Former Graphic Designer Goes Viral For Quitting Her Job And Becoming A Farmer In Perak
"I have never felt this free in my life. No deadlines, nobody to please."
By May Vin Ang — 07 Apr 2020, 01:02 PM
Meet Nuraishah Shamsuddin
She's a Masters graduate who left her job as a graphic designer seven months ago in exchange for a simpler life looking after a farm at home.
The 27-year-old was born and raised in Teluk Intan, Perak and has been exposed to the farming industry from a young age
"I remember I used to follow my late grandfather to his fruit farm and palm oil plantation in the mornings, and to my late father's goat pen in the evenings," she told Bernama.
"But for vegetables, I learned to do things by myself slowly from YouTube, reading, and through my past experience. It's my hobby," she said.
Nuraishah, known fondly as Aishah, completed a Masters degree in History of Arts and Cultural Management at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) in Shah Alam
When contacted to find out more about her change of heart, she told SAYS that she was working as a freelance graphic designer and photo editor after she graduated but grew restless with city life.
"I was tired with the hustle and bustle of KL lifestyles. I wanted to free my mind by focusing on things that are important," she said, adding that she wanted to go home and live her life to the fullest, albeit a simple one.
Aishah currently owns a half-acre plot of land some two kilometres away from her house in Teluk Intan
"I wanted an orchard, so I started with fruit trees," she told SAYS. However, while waiting for her fruit trees to grow, she ventured into planting vegetables.
So far, she has managed to produce all kinds of local and international fruits and vegetables such as avocados, mulberries, kale, spinach, eggplant, lettuce, and ulam.
"I do most of the work by myself. Sometimes I get volunteers to help me with my kebun work, but most of them are my friends and family," she shared.
Aishah added that they are all very supportive of her current life.
On her Twitter account, she revealed that she was suffering from polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
According to Healthline, the disease is common among young women, and is marked by symptoms such as irregular periods and weight gain.
However, since coming back home and cooking her own meals from her own produce everyday, she has managed to keep her weight in check, losing about 17kg from her previous 82kg.
"Now my hormones are back to normal, and I'm free from PCOS [symptoms]. Consuming healthy food and living a healthy lifestyle. Syukur infinity," she wrote.
She told SAYS that she feels better than ever and that she is happy with her current life
"I'm 27, I have no debt, I drive a Perodua, I live with my mak and a cat, Copot, I go to the kebun every morning till noon, and I sell organic veggies for a living," she said.
"I have never felt this free in my life. No deadlines, nobody to please. I am blessed for having a piece of land to do what I love the most - berkebun."
Her inspirational tweets about her journey as a farmer blew up on Twitter last week
The thread garnered almost 32,000 retweets and 58,000, with netizens admiring her determination to pursue the life she wanted.
"This is such a dream come true! I think this will make wholesome YouTube vlog content," said a Twitter user.
While this user said, "Mad respect! I thought someone from overseas did this. I didn't expect Malays would do this too. Next you can make a DIY house (because that's the flow of things I always see foreigners do). And yes, make a YouTube account please!"
"If you get spam of likes on Instagram, that's me! Very inspiring. This is my goal once I fulfil my financial commitments. Copot is so handsome," said a new fan.
