Goodbye, Johor – My Chapter of Becoming

Nine years ago, I came to Johor for my daughters’ education, never knowing that this place would become both a sanctuary and a battlefield for my own evolution.

What began as a brief chapter turned into a transformative journey. Then came the lockdowns, the world paused during lockdowns, and so did I—only to find myself again. COVID confined me, but so did heartbreak, betrayal, and a deep, aching isolation.

In 2022, I chose to rise. I pursued my master’s, not just in academics, but in life, in resilience, in soul-work.
Nusajaya, Johor became my wilderness, My Valley of Tears, a school of hard knocks that stripped me raw down to the soul level.

There were moments when I didn’t recognize myself in the mirror. Moments where everything familiar had to be unlearned. But it was also here that I learned to breathe again, rebuild from within, and stand stronger.

But in the breaking, I learned.

In the solitude, I healed.

I unlearned so much of who I thought I was,

and slowly relearned who I was meant to become.

This land held my pain, my prayers, my breakdowns, and my breakthroughs. It witnessed the woman I was and the one I fought to become.

Now, I leave not with bitterness but with gratitude.
For every storm that shaped me.
For every quiet night that healed me.
For every scar that turned into wisdom.

As I prepare to write my solo chapter, I carry the echoes of Johor within me, not as chains but as wings.

Goodbye, Johor.
Thank you for the fire.
Thank you for the ashes.
And thank you, most of all, for the rebirth.

Thank you for all the friends met here who are my  lifetime soul family.