Mr Iqbal Isa, 36, was enrolled in the Republic Polytechnic’s (RP) 2009 cohort and studied New Media (now Media Production and Design) under the School of Technology for the Arts (STA).
His partner back then and wife now, Mrs Myrah, was in a completely different course. She, on the contrary, studied Business IT at the School of Information Technology, now known as the School of Infocomm (SOI). Against all odds, here lies Mr Iqbal, who managed to push through thick and thin and settle for the one true love he met in RP.
YOUR OUTFIT IS SO COOL, ARE YOU GOING FOR TENNIS?
During their first year in semester two at RP, Mr Iqbal and Mrs Myrah often visited the Nanyang cafe with their respective group of friends — that was when they first noticed each other. They both knew of each other’s existence, but neither one broke the ice between them.
It was only until one day when Mr Iqbal was on his way to school for his Tennis Interest Group (IG) commitments, he passed by Mrs Myrah who was on her way home.
They were crossing the traffic road – replicating a scene straight out of a Korean drama episode. Mrs Myrah took the chance to strike up a conversation, she jokingly said: “Your outfit is so cool, are you going for Tennis?”
It left a lasting impression on Mr Iqbal as they started acknowledging each other’s existence. From there onwards, that was when they mustered the courage to greet each other every time they met.
“That is how friendship grows and then grows into love,” said Mr Iqbal. This brief moment of contact between the two eventually sparked a friendship, when they started talking about his Tennis IG.
Later on, when they were friendlier, Mr Iqbal mentioned that when he travelled to Chiang Mai for his Student Overseas Travel (SOT), Miss Myrah was the only one among his friends who accompanied him to the airport before departure. He added that his parents were present as well.
“Even before we were together, my parents had already met her. She made the effort to actually know my parents even when we were just friends.” said Mr Iqbal.
As the lovebirds got to know each other more through text messages, Mr Iqbal realised that Miss Myrah was his ideal romantic partner. Mr Iqbal would create “coincidences” as excuses to see her. As they stayed relatively near each other, he would tell her he was going down to a mall near her house to “visit the market” and ask her if she wanted to meet up to have lunch.
Thereafter, they went on their first official date at Great World City. Before that, they have been hanging out as friends. ”The only reason we wanted to go was because I was into arts,” shared Mr Iqbal. Great World City (GWC) previously had different themes in the restrooms and decorations everywhere in the mall — they bonded over the beauty of the art.
It was only after a few dates out together that Mr Iqbal started to get comfortable and was certain that Mrs Myrah was the one for him. So when he sent her home that day, he could not help it and kissed her on the forehead. “I remember the day where I kissed her forehead and we acknowledged it as where it all began after our GWC date,” he said right after.
IN TIMES OF ADVERSITY
Like in every relationship, Mr Iqbal and his wife faced challenges such as long-distance relationship, jealousy, and temptations.
Mr Iqbal was away serving his two-year journey in National Service (NS), where he was unable to spend time with Mrs Myrah except for the weekends and was only able to communicate with her for fifteen minutes through phone calls while in camp.
During this period, Mr Iqbal mentioned that this was one of the two toughest periods in his relationship, they even considered ending their relationship at a certain point. It was not an easy time for both of them.
However, with much determination and patience, they both agreed to stay committed to their relationship as they thought that ending things wouldn’t be an ideal outcome for either of them. Shortly after, more complications arise.
This time, Mr Iqbal felt insecure as he mentioned that Mrs Myrah was surrounded by male colleagues and friends — and he was unable to check up on her often. Previously, it was due to Mr Iqbal’s class that was filled with female classmates that got Mrs Myrah insecure over their interactions.
She was a cabin crew, meaning that she would be working closely with high-flyer colleagues when Mr Iqbal was studying in Australia.
“She had a lot of male colleagues who were more successful and financially better off than me. So, it was my turn to be insecure,” said Mr Iqbal.
He flew abroad to Australia for two years to further his studies, pursuing a bachelor of Communication at a University located in Western Australia.
Being in an unfamiliar place and culture with no supervision from his parents or friends, he was heavily influenced by his peers around him as well as the environment he is not used to.
As a result, Mr Iqbal has changed significantly in his behaviour and attitude which really took a hit in his relationship with Mrs Myrah. “The influences I had overseas not only included school but the people I met. I was literally free of my parents and time that I could be out all night without anybody knowing but that also meant I caused a lot of problems for her,” reflected Mr Iqbal.
OVERCOMING TOUGH TIMES FOR LOVE
“Whenever we hang out in a group or when I’m meeting new people, I will introduce her to them as my girlfriend to reassure her that people are aware of our relationship.” said Mr Iqbal when asked about how he gave his wife reassurance back then.
Despite the challenges, Mr Iqbal and his wife managed to push through the difficult times to find their happy ending. Through those difficulties, their relationship emerged stronger with the knowledge they could endure any jealousy and temptations, distance and influences.
They got married on Oct 14, 2017, meaning they just crossed their 6th anniversary. Together, they have known each other for 16 years in their life.
They gave each other precious moments — like when Mr Iqbal’s wife flew to Australia and surprised him. Getting to know each other on a deeper level gave them a strong bond that would last forever.
When asked how he knew he wanted to marry her, Mr Iqbal said: “The time when I knew I wanted to marry her was when I was in NS. I think that the National Service period is the hardest time to have a relationship because literally from Monday to Friday, we cannot see each other, we can only talk. So every night, we can only communicate for 10 minutes each.”
Mr Iqbal added, “Another encounter was when I studied in Australia, she would always make the effort to visit me, she waited for me and was very patient with me.” This showed the amount of determination and love Mrs Myrah had for Mr Iqbal.
When asked about how he maintained a meaningful and lasting relationship despite this, Mr Iqbal said: “Be patient and communicate more, if there is a problem, don’t drag it out and settle it on the same day so that when tomorrow comes, it’s a fresh new start.”
This story was written as part of a Rep Post workshop in AY23S2.
