191. Rahman's American Visitor (Short Story No.5 in Marriage and Mutton Curry) by M. Shanmughalingam

BOOK REVIEW: Rahman's American Visitor (Short Story No.5 in Marriage and Mutton Curry) by M. Shanmughalingam

The devil takes a hand in what is done in haste. That is exactly the proverb situation that I stumbled upon when I read the short story Rahman's American Visitor. Crafted by the ever-talented Dato' Dr. M. Shanmughalingam, this story is about Abdullah, newly appointed Assistant Secretary under Malaysian Civil Service.

Originating from a small village in Terengganu, the story unfolds with the character describing his village, the sights, sounds and the available facilities. It portrays the current situation experienced by most rural areas in Malaysia even today. Peaceful yet isolated from the developing world, most of the village youngsters who achieve academically secure jobs in more developed areas to experience life they never had, like Abdullah.

With his head in the sky, Abdullah begins to daydream on how he is going to verbally topple a representative who is coming to visit him from the United States World Bank. When Mr. John Malone from the World Bank enters, Abdullah doesn't even let him get a word in sideways after his handshake. The pitiful bank representative only manages to tell Abdullah one word: facilities.

That's where everything trundles downhill silently. Facilities means the toilet in US. However, without understanding the representative's request, Abdullah continues rambling on his office's facilities. From the time he dials 98 for his capable Jaffna Tamil clerk to dialing 97 for his Chinese stenographer, Abdullah babbles on as the representative's urgency to release himself increases.

Mr. Malone finally slams his briefcase on the table and mops sweat off his perspiring reddened face. With much urgency, he exclaims that he needs to use the toilet urgently and that was the facilities he was talking about from the beginning. With much panic, Abdullah then realizes his long speech was all in vain. His real talking is only supposed to happen after the representative is out of the toilet.

This story was one of those that really tickled my funny bone and I'm sure it will tickle yours too. For more short stories that encapsulate Malaysia's history and also injects humor into it, head to your nearest bookstore and purchase a copy of Marriage and Mutton Curry.