Opportunist

Salam

Being an opportunist can have effects both ways. You might come up with a chance in life to change it all, an opening for further progression and you snatch at it before it disappears. You might have waited for this window to emerge, and when it does so, not even a volcanic eruption can make you discard you belief to grab it.

But how about if you're like me. This winter I, I've been eyeballing some very smart looking wool coats but to my bad fortune, the prices were just a bit beyond what I could afford. More often than not, when I go browsing in shops, hopeful I might find a similar one with lower prices, I come across a section of other clothes that are on sale.

I have my sight set on coats, but then I find myself going through racks of shoes and trainers and shirts and all sorts. The word SALE just blinds me. If it was left to my whim, I might have snatched up a lot of stuff and bought them all without any hesitance. But I remember what Am told me when we went shopping: Buy it because you want it, not purely because its cheap. I use to think, hell yeah if you've got stacks of paper money but not in my situation. Anything thats decent and cheap, I must grab before it goes.

But this time around, my perception has changed. Things you buy because its cheap does not give you the same satisfaction when you buy something you have always aimed and wished for. You might think for a while 'that was a fruitfull buy, look at all these stuff i've got'. But as life progresses, you find these opportunistic buys stashed away at the back of your wardrobe, at the bottom of your pile of clothes, in boxes kept away in your storage room. You realise you do not really want them. And if you realised it a lot earlier, you might be lucky and be able to return it. If not, well, either you re-sell them on ebay, keep them stashed away or give them away as presents.

In human terms, beware of opportunists. My dad reminded my sister how dangerous it is to be locked in a relationship with an opportunist. Things will not last because you're not really wanted. You might turn out to be one of the the 'alah membeli, menang memakai'. But you might also be discarded once the actual desired item is present. You might be approached at times when you are vulnerable, giving you the shoulder to cry on, an ear to listen, a friend in need. But should you realise, its only because the same situation has failed in others, thats why these opportunists end up there. It is hard to be on guard when you are vulnerable. And when another opportunity emerges, the same cycle happens again but this time, its another person in the picture.

So my dear sister, our wise old man has spoken and I assure you, what he said does bare its truth. Open your eyes and see, do not let emotions blind you and you will realise, you've been saved from a trap of the opportunist.

Na'uzubillahi min zaalik.