BALIK PULAU: While there are many ways to express our patriotism and love for the country, kindergarten teacher Normala Md Desa, 58, chooses to decorate her front yard every year with hundreds of mini Jalur Gemilang flags.

       “This is the way I express my patriotism, by flying as many Jalur Gemilang flags as possible in August.

       “National Day will not be the same without our national flags being paraded,” she said when met at her house in Kampung Perlis here recently.

       Normala said it has been a tradition for her and her family to decorate their house with Jalur Gemilang, or the country’s landmark replicas.

       The mother of five said the tradition originated from her late father, who decorated their house in Kuala Kurau, Perak, with flags every year to celebrate National Day.

       “I continued my father’s legacy and started to decorate our house with the help of my children after moving to the village here in 2016.

       “Not only at home but I also proudly decorate the kindergarten where I teach in Pantai Jerejak,” she said.

       Last year, Normala decorated her house based on the Covid-19 theme and her creativity attracted the attention of passers-by, with many stopping to take pictures.

       She said this year, she is planning a flora and fauna theme if time and weather permit.

       “With the Covid-19 pandemic worsening, it’s hard for me to go outside to get materials for my decoration because I fear getting infected,” she said.

       Over the years, Normala’s house, which she called Rumah Bendera (House of Flags), has replicas of the Penang Bridge, Petronas Twin Towers and Bukit Bendera railway station, which she built using recycled materials and displayed outside her house.

       Another villager, Mat Ali Zakaria, 29, who is a person with disability, showed his patriotism by decorating his bicycle with Jalur Gemilang and cycling around the village.

       The 29-year-old food stall helper in Jalan Baru here said this is how he could show people how important it is for Malaysians to fly the flags as a sign of patriotism.

       “I love National Day. It is a day everyone should celebrate.

       “I will continue to parade my Jalur Gemilang decorated bicycle until Aug 31,” he said.