Indonesia dan Korupsi

KORUPSI: “Saya Hanya Segelintir Dari Mereka yang Belum Bisa Berbuat Banyak”
“Saya hanya segelintir dari rakyat Indonesia yang turut prihatin dengan keadaan korupsi di Indonesia. Tapi apa yang bisa saya lakukan?”
Saya bukanlah orang yang aktif dalam bidang politik maupun organisasi. Saya hanya si pencermat pasif yang akan menghela nafas panjang saat menyaksikan banyak kasus buruk yang menimpa Indonesia. Kasus yang sering saya lihat di televisi belakangan ini salah satunya ialah kasus korupsi. Korupsi di Indonesia sudah terjadi sejak puluhan tahun yang lalu. Namun belum banyak usaha efektif yang dilakukan untuk memberantas korupsi. Bahkan, dewasa ini korupsi di Indonesia kian hari keadaannya kian memprihatinkan saja.

“Korupsi sendiri berasal dari bahasa Latin: corruptio dari kata kerja corrumpere yang bermakna busuk, rusak, menggoyahkan, memutarbalik, menyogok atau rasuah adalah tindakan pejabat publik, baik politisi maupun pegawai negeri, serta pihak lain yang terlibat dalam tindakan itu yang secara tidak wajar dan tidak legal menyalahgunakan kepercayaan publik yang dikuasakan kepada mereka untuk mendapatkan keuntungan sepihak.” ("Korupsi," 2012).

Menjamurnya tindakan korupsi di Indonesia dapat dilihat dengan berseliwerannya tersangka korupsi di layar kaca televisi kita. Pelakunya pun beragam, misalnya pejabat daerah, anggota DPR, dan pejabat Kejaksaan Agung.

Korupsi adalah tindakan yang berkontribusi besar sebagai katalis kebobrokan bangsa. Keadaan korup yang kian parah ini merugikan rakyat dan tentunya Negara. Bayangkan, bila uang hasil korupsi yang jumlahnya miliaran rupiah dari seorang koruptor itu digunakan untuk membangun fasilitas umun Negara, misalnya saja digunakan untuk membangun sebuah sekolah gratis. Akan ada kesempatan bagi ratusan mungkin ribuan tangan kecil bersemangat untuk menggapai mimpinya membantu membangun bangsa. Mereka mungkin hanya berasal dari keluarga kurang mampu. Namun siapa yang menjamin mereka tidak punya cukup kemampuan untuk membangun bangsa? Itu baru uang dari satu orang koruptor. Hitunglah berapa banyak koruptor di Indonesia. Banyak bukan? Jika semua uang hasil korupsi para koruptor dikumpulkan dan digunakan untuk membangun Negara, bisa dikatakan, Indonesia dapat maju seribu langkah dari Indonesia yang sekarang.

Para tersangka korupsi hanya memikirkan tentang kemakmuran diri sendiri. Mereka hidup makmur di tengah kemelaratan bangsa. Hal ini merupakan suatu ironi. Mereka, para pejabat Negara yang seharusnya bekerja untuk membangun Negara, malah mengahncurkan bangsa. Dengan mudah mereka melegalkankan banyak cara agar dapat menggunakan uang Negara untuk memakmurkan diri sendiri.
Sebenarnya yang menjadi pertanyaan di benak saya adalah seberapa pedulikah rakyat Indonesia dengan masalah korupsi yang ada di Indonesia ini? Kalaupun mereka peduli, apa tindakan nyata mereka untuk memberantas korupsi ini? Apakah mereka sendiri sudah sanggup untuk menghindari tindakan korupsi? Tentu pertama kali saya lontarkan pertanyaan ini ke diri saya terlebih dahulu sebelum menanyakannya ke orang lain.

Pernah suatu ketika saya pindah ke suatu daerah. Pada saat itu, saya yang masih bersekolah tentu juga harus pindah ke sekolah di daerah itu. Uang pungutan atau biasa disebut “uang pembangunan” merupakan hal yang biasa saya temui. Orang tua saya yang sudah acap kali mengurusi kepindahan sekolah anak-anaknya tidak banyak meributkan soal uang pembangunan ini. Namun mereka sedikit berkomentar karena mereka tahu kalau di daerah ini sekolah gratis sudah diterapkan. Oleh karena itu tidak ada lagi yang namanya uang pembangunan yang dibebankan pada siswa.

Beberapa hari setelah kepindahan saya ke sekolah tersebut, sang guru memanggil saya ke ruangannya. Yang sedikit lucu ialah beliau tidak datang langsung ke kelas saya untuk memanggil saya dia menggunakan pengeras suara yang bisa di dengar seluruh sekolah ketika memanggil saya. Sontak teman-teman pun kaget dan heran mengapa saya dipanggil. Bergegas saya menuju ke ruangan beliau dan menanyakan perihal mengapa saya dipanggil ke ruangannya. Beliaupun menjelaskan dengan baik kepada saya, kalau saya harus mengerti dengan hal yang akan dia sampaikan. Singkatnya saya harus mengatakan tidak dikenai pungutan apapun ketika masuk sekolah ini jika ada petugas dinas pendidikan yang datang langsung ke rumah saya menanyakan hal tersebut. Sayapun mengiyakan. Lucunya sampai saat ini tidak pernah ada petugas pendidikan yang datang menanyakan hal tersebut ke rumah saya.

Cerita di atas, saya sampaikan dengan tidak mengurangi rasa hormat saya kepada guru saya. Juga tidak bermaksud untuk menjelekkan nama sekolah. Cerita di atas merupakan contoh kecil praktik korupsi di bidang pendidikan yang pastinya banyak terjadi di pelosok Indonesia. Mungkin tidak banyak orang yang dirugikan secara materiil tetapi keberanian kita untuk menolak korupsi akan terus tergerus seiiring banyaknya praktik korupsi kecil-kecilan seperti ini. Dari cerita di atas dapat dilihat, baik saya, maupun guru saya, bahkan petugas dari dinas pendidikan tak kuasa untuk membantu menanggulangi korupsi. Guru saya yang tidak bisa menolak kebiasaan bahwa murid baru harus membayar uang pembangunan, saya yang tidak bisa berkata tidak untuk permintaan guru saya yang mengharuskan saya berkata tidak jujur, maupun petugas yang tidak melaksanakan kewajibannya untuk memeriksa data murid pindahan, semuanya merupakan wujud ketidakmampuan untuk mengikis korupsi.

Banyak orang yang membenci tindakan korupsi, tetapi di sisi lain mereka juga melakukannya. Banyak orang yang membenci korupsi, menginginkan Indonesia bebas dari korupsi, tapi belum berbuat apa-apa. Ketakutan pada “cara” yang sudah terbentuk selama ini, mungkin merupakan salah satu alasan mengapa kita belum sanggup mengalahkan korupsi. Dapat dikatakan “barang” yang disebut korupsi ini hadir karena ala bisa karena biasa. Hati-hati, lama kelamaan hal ini bisa jadi kebiasaan yang kembali lagi akan menghancurkan bangsa.

Bagaimana cara untuk mewujudkan Indonesia bebas korupsi? Jika meninjau dari contoh kecil di atas, untuk mewujudkan Indonesia bebas korupsi sebaiknya kita mulai dari diri sendiri dulu. Biasakan untuk berkata jujur, berbuat jujur, dan menghindarkan diri dari praktik korupsi sekecil apapun. Selain itu memperkuat agama merupakan salah satu cara yang baik untuk menghindarkan diri dari korupsi. Apabila diri kita sudah dibentengi dengan agama yang kuat, maka kita dapat membedakan mana hal yang baik dan mana hal yang buruk juga dapat membedakan mana perbuatan yang berdosa dan mana yang tidak.
Sebenarnya masih banyak cara lain untuk membantu memberantas korupsi, seperti mengadakan penyuluhan anti korupsi, kantin kejujuran yang sudah diterapkan di beberapa sekolah, menyampaikan tentang buruknya korupsi melalui dakwah, serta melalui tulisan. Tulisan adalah salah satu media yang saya coba untuk membantu mengikis korupsi. Hal-hal tersebut merupakan wujud nyata yang bersifat persuasif untuk membantu memberantas korupsi.

Namun untuk mewujudkan Indonesia yang benar-benar bebas korupsi melakukan beberapa hal di atas sebenarnya tidak cukup. Untuk benar-benar mewujudkan Indonesia bebas korupsi kita harus mengubah cara pandang orang tentang korupsi. Membuat mereka tahu kalau korupsi akan mendatangkan dampak yang buruk terutama bagi mereka. Kebanyakan manusia pada dasarnya tidak akan melakukan hal yang bisa mencelakai dirinya sendiri. Kebanyakan manusia tidak akan meminum racun bukan? Maka ubahlah korupsi layaknya racun bagi mereka.
Bagaimana dengan hukuman mati untuk para koruptor? Mungkin belakangan hal ini masih diperdebatkan karena ada beberapa orang yang berpendapat hukuman ini melanggar hak asasi manusia untuk hidup. Namun banyak juga yang setuju.

“China menjatuhkan hukuman mati memberlakukan hukuman mati bagi para koruptor dengan melakukan kebijakan pemutihan sebelumnya. Dengan kata lain, semua pejabat China yang pernah melakukan korupsi sebelum tahun 1998 dianggap bersih dari korupsi. Tetapi pejabat yang melakukan korupsi setelah masa pemutihan akan dikenakan hukuman mati. Cara tersebut efektif untuk China. Kini, China termasuk Negara yang bersih dari Korupsi.”("Hukuman Mati Bagi Pelaku Korupsi?," 2012).
Sedangkan menurut pertauran hukum di Indonesia, hukuman mati dapat ditinjau dari Pasal 2 Ayat 2 UU Tipikor.

“Adapun Pasal 2 Ayat 2 UU Tipikor tersebut berbunyi, “Dalam hal tindak pidana korupsi sebagaimana dalam ayat (1) dilakukan dalam keadaan tertentu, pidana mati dapat dijatuhkan”.Pada penjelasan ayat itu disebutkan, yang dimaksud dengan “keadaan tertentu” dalam ketentuan tersebut adalah keadaan yang dapat dijadikan alasan pemberatan pidana bagi pelaku tindak pidana korupsi, yaitu apabila tindak pidana itu dilakukan terhadap dana-dana yang diperuntukkan bagi penanggulangan keadaan bahaya, bencana alam nasional, penanggulangan krisis ekonomi dan moneter, dan pengulangan tindak pidana korupsi.”("Tepat Hukuman Mati Untuk Terpidana Korupsi," 2012).

Pada dasarnya, agama terutama agama yang saya anut, agama Islam juga membolehkan hukuman mati, selama hukuman tersebut setimpal dengan kejahatan yang dilakukan. Pendapat yang mengatakan bahwa pemberlakuan hukuman mati melanggar hak manusia untuk hidup mungkin lupa kalau tindak korupsi juga merupakan pelanggaran HAM. Berapa banyak orang di Indonesia yang terbelenggu kemiskinan, kelaparan, dan kebodohan akibat dampak penyaluran dana yang tidak tepat? Dana yang seharusnya mereka dapat dari negara malah digunakan para koruptor untuk kesenangan pribadi.

Jika berandai-andai hukuman mati untuk para koruptor ini bisa dengan tegas dan tepat diterapkan di Indonesia, menurut saya besar kemungkinan untuk mewujudkan Indonesia bebas korupsi. Hukuman tersebut dapat menjadi racun yang tepat untuk dilekatkan pada tindak pidana korupsi. Kembali lagi pada sikap dasar manusia yang tidak akan mengambil tindakan yang mencelakai dirinya sendiri, tentu mereka tidak mau mengambil resiko mendapatkan hukuman mati dan memilih untuk tidak berkorupsi.
Ini adalah catatan kecil mahasiswa biasa mengenai korupsi dan pandangannya tentang bagaiamana cara terbaik untuk mewujudkan Indonesia bebas korupsi. Menulis adalah salah satu cara yang bisa saya lakukan saat ini. Namun saya hanya segelintir dari mereka yang berusaha jujur mengatakan saya belum bisa berbuat banyak untuk memberantas korupsi.

Referensi:

Hukuman Mati Bagi Pelaku Korupsi? [Electronic. (2012). Version], from http://www.anneahira.com/kasus-korupsi-indonesia.htm
Korupsi [Electronic. (2012). Version], from http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korupsi
Tepat Hukuman Mati Untuk Terpidana Korupsi [Electronic. (2012). Version], from http://bumnwatch.com/tepat-hukuman-mati-untuk-terpidana-korupsi/

Looking for an example of Autobiography! Check this one! ;)

The First Year Notes

Morning in July 2010

It was the first year when I started to study in Universitas Padjadjaran, Jatinagor.  The alarm’s sound of my phone woke me up. I saw the screen of my phone. It was 05.00 o’clock. I sat in my bed, sighed, and realized that now I was alone in the room. My father and my mother had gone back to Palembang last night.

I didn’t know what to do this morning. I felt bored. I turned my laptop on then I turned my internet connection on. I wrote “facebook.com” in first tab, when I opened Mozilla Firefox. I saw my facebook homepage. I opened profiles of my friends. I wanted to know their recent news especially where they studied now. 

Actually, when I was in Senior High School there were a lot of my friends that were quite ambitious to pass SNMPTN and study in the department that they wanted. I wanted to know how much the effect of their ambitions in achieving their goals.  Not only my friends, actually I was also quiet ambitious when I was in the third grade of Senior High School. I just wanted to know their conditions now. Perhaps, I would read good news from them. 

My attention was distracted when I saw there was a chat box appeared in the corner of the screen. I saw a name, it was my friend. I knew her when I took a course in Ganesha Operation Palembang. She was one of ambitious girls that I knew. She started to text me.

‘Hi, how are you?’

‘I’m Fine, how about you? I read on your facebook profile, that you are accepted in Depkes. Congratulation! J’

‘Yes Debby, thank you, I am very happy. By the way, I know that you are in UNPAD now. What major do you take?’

I didn’t know what she meant by asking such question. I just felt bad with that question. I didn’t know whether it was a question about what my major was or about another thing.

‘I study in Faculty of Letters in English Department’

‘Oh, hmm why do you take it? What can you be if you graduate from English Department?’

I felt bored with this question.

‘I can be anything, I can be a journalist, I can be a teacher, a translator, work in a bank, work in foreign minister, anything.’

“What does she mean by asking such question? What does she think when she asks that question? Does she feel that she is in the higher position than me now? Does she feel that she is better? Come on you are only accepted in D3 Depkes. You are not in a faculty of Medicine. Even, if you are accepted in Faculty of Medicine, you cannot say that people who are accepted in a faculty such Faculty of Letters doesn’t have a better future.” I was grumbling

I closed the chat box. I didn’t in a good mood anymore to chat.

I sighed. I, honestly, also doubt with my decision. I asked to myself.

“Why don’t you take your scholarship in Telkom? You know that you want to be an accountant.”

 “I know, but please stop to regret everything!” I told myself.

I had read many articles connected with professions for fresh graduate of English literature students before I chose to study in English Department. My parents had also given many advices to me. They said that studying in state university was better than studying in private university. They also insisted that for a woman, becoming a teacher was better than worked in a bank. I would have much free time to handle my family. Hearing those advices, finally I chose to take this English Literature program and to leave the accountancy program.

Rain in the Night of December 2010

I had passed six months to study in UNPAD, Jatinangor. It was not a long time, but I had already missed my home, my family. Now, the month was December. It meant that I would meet January soon. In January I would have a long holiday, it was about a month. Honestly, I couldn’t wait for it anymore.

However, it was still December. Today was the first Sunday on December. I would have free days for a week then I would have my final exam. Those free days actually made to give chances for students to study before they faced the final exam. However, most of students didn’t use it to study. They used it to do other activities, such as hanging out with friends and going home. At least, it happened on me. Even, I felt too lazy to glance at pile of books on the table. I preferred to watch some movies than to study.

The day was already dark at that day. Rain fell down. I felt cold. The weather in Jatinangor changed too fast. It could be very hot in the daytime but it could be cold in the night. The weather could be very cold in the rainy day. Like this night, Jatinangor was very cold.  I used to plan to watch Secret Garden at that night. It was a new Korean drama. I was curious about this movie because a lot of my friends said that it was a good Korean drama. Basically, it was a story about a poor girl that was loved by a rich man. The theme of the story was very usual, but many of my friends said that it was one of a touching Korean dramas. Thus, I thought that I should watch it.

However, I decided not to watch it at that night. This rainy night made me lazy to leave my bed, my blanket. I felt comfortable staying at my bed and did nothing. I closed my eyes but I didn’t want to sleep. It was still 08.00 0’clock. It was too early to take a sleep.

When I closed my eyes, I remembered an assignment from my lecturer. I thought it was very difficult because I didn’t know what I should observe from a three-page-text to make a seven-page-essay. Besides I didn’t know how to make a good essay, I also felt confuse to find the problem in that short story.

I chose to make an essay from Bernard Malamud’s short story, My Son the Murderer. Actually, I didn’t know what wrong with this short story was. I only knew that this story was about a young man, named Harry. He became very quiet and didn’t socialize anymore since he graduated from college the previous summer. His father, that worried him, was constantly watching on him. However Harry felt disturbed with this action. I only could understand those things but I couldn’t find the proper problem of this short story that I could put in my essay.

Certainly, I also consulted my essay with my lecturer. At the first consultation, I had brought him a five-page-essay. Unfortunately, it was totally wrong and I had to write from the beginning. Then, I applied opinions given by my lecturer in my essay. However in the second consultation he said that he couldn’t give a good score for this kind of essay. I was quite shocked with what he said and decided that it was my last consultation for this essay.

Actually, it was too fast to give up but I realized with my ability to criticize a text now, I couldn’t understand what my lecturer really wanted for this essay. Honestly, for my first semester, this subject and also the lecturer had already informed me that being a student in English Literature program was not as easy as people thought. We studied not only English but other lessons that didn’t have any formula like mathematics. It sometimes could be more difficult from studying mathematics.

Suddenly, I felt that the light was off. Although I closed my eyes, I still could feel that my room turned dark. I opened my eyes. My room was very dark. I heard that the rain outside my room was getting heavier. The situation made me felt sleepy. I closed my eyes again and now I wanted to sleep. I hoped could pass this December and soon met January.

January 2011, This Was the Holiday

This morning was such one of my great mornings. I woke up in my bed room and saw my little sister beside me. I breathe the air, felt my soft blanket. This was my room, my home. I always liked morning in my home especially the smell of kitchen in the morning. It was because I always could find food in the morning in my home.

I just arrived in Palembang last night. It was my first holiday when I studied in UNPAD, Jatinangor. Living in Jatinangor, actually, was not too bad but going home was really a blast for me. I liked waking up in the morning in my home, in my bedroom. I also missed my sister’s babble in the morning.

My little sister always got up earlier than anybody else. She was very on time. She had got ready to go to school at 06.15 o’clock. Although we all knew that her school as not far as she said, she still wanted to go to school at 06.15 o’clock. I always thought that coming earlier was such an honor for her. She wanted to come earlier than anybody else. I never knew why she liked to go to school early. I, myself, was often late to go to school. I sometimes felt disturbed because she was too fussy about this.

Actually I also had two brothers and one of them was in the same school with my little sister. He was the opposite of my sister. He was often almost late to go to school. They went to school with my father. Sometimes, my father felt stress with their contrast.

In the first year when they went to school together, my brother was always scolded by my sister because he was always late. Fortunately, now he was not. My father and my mother had allowed him to go to school by motorcycle. It was because the school was near from our house and my brother promised not to come home late if he rode motorcycle to go to school.

Home was always a bit quite after their going. It was only my mother and I that stayed in the home. As usual, we did the house works in the morning. We didn’t have any maid because my mother said that it was too hard to find a trusted one. My mother washed clothes and I swept the floor. We helped each other. My brothers and my sister, actually, also helped my mother to do house works. Although, they were still young, they understood with this condition

Finishing all of those works we could take a rest for a while before cooked for lunch. We watched television and talked to each other while we were taking a rest.

Those activities became my routines for a month. Actually, I didn’t often go out. I only went if my friends invited me to go. I liked to go to karaoke place with them. It was my favorite place to spend my free times. Although, I didn’t have a nice voice, I still liked karaoke. It could refresh my mind. I thought I could pull out my negative energy when I sang. I went out not only with my friends but also with my family. On weekend, we went out together. Actually, we didn’t go to a far place. We only went to shop or to eat. However, it was still fun and I liked it very much.

These activities were called holiday for me. Spending a lot of my time with family and going to karaoke place were simple activities but it was very fun. Actually, I also wanted to go tourism places, such as Bangka and Belitung but we hadn’t had a chance. Actually I didn’t feel disappointed because of that. Home was always a nice place for going holiday.

February 2011: Rika and Aci

Jatinangor seemed to be more quite than the last time I was there before the holiday.  Maybe, there were still a few college students that came back. There were three more days before we had to start activities in college. Truly, I felt rather sad leaving Palembang. Thus, I decided to go to my friend’s boarding house.

 “Assalammualaikum, Rika!” I knocked the door. “Rika!” I shouted again.

“Yes Bon, wait a minute,” she answered.

“Hey come on in,” she smiled as usual, a bright smile.

She was a chubby girl with a very bright smile. She had curly hair. She always wore a ponytail hairstyle even in her room. Although she always wore that style, she never looked boring because she was very funny. You would be filled up with happiness when you were near her. You would laugh more often when you talked with her. She had a very good sense of humor.

Rika was one of my best friends. Same with me, she also came from Palembang. However not like me, she spoke Palembang language fluently because she grew up in Palembang. I liked to ask her to teach me some Palembang words. However, she liked to laugh when I spoke Palembang language.

“It’s not wrong, if I doubt you when you first said that you came from Palembang,” she laughed.

“Yeah, you know I only spent three years for my childhood time and one year for going school in Palembang, I never really grew up there.” I tried to give a reasonable reason.

“You are right, but remember, it’s not free, you need to pay me for teaching you Palembang language,” she laughed again.

“Oh, please!” I laughed.

Actually, I loved to visit Rika’s boarding house in free day. We did nothing important. We only spent the day with talking about many trivia things. We could spend too much time when we went lunch. One time, we went lunch at 02.00 o’clock and went back at 04.00 o’clock. However, I never felt bored.

We also liked to watch infotainment program then we gossiped about the celebrities. Infotainment was one of our favorite programs to be watched when we gathered. We loved to watch not only infotainment but also situation comedy (sitcom). Sitcom was very refreshing for us. Our most favorite sitcom was SKETSA. It was often very funny, although sometimes it was not. We were going to laugh the stupid things that actors did.

Actually, I was not the only one who often visited Rika’s boarding house. I had one more friend. She was Aci. Aci came from the same faculty with us. Although we came from the same faculty, we stayed in different classes. We first met in the first day of OSPEK. Now, we became friends.

“Aci also wants to come this afternoon, doesn’t she?” I asked.

“Yes. It’s been a long time since we gathered and gossiped together.”

“Yes, this long holiday has separated us.” I laughed.

“Rika!” someone shouted outside the door.

“Come on in,” Rika and I answered.

“Debon, long time no see. How’s your holiday? Is it good’’ Aci asked.

“Yes of course, I really enjoyed my time with my family. How about you? Where did you go on Holiday? Did you go to Yogyakarta?”

“Yes, I met my grandma there and I was very happy when I stayed there.”

“You have any souvenir for us, don’t you?” Rika asked.

“Yes, off course, I bring it for you guys.”

“Wow, thank you,” we took key chains from Aci’s hand.

I liked the shape of the key chains. It was like a miniature of shadow puppet.

 “By the way, what do you want to eat for this lunch Bon?” Rika asked.

“Anything.” I answered. “How about you, Aci?”

“Ngeumong can be a good choice,” she smiled.

That day, as usual, we spent the day with going lunch, gossiping, and watching television. Those small things were really great for us. They were very refreshing. I really loved meeting my great friends.

Old Message in May 2011

My phone was ringing, I answered the phone.

‘Yes Mom’

‘What are you really doing now? I have phoned you for two times, but there were no answers. Are you busy now?’

‘Oh, I am sorry Mom, I don’t know, because the phone was set in the silent mode. By the way Mom, I have to do something now. Is it okay if I phone you at 03.00 o’clock?’

‘Oh okay. Hmm…could you search the list of asmaul husna and send it via facebook message to your sister?’

‘Oh I will do it after I finish this one.’

‘Thank you Yuk, and don’t forget to eat your food. Assalammualaikum.”

‘Of course Mom, Waalaikummusalam.’ I hung up the phone.

This was the last day of May. I would face the final examination in June. I would end my second semester soon. Now I had some assignments to do before I faced the examination. Truly, those assignments made me rather stressful. I thought doing mathematics assignment was more enjoyable than doing this assignment.

“Should I try to take another SNMPTN test?” I mumbled

Actually, I had consulted about this idea to my parents but they suggested me to rethink about this idea. They said that my GPA in the first semester was already good enough. Besides that I had to study if I really wanted to take a SNMPTN test. However, I didn’t have enough time to really study. Those reasons became one of my considerations to stay in this department.

I saw the clock. It had been three hours since I started to do this essay. I felt tired.

“I should close this Google translate tab and this Microsoft word office.” I talked to myself.

I checked my facebook accounts. I remembered that my sister asked me to send asmaul husna list via facebook message. After I did it, I felt curious to reread the old messages. I was stupefied when I saw a message. A year had passed since I first read this message but I never replied it.

It was from him. He wasn’t my unforgettable first love but he was a man that could make me felt angry and afraid of losing him in the same time. I smiled when I reread his message. Actually he sent two messages. One of them was the lyric of Afgan’s song, Bukan Cinta Biasa. It’s actually sweet but rather funny.

“He couldn’t sing so he only sent me the lyric.” I mumbled.

Actually, we even hadn’t started any love story but we had spent some sweet moments together. He first said that he loved me when we had just graduated from Senior High School but I never answered it. I didn’t want to refuse him but I couldn’t be in a relationship with him. The reason was simple. I just didn’t want to get in a long distance relationship.

He was never angry to me, even he supported my decision. “Be careful there, don’t forget to pray, and don’t forget to achieve your dreams. I will always pray for youJ”. I read his words in the end of the message. He was right. I had to achieve my dreams and finish my study. I realized that I used to decide to study here and my parents were really happy when they knew about my decision.

“I would disappoint my family and my parents if I didn’t finish my study in UNPAD,” tears fell down my cheeks.

I closed my facebook account and stopped crying. I saw the clock. It was two o’clock. I remembered that I should eat my lunch.

“I hope that I can pass the second semester better and Jatinangor would be always nice to me for the next three years.”  I said it while eating.

Fira Basuki: "Ketika Cantik vs Ketika Jelek"

19 September 2012

Kemarin saya nonton Just Alvin, iseng saja sebenarnya, kalau topiknya lagi menarik ya saya nonton. Bukan tonton wajib juga. Kalau tidak salah topiknya Wanna Hold Your Hands Forever. Ada sosok perempuan yang menarik hati saya. Saya belum pernah melihat dia sebelumnya. Tapi karakternya terlihat begitu kuat. Fira Basuki namanya.

Besoknya saya browsing tentang dia dan tahu kalau dia itu adalah salah satu sastrawati Indonesia. Saya juga nemu multiply dia, sepertinya memang asli tulisan dia. Ada banyak tulisan mbak Fira yang menarik perhatian saya, namun satu tulisan ini benar-benar ngena banget di saya, judulnya Ketika Cantik vs Ketika Jelek. Benar sekali bahwa cantik hati itu lebih penting dari cantik rupa bagi kita pribadi terutama. Tapi orang lain toh akan lebih memerhatikan kita jika kita berwajah cantik. Tidak jarang kita diabaikan kalau kita "lagi jelek". Cantik yang saya maksudkan di sini cantik menarik yaa, tidak harus sempurna misalnya hidung mancung, tinggi, mata belok, ya cantik maksud saya enak dipandanglah, hehe.

Oh iya, saya memberi kutipan pada kata "lagi jelek" karena saya tahu selama perjalanan hidup ini tidak selamanya kita jelek. Ada kalanya kita cantik tapi di suatu masa kita akan malas berdandan dan agak mengabaikan diri.

Walaupun bukan lagi jamannya Judge The Book by Its Cover, jujurlah banyak orang masih lihat luarnya dulu kan! :)

Lensa Hidup :Punya Banyak Sisi Tergantung Cara Kau Memandangnya

Hidup adalah hal yang tak terduga. Layaknya sebuah hadiah kadang bisa membuatmu terkejut kadang biasa saja. Kadang dia membuatmu senang tapi suatu saat kau bisa tidak menyukainya.Bagaimanapun kado adalah kado, sesuatu yang diberikan untuk kita.Alangkah baiknya jika kita menghargai hadiah itu untuk menghargai si pemberinya. Seperti itu pula baiknya kita menghargai hidup ini untuk menghargai Sang Maha Pencipta.

Sabtu, 10 November 2012
Pagi itu, dengan malas aku beranjak dari tempat tidur, bersegera untuk memulai hari. Sabtu, biasanya adalah hari libur untuk ku. Seperti kebanyakan hari libur aku lebih senang memanfaatkannya untuk istirahat di kosan. Namun pagi itu aku sudah telanjur membayar untuk ikut Seminar Kepribadian dan Workshop Public Speaking di Fakultas ISIP UNPAD.

Sedikit menyesal membayangkan diriku melongo sendirian di workshop itu tanpa tahu harus mengajak ngobrol siapa, aku menghela nafas dan meyakinkan diri kalau setidaknya aku bisa melihat Tina Talisa di workshop itu. Adikku yang mengajakku ikut seminar ternyata tidak bisa hadir karena tanpa diduga proposal PKMnya diterima dan harus presentasi hari itu juga.

Untungnya aku sedikit beruntung, dia ,Desi anak Kesejahteraan Sosial, cukup ramah dan mau tersenyum mendengar celotehanku. Bahkan aku sangat lega karena ditemani shalat, karena ini adalah pengalaman pertamaku masuk gedung FISIP setelah kuliah cukup lama di UNPAD ,selama dua tahun. Tadinya aku berpikir akan sangat sulit bagiku yang mudah tersesat di tempat baru untuk menemukan mushala sendiri.

Desi yang berjalan di belakangku memanggil seseorang, temannya kukira. Agak terkejut, kulihat ia hanya mempunyai satu kaki dan satu tangan. Anak laki-laki itu terlihat berjalan melompat-lompat, sepenglihatanku dia tidak memakai tongkat. Aku yang bingung, takut memunculkan ekspresi terkejut yang berlebihan dari mukaku memilih untuk mengalihkan pandangan.

Desi menyapanya dengan ramah, terdengar renyah, tak dibuat-buat.Aku tak sempat mendengar mereka mengobrol apa, yang kutangkap hanya percakapan biasa namun terlihat sangat bersahabat. Kurasa aku tidak bisa seramah itu, pikirku. Maksudku tentu aku ingin tapi belum bisa melakukannya.

Sejenak aku terdiam memikirkan pertanyaanku beberapa waktu lalu. Ketika itu aku nonton Kick Andy tentang seorang anak perempuan yang kakinya harus diamputasi karena kanker. Dia sangat bersemangat dan ingin sekali kuliah. Saat itu hal pertama yang kupikirkan adalah betapa kasihannya dia, apa dia bisa kuliah dengan satu kaki di universitas umum. Bagaimana kalau dia harus kuliah di lantai 3 pasti akan sangat sulit. Aku sering sekali mendengar keluhan dari orang yang normal sekalipun betapa capeknya menaiki tangga. Tapi dia bisa, anak laki-laki itu sekarang kuliah di universitas yang sama denganku di UNPAD.

Belakangan aku bertanya pada Rio adikku tentang anak tersebut. Rio menjawabnya dengan semangat bahkan menambahkan dengan bangga memberitahuku kalau anak itu adalah salah satu siswa yang ikut seleksi KPM yang merupakan salah satu dari rangkaian acara tersebut.

Dengan penasaran aku bertanya "Gimana ya kalau dia harus turun naik tangga?"
"Kan ada temannya deb," jawab adikku.
Sungguh aku melupakan hal itu, aku tertegun. Aku berdoa semoga dia selalu dikelilingi orang baik yang akan selalu mau membantunya untuk turun naik tangga.
                                                                           ***

Mungkin aku belum bisa seratus persen mencontoh semangatnya belum bisa bersyukur akan kehidupan sebaik dia. Tapi pasti akan ku coba, setidaknya menjadi yang terbaik dari apa yang bisa aku lakukan.

Hidup Cuma Sekali

Assalammualaikum sahabat.

Bukan tulisan penting, dalam kesempatan ini saya hanya ingin mencurahkan rasa. Diam saat merasa kesal dengan tingkah seseorang, karena masalah sepele, karena ekspresi aneh orang ketika memandang dirimu, karena orang tertawa di depan mukamu, tanpa kau tahu mereka menertawakan apa, sering kali saya lakukan, mungkin kebanyakan dari kalian juga begitu. Intinya tidak mau cari masalah. Jarang sekali orang (kecuali orang-orang yang dalam pandangan saya merasa dirinya keren jika bereaksi terhadap hal sepele seperti itu, merasa punya kekuatan mungkin) mau terlihat marah-marah karena masalah sepele di depan umum, you know it will show who the real you are.

Banyak hal sepele yang mungkin mebuatmu tidak nyaman. Misalnya saja, perlakuan sepele teman saya yang membuat saya awalnya merasa mungkin dia berpikir saya bukan orang baik. Tapi itu hanya pikiran saya dan saya segera membuangnya jauh-jauh. Hanya bermula ketika dia yang duduk tepat di belakang saya bertanya kepada teman di samping kiri saya ,"Eh kamu punya minyak angin nggak?" setelah dijawab tidak dia bertanya lagi pada teman di sebelah kanan saya, "Punya minyak angin nggak?" dan ternyata dia juga tidak punya. Setelah itu ya dia hanya berpasrah tanpa mendapat minyak angin.Sudah terlihat poinnya? Mungkin belum, bagaimana jika dengan kejadian ini. Saya mengeluarkan beberapa fotokopian ujian. Di ruangan itu baru duduk 4 orang. Lalu dia (masih orang yang sama) datang, dan berkata "Aduh gimana (sebut saja namanya Minah) Minah belum belajar nih sama sekali." Singkatnya dia berniat untuk meminjam fotokopian bahan ujian pada tiga teman saya di kelas itu, dan bertanya pada mereka siapa yang punya fotokopian itu. Anehnya dia sama sekali tidak bertanya pada saya yang jelas-jelas sedang memegang fotokopian yang dia mau.

Sebagai informasi, dia tidak pernah membenci saya, setidaknya tidak pernah menunjukkannya di depan saya. Anyway, yah memang saya hanya mahasiswa biasa yang tidak pernah frontal mengungkapkan sesuatu yang saya tidak suka.Sekali lagi hal yang dia lakukan tadi hanya hal sepele, namun tidak luput dari pengamatan saya. Hal itu cukup membuat saya merasa buruk, namun yang pertama saya lakukan ialah berfikir seberapa pentingkah dan seberapa banyakkah kontribusi dia dalam hidup saya. Jawabannya Nol. Yang berarti ada atu tidak ada dia, benci atau tidak benci dia pada saya, suka atau tidak suka dia pada saya, pengaruhnya sama dengan tidak ada.

Kadang saya sering introspeksi diri sendiri. Memang saya terlalu kaku, jarang berbasa-basi, mungkin beberapa orang menganggap saya sombong. Ingin sekali mengubah diri menjadi pribadi yang lebih supel. Tapi semakin saya mencoba semakin saya terlihat kaku, terlihat berpura-pura.

Saya renungkan lagi, setidaknya saya bukan orang jahat. Saya juga baik dengan teman saya, cenderung menyapa duluan jika bertemu, berkata halus dan sopan, peduli dengan sesama, masih banyak hal lain yang baik dalam diri saya.

Memutuskan untuk sedikit mengabaikan (bukan berarti sama sekali tidak peduli) dengan yang orang pikir tentang kamu, bisa jadi salah satu solusi yang baik untuk membuat hidup jadi lebih bahagia.

Hidup cuma sekali dan saya ingin bahagia, begitu juga dengan anda kan?

Corat-Coret

My Short Story

To Mother

I saw a smile from a woman, the sincere smile from a woman that loved me very much. Then, I cried and hugged her. I apologized to her. She asked me to stop crying. She promised me not to go anywhere. She promised me to be there when I need her.  She asked me to be calm and she held my hand for a while. Then two women who wore white clothes pushed my bed. They would take me to a room. My mother hugged me once more before two other women that wore green clothes and green head caps, like shower cap, pushed my bed into a room. It was a white cold room.  I can saw the light of the lamp over my head. The women asked me to be calm and two men came. One of them injected me. I started feeling sleepy. I slept.

***

I was in front of my house. I saw me, myself, a girl with a bright smile. She got ready to go. I could see that she brought two briefcases.  “Is it a dream?” “Yes of course, it is a dream.” “I was in the cold room before and now I can see myself a year ago.” I answer my own question. I saw myself in 2011.

 I was getting ready to go to Bandung. I was a seventeen-year-old girl when I went to Bandung. I was an ordinary girl who came from Yogyakarta. My mother named me Annisa. It was a short name that meant a woman. My friend always called me Nisa. I don’t have any brothers or sisters. I only lived with my mother. I was very happy because I could leave Yogyakarta. No, I meant, I was very happy because I could leave my mother. Actually, I wanted to live separately from my mother because our relationship isn’t too good. Now, one of my dreams came true.

My mother, with her frozen expression, said, “take care honey, don’t forget to call me my sweet Nisa.” “Okay, I will call you. There was a paused. If you are not always busy I will call you mom.” My mother felt guilty. I could saw it from her eyes. Her frozen brown eyes changed to sad eyes. “Don’t cry Mom,” I said to my mother. “Don’t be too sad, we met rarely, don’t we? So, there is no problem if I leave you alone in Yogyakarta.” “Yes, you are right sweetie, take care don’t forget to call me,” she tried to smile. However I know that she was very sad. She let me go and saw my car disappear.

***

I was under the mangoes tree, in front of my house, saw the black car went away from my house. The seventeen-year-old Nisa was in that car. I ran to catch that car. Surprisingly, when I thought about the black car, I moved into that car. I sat beside the girl with a bright smile who wore a yellow t-shirt. I could see her texting some messages but he couldn’t see me.

Now, the environment changed. I wasn’t in the car anymore. I was in the yard seeing a girl that I know very much looked sad. She is me. She stared at a girl that went away from her. The girl looked very happy. I remembered at that time Kisi, my best friend in the college, left me alone when I wanted to tell her a story. She became busier since she had a boyfriend. I felt lonely.

Kisi was my best friend. She wasn’t only a friend for me but also a mother. At the first, I was very happy because I thought Kisi could replace a figure of a mother. However, I knew that I couldn’t always depend on Kisi. She had her own life. I knew that a friend couldn’t replace a family. Now, I missed my lovely mother so bad.

I was surprised hearing someone cried near me. “Who is crying?” asked I to myself. I realized that now I wasn’t in the yard anymore. “Where is it?” “Oh I know this room!” I answer my own question. This was my room in Bandung. I could see the blue wall, the color that I loved very much. I saw a photograph on my table. In that photograph Kisi and I laughed. We looked very happy. Suddenly, I heard the sound of the crying become louder and I looked for the sound.

I saw a seventeen-year-old Nisa in the corner of the room. See sat holding her knees. She stared at the paper near the photograph. It was the laboratory check up result that showed that she suffered brain tumor. At that time, she decided to call her mother and told her about this condition. I remembered, my mother and I could only cry at that time.  My mother decided to go to Bandung on the next day.

Now, I wasn’t in my room in Bandung anymore. The environment had changed. I saw myself held my mom’s hands. I cried and apologized to her. It was the time before I was operated. In front of the operation room I could see my mother. “I’m sorry mom, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I repeated those words as many as I could. Suddenly, everything became dark, I could hear a woman called my name, “Nisa ,Nisa, Nisa.”

I wake up from my long dream and saw the face of my mother. I was very happy and hugged her.  I’m so sorry mom, I’m…. My mother stopped my words. “Don’t tell about those words anymore sweetie,” she smiled. My mother told me that the operation was successful. I showed that there was a strange expression on my mother’s face. However, I didn’t want to ask about that. I said that I want to take a rest and asked my mother to eat. Suddenly the doctor came to check my condition.

***

Nisa had already changed and she showed that she loved me very much. Seven days, after the operation she asked me to slept near her and she told me about her dream when she was being operated. She said, “I am very lucky to have you as a mother, Mom.” I cried, “me too Nisa, I’m very lucky to have you….” “Don’t cry Mom, I want to sleep,” she interrupted. She slept. I could see the smile on her face. When I held Nisa’s hands, I was shocked. She was very cold. I cried and call her name, “Nisa! Wake up sweetie, Wake up!" 

Samsung Utopia S5610

Samsung Murah dengan Kamera 5mp

Samsung Utopia ini sudah mengusung jaringan 3G dengan kecepatan 7,2 Mbps, kamera 5 mp dengan smile detection, auto focus dan flash LED. Selain itu hp ini juga sudah dilengkapi dengan kamus bahasa inggris. Hp ini cocok untuk anak usia sekolah apalagi yang suka foto. Dengan harga Rp 999.999,00 per maret 2012 anda sudah dapat menikmati hasil kamera yang bagus. Kekurangan hp ini adalah tampilan menu yang standard bahkan mungkin tidak cukup menarik. 

Untuk informasi selengkapnya silahkan klik link di bawah ini :

http://www.hparena.com/samsung-s5610-hp-kamera-5-mp-hsdpa-harga-satu-jutaan.html

Warna-Warni Corby 2

Corby 2

Samsung Corby 2 merupakan hp samsung yang ditujukan untuk pasaran anak muda. Terdiri dari 3 pilihan warna pink, putih, dan kuning hp ini cukup menarik hati, termasuk adik perempuan saya yang tertarik dengan si pink ini. Ponsel keluaran Maret 2011 ini dibandrol dengan harga kurang lebih Rp 800.000,00 per maret 2012. Kamera ponsel ini hanya berkekuatan 2 mp tapi telah dilengkapi oleh smile shutter. Selain itu anda akan merasa cukup puas dengan teknologi layar sentuhnya karena sudah dilengkapi dengan capacitive touchscreen. Saya rasa dengan harga yang terjangkau ponsel ini cukup mumpuni apalagi untuk anak sekolahan.  

Corby Pink yang diincer adek saya :

Pilihan warna Corby

Coba klik link ini untuk mengetahui spesifikasi lengkapnya :

http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_s3850_corby_ii-3765.php

Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini

Si Mungil Dengan Spec Tak Biasa

Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini adalah ponsel android ter-mini di dunia. Walaupun mini tapi spesifikasi yang dimiliki oleh si mungil ini tidak bisa diragukan. Sudah dua mnggu terakhir ini saya mencari info tentang ponsel ini. Dengan harga sekitar Rp 1.775.000,00 per maret 2012 ponsel ini menyuguhkan banyak fitur menarik. Saya sungguh jatuh hati dengan ponsel mungil ini, terlebih yang berwarna putih. Walaupun layarnya cuma 3 inchi saya cukup puas dengan fitur yang disediakan. Lagi pula saya memang lebih suka dengan ponsel mungil dari pada yang berlayar besar. Semoga saya jodoh dengan si mungil ini,hehe.

Untuk spesifikasi Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini dapat dilihat di:
http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_ericsson_xperia_mini-3947.php#

Draft 2 Writing

The first sentences of my writing

I saw a smile from a woman, the sincere smile from a woman that loved me very much. Then, I cried and hugged her. I apologized to her. She asked me to stop crying. She promised me not to go anywhere. She asked me to be calm and she held my hand for a while.

The Elaboration of the choice of my from of writing, summary, and work consulted

I want to write a short story about family. I choose to write a short story because I have made an essay about family. Thus I want to write about family in another writing form. The short story will be about a seventeen-year-old girl named Annisa. She is only an ordinary girl. She is not too smart but she always tries harder to achieve her dream. However, Annisa doesn’t have a good relationship with her mother. She always thinks that her mother is not good enough. She thinks that her mother is too busy with her work and doesn’t care with her. One day, she can achieve one of her dream. She can go to school in the different town and can leave separately from her mother. She is very happy. Unfortunately she finds that living separately from her mother as not easy as she has imagined.  Now, she knows that friends can’t always help her. We need our parents. The conflict comes when she knows that she suffers tumor. At that time, she feels that nobody cares about her condition. She even doesn’t tell anyone that she suffers tumor. She feels lonely, until one day her mother knows about Annisa’s sickness. Her mother always gives motivation to her. In that time, Annisa knows that her mother has loved her very much. She feels guilty to her mother and she apologizes to her mother.  The story will start in the hospital, when Annisa will be operated. When she is being operated, she dreams. I will tell the story through Annisa’s dream. She will dream about her experiences living separately from her mother. The story will end when her operation finishes. My mother has inspired me to write this story.  She is the best woman that always listens to my story.  Thus I love her very much. Ibu, the Trans TV program that shows about sacrifices of mothers also has inspired me. This program shows that every mother love their children. The book from A.Fuadi , Negeri 5 Menara, has helped me to make the story about someone who lives separately from family.

Word Count : 355

Work Consulted

1.      My mother

2.      Ibu, The Trans TV program

3.      Negeri 5 Menara by A. Fuadi

4.      My essay, Even A Call is Very Meaningful for Me, it tells about my experiences living separately from my family

5.      Soulmate by Deepak Cophra, I get a good quote from this novel, I think that it is appropriate for my short story

Future References

1.      “Love isn’t something you feel. It is something you become.” Soulmate By Deepak Chopra

2.      “Trust should be like feeling of a one year old baby when you throw him in the air , he laughs, because he knows you will catch him ; that is trust.” ("Confidence, Trust & Hope," 2007) ; from my essay.

Question

1.      Can I tell the story from the dream of Annisa?

2.      What do you think about my story?

3.      What should I do to make this story more interesting?

4.      Has the using of “I” in this story been correct? Or Should I change it to “she”?

Terjemahan Molly Part 2

 

Molly bertanya-tanya kemana tuannya pergi. Setelah lama menunggu ia menggaruk-garuk pintu dapur dengan cakarnya berharap dibukakan pintu. Tetapi tampaknya tidak ada orang di dalam rumah. Molly lalu memeriksa kalau-kalau ada jendela yang terbuka sehingga ia bisa masuk, tapi ternyata semua jendela terkunci rapat.

Molly merasa kesepian. Tetapi ia berharap tuannya akan pulang nanti sore.

Tetapi setelah lama menunggu tuannya tidak juga pulang. Molly mulai merasa kelaparan. Ia juga kedinginan karena harus tidur di luar. Walaupun bersembunyi di dalam semak-semak, ia tetap basah karena kehujanan. Molly mulai sakit.

Dua hari telah berlalu. Karena kelaparan Molly memakan tulang kering yang ditemukannya dan juga daun-daun kering yang ada di sekitar rumah. Penyakitnya juga semakin parah. Ia bersin-bersin dan lemas.

Pada hari keempat Molly sudah menjadi sangat kurus. Ia bahkan hampir tidak bisa berjalan karena sangat lemah. Ia lalu teringat kepada Billy, anak yang tinggal di rumah sebelah. Siapa tahu Billy bisa memberinya makanan.

Ia lalu berjalan pelan menuju rumah Billy. Saat melihat Molly, Billy hampir tidak mengenalinya lagi. “Astaga!, kaukah itu Molly?” seru Billy terkejut. Ia berlutut dan membelai Molly. “Oh kasihan, kau sangat kurus, pasti kau kelaparan. Apakah tidak ada orang yang diberi tugas untuk memberimu makan?”

Billy segera mengambilkan ikan dan susu untuk Molly. “Oh kasihan, “ kata Ibu Billy. Untuk sementara biar saja ia tidur di dapur kita.”

Molly sangat senang. Setelah makan dengan lahap, ia lalu tidur dengan nyenyak di dapur ibu Billy. Billy bahkan memberinya tempat tidur dari kotak kayu. Billy juga membersihkan badannya yang kotor karena beberapa hari tidur di semak-semak. Malamnya, Molly benar-benar terkejut. Ternyata di dapur ibu Billy banyak sekali tikusnya. Maka ia pun menangkap tikus-tikus itu, karena ia ingin membalas kebaikan Billy dan ibunya. Keesokan harinya ibu Billy terkejut karena melihat banyak sekali yang telah ditangkap oleh Molly. Ibu Billy sangat senang. Molly pun menjadi semakin disayang di keluarga itu. Sebulan kemudian, keluarga Jones pulang dari berlibur. Dengan berat hati Billy mengantar Molly pulang ke rumah keluarga Jones. Tapi, setiap diantar pulang, Molly selalu melarikan diri dan kembali ke rumah Billy. Molly tahu bahwa Billy dan ibunya sangat menyayanginya, tidak seperti keluarga Jones yang tega menelantarkannya. Karena keluarga Jones tidak terlalu memperdulikan Molly akhirnya mereka pun memberikan kucing itu kepada Billy. Akhirnya, Molly pun tinggal bersama Billy dan ibunya. Ia sangat bahagia karena selalu disayang dan dibelai. Ibu Billy pun senang karena dapurnya menjadi bebas dari gangguan tikus.

Molly wondered where the Jones went. After waiting for a long time, Molly pawed the kitchen door, hoped someone would open the door for her.  However, it seemed none of the Jones was in the home. Then, Molly looked around, perhaps, there would be the windows that were opened; so, she could get into the house but unfortunately all of the windows were locked.

Molly felt lonely. However, she hoped her owner would return to the home in the afternoon.

However, after waiting for a long time, the Jones hadn’t gone home. Molly started feeling hungry. She also felt cold because she had to sleep in the outside of the house. Although she hid in the bushes, she was still wet because of the rain. Molly started feel sick.

Two days had passed. She ate the bones that were found and the dried leaves around the house. Her sickness also became more serious. She sneezed and felt weak.

On the fourth day, Molly already became very bony. Even, she almost couldn’t walk because she was very weak.  Then, she remembered Billy, the boy that lived beside the Jones’ house. She hoped Billy could give her some food.

Then, she walked slowly to Billy’s house. When Billy looked Molly, he almost didn’t recognize her. “Oh God, are you Molly?” said Billy shocked. He knelt and rubbed Molly. “Oh, what a pity, you look very thin, you must be very hungry. Aren’t there any people who are asked to feed you?”

Billy, immediately, took some fish and milk for Molly. “What a pity,” said Billy’s Mom. “Let her sleep in our kitchen for a moment.”

Molly was very glad. After eating greedily, she slept soundly in the kitchen. Even, Billy gave her a wooden box for her bed. Billy also cleaned Molly’s body that was dirty because of sleeping in the bushes for the last few days. At night, Molly was very surprised. Evidently, there were a lot of mice in the Billy’s mom’s kitchen. Therefore, she caught the mice because she wanted to say thank to Billy and her mom for their kindness. In the next day, Billy’s mom was surprised seeing there were a lot of mice that were caught by Molly. Billy’s mom was very glad. Molly was loved more than before. A month later, the Jones returned from vacation. With a heavy heart, Billy took Molly to the Jones’ home. However, every Billy returned Molly to the Jones house, Molly always run away and went to the Billy’s house. Molly knew that Billy and his mom loved Molly very much, not like the Jones, they always ignored Molly. The Jones gave Molly to Billy because they didn’t very care with her. Finally, Molly lived with Billy and his mom. She feel very pleased because Billy and her mom always loved her and they always rubbed her. Billy’s mom was also delighted because there were no more mice in her kitchen.

An Essay About Family

A Call from Them Can Be Very Meaningful For Me

I want to talk about living separately from family. This is a condition that makes you know more about how important the family is. I want to talk about this because living separately from family is one of my experiences. Based on my experience, it’s not an easy life. I have missed many events with my family. Some people can live together with their family. They can meet their family   every day. They have much time to talk and to share with their family. They can do many things with family, such as having breakfast together, talking in the living room together, and spending weekend together. For people who live separately from their family, doing usual things like that can become very special moments, because they do those things rarely. For me, living apart from family is a precious experience. I have learned many things, especially about what family means for me.

Actually, people describe family in many ways. They have their own meaning about family. Everybody in the world has family. They have different stories about their family. What does the FAMILY mean for you? For me, family is everything. My father, my mother, my brothers and my little sister are precious people in my life. We always keep and love each other. I have two brothers and one sister. They are younger than me. Distance of our ages isn’t too far, between two until four years. In my opinion, having two brothers and one sister is like getting an injection when we are sick. Actually it is painful but it also cures me. To be honest, they were naughty and often disturb me when I was doing a work. Sometimes, having a sister and two brothers is one of my tired moments. When I was a child they always cried if they quarreled with each other. After that, my mother would get angry with me because I’m the oldest. She said that I should stop the dispute.  Exactly I thought it was not fair, but I couldn’t talk anything to help myself, because my mother would be angrier than before if I talked too much.

However, having two brothers and one sister is not always a tired moment. I also have friends to play monopoly and ular tangga, ride bicycle, and swim together in my spare time. In other words I never feel lonely, because they always accompany me to play together, share something, and help me whether I need some help. I also liked to help them doing homework. It was very fun moment, because I could know more about their ability in the school and I could know how far they have understood about the lessons. When my little sister is in kindergarten, I liked to accompany her to school and she was very happy. She told her friends that she has an older sister and she was very proud of that. However, when she was getting older she changed. She asked me not to escort her to the school when she was in the second grade of elementary school. She didn’t want to be seen like a little girl. She wanted to go to school by herself. Similar situation happened in my brother. When I was in kindergarten, he always wanted to follow me to go to the school. He also wanted to play with me and my friends. However when he was getting older, he asked me to go, when I wanted to see them playing with his friends. He was embarrassed if he played with me. He said whether their friends would call him “little boy” if I accompanied him when he was playing with his friends.

Knowing some small facts about them is an interesting thing. I can study about their characteristics. I can know more about them. In my opinion knowing the characteristic about the members of our family is important. It can help us to communicate with them easily. We know exactly what should we do to entertain them, if they are getting in some problems. We will know exactly what they need. We not only can know the exact way to entertain them, we also can reduce the dispute between us. The most important thing is we can more respect each other. I think respecting, loving, and keeping each other is one of meaning of the family.

According to an entitled essay Family in Wikipedia the word family means a group of people affiliated by consanguinity, affinity, or co-residence. In most societies it is the principal institution for the socialization of children.("Family," 2011). The member of family in small group are father, mother, and children and in larger group we know there are other members, such as grandfather, grandmother, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, and cousin. Family is a first place for children to get their education. The members of family will teach them many things, such as talking, smiling, eating, and walking. Mother often meets the children, so she can teach the children more often than a father and other members of family. The children will imitate the people behavior around him, so it is important for the mother not to talk in a harsh manner, even angry with the children. It can give some bad effects to them because they will imitate it.

However the larger families usually don’t live in the same place, they live separately. Grandmother and grandfather who live separately from their children and grandchildren are rare to play with their grandchildren. Thus, children are rare to imitate the behavior from their grandparents. Even, some of them need time to be familiar with their grandparents. It is happened to me , my two brothers and my sister. My family lived separately from our big family. We lived in the different city. We meet my grandmother, my grandfather, my aunt, my uncle, and my cousin rarely. Since I was two years old, we had moved in some cities. We had to move because my father had to work in another city, so we followed him.

My brothers, my sister, and I met our big family rarely. We only met them once in two years, when Lebaran was coming. That opportunity was very special for us. My brothers, my sister, and I as children used that time effectively.  We spent our time to play with our cousins and we talked to many people to know them more. At first I felt difficult to memorize all of their names but in the next day I had already memorized some of their names and I had already memorized all of their names in the end of the week. I felt happy because of gathering with my big family. I liked hearing stories from my cousins. We talked about our experiences in our school. They also taught me some words in Palembang Language. My family and I are from Palembang, but I couldn’t speak in Palembang Language fluently because we did not stay there. They laughed at me when I was trying to speak those words. They said that my accent is funny. However I never got angry with them even I laughed with them. It also happened with our parents. They used that time to gather with their relatives. In Lebaran, my mother, her relatives, and my grandmother cooked together. They cooked a lot of Lebaran food from Indonesia, such as opor ayam, sambal ati, and ketupat. In my grandparents village the most complete traditional market only open once a week. However, one day before Lebaran it opens very early, at 04.00 a.m. Thus, the men included my father, helped their wives to buy many things, such as chicken, meat, and egg in that market. If they came to the market earlier, they would get fresher meat. Gathering in Lebaran is one of the most valuable moments that I have. However my mother thought sometimes it was also necessary to spend our Lebaran in the city that we were staying because people there were also our family.

In Indonesia, most people who live separately from their big family usually go to the hometown if there are long holidays, such as Lebaran holidays and Natal holidays. Going to the hometown in Lebaran and Natal holidays has become Indonesian people tradition. It is usually known as mudik.  It becomes a big moment that is used by them to meet and know the other families. It’s a very special moment that they can meet their parents and their relatives. Their children can play with their cousins. They also can talk much thing and share about their experiences. Talking much thing can make they know more about each other. It’s a very relaxing moment. They don’t need to think about works and worry about their busy activities for a while. They just need to enjoy that moment.

In fact gathering with family is one of a very happy moment for people. They get this happiness from family’s love. Based on Wikipedia word happiness means a mental state of well-being characterized by positive emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy.”("Happiness," 2011). Gathering with family is one of positive activities. There are many positive activities that we can do, while we are gathering with our family. “Happiness is a pleasant emotion made out of contentment, love, joy, inner peace and fulfillment.” ("Definition Of Happiness. What Happiness Is And Isn't," 2011). My happiness will increase when I’m near with my mother and my father. I will stop crying when my mother hugs me because I feel peaceful, comfortable, and safe near her. According to Wikipedia happiness is characteristic of a good life, that is, a life in which a person fulfills human nature in an excellent way.("Happiness," 2011). Having a good family is one of indicator of having a good life. Gathering with family fullfils our life. It is one of positive activities. We can forget for a moment the stress routines, such as meeting in the office, projects from our boss, and homework from our teacher when we are gathering with our family. Sometimes talking our problem with our family is a good way to decrease our stress.

I have talked about the bigger family that lives separately. How about a small family which lives separately? Are they happy? However the larger family is not only the family which lives separately. Sometimes the small family also lives separately. They don’t live in the same place. They sometimes have to live separately because of some reasons. Some of them have to live separately because of education reason. Some people choose to go to the far place for studying because they want to study in a good university. Thus, they can’t meet their family for a long time. Others must live separately because of work reason that requires them to live separately with their family. A man who has obligation for looking some money to cost the necessities of their family sometimes gets in this situation. The father must live separately with his wife and his children because he has to work in another city. He works for his family. He must cost the necessities of the family. His children need money to buy a new toy. They need money to get good education.  They also need money to get enough nutrition. Costing necessity of the family, such as food, clothes, and house is father’s obligation. Actually a wife can work to help his husband but it’s not her main obligation. Supporting her husband with become a good wife for him and become a good mother for their children will help the father.

A man that leaves his family and stays in the far place from his family always worries about his family condition. He will worry about the health from his children and his wife. He worries if his wife can’t keep their children without him. He knows that his wife needs his support to lighten up her life. He is always afraid if one day there is a bad situation happens in his family. He knows that his wife needs her husband to help her. The wife will feel safer if her husband is near her. She will become stronger to face many problems. Another worry from the husband is if his children do naughty things. They can make his mother feel angry and sad. This is not a good condition, because it can make the mother feels stress. That problem will disturb the peacefulness in the home. The father has many worries about their family problems. Those problems are thought by the father and it makes his life becomes not too comfortable.

Same with the husband, wife also worries about her husband. She will feel sad if her husband is not in a good condition. She knows that her husband is alone there. He needs his wife’s help, when he is sick. The husband doesn’t have family that can treat him when he is sick. There isn’t family around him that can support him to make him feel better. He also doesn’t have a wife to get some healthy food and to get extra attention. The wife doesn’t like to imagine that his husband has to live alone without family in the far place. She worries about everything. She worries about the food that her husband eats every day, about the problem that must be faced by the husband, and she worries if her husband feels lonely. He will not get focus in his work if he has many problems and there isn’t family near him that will give support to him. She knows that her husband needs someone to make him feel happy when he faces the problem in the office. Wife worries many things about her husband.

Living separately is not easy. We will not only worry each other, we also must believe in each other. Keep believing is important to keep harmony of a family. According to oxford dictionary keep can mean promise. It means your promise to do what you have promised. It also can mean staying in a particular condition.  Belief is a strong feeling that something or somebody exists or is true. It also means confidence that something or somebody is good or right. (Hornby, 2000).

Thus, keep believing can mean staying and promising something or somebody to believe it. We promise to believe that something or somebody is true. Everything that happens in our life has the reason. Therefore, it’s important for us to keep believing in each other, especially our family. When we live apart, we need extra trust to keep believing. ”Trust should be like feeling of a one year old baby when you throw him in the air , he laughs, because he knows you will catch him ; that is trust.” ("Confidence, Trust & Hope," 2007). Husband and wife have to trust each other to keep the harmony of their life. Having a good harmony in the life can make living separately condition better. We will feel more comfortable and more peaceful. Both of keep believing and trusting are positive mental. Happiness will come in our life if we have positive mental. It is the reason why it is important to keep believing.

As a person who lives separately from family I know the difficulties from living separately. When I lived with my mother, my two little brothers, and my little sister without my father, my mother looks feel lonely. At first, when my father has to move to Kalimantan because of the work reason, everything became more difficult without him. However in the next month we had adapted to live without him. We started to live happily although my father has lived separately from us. My mother always said that we must give good news to our father when he phoned us. My father will feel happy if he knows that his family is in a good condition. Therefore my brother and my sister don’t want to make some dispute very often. We not only reduce the dispute between us, we also study hard so we can get the good score in the school. It can make my parents, especially my father happy. Hearing the bad news would make he felt sad and apprehensive about condition of the family. Thus, we always try to give much good news to our father. However, the condition will be different if one of us is sick. We have to give the real news to my father, so he can know our real condition. He will do something to help us.

Now, I live separately from my family. I have to live separately because of education reason. I’m studying in a Faculty of Letters in English Department, Universitas Padjadjaran. Therefore, since July 2010, I have been living in Jatinangor. I only have the chance to go home in the long holidays like Lebaran holidays and holidays in the end of semester. Thus, now, I’m in the same condition with my father. We are living separately from my mother, my little brothers, and my little sisters. Actually I often feel lonely. I need them to help me in facing some problems. I need their support. “Constantly keep yourself headed in the right direction for you. It may not be easy at times but in those times of struggle you will find a stronger sense of who you are.” ("Keep Believing in Yourself," 2007). Although they aren’t near me, I know they always pray for me. I don’t want to see them feel sad because of seeing me having many problems. Keep struggling is a good way to face a difficult situation. Thus, I always try to become a strong person to pass my problems.

In conclusion, living separately from family is not easy. “There may be days when you get up in the morning and things aren't the way you had hoped they would be.” ("Keep Believing in Yourself," 2007). I never hoped to live separately from family but this condition gives me many lessons. Actually, I feel hard living without my parents especially my mother. I don’t have much time to talk with her. I have missed many events that I usually do with her. Seeing her names when there is a call on my mobile phone screen is a wonderful thing. I will feel very happy when I see it. Sometimes I don’t want to hang up the phone although I don’t have other things to talk with my mother. I do that because I miss her. Living separately is a valuable experience. I more respect my family. I know more about the meaning of loving each other. I also know more about how important the family is. Now, I more appreciate everything that my family has given to me. Even, a call from them can be very meaningful for me.

Bibliographies :

Confidence, Trust & Hope [Electronic. (2007). Version], from http://motivationalsite.blogspot.com/search/label/CONFIDENCE

Definition Of Happiness. What Happiness Is And Isn't [Electronic. (2011). Version], from http://happinessaddicted.blogspot.com/2011/04/definition-of-happiness-what-happiness.html

Family [Electronic. (2011). Version], from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family

Happiness [Electronic. (2011). Version], from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happiness

Hornby, A. S. (2000). Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary: Oxford University Press C Maker.

Keep Believing in Yourself [Electronic. (2007). Version], from http://motivationalsite.blogspot.com/2007/11/keep-believing-in-yourself.html