Capam Conference Reunites Two Long Lost Friends

By Nur Ashikin Abdul Aziz PUTRAJAYA, Nov 8 (Bernama) -- The recent Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM) conference was not all about serious talks and discussions. It also became a platform for a sweet reunion between two long-lost friends who had not met for nearly 50 years. It was indeed a joyous occasion for Susan Robertson, 66, and Datin Aminah Ahmad, 70, when they caught up with each other at the conference. Robertson was here to exhibit Canada's largest and most comprehensive art project, dubbed the Quilt of Belonging, at an exhibition held on the sidelines of the CAPAM conference, which ended recently. In a recent interview with Bernama, the mother of four with four grandchildren, said she had fond memories of Aminah, who was her senior in Home Economics at the Hemptville College of Agriculture and Food, near Ottawa. "Her smile is still the same. She is still the shy and quiet girl that I know. I am just so happy to see her. "Actually there were two other Malaysian girls at that time. One had passed away for quite some time while the other could not make it today," Roberston said. Reminiscing her memories, Robertson said Aminah and the other two Malaysians, Norsiah Sulaiman and the late Sharifah Normi Mohammed Ali, used to cook a lot of Malaysian delicacies, and this attracted a lot of interests including herself. "We lived on the same block. We could smell every time the girls cook and we used to knock on their window to ask for some," she said with a smile. Meanwhile, Aminah said she was shocked when someone knocked on her door and asking if she knew anyone by the name of Susan Robertson. "Apparently that person is Mohd Nor Izalmie Mohammad from the Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit (MAMPU) that helped Susan to detect me through an address left at the college's alumni," she said. Robertson praised the hard work of both Izalmie and MAMPU's Management Research Department Assistant Director Nurhaniza Hamzah who helped her to find Aminah. Robertson, who lived in Ontario with her husband, Malcom, said she would make sure that they would remain connected after the meeting. The friends spent more than an hour at lunch, catching up on lost time and shared memories. --BERNAMA