Indonesian Woman, Jakarta Style

Nggak ada yang lebih seru daripada nyari makan di daerah tempat saya tinggal. Street food bo'. Jakarta style. Kalo kata teman saya yang pernah kesini, daerah saya cari makan itu seperti Pasar Kreneng di Denpasar. Atau pasar-pasar malam lainnya yang isinya PKL dan jualan dvd bajakan. Jangan harap bawa bule kesini. Saya baru ngeh saya beli makan sendiri harganya $1-2 lebih murah. Whoop whoop!

Jangan salah, daerah saya tinggal nggak kayak di film-film yang keren gitu deh. Daerah saya isinya imigran Latin Amerika semua, dan bahkan orang-orang Hispanik yang saya kenal pun kalau tahu saya tinggal dimana langsung geleng-geleng, "That place is not good". Tinggal saya yang nyengir. Kalau dibilang not good sih iya. Ibaratnya gini deh, kalau The Raid syutingnya di apartemen saya saya nggak akan heran. Nggak sehoror itu sih, tapi jelas bukan daerah biasa.

But it's home. Ini rumah. Semua orang baik sama saya. Saya merasa nyaman disini. Ternyata benar kata orang, kerasnya Jakarta mah beda. Standar hidup saya disini kurang lebih sama seperti standar hidup di Jakarta. Ukuran apartemen saya saja kurang lebih sama dengan ukuran kamar kos saya waktu kuliah di Jakarta. Ke kantor naik bus 2.5-3 jam. Makan juga sekelas Solaria, tapi seringan bawa sendiri dari rumah, yang masak sekali buat seminggu. Nggak beda ma Jakarta toh. Bedanya cuma saya sekarang punya oven dan slow cooker hehehe. Bathtub juga, tapi alat masak lebih penting. Hidup makan.

Orang asli sini mungkin sudah galau disuruh hidup seperti saya, padahal saya santai aja. Jakarta style. Orang sini diposisi saya yang mendadak cerai juga bisa stres ga jelas. Kebayang dong dimutasi dari tempat tinggal sekian ribu km jauhnya demi cinta, lalu bubar jalan gara2 lelaki gatal dan perempuan abg yang sama gatalnya. Yuk garuk lol. Mendadak sendiri di negeri orang itu nggak enak lho. Apalagi mendadak bayar pajak single yg lebih gede dari pajak married, bayar health insurance,  bayar apartemen tagihan etc sendiri. Gini deh, telp 2 line itu kena $60 per orang, telp 1line kenanya $105. Bukannya mau jadi lintah ya, tapi apa-apa kalau ditanggung berdua jelas lebih irit. Jadi saya seperti sudah jatuh tertimpa tangga diinjak pula. Percaya deh, kalau bukan hasil gemblengan Jakarta saya mungkin sudah balik bodi pulang kampung. Tapi saya anak Jakarta, jadi saya bangkit, berdiri, dan memberikan salam jari tengah. Dobel.

Dan bukan cuma gemblengan Jakarta sih. Buat saya semua orang Indonesia punya potensi ketangguhan tersendiri. Percaya deh, ngurus apa-apa disini jauh lebih gampang step by stepnya daripada di Indonesia. Kita yang biasa dengan ketidakbiasaan (bom, banjir, bini ngamuk) bisa dengan mudah beradaptasi dimana saja. Kendala mungkin cuma bahasa, tapi faktanya saya bisa tetap memesan makanan dengan benar walau saya tidak bisa bahasa Spanyol sedikitpun. Jadi ini pun sebenarnya bisa diatasi. Makanya kalau baca orang Indonesia komen "Dasar Indon!" atau memuja-muji bangsa lain saya sebel. Sori dori stroberi ya, kita jauh lebih tangguh daripada itu. Kita yang ditaruh dimana saja bisa hidup. Well mungkin nggak di Arctic. Dingin bo'.

Waktu saya berjalan pulang dengan tentengan makan malam saya, rasanya saya seperti Rocky yang berdarah-darah tapi mengangkat tangan dengan penuh kebanggaan di atas ring. I've been beaten, I've been broken, but here I am and I will be the winner. Orang lain, bahkan orang sini pun belum tentu bisa menghadapi cobaan ini dengan sukses dan waras. Saya merasa sangat bangga dengan diri saya sendiri. Ini achievement yang lumayan hebat lho. Gimana ya, Jakarta style dan Indonesian woman. We are bred and born to win. Iya ga sih??? 

#proudtobeIndonesian 

#JakartaStyle

The Freeway

Accelerating

Braking

Taking over a car

Accelerating again

Trees past by me

Bushes ran through

Landscape changing

Some cars found their exit

But I haven't found mine

And on and on I drove

Looking for my exit

Night came

Then the sun rise

From the fleck of ray in the dark 

To the bright ball of fire in the sky

Then darkness come again

How long has it been

Days Weeks Years

I kept my eyes on the road

Wishing it would end soon

And on and on I drove

Looking for my exit

I pulled over on a ramp

Banging my fist to my steering wheel

The exit after this one

The exit after this one

But that exit never came

And these fools keep driving

For an end they cannot achieve

For the hunger they cannot satiate

For the race they cannot win

And I don't want to drive anymore

I don't want to look for my exit anymore

Then she passed

Speed easily on the free way

Unconcerned with the exits

I could stay in the ramp forever

Or I can go after her

I turn my car on

And accelerate

My feet on the gas

My mind on her

And on and on I drove

Looking for the woman

Till this day I am still driving

But I will never forget that day

When our cars finally aligned

She looked at me quizically

I rolled down my window

And dared myself to ask:

Where to?

She smiled and answer:

Anywhere you want to

And on and on I drove

Along with my woman

I will find my exit one day

I will find the end of this misery

But was it a misery when I can enjoy it?

Or was it a great big adventure?

So This Is Goodbye

So this is goodbye. The coffee's getting cold, and your scone turns rock hard. But you wouldn't even look at me, we just sit here in silence. No forced last smile, no false sugary wishes that hope all will be well, nothing. Just silence. I would prefer your wrath honestly, instead of a cold degrading silence. Do I really deserve this?

Gone were the days of our laughters, the rosy view of tomorrow. Days of when we believe in each other, and rely in one another. Where did they go? Now they're merely fragment of dreams: melt away in the first sunlight, dripping loose from my memory. Even our photos cannot revive happy memories. I looked and I looked and all I can see are alien faces and surreal smiles. Were they really us? Were we ever this happy?

I can only remember days of bickering, of lost expectation and bitter dissapointment. You change, I change, and what used to be the perfect set of cogs in a machine become a wrong set of cogs, blocking each other. Were you wrong? Was I wrong? Maybe we both are. I remember crying for help but you won't listen, and I was so desperate to make us work. But did you cry for help too? Did I fail to listen as well?

I was hoping we can go through the separation in a civilized way, was hoping that this is not the end and we still can be friends. Such a romantic fool I was. Your hostility amazes me instead. Why can't we part in kindness? The others before me parted in lies and hatred and agony, why can't we start making a better ending? I still care. But the unpleasantness runs too deep. Whatever I say can not change your judgement towards me, and whatever you say cannot mend us. Like a shattered coffee cup, you can mend it but you can't use it anymore. That is why I have to go.

Goodbye then. Thank you for the exquisite years we had together. Thank you for the experiences and lessons you gave me. There is no point of speaking ill about each other or forcefully stated the other part held full responsibility for the breakup. None of them will bring us together, none of them will mend us. Would you look into my eyes once again, can I see you smile once again, just once? The silence. You still intently looking at the coffee, so determined that I wouldn't be surprise if it somehow boils under your fiery gaze. I guess it's a no. Don't worry, it's ok. I'll just be on my way. Wish you well my dearest. I will part with a smile. Wish you well.


Disclaimer: It is not about romance. Go figure ;)

A Day at The Park

I walked and I walked...

The morning sun shine through the trees
The cool morning breeze kiss my skin
The yogi do their yoga, twisting and stretching
The hawkers offer breakfast to the joggers
The little flipflop walked, one at a time
Left, right, left, right, left, right
And I thought of the day when yours were accompanying mine
The flipflop move forwards, alone
Left, right, left, right, left, right

The afternoon sun basked everything in golden yellow
The jogger, the juggler, the soccer players,
Lovers and families and friends and pets
Cacophony of traffic as people rush to go home
Laughter and excited yells of the soccer players
My hand open and clenched, yearning to hold yours
My fingers spread, wishing yours filling the void
The darkness come
The night fall
Still I walked and walked, the little flipflops move one at a time
Left, right, left, right, left, right

Tomorrow the sun will rise again
And then the night will fall
But you will not be there with me
Not yet
Many days will follow: many sun rises and night falls
The days where I still walk alone
But it wont be for eternity

One day the sun will rise and gleam upon your smiling face
One day the night will fall as you hold me close
And the two pair of flipflops, little and big, will walk together
Left left, right right, left left, right right
And we'll never be alone

One day...

Ubud - Sept 23, 2012

The Peranda sat in silence. He closed his eyes and lost in his thought, in his prayer. He was oblivious to his surrounding, to fellow speakers that sat with him on the long table, to the speaker next to him that enthusiastically explain Vedic system. He slowly put his shirt on to cover his frail body, looking even more serene when contrasted with the praying flowers arrayed in front of him, with the priest crown and his other praying tools next to the flowers. He broke a big smile when the translator missed translating a part of his fellow speaker's speech. Finally dressed and have finished with his own speech, he sat and close his eyes still, listening intently to his fellow speaker's speech, nodding and smiling in agreement. Such a peaceful smile! The small incense in front of him burned slowly. He previously spoke about the role of Peranda in Balinese Hindu, and now the speaker next to him in his speech about Yoga said that Peranda and all priests
brings God in them, brings God to fellow human. Is it true? Is there God? Can we really be saved? But seeing the Peranda sit there, with his peaceful bearing and calming look, one can't help to just have positive feeling, to just have faith. Maybe we can be saved after all.

Let Me Kneel Down and Pray

What is it like to pray in a very old church? My boyfriend went for a job assignment at a foreign country, one that has many old churches, and I am excited for him yet also envious at the same time.

I have long developed a fascination with old buildings/structure, especially those which still used and/or well taken care of. Their architecture tell us what and how their maker think, their ambition and the current trend when it was built; it tells us about the past, it shows us the past. With praying sites it's even better. Temples, churches, mosques, just name your praying site. Not only the architecture tells us about the past, there are certain feeling that lingers there: hopes, faith, submission, dreams.

"Cogito ergo sum", Descartes said. "I think, therefore I am." This sentence was to proof the existence of human conciousness. It is aptly believed by many people. It's the era's mantra: if you believe it, you can achieve it. From curing the canker to a coveted job position, you can do it if you believe it. If this is so, won't it make sense that such strong thought will leave its marks? In an old praying site all the hopes and dreams and faith stay well after the person who feel it left. It's the believe that their God will help them. And after numerous years the feeling still lingers, an echo of the past.

A secluded Balinese temple, a church used by many generations, a mosque built in the 18th century, a buddhist monastery hidden in the mountain since years ago, the places where their worshippers can bend their weary head, kneel [in front of the altar], and pray. Where they can tell their woes and whisper their hopes and feel safe and protected once again. Wouldn't it be wonderful to visit such places? To have the past spoken to us, and to know the true strength of humans' faith.

And let me bow my head humbly, let me kneel down and pray. It will be my date with God.

Write, baby. Write!

My boyfriend told me to write.

"Write, lovebug, write!" he said, "Write like your life depends on it!"

At first I didn't quite understand why he was so adamant about it. Yes, I enjoy writing. Thus the blog. D'oh. I didn't write/post entries regularly, but it doesn't mean I don't like writing. Sometimes I just prefer relaxing and seeing the world. Ok, most of the time. Happy? Lol. Nonetheless his unmovable view proved to be, ah, unmovable. And after a hefty dose of coaxing, stern reprisal, and many more coaxing I found myself firing up my computer after work, and got lost in the realm.

I travel through the forest not unlike Fangorn in Lord of The Ring. I walked through the city with my boyfriend and enjoy ourselves. I went to the future and the past, and cherishing the smallest details of the present. All in my writing. Like Rodger-Hammerstein's Cinderella once sang, "In my own little corner/In my own little chair/I can be whatever I want to be."

It took him to shook me off and realize how much I love to write. When books take me to their world, I was merely following the path they have provided. In my own writing, I get to choose the path. With those written words I talk to stranger I've never meet before (and will probably never meet ever!): sharing my thoughts, my joy, my agony. It is a wonderful feeling to found myself relaxing and (somewhat) chatting in my worlds of 1000-something words.

But now and then my phone will beep. My boyfriend would contact me and I would be transfered back to reality. The harsh, harsh reality. Well, actually is more of the sweet, sweet reality. For what is sweeter than knowing you will always found home? I can write what I wish, what I want to tell, make up my own world and played in it, but I can always find home afterwards. He'll be there, waiting for me. A fully supporting friend/spouse/patron is a definite "must have item" for any writer!



PS: See baby? I write!

A Kind Word Helps Two

""Subject: * VERY IMPORTANT MESSAGE *
Mon, Jun 25, 2012 11:58 PM PDT

Just wanted to write you a quick email to tell you that I love you!
I know I've said this before, but it just feels so
good to tell you again :D And again! :)"

She smiled her widest smile when reading the email. All the hardship of the day, all the trouble and worries seemed to melt away just because of the kind words in the e-mail. How good it was to have someone that cared!"

How many of us have the luxury of kind words spoken to us recently, let alone in daily basis?

Of all the species in the world, human is unique for its ability to emotionally support and/or affect each other by words. Simply put, whatever people say affect us. This is the reason why some people take delight in verbal harrasment/bullying, but this is also the reason why a simple "Thank you" or can easily brighten our otherwise miserable day.

It is always a pleasure to deal with a polite person, one that uses the magic words appropriately: "Thank you", "please", "excuse me". I assume it is because it makes us feel appreciated. If so, what about genuine compliments and encouragement? That must be more potent even. Wouldn't it be grand to know someone think what we do or what we are is good? Wouldn't it be wonderful to know we are not alone and someone actually care?

It's only natural that someone that gets a healthy dose of kind (polite) words and encouragement will fare better than the ones that don't. He/she will have more self esteem, more positive way of thinking, and will appreciate and respect other people more. Yet with all the obvious advantage kind words are still quite hard to find these days, and I suspect it will be harder still as more and more people learn/adapt to live without others. But unlike other things in life, words are completely totally free. It's actually funny because we gain nothing by not saying [kind words to people], and gain so much by saying (i.e. The receiver's good feeling of him/herself, and also your own good feeling). Yet somehow our mouth is sealed tighter than the clams.

For that, I dare you to say something nice to others. One of the magic words, a small compliment, all genuine and straight from your heart. Say that, and watch the magic happen. See his/her face lit up, watch the smile bloom, observe the twinkle in his/her eyes and the obvious excitement. Congratulations, you just made his/her day.

Here's my line to you readers: Thank you for reading this, thank you for spending your time to ponder on my thoughts. And for the ones that take up my dare: Thank you for trying. I hope it makes you feel good about youself :). Man, it feels good saying all that! I really do love you, readers. Many thanks for reading!

The Inevitable

"There is no such thing as coincidence. What we have is the inevitable." -XXXHolic

My friends told me how impossible I am. My last relationship was conducted from 4500 km away, and my current one is more than 14,000 km away. Previously I was bracing the complicated social norm of Balinese hierarchy, now I land my self in a cross-race and totally different nationality altogether. No wonder my friends think I'm crazy, and questioned why won't I just get a normal relationship like everyone else. Point taken, but why should I?

 For me, it was never the question of difficulties or hurdles or challenges. It was always about the feeling, what kind of person my partner is. But sometimes, in one of few rare occasions, my faith waiver. Was I making the right decision, can I make it through. Then, wham! God smack my senses back.

Was worried about whether I can survive professionally when I got a client that simply thankful for what I do. Was scared that we couldn't last when I got a client who asked to conduct a surprise engagement photo session. Was thinking whether conducting a relationship from far away is a good idea when I got a client who decidedly moved to Japan, and having a great time with it albeit the anguish of missing the friends and family. And they all came from the same country as my partner, which actually made the chance of them contacting us and becoming a client is pretty slim. Flying full 24 hours is not really fun. But they came.

An agnostic would say I'm making this up. Heck, my partner WILL argue I'm making this up, that I'm forcing to connect the dots lol. But that's what I choose to believe, that everything happen for a reason. There is no coincidence, only the inevitable. It's His way of telling me that I'll be good.

Was I delusioning? Probably.
But I can't help feeling good about what I have, about my partner and our relationship. I listen closely to my feeling, to my gut instinct, as I can't afford and don't want to get hurt again. And I felt good, I felt really really good. When other people say what I am trying to do is crazy and impossible, I just know I'm going to make it. And yeah, He's been telling me that too.

What I Hope My Child(ren) Will Have

Eyes that open wide for the wonders of life
Ears that hear and enjoy kind words and melody of the world
Lips that smile and bring wonder to others
Mouth that speak things kind and bring peace and joy
Fingers that caress without doubt
Hands that are ready to help
Arms that are ready to hold
Kind heart with compassion for others
Strong heart that stood rock solid over troubles
Courage to do what is right
Self-control to stop from what's not
Humbleness upon this majestic word
Confidence in him/herself and what he/she can achieve
Strength to defend him/herself
Grace to love others

An open minded person
A loving soul
A quick thinker
A wise and smart decision maker
With faith that never falter
And feet that take him/her far.

I love you, little angels.

http://m.yahoo.com/w/legobpengine/news/blogs/sideshow/boy-disney-trip-soldier-fallen-family-facebook-132933068.html?orig_host_hdr=news.yahoo.com&.intl=US&.lang=en-US

The Time of My Life - A Survivor's Note

"I've been waiting for my dreams
To turn into something I could believe in
And looking for that magic rainbow
On the horizon, I couldn't see it"

We'll never know how toxic something is until we break free from it, or until we die from it.

It felt like an eternal winter for me: The forever bleak surrounding with occasional torrent rain and wind that howls through the dead trees. This is what my mental state is. But I am not unique. I believe anyone with a broken relationship walks (and trapped) in this forsaken state for a certain period of time. Some stayed forever.

The toll? Death of the soul. Got so used with unhappiness that they just stay there, unable to wake up and live their life, and watch helplessly as their world crumbles apart. I got trapped for so long that I no longer care whether I wake up or not the next morning; and I was forced to see my work, which I'm fiercely proud of, slowly destroyed due to my inability to focus, to wake up. I could've stayed like this forever (and forever actually means whatever short time I have left thanks to my reckless behaviour), but God intervene.

What we need to understand is each person has different strength and different burden. It is impossible to generalize and say: "it's just a guy/girl, get over it!". For some cases it probably is, just a hapless hopeless puppy love. Yet look deeply, observe closely, watch carefully. Your friend may have won the ticket to The Wood of Eternal Winter when you shrugged your shoulder and say, "She/he'll get over it.". And on the contrary, your stretched hands and open arms might save them from that wretched fate. You could be God's intervention, you could be their ticket out.

Yet in some cases, we sunk too deep to even notice our friends' effort to help us, or that future and sunny world outside that bleak woods do exist. I could've stayed there forever, if He didnt send someone that shatter my world. But He did, He send me someone that in an unthinkable way shook me out and show me my true worth. Yet I can choose. I can close my senses and reject it, stayed in my eternal winter forever, because another winter after the sun will be too much to bear; or I can accept my golden ticket and hope there will be no more winter. I choose to accept it.

There are so many people trapped in depression, in their own eternal winter. Maybe you or your loved ones are among them. And if not, maybe you can be their ticket out. Of course, it will be up to them to use their ticket out or not; but at least you have given them the chance. And maybe one day, the wood of eternal winter will lay abandoned, as all people happily gathered in the land of eternal sunshine. One day, some day.

"Until I let go, gave in to love
Watched all the bitterness burn
Now I'm coming alive, body and soul
Feeling my world start to turn

And I'll taste every moment and live it out loud
I know this is the time, this is the time to be
More than a name or a face in the crowd
I know this is the time, this is the time of my life
The time of my life"

The Time of My Life - David Cook

The Starfish Story

"There'd been a storm, and tens of thousands of starfish had been washed onto a beach. A man walked the beach, saddened to see all the dying creatures. Up ahead, he saw another man. The man was tossing starfish back into the ocean.

"You can't save all these starfish," the first man said. "What does it matter?"
The second man turned to the first. He leaned over, picked up a starfish, and cast it into the sea.
"Well," he told the first man, "it mattered to that one.""

As beautifully illustrated on the story above, we cannot save everyone but the ones that we do save will be grateful for what we do. I cant save everyone in the world, or make everyone happy. I dont think I can even save anyone from anything or make a person happy all the time. Shit happens. But I can try, and hopefully I can make your life worthwhile.

Just like the story goes, what I do probably can't make a change to the world, nevertheless it can make a change (no matter how small it is) in your life. So stay, and allow me to make you smile, to make your life a slightly wonderful one. Allow me to make you happy.

NOTE: the starfish story is taken from a Yahoo article. Read the whole inspiring story here.

Selamat Pagi Tuhan :)

Entah kenapa pagi-pagi tiba-tiba teringat lagu ini. Walau sebenarnya saya belajar lagu ini cuma sekedar syarat saat SMP (saya masuk ke SMP Katolik), tapi buat saya lagu ini benar-benar mengena dan sangat berkesan. Tenang, saya masih teguh memegang Hindu ;).

Yang saya suka, lirik lagu ini sebenarnya universal dan bisa masuk untuk agama manapun. (Jangan tersinggung ya, para pembaca yang beragama Nasrani, ini pujian lho). Semua agama pasti umatnya akan memuji Tuhan, akan memohon diberikan rejeki, akan meminta dijauhkan dari godaan dan diampuni semua kesalahannya. Coba saja buka pikiran anda dan coba resapi lirik ini. Sama kan? :)

Bapa Kami - Versi Filipina
Bapa kami di dalam surga
Dimuliakanlah namaMu
Datanglah kerajaanMu
Jadilah kehendakMu
Di bumi dan di surga

Berilah kami rejeki
Pada hari ini
Ampunilah dosa kami
Seperti kamipun mengampuni
Yang bersalah kepada kami

Jangan masukkan kami dalam cobaan
Tapi bebaskan kami dari yang jahat
Sebab Tuhanlah Raja
Yang mulia dan berkuasa
Untuk selama-lamanya
Amin, amin, amin

Selamat Pagi Tuhan, I love You so much ;)

Jadi, Apa yang Anda Lihat?

Mari bermain :)
Apa hal pertama yang ada di benak anda saat melihat gambar ini?


Hitam
Putih
Overweight
Montok
Tua
Muda
Pasangan
Teman
Letih
Hitam
Bahagia
Jelek
Tampan
Ga penting
Menarik


ada lagi?

Bila anda menunjukkan gambar ini ke 10 orang, belum tentu 10 orang itu akan menjawab sama. Itu karena tiap orang memiliki pandangan dan pertimbangannya sendiri, yang didapat dari pengalaman hidupnya dan didikan lingkungannya, kecuali anda menunjukkan 10 gambar ini ke orang yang memiliki pandangan yang 100% sama dengan anda (e.g. anda menunjukkan gambar ini ke perkumpulan Ku Klux Klan anda: "That bloody filthy colored nigger bitch!", and so on).

Beberapa kata-kata yang pernah dipakai untuk mendeskripsikan saya: judes, tegas, ramah, kasar, baik, cuek, setia, tidak setia, cantik, tidak menarik, montok, gemuk. Banyak yang bertolak belakang? Tentu saja. Seseorang mendeskripsikan teman saya diatas sebagai seseorang yang penuh perhatian, baik, ramah, bisa diandalkan, terpercaya; sementara orang lain mendeskripsikan dia sebagai seseorang yang lambat, tidak bisa diandalkan, dan sulit diajak berdiskusi. Mana yang benar? Mungkin semuanya.

Pernah dengar cerita 5 orang buta yang mencoba mengenali gajah? Yang memegang gading gajah berpendapat bahwa gajah tajam, licin, dan keras. Yang memegang belalainya berujar gajah itu lentur dan kuat. Yang memegang ekornya bersikukuh bahwa gajah itu kecil dan halus. Dan seterusnya. Cerita ini sering kali dipakai untuk mendeskripsikan betapa besarnya Tuhan, sedemikian besar sehingga manusia hanyalah seperti para orang buta itu yang tak mampu menangkap wujud asli kebesaran Tuhan. Menurut saya sebenarnya hal ini juga berlaku untuk manusia. Seberapapun anda pikir anda mengenal manusia lain, seberapa banyak pun anda membaca buku psikolog, tak mungkin untuk mengerti sepenuhnya seorang manusia. Ya, anda bisa mengerti sebagian dan menggunakan pengetahuan itu untuk memanipulasi, erm maksud saya mencoba memahami orang tersebut (biasa, sales). Tapi anda tak akan mengerti manusia itu sepenuhnya. Apakah anda saja mampu mengerti diri anda sendiri?

Yang menarik adalah, orang memandang orang lain berdasarkan apa yang ingin ia lihat, berdasarkan apa yang sudah terdoktrin dalam pikirannya. Seorang dosen yang keras mungkin dianggap tegas oleh mahasiswanya yang menghargai ketegasan dan empowerment, namun dianggap sadis oleh mahasiswa lainnya yang lebih menghargai kekeluargaan. Seorang kaya yang mengebut dengan mobil Ferrari nya mungkin dianggap orang hebat oleh seseorang yang menghargai barang-barang mewah namun dianggap orang norak oleh lainnya yang anti kapitalis. Itulah masalahnya, semua pandangan mereka benar. Paling tidak menurut diri mereka sendiri.

Kenapa ini penting? Karena dengan memahami bahwa sangat wajar orang lain memiliki pandangan dan pertimbangan berbeda, kita akan mampu menjadi lebih toleran kepada orang lain. Kita akan mengerti dan tidak mudah sakit hati dengan omongan orang, dan sebaliknya, kita pun akan bisa berpikir lebih luas. Siapa tahu orang yang sedemikian kita benci ini memiliki sisi baik. Yeah, mungkin kita benci orang yang kita anggap pelit, namun bila kita mengerti bahwa ia menolak nongkrong di starbux bersama kita namun rela mengeluarkan uang lebih banyak untuk saudara jauhnya yang sakit, bukankah itu akan membuat anda menjadi berpikir ulang?

Saya tidak perlu merasa sakit hati bila seseorang menyebut saya gendut, karena itu hanya di pikiran dia dan ada orang lain yang tidak berpendapat demikian. Saya pun bahagia dengan bentuk badan saya, so what. Anda tidak perlu merasa stres karena dibandingkan dengan si A yang tampak lebih dari anda (lebih kaya, lebih pintar, lebih segalanya deh), karena ada orang yang (saya yakin) menganggap anda memiliki nilai lebih daripada si A. Sekali lagi, ini bukan berarti saya memang tidak gendut atau anda memang tidak bodoh, ini hanya berarti orang-orang melihat kita secara berbeda. Daripada sibuk memikirkan omongan orang lain atau justru sibuk menilai orang lain, lebih baik anda sibuk membuat diri anda merasa nyaman dengan diri anda dan membuka diri atas kebaikan dan kelebihan orang lain. It's the key to happiness.

You Look Best When You Smile

You look best when you smile
It was like the sun shine through the cloud
Like the rainbow after the rain
Like the warm spring wind after the harsh winter
You maybe not a beauty queen
And definitely not James Bond
But seeing you smile fills my heart with gladness
Making me feel the world is such a beautiful place
So smile, angel. You'll never know who you might saved with your warm, honest smile
Cause you look best when you smile

- This note is dedicated to all that read this article. Smile, gorgeous ;) -

Live in Love

Catholic is shaken by reports of sexual abuse, but priest in Detroit keep delivering items for the needy even though their church is gone

Christian is said to be harsh and aggresive to homosexual and other religion, but my Christian foster father only spoke of love and acceptance no matter how lewd i seem to be

Hindus in India/Pakistan is responsible for viscious attack to the moslem, but my priests and books taught me only kindness and understanding the universe

Jewish is loathed by probably half of the world due to the fight for the "promised land", but they do not hesitate to back and bring justice for a little girl that being harrassed by a small group within themselves

Moslem has been pictured as "the bad dudes" and militant thanks to a small group people who thinks terrorizing will earn them respect, but an Arab helps a group of Jewish to escape Nazi while knowing fully well the horrible risk of his action.

Those are but a glimpse of how religion is portrayed and how it actually works in reality. It was never about the religion, it was always about the people.

Generalizing people based on their religion is not only stupid, but also discriminative. Saying that all Jewish are crooks, all Moslems are terrorists, all Christians are bigots is like saying all blacks are violent, all asians are stupid, all westerners are immoral. None of it true. You cant accuse a group sharing the same (unpleasant) trait just because a few member of the group act indecent. Would you like to be accused a rapist just because one of the people in your family/circle of friends is a rapist? I assume not.

These facts sound irrelevant, unimportant, can be brushed aside. But I beg to differ. The world is in crisis, and the only way to ride through the storm is to face it together. Answer truthfully: does it matter if a Moslem or a Jewish is your cashier at the supermarket? Does burger made by a devout Christian at your local fast food joint taste better? Assuming you dont know what their religion is, the answer would be NO. The reason is simple: religion is one's business with God, not with people. Except when they forced their religion during what should've been professional work, I see no reason to complain or discriminate.

Take a deep breath and try to digest this: religion is one's own business with God, it's not other people's business. Let it go. Have faith in human. All religion taught love and compassion, and all human (even the atheist) are born with it. Love one another, see through religion, skin color, or whatever difference that you can creatively find. All living things are unique and different, cherish it :)

Mind your Business, Mr. Save The Earth, Sir.

http://news.yahoo.com/greenpeace-condemns-indonesia-deportation-115529212.html

"Greenpeace on Friday accused Indonesia of waging a vendetta against the environmental group, after the head of its British branch was denied entry to Jakarta to campaign against deforestation.

In recent years, Greenpeace has run several campaigns against Indonesia-based Sinar Mas, a privately owned paper and palm oil giant which environmental groups accuse of illegally logging swathes of carbon-rich and biodiverse forests.

Greenpeace campaigns have seen the likes of Unilever, Kraft, Burger King and Barbie maker Mattel cut supply chains from Sinar Mas companies, including Asia Pulp & Paper, one of the world's largest paper makers."

Remind me again why this "brutal" Sinar Mas Group is doing so many deforestation? Oh right, to supply palm oil for s0-called western-standard products which were then being distributed and heavily advertised to poor under-develop or undeveloped countries as a "you-are-not-civilized-if-you-do-not-use-this-product". You know, items like lab-prepared burgers, cheesy snacks, dolls that makes you wish you lost a few ribs to look like her, all the essential items in life. You know, countries like Indonesia. Oh wait, isn't that the country which the people and "Sinar Mas" savagely deforested their ancient forest and which Greenpeace comes to rescue? Such twisted delight.

Yeah, I confess I may have a grudge towards the organization ever since their fundraiser haggles me for funds. Appreciate that what's fundraiser do, but it leaves a bitter taste as she somehow makes me think that I'm not saving the world by not donating for the group. I did try to, as a matter of fact, in my own way. And now this news makes me even more bitter.

Thank you for trying to save the world, oh great organization. But how about cleaning up your backyard's first before you harass other people's patio? As I pointed out above, we're (the so-called-undeveloped-countries) are merely the supplier. The world hasn't change, the slavery is still live and thriving; back then we got measly food but no salary, now we have salary enough only to buy that measly food. Back then we are forced to destroy our forest for sugar-cane plantation, now we are forced to destroy our forest for palm plantation you so hate about. The old ways of living in Indonesia does not need that many sugar cane, nor that many palm oil. You asked us to.

At this point I know someone would argue, "The Indonesian should know the danger of global warming, Indonesian should take action!". You know, NO Indonesian (or any right-mind person) interested in destroying the forest. The locals love the forest so. And beside, we have better things to do. Yes, we're doing it for the money, but before you argue I would love dearly to see other organizations that fights back deforestation to be in our shoe. Our so-called uncivilized people earn money from it. Not ridiculous amount of money that literally makes you able to swim in it like Scrooge McDuck, but only enough to make ends meet and prevent death from hunger. The ones that made real money are our corporate dudes, not unlike your own corporate dudes which you were so busy protesting now in Wall Street. I have strong suspicion that they are related, perhaps even tied by blood. Our sweat and blood, that is. Go haggle them instead. It's so easy to talk and shout and condemn people for not taking action when you don't have 5, 6 hungry children plus a malnourished wife you love so dearly waiting for your to bring some food home.

Get this. You want to save the planet, you go and negotiates with the consumers instead of go haggling the suppliers. Demand stops, supply stops. Simple and clear. It's not fair that you force us to leave (perhaps) the only way for us to make money, just because several million or so "educated people" can't live a day without their daily dose of burgers. Facts that un(der)developed countries are the biggest consumer? Well yeah, you kinda force feed us. Just like a toddler that has absolutely no clues of the "joy" of junk food, until their parents give it to them (or keep feeding them,to be exact). Junk food makes toddler happy and parents' doesn't need to cook, your items makes us happy and make loads of money for the sales. We've been free for 66 years, Developed countries such as USA have been free for 300-something years. Guess who's the parents.

By the way, have you tried browsing our traditional way of life? Just like the oh-so-precious yoga you'll find them environmentally friendly, sustainable, dirt cheap, and overall awesome. The famous Rendang, for instance, is made by beef but we only ate very little per portion compared to the heavy steaks or even deluxe burgers people so fond of wolfing down. Any prestige on chowing down a piece of rendang? Nope. Any prestige on sporting a massive submarine? Hell yeah. Instead of chaining your self to a tree or chasing down a whale boat you might want to stop and ponder on the marvel of traditional way of life. You might want to focus on advertising the goodness of the traditional way of life. You might want to, you know, perhaps (and a very big perhaps it is), think of what our people should do to make ends meet other than destroying the forest for some measly cents. And then, perhaps, we might save the world.