..to the children of Indonesia..

My last social activity this month and it so happen that it falls on the week of my birthday.

I almost couldn't go cause until the end of June, I still haven't submitted my leave & haven't prepared for anything. Anyway, things went well and got the ticket on my hand. However, since I had other stuffs like LSC & KKS Melati, so the preparation for the story telling & origami was made 1 week before D-Day. Pretty worried that I couldn't make it in time, but thankfully, everything went well as it planned, and the EXCITEMENT begin!!

We are leaving on the 28th by Batavia, with route JKT-KPG-WGP. Quite shaky, but the heck, nothing compares my madness when knowing a passenger across me was having his phone ON all the way from JKT-KPG !! (when his phone was accidentally ringing, I looked at him & asked him to turn it off, but do you wanna know what he said? He said, "It's OK, I already reject the phone & always turn the phone on". What the F*@$ !!!). Ugh, had I not realized it's the beginning of my journey, I would punch him on the face. I couldn't call the flight attendant as everybody's were all ready for landing position.

Anyway, we got to Waingapu and then off to RSU Imanuel as Dr. Dani was serving us lunch there. Afterwards, the journey to Ngadulanggi began. It took about 3 hours to get there, and the road was pretty knocking you out if you can't stand it. However, since the view along the way was breathtaking, so nobody mind with it. And since it's my first time seeing the AMAZING savanna, so I object none :))

It was already dark when we got to the school & there's no electricity at all in the area. But dear GREAT LORD, when I looked at the sky, it was a very clear one and lotsa stars. I never see so many stars in Jakarta's sky & the moon was about to come out from its kingdom. The view was drop dead magnificent!

Though I got beaten by some kinda insect who was attracted to the light from my headlight & almost lost the slipper when I went across the small river (and when the local guy found it, the strap was broken), yet I couldn't careless about it when we were welcomed by the traditional dance whom performed by the local people (especially seeing the dancer's hair which almost touch the ground). 

After unpacking & chitchatting with the locals who served us sirih pinang (I didn't eat it though), we went to the classroom, our accommodation during the stay (yes, it's the place where we eat, sleep, change clothes & putting all of our boxes). The electricity went on later on & we all started to work. We were finish around 12 midnite and off to bed so quickly. (Actually, i couldn't say we're off to bed, since we slept on the table, which reminds me of my elementary school's moment when I was doing Persami before attending a Jambore in Cibubur, hahahaaaa..)

Perhaps we were some kinda stranger to the locals, or perhaps they never see anybody who was outside their area, so they were very excited seeing us in the classroom, wanted to know what we were doing. Thanks to CT who immediately created an emergency curtain from many sarongs to cover us so they didn't have to know what happened inside the classroom. Not our intention for being rude, but we're not used to be under-the-microscope :)

On the following morning, we all woke up pretty early, round 6AM (it's 1-hour ahead of Jakarta's time). Today is the D-Day, our 1st day for our activity. I was very excited ! In the morning, I helped out the registration desk for free medication treatment with Iting. 90% of them were having the same problem, uric acid (aka asam urat or they called it asam-asam), cough, flu, high fever, low-blood pressure, ulcer. After lunch, I helped the education team for the science games. There were 6 posts, and my post was "Telepon Kaleng". First team I handled the 3rd & 4th grade. My goodness, my patience was tested as they could hear what I was saying, but couldn't understand it. So grateful that I had those young teachers as my translator.. Though I still need to improvise as it didn't go as it's planned. Second team I handled was the 7th grade students, and it was way better than the 1st one. They really showed their enthusiasm and I didn't have to explain in details what they should do. It was around 4PM when the day was ended by giving school bags to the students. Seeing their expression on the face when getting a new bag is somewhat satisfying. At night time, there was movie time for the locals. We played 2 movies, one is Denias, and the other one is Laskar Pelangi. This 1st day was completely ended around 10PM after we all finished packing uniforms & snack which will be given tomorrow. 

Day-2. THIS IS IT! The day where me & Iting will tell a story to the kids about clean environment & teach them origami. Things were all prepared, but there's one BIG obstacle, which is the participant. We were gonna give this to 1st & 2nd year, and learning from the 1st Day, students who could speak Indonesia fluently are those whose in 5th & 6th grade. So before we began, we were busy looking a teacher to be our translator for the show. Luckily there is Nona Guru, so the message could be sent out. We were glad too that they are attracted to the hand puppet, laughing at it and they even got the chance to play with it. After story telling, we continued with origami. Actually, I planned to give around 3-4 shapes in 45 minutes, but turned out, only 2 shapes that could be done. It's not that I gave difficult shapes, not at all, but it's just they're having difficulty in absorbing what I said. Even with the existence of a translator, but they didn't know what to do with the paper. I showed them how to fold in front of the class, but really, they just stared at me, do nothing about it. *sigh* Fortunately, it's only 29 students, so we still could manage going around the class, came to each student & showed them how to fold correctly. Anyway, it's a new learning experience for me so I must not complain at all.

After our "show" is finished, we helped out the medical room, precisely in weighing the locals, quite an easy task to do. However, knowing how "harsh" they treat their kids, somehow I couldn't help myself to come out front and tell them not to yell at their kids. I know I might be rude to them, but I couldn't just staand there and watched. Here's the example... When I ask their kids to step up the weight scale and they were kinda ignorant to do so, their parents yell at them and not too few slap their kids' head.. And if this is done to their 2 y/o babies, you know what happen ? YES, you are absolutely right. They CRIED OUT LOUD !! So I had to improvise how to get their weight, heheheeee...

The daytime activity was finished quite the same time as Day-1, and the night activity also similar, movie time. We had some problems with the genset, as it ran outta fuel, but it's solved couple of hours later. At our last night, few people left already, so only 12 people remained in Ngadulanggi. We slept much earlier than yesterday, because we had nothing to do left. Besides, we wanted to go to the hill early in the morning, so we should sleep early.

In our last morning, we woke up bit earlier because we wanted to capture the sunrise from the hill behind the school. Me, Iting, Shiek Lie, Ferry & ibu Sita all went up there. It's not that steep, but perhaps I wasn't used to it, so it's kinda weary me out (and the smoke gave a big contribution to it, I assume). It was a nice sunrise, the orange lights, when its warmth touched our skin, it felt really nice.. My friends sang me "Happy Birthday" up in the hill, because it's indeed my birthday.

After breakfast, handover the remaining goods to the chief of village, priest and school principle, we took off to Waikabubak. Somehow, it's quite sad leaving the area.. Many lessons I learned during my 2-days activity there. I wish that we could do more to them. They are also Indonesian, yet somehow, our government does not care about them. From the access to area, the electricity, until the education & their health. It is an eye-opening to me though... I wish that I have more time to contribute to a community like this, giving back to less fortunate people, doing the best I could, not only once in a year.

This is one of the birthday I won't forget and absolutely one of the great birthday I had in life.

..to the children of Indonesia..

..pelajaran hidup dari anak jalanan..

Namanya Nurdin, umur 17 tahun, cita-citanya ingin punya perusahaan untuk membahagiakan orang tua & menyekolahkan adiknya. Dia salah satu peserta Life Skill Camp - diadakan oleh Yayasan Sahabat Peduli Generasi Mandiri - yang selama 2 hari 1 malam gue lihat begitu tinggi semangatnya untuk maju, merubah nasib dari seorang anak jalanan menjadi seseorang yang sukses di kemudian hari. 

Di LSC, ada sekitar 50 anak jalanan yang diberikan berbagai program pelatihan, mulai dari motivational stories, demo wirausaha, sampai dengan hypnotherapy utk menanamkan pikiran positif bahwa mereka bisa sukses walau putus sekolah. Ini adalah acara tahunan YSPGM, dan tahun ini adalah tahun kedua diadakannya LSC.

Memang LSC diadakan untuk memberikan ilmu baru bagi para anak jalanan. Tapi LSC juga memberikan gue banyak pelajaran. Selain ilmu yang diberikan oleh para trainer, ada satu hal penting yang menggugah diri gue, yaitu semangat juang mereka untuk bisa tetap hidup dan memberikan manfaat, terutama bagi keluarganya. Di usia yang bahkan belum menginjak 20 tahun, mereka begitu bersemangat untuk mencari uang, membantu ayah ibunya & menyekolahkan adik-adiknya. 

Di usia yang masih labil & mencari identitas diri, gue bisa melihat bahwa beberapa di antara mereka terbilang cukup dewasa dalam berpikir, bertindak & berketetapan hati. Mereka begitu bersemangat mengikuti semua program yang diadakan, bertanya hal-hal yang (menurut gue) untuk ukuran anak seumuran mereka yang duduk di kuliah semester 1 pun tidak mungkin akan terpikir. Rasa antusias mereka, kilatan sinar ingin mengubah nasib di mata mereka, benar-benar membuat gue tergugah dan ingin membantu mewujudkan mimpi-mimpi mereka. 

Memang, namanya juga anak jalanan, jadi mereka cenderung lebih outspoken, apa yang ada di pikiran, itulah yang langsung diutarakan, tak ada filternya. Tapi buat gue, itu salah satu hal yang patut diberikan jempol, karena kecenderungan anak sekarang yang sudah kena banyak teknologi itu adalah sok tahu, merasa pintar & merasa benar, sehingga mereka tidak mau bertanya.Gue senang sekali melihat jiwa & semangat yang adali di diri mereka. Walau putus sekolah, tapi bukan berarti putus juga harapan untuk memiliki masa depan yang lebih baik, a very positive energy. 

Gue sangat berharap, setelah dari LSC, mereka bisa memanfaatkan ilmu yang telah didapat supaya cita-cita mereka bisa terwujud. Dan gue berharap supaya makin banyak orang yang tergerak hatinya dan mengadakan camp-camp seperti LSC ini, supaya anak-anak yang putus sekolah juga tidak memutuskan impiannya. Supaya anak-anak seperti Nurdin, Untung, Dede, Fikry, Sadam, Anas, Tiara, dan yang lainnya bisa juga mengecap kesuksesan layaknya anak-anak yang mengecap bangku kuliah.

Di akhir acara, ketika panitia & peserta bersalam-salaman and mereka bilang, "Makasih ya, kak Ijul..", gue kembali tercekat karena gue melihat ketulusan hati mereka saat mengucap syukur atas kesempatan yang telah diberikan pada mereka. Seharusnya gue yang berterima kasih kepada mereka.

I really wish them to reach for their dreams, be a successful person but still humble and not forgetting their roots.

Again, makasih ya adek-adek baruku atas pelajarannya yang berharga..

..pelajaran hidup dari anak jalanan..

..sebuah fiksi..

Dan kenangan lebih dari 20 tahun itu terkuak kembali ketika ia menjenguk dirinya, bapak yang sedang terbaring lunglai tak berdaya.

Ketika itu, sekolahnya mengadakan acara pergi berkunjung ke planetarium, dan semua anak termasuk dirinya sangat bersemangat, karena itu akan menjadi saat pertamanya menjejakkan kaki disana. Celotehan selama perjalanan tanda tak sabar mengisi waktu dia dan teman-temannya.

Sesampainya di tempat, ia dan teman-teman langsung berhamburan turun dari bis dan mengikuti kemana pun para guru pembimbing pergi.

Dan waktu masuk pun datang. Mereka berbaris rapi menuruti instruksi sang guru. Satu per satu murid duduk, begitu pula dengan dirinya. Namun tak berapa lama, bapak datang dan menggamitnya, mengajak dirinya untuk duduk di pangkuannya. Ia pun tak ada pilihan lain selain patuh kepada bapak.

Semua berjalan normal di menit-menit pertama dan dirinya merasa bangga karena menjadi satu-satunya anak yang duduk di pangkuan bapak, pendidik senior di sekolahnya. Ia mendadak merasa menjadi anak kesayangan dan diperhatikan seluruh murid.

Namun di tengah-tengah pertunjukan, ia merasa ada sesuatu yang ganjil. Ia merasakan sentuhan tangan bapak di kemaluannya. Pelan, pelan dan makin lama ia merasakan kehebatan dan kenikmatan atas sentuhan tangan bapak. Kenikmatan yang baru pertama kali ia rasakan. Kenikmatan bagi seorang anak kelas 6 SD yang tak bisa terungkapkan oleh kata-kata. Ia tahu bahwa ada yang sesuatu yang salah, tapi ucapan bapak di telinga sangat menenangkan dirinya, bahwa bapak menyayangi dirinya, dan semua akan baik-baik saja.

Ketika pertunjukan usai, ia masih belum beranjak dari pangkuan bapak. Tak tahu apakah ia harus mengikuti bapak atau turun dan bergabung kembali bersama teman-temannya. Bapak mungkin tahu bahwa ia dilanda kebingungan, hingga bapak pun harus menuntunnya agar berbaur kembali dengan kelompoknya.

Ia tak bisa lagi mengingat apa yang terjadi dalam perjalanan pulang menuju sekolah. Yang diingatnya sesampai di rumah, bahwa hari itu ia telah terpilih di antara puluhan murid perempuan lainnya untuk menjadi kesayangan bapak satu-satunya. Ia bangga telah dapat menuruti kemauan bapak, walau ia masih belum bisa menemukan jawaban atas kenikmatan ganjil yang ia rasakan di kemaluannya ketika disentuh bapak.

Keesokan harinya, ia berangkat ke sekolah dengan semangat tinggi karena ia akan bertemu bapak. Namun, semangat tinggi itu pupus ketika bapak berlaku seperti tidak ada apa-apa dan ia diperlakukan sama dengan murid-murid lainnya, bahkan ia merasa, ketika pelajaran berlangsung, ia tidak diperhatikan sama sekali.

Ia kecewa, namun ia bertekad, bahwa ia tidak akan pernah mendatangi bapak dan bertanya mengapa ia tak diperlakukan spesial lagi, tak diperlakukan sebagaimana mestinya anak kesayangan diperlakukan. Ia berkata dalam hati, bahwa apapun yang terjadi kemarin, memang sudah seharusnya terjadi. Jika bapak bisa berlaku seperti tak ada sesuatu yang terjadi kemarin, dia pun bisa bertindak yang sama. Kecewa, tapi ia tidak sakit hati, apalagi membencinya. Tidak, ia tidak bisa.

Hari-hari berikut pun berjalan seperti biasa, hingga saatnya ia tamat dan keluar dari sekolah itu. Tak ada ucapan perpisahan berarti antara dirinya dan bapak. Semua berjalan normal, mengucapkan terima kasih atas ilmu yang telah diajarkan selama ini. Hari kelulusan itu adalah saat terakhir ia bertemu bapak.

Hingga sore itu, ia menginjakkan kaki di rumah bapak. Harus bertemu lagi dengan bapak, namun dengan keadaan yang sangat berbanding terbalik dari 20 tahun yang lalu. Melihat bapak terbaring tanpa daya, dengan berbagai selang di badan, tatapan kosong dan tanpa bisa berkata sepatah pun, dan satu-satunya suara yang dikeluarkan dari mulutnya hanyalah erangan, membuat dirinya disergap ketakutan yang amat sangat.

Ia tidak merasa iba pada bapak. Yang ia rasakan hanya ketakutan. Ia takut melihat bapak yang sekarang. Ia berdiri sejauh mungkin dari tempat tidur karena ia takut menatap mata bapak. Berbagai pikiran bermain di kepalanya, dan yang terkuat adalah keinginan untuk berkata tepat di telinganya, bahwa ia layak mendapatkan apa yang ia dapatkan saat ini, jatuh tertabrak bis, gegar otak parah dan terbaring selama lebih dari satu tahun, tak bisa bergerak kecuali digerakkan oleh istri dan anak-anaknya. Ingin ia berkata bahwa hukuman Tuhan yang diberikan pada bapak sangat setimpal. Ingin sekali ia mendekatkan dirinya dan berkata bahwa inilah akibat yang harus bapak terima karena telah melakukan pelecehan seksual terhadp dirinya, murid perempuan berumur 11 tahun. Ingin sekali ia berkata, bahwa walau bapak telah lupa dan tak akan pernah bisa lagi mengingat kejadian 22 tahun yang lalu, tapi baginya, kejadian itu tidak akan pernah bisa dilupakan seumur hidupnya.

Ia tidak bisa berlama-lama di tempat itu, tak bisa berlama-lama bersama bapak. Konflik batin yang ia alami sangat menyiksa jiwa, raga dan pikiran. Ia harus segera keluar atau ia akan muntah di tempat.

Sekembali dari rumah bapak, pikiran kembali berkecamuk di kepalanya. Ia tak kuat lagi menyimpan rahasia ini sendirian, ia harus bercerita kepada seseorang.

Dan akhirnya, di meja makan itu, ia ungkapkan semuanya ke sang bunda, ibu yang melahirkannya.

..sebuah fiksi..