A tribute from our student for Arwah Abd Rahman Atin (ARBA)
FROM BOYS TO MEN
A Tribute from us SASSIANs to a great man whose character touched us once and we were never the same again.
“…Yesterday I received news that brought sadness and grief to me and many of my SAS friends. ARBA was no more. He has been called by his Creator. He has been taken from us. God bless his Soul and may he rest in peace forever.
Abdul Rahman b. Atin (known to us all as ARBA) was no ordinary teacher. Ask any Sassian who walked the hallowed corridors of the school and dormitories of SAS in the 70s and 80s, and they will all agree that this old school type of educator, this man of discipline, this paragon of rules and citadel of good behaviour; was the primary reason why we understood the nature of rules and why they were to be obeyed.
This man gave us our backbones and made sure we learnt to endure difficulty, pain and stress from a very early age and for that alone, we owe him a debt of gratitude that can never ever be repaid.
As a child, I had 2 sources of rules and habits of good behaviour. The first was my Dad and then when I was packed off to boarding school, it was this man ARBA. Both of them are no longer with us. Both of them made a difference to my life especially in the early foundation years. Both of them are no more.
Some people try to put the Fear of God in you to make you behave. ARBA put the Fear of Fear in me and others to make us behave within a set and prescribed code of conduct.
Sir, I thank for those painful early years and for the discipline that u instilled in all of us. All children should go to schools where there is at least one ARBA around for good measure. Sadly, there are very few of these old school types anymore.
Rest in Peace now Sir. Am very sure that you will be placed by the Almighty amongst those who have done good and made a difference whilst here on Earth.
Thank you for moulding us then. Thank you for the memories. Thank you for making us better mathematicians than we would otherwise have been. But most importantly, thank you for teaching us the meaning of Self Respect…”
Al-Fatihah!
Chita Usaha Jaya
Giri Thesan
Class of 83-87