But then he returned later with two bottles of beer in his hand. He joined us \u2013 two total strangers \u2013 but he seemed nice so we were more than happy to have him around.<\/p>\n

He told us that he was from Tongod<\/strong> \u2013 a little district right in the middle of Sabah \u2013 and he was working at a factory nearby as a welder. After swapping some kind of introductory stories, he told us that he had just broken up with his girlfriend like a few moments ago \u2013 and the tone of his voice began to change from there.<\/p>\n

He told us that this girlfriend of his was from Sulawesi and that they actually got married \u2013 after a very difficult process of convincing his family to accept this \u2018girl from Indonesia\u2019. The girl was a Muslim and he was a Christian and whether it was out of love or just a way of survival, he actually managed to persuade this girl to convert to a Christian (stay away from me JAKIM. I won\u2019t give any further info. Blueks!).<\/p>\n

It was a very long way towards a marriage \u2013 with so many obstacles that he had to get through and sacrifices that he had to make \u2013 and they finally got married and he thought it would all be rainbow colors from there. They were married for two years and he told me how this girl complained about how small the room that they were living in.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of my love for her, I realized her wish for a bigger room and had to spend most of my salary on the rent\u201d<\/strong> he said, shaking his head a little as he said it. \u201cAll I asked of her is a prepared meal every time I come back from work. I wouldn\u2019t ask for more\u201d<\/strong> he continued.<\/p>\n

Everything seemed to be going so beautifully for him and he was the happiest man especially since his family could finally accept the girl as part of the family.<\/p>\n

Then somewhere along the way, she was beginning to change. He told me how she would no longer treat him as good as she used to. She was beginning to keep a distance from him and all the lovey dovey was beginning to disappear although they were still hanging on to it until this very fateful day when he decided they could no longer be together. Ever.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust now, when we were in the car, we almost hit another car (I assumed the girl was driving) and I spontaneously grabbed her by the hand and for the first time since we were together \u2013 she..\u201d<\/strong> he choked and broke into tears. I didn\u2019t even know how to react other than waiting for him to regain his composure.<\/p>\n

Then he continued, \u201cShe pushed my hands away. She never pushed my hands away ever before\u201d,<\/strong> that was when he broke down and sobbed, his shoulders moving. \u201cI\u2019m sorry, I just can\u2019t help it\u201d<\/strong> he\u2019d say, whenever he broke into tears. He\u2019d tell more of the sacrifices he made for his girlfriend \u2013 in between sobs of course. My friend handed the tissue paper over to him \u2013 to which he swiftly pulled out one piece after another and before we knew they were all over the table.<\/p>\n

\u201cMay be it\u2019s all my fault. There were times when I failed to do what she wanted me to do, or things that she wanted but I couldn\u2019t give\u201d<\/strong> he said, clearly in deep regrets. \u201cThere were times when she\u2019d ask me to reload her pre-paid but I couldn\u2019t because I was too busy doing things at work. Then by the time I returned home, I\u2019d be too tired to even remember anything. You know how tiring it is to do all the welding\u201d<\/strong> he said.<\/p>\n

I mean, me being me, I would have laughed, or smirked \u2013 but somehow I didn\u2019t. I could really see the pain that he was going through. I didn\u2019t even dare to look at my friend, but I knew he was having his own share of the emotions as well.<\/p>\n

It was unbelievable, really, how only a few moments ago we were chatting and drinking and laughing at the top of our lungs because coming from the same school, we never ran out of things to talk and laugh about. Then now \u2013 here comes this total stranger who brought his sad story to the table \u2013 and the mood changed drastically. Even the beer suddenly tasted so bland to my tongue it was a struggle to even take a single sip.<\/p>\n

He later admitted that the girl had found a new boyfriend \u2013 who is richer than him, \u201cwho could give her more that I could\u201d<\/strong> he said with bitterness. Then he sobbed again.<\/p>\n

I was almost speechless \u2013 somehow \u2013 and all I could say to him was \u201cShe just wasn\u2019t meant for you, and you\u2019ll find a better girl, who loves you for who you are, not for what you\u2019ve got\u201d.<\/strong> I must have gotten it from some movie I don\u2019t remember which one. Heh.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou are still young, you\u2019ve still got a lot of things ahead of you\u201d,<\/strong> my friend chipped in and he was right. This guy was only 24 years old.<\/p>\n

I returned home with a lot of things going on in my mind. I couldn\u2019t help but thinking of one song.<\/p>\n

When a man loves a woman<\/a>
\nCan’t keep his mind on nothing else
\nHe’ll trade the world
\nFor the good thing he’s found
\nIf she’s bad he can’t see it
\nShe can do no wrong
\nTurn his back on his best friend
\nIf he put her down<\/p>\n

When a man loves a woman
\nSpend his very last dime
\nTrying to hold on to what he needs
\nHe’d give up all his comfort
\nSleep out in the rain
\nIf she said that’s the way it ought to be<\/p>\n

Well, this man loves a woman
\nI gave you everything I had
\nTrying to hold on to your precious love
\nBaby, please don’t treat me bad<\/p>\n

When a man loves a woman
\nDown deep in his soul
\nShe can bring him such misery
\nIf she plays him for a fool
\nHe’s the last one to know
\nLoving eyes can’t ever see<\/p>\n

When a man loves a woman
\nHe can do no wrong
\nHe can never own some other girl
\nYes when a man loves a woman
\nI know exactly how he feels
\n‘Cause baby, baby, baby, you’re my world<\/p>\n

True love really exists then. I really thought they only existed in movies, books, songs or – well – imaginations? \ud83d\ude1b<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was having a drink with a friend of mine in Klang recently when a stranger \u2013 who actually heard me speaking in Dusun with my mom on the phone \u2013 stopped to shake hands with us. I casually asked him to join us but he just waved off. But then he returned later with two bottles of beer in his hand. He joined us \u2013 two total strangers \u2013 but he seemed nice so we were more than happy…<\/p>\n

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