'Aidilfitri Visits By Invitations?

We left a house in Puteri Wangsa, the last 'open house' for the day at 12.15am this morning.

I told My Husband more than half of the food prepared 'for the did not turn up invited guests' will end up in the dustbin.
We were about to join another open house, which was only a few doors away if not for all the unfamiliar faces.

Yesterday, we had one wedding invitation in Tebrau and six invitations for 'Aidilfitri Open House' but we managed to attend only three of them.
For previous wedding invitations, if there were too many in one day, we will spread out our attendance over Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

When was the first open house I went? Memory failed me.
It used to be many house-warming in Singapore, many sending offs for 'umrahs' every weekends but as economic crunch sets in, it became a rarity.
But ' Raya Open House'?
Frankly, I found that the practice is thriving in JB.
Should Aidilfitri visits be upon invitation only?

"I do not mind to be called stingy for not having an open house." My Husband added to my above statement about wastage.
The last time we have had an open house was more than 10-years ago, as not to turn down his friends' request .
When will we have it again?
Well, there's a month to celebrate Syawal and the house will still be open after Syawal is long over.

******

As we left a house in Desa Makmur at around 6pm yesterday, a man on his motorbike stopped us, "Don't forget my house tonight!" He shouted.
My Husband was surprised as he's the youngest brother of the host.
His house? Only three doors away.

"Why don't you join your brother?" My Husband asked him as seeing another tent needed built, another food wastage bound to repeat itself.

"Not the same..." he said.
Although he invited us at the last minute, we had to go as he's a tow-truck owner and has a workshop for his woodworking and carpentry work whom My Husband would occasionally turn to, for help.

This morning, as I put into a plastic bag, meant to be thrown away, of the food brought by a visitor who dropped by at 8pm last night, I was ashamed of myself at my own food wastage knowing out there,  25,000 people  die of hunger or hunger related issues everyday and there are 925 million hungry people  in the world today, women who go to sleep each night not knowing how they will feed their hungry children the next day.

Today, I have four houses to attend, all 'Aidilfitri Open House' by invitation, but had not been to even a single house, as hey, my house is open too, All Year Round.