One Person In History

Writer's note: It was written during the same period that most of my English essays poster here were written. Nothing much to say, I guess.

If you could meet one person in history, who would be that person and why?

Meeting one person in history is not something I have really imagined before. However, if I could meet one person in history, he would be Alfred Bernhard Nobel. I know that people know few things from this great man. I will tell you what I know about him later. I will also explain what makes me want to choose him.

Firstly, I will give you some information about Alfred Nobel. He saw that the people who wanted to explode something, such as making a tunnel through a mountain, had to be very careful since they could not control the explosion. After that, he invented dynamites that were very useful, even until now. However, he regretted his invention because dynamites were also used in wars. He had never got married until the end of his life. He wrote a will that stated that all of his money should be given to people who could do something to make this world better. We know this as Nobel Prize. This story is perhaps not purely right since it has been a long time since I read it. However, the story is more or less like this.

The story is one of the reasons why I choose him while I can choose Einstein, Thomas Edison, or Elvis Presley. Everything in this world can have any negative effects. However, he realised at last that negative effect of his invention could kill many innocent people. Finally, Nobel Prize is absolutely great. In my opinion, Nobel Prize remains unbeatable up until now since there is not another prize to do something useful for the world in many aspects. I think that getting a Nobel Prize can make me prouder that getting two Oscars. Because of this, Alfred Nobel is also truly great.

If I could meet Alfred Nobel, I would have some conversations with him. I want to encourage him. He should not be so depressed because it would not make anything better. Many other inventions in the world also have negative effects. In addition, I also want to praise him for the brilliant idea of Nobel Prize. The most important thing is that if I met him, I would talk to him as a friend, not as an annoying person.

To sum up, I would choose Alfred Nobel if I could met one person in history because he was a great person as I have explained. Perhaps I do not know many things about him. Nevertheless, for me, he was not just a person in history. He was a great person. However, I did not really want to meet anyone in history. It will be rather creepy, won’t it?

Apa Hebatnya Kartini

Author's note: I wrote this for the school magazine about 2.5 years ago. I just skimmed through it and now I don't think it was good. It was greatly inspired by an article in Kompas with the same title, but with a question mark. Well, I hope reading this would be a bit enlightening as it introduced a view different from the general opinion.

Kirana menutup buku yang dari tadi ia baca dan mengambil selembar folio bergaris dari lemari. Ia mengambil sebatang pensil dan mulai menulis di atas meja makan yang berfungsi rangkap sebagai meja belajar itu. Pagi itu Bu Nina memberikan tugas untuk membuat artikel yang berisi opini mereka tentang R.A. Kartini karena Hari Kartini sudah tinggal dua minggu lagi. Beliau mengatakan pula bahwa karya terbaik akan dimuat dalam majalah sekolah.

Kirana merasa bahwa ini adalah kesempatan emas baginya untuk menyalurkan minat menulisnya sekaligus menumpahkan unek-uneknya dulu tentang pahlawan emansipasi wanita itu. Tangannya mulai menari di atas kertas.

Apa Hebatnya Kartini

Siapa yang tidak tahu R.A. Kartini? Pastinya banyak, tetapi sebagai orang berpendidikan sudah seharusnya kita tahu siapa pahlawan emansipasi wanita itu. Setiap tahun kita selalu memperingati tanggal 21 April sebagai peringatan hari kelahiran beliau. Kumpulan surat-suratnya juga telah diterbitkan berjudul “Habis Gelap Terbitlah Terang”.

Kirana menatap sekilas buku tersebut terselip di rak bukunya. Sudah mulai menguning dan agak rusak karena sering ia pelajari. Lalu tangannya mulai berayun lagi.

Mungkin ada yang mengira saya – sebagai seorang perempuan – sangat lancang memberikan judul “Apa Hebatnya Kartini”. Padahal mungkin tanpa beliau saya tidak bisa bersekolah, begitu? Anda juga boleh menambahkan padahal hari ulang tahun saya jatuh tepat pada tanggal 21 April. Tetapi saya tidak main-main. Saya punya bukti, bukti dari Kartini sendiri.
Bagi yang telah membaca surat-surat beliau pada...

Kirana beranjak dari kursinya kemudian mengambil buku “Habis Gelap Terbitlah Terang” dari rak bukunya. Membuka buku tersebut dan memastikan ia tidak salah menuliskan nama sahabat Kartini itu. Walaupun ia tidak yakin bahwa ia salah menuliskan nama yang kerap muncul dalam buku yang telah ia habiskan sejak SD itu.

...Stella Zeehandelaar, pastinya mengerti apa yang akan saya jelaskan. Seperti yang kita tahu, Kartini adalah buah hati dari seorang bupati Jepara dan selirnya. Paling tidak, kehidupan Kartini tidaklah berkekurangan. Memang, beliau tidak dapat melanjutkan sekolah tinggi-tinggi dan harus dipingit sampai menikah. Namun di luar sana banyak gadis lain yang tidak mampu melanjutkan sekolah sekalipun diperbolehkan karena masalah ekonomi. Dipingit? Sekarang saja banyak gadis yang disuruh orang tuanya membantu bekerja. Apalagi zaman Kartini, enak betul kalau boleh cuma di rumah saja, tanpa bekerja.

Ditambah lagi, Kartini masih boleh membaca buku-buku dan majalah dari tanah Eropa oleh Sang Ayah. Boleh pula berkirim-kirim surat sehingga sekarang bisa kita baca sekarang ini. Padahal gadis-gadis sebayanya pada masa itu mungkin sedang bersusah payah membantu orang tuanya mengais rezeki.

Aku akan mencoba membandingkan dengan seorang perempuan yang paling aku kenal, diriku dan ibuku sendiri. Ayahku meninggalkan aku dan Ibu sebatang kara dan menikah dengan seorang wanita kaya. Saat itu umurku masih berusia empat tahun. Ibuku bersusah payah mencari jalan keluar kesana kemari untuk melanjutkan hidup kami. Akhirnya dengan pinjaman dari keluarga, ibu membuka warung sederhana yang sampai sekarang masih menjadi tonggak kehidupan kami.

Belum lama kemudian, kami harus dihadapkan pada krisis moneter yang benar-benar mencoba menghabisi nyawa kami. Aku sempat hampir putus sekolah. Aku pun yang tadinya membantu Ibu di warung harus berjualan koran setiap pagi, membantu di kantin sekolah saat istirahat, dan sepulang sekolah harus menjadi pedagang asongan. Sekarang ini, karena biaya hidup semakin tinggi, aku juga mengajar les pada adik-adik kelas atau siswa SD pada sore atau malam hari.

Aku mencoba bersabar walaupun hasil keringatku seharian terkadang harus diambil preman saat berjalan kaki pulang ke rumah. Aku juga kasihan dengan Ibu yang sekarang juga bekerja tambahan untuk menerima jahitan yang sering membuatnya kurang tidur.

Kirana nyaris menitikkan air mata menuliskan semua ini. Tetapi ia sadar bahwa sebelum topik artikel ini beralih dari Kartini menjadi dirinya sendiri, ia harus mulai membenahi arah artikel ini.

Tetapi, bila suatu saat nanti saya memperjuangkan hak-hak Kartini, lebih jauh daripada Kartini, akankah Hari Kartini diganti menjadi Hari Kirana? Pastinya tidak, bukan? Dan mungkin alasannya hanya karena Kartini adalah pelopor. Tidak ada perempuan yang meminta ia dilahirkan di tahun berapa. Kalau saya lahir lebih dahulu daripada Kartini, mungkin sejarah akan berkata lain.

Kita juga harus realistis bahwa dengan atau tanpa Kartini, cepat atau lambat pasti akan ada seseorang yang memperjuangkan emansipasi wanita. Sulit kuterima masyarakat begitu mengagungkan sesuatu yang dikatakan “perjuangan” dari seorang perempuan berkecukupan, berayahkan bupati, bersuamikan bupati. Parahnya lagi, suaminya justru jelas-jelas melakukan poligami. Jelas-jelas pula bahwa ia mengingkari ikrarnya pada dirinya sendiri, sangat kontras. Menurut Stella, Kartini mengorbankan cita-cita besarnya karena ayahnya. Kelihatannya, Kartini terlalu mencintai ayahnya, yang sebenarnya juga pelaku poligami. Justru jarang R.A. Kartini mengungkit-ungkit ibundanya dibandingkan Sang Ayah dalam surat-suratnya.

Kirana sadar bahwa pada akhirnya artikel ini harus mulai menjurus pada akhirnya. Berpanjang lebar tanpa arah hanya akan membuat pembaca bosan. Apalagi ia sadar, bahwa terus menerus mengkritik Kartini yang sudah pasti pendukungnya lebih banyak hanya dapat membuat pembaca naik pitam.

Tetapi tidak dapat kupungkiri bahwa memang mungkin aku tidak dapat bersekolah sekarang ini tanpa Kartini. Mungkin perjuangan emansipasi generasi-generasi penerus Kartini tidak akan seperti sekarang ini bila bukan karena Kartini. Aku sadar pula bahwa beliau tidak pernah meminta dilahirkan dalam keluarga bangsawan. Dan mungkin bila Kartini bukan bangsawan, beliau belum tentu dapat memperjuangkan emansipasi wanita sebaik itu.

Bagi yang cukup teliti dan memperhatikan, aku tidak meletakkan tanda tanya di akhir judul artikel ini. Mengapa? Karena sekarang bagiku “Apa Hebatnya Kartini” adalah sebuah jawaban. Hari Kartini diperingati setiap tahun karena apa hebatnya Kartini. Emansipasi wanita di Indonesia sangat sering dikaitkan dengan R.A. Kartini karena apa hebatnya Kartini. Masih banyak lagi segudang pertanyaan protes di hatiku yang terjawab dengan tiga kata sederhana itu. Yang pasti, tanpa Kartini, tidak mungkin aku dapat termotivasi untuk berjuang sejauh ini.

Kirana merasa cukup dan sekarang tinggal menambahkan beberapa saran sebagai media baginya untuk membagi semangat emansipasi sebagai penutup yang manis.

Kita semua, terutama kaum perempuan, sudah seharusnya memperjuangkan emansipasi wanita. Emansipasi wanita pastinya membutuhkan perhatian karena hingga detik ini perempuan sering mengalami perlakuan tidak baik dari berbagai pihak dalam berbagai bidang.

Tuhan menciptakan perempuan sederajat dengan laki-laki. Maka, tak ada seorang pun jua yang berhak membeda-bedakan dan merugikan perempuan hanya karena perempuan adalah perempuan. Tak ada orang yang bisa memilih jenis kelaminnya sebelum keluar dari rahim ibunya.

Perjuangan emansipasi itu boleh saja termotivasi dari perjuangan Kartini, tetapi jangan pernah mau jadi penerus Kartini. Perjuangkan emansipasi wanita atas kemauan dari dalam diri sendiri sebagai seorang perempuan. Dengan atau tanpa Kartini, setiap perempuan berkewajiban untuk memperjuangkan hak kaumnya apabila dalam keadaan terancam. Tekankan bahwa saya bukanlah Kartini dan Kartini bukanlah saya. Jangan mau cuma jadi penerus kalau bisa jadi pelopor.

Kirana Anandhita
(IX-4/28)

Kirana tersenyum puas dengan hasil karyanya itu. Rasanya ia tidak sabar untuk mengetik tulisannya dengan mesin ketik tua peninggalan ibunya dan mengumpulkannya kepada Bu Nina. Isi hatinya selama ini telah ia tuangkan di atas kertas itu. Tiba-tiba ibunya datang menghampiri Kirana.

“Belum tidur juga kamu, Nak?”
“Ini, Bu. Baru selesai ngerjain tugas,” jawab Kirana.
Ibunya duduk di sebelah Kirana dan membaca sepintas artikel itu.
“Tentang Kartini lagi, ya? Baguslah kalau kamu tidak sebegitunya membenci Kartini lagi.”
Kirana tersenyum. “Ya, itu kan karena nasehat Ibu juga. Ibu tidur, deh. Mumpung Ibu lagi nggak ada jahitan. Jarang Ibu bisa istirahat. Aku mau ngetik ini dulu sebentar.”
“Tapi kamu cepetan tidur, ya. Jangan lama-lama. Nanti kalau kamu sakit Ibu juga yang tambah repot.”
“Iya, Bu.”

Ibunya pun masuk ke kamar dan tidur. Sementara Kirana mengetik artikel itu dengan penuh semangat untuk secepatnya dikumpulkan. Bagi Kirana, malam itu akan terasa menjadi malam yang amat panjang.

The Motto Which Motivates Me The Most

Writer's note: It's quite a personal non-fiction. Well, it was written about almost one year ago. It's definitely not well-written. My life had changed a lot, too, which makes these things here not so relevant anymore. But this would be a fragment of my emotion at one point in my life.

Actually, I do not purely believe in mottos. I had not heard a motto that was able to be used in any condition. However, I was forced to choose a motto. Let’s say I have some mottos in my life. I nonetheless choose the motto that has been proved to be true in many conditions. It probably was simple and common for many people. Nevertheless, I will try to make you understand how important it is to me in my life. The motto that motivates me the most in my whole life: “I have friends.”

Firstly, to make you understand what I will explain later, I will explain one thing first. I have a rule that “Someone is your friend does not mean you are his friend.” I mean someone is your friend if you consider him as your friend. However, you are not his friend unless he considers you as his friends. Thus, in this page, if I say “A is B’s friend” it means that “A” considers “B” as his friend no matter “B” considers “A” as his friend or not. Do not forget this rule.

Actually, I will never ever be able to really tell you how much they have affected me. My story cannot be summed up in two or three pages; it cannot be packaged into something simple that you could understand easily.

I will begin to explain the reasons now. Honestly, I am not a good person. In addition, I had thought about living alone when I was in 3rd grade of primary school and I had thought about suicide when I was in 5th grade. You may think that I have a “hard life”. I apologize that I cannot tell more about it.

If at this point you think that I told these to my best friends and they had motivated me to live this life fully until now, I have to apologize once more time. I have never told them up until now. Furthermore, it is the first time I tell this to someone else. I do not want to beg for someone’s sorry or concern.

My friends kept me alive with their own way that they have never realised. What makes me alive is the time I have passed with them. When I graduated from primary school, almost all of my friends (remember the rule) went to the different school with me. Luckily, I met even more wonderful friends.

Even I was always sad when we went home early from school and when a long holiday came. However, I did not show it. I just kept that feeling in my heart. I knew that those were able to make them happy so that I should feel happy for them. Furthermore, even they were in my dream on a one-week holiday. I realise that everyone should love God, himself, and his family first before their friends. I nonetheless cannot help loving my friends. They are truly an important part in my life. They always have a special space in my heart. By the way, another rule of mine is that God, my family, and I are my friends. Actually, everyone is my friend (remember the rule) as long as I feel he is.

Now it is time for me to give some experiences. When I was in 8th grade, I felt so desperate for days because I did not think I was my friends’ friend. I felt like losing a purpose in life. I had no better choice than telling that to some friends. Since this life is not a soap opera, do not think that they said, “We are your friends, Fred.” That would be disgusting and dishonest. Luckily, telling them helped me to realise that it was not important. That desperation born a statement that, “If I want someone to consider me as his friend, I have nothing to do but try my best to show that I was deserved to be his friend.”

I will tell you another experience. When I was in 9th grade, I went into the biggest desperation in my life for months. I thought that I was slowly losing all my friends. I was certainly in despair. I began to regret every single thing I did wrong in life, every single chance I had missed, every single sacrifice I had refused to do, and many else. I had tried many things. I nonetheless had not managed to say that was wrong. At last, I thought it was “God’s plan” so that I could leave all of them without hurt. I believe that they are still my friends. They did not change. It was me who changed.

To sum up, thinking that “I have friends” motivated me a lot. No matter what you think about the motto, I love that simple motto. Although perhaps it cannot be considered as a real motto, I choose it. It had helped me in many events through my whole pre-teen and teenage life. It proved that the motto is true. It is my best motto. No matter what you think about this, I have friends and that is all that matters.

You have to have a dream or you go nowhere

Writer's note: Written in the beginning of 2008 for my attempt for Commonwealth Essay Competition. It's not so good and not so focused but it's not so terrible I guess. Enjoy.

“You have to have a dream or you go nowhere”. (Kofi Annan)

Everyone has a dream, or even more. Some may argue that they do not. However, in fact, they just have not known or decided what their dreams are. Dreams are significant in people’s life. Unfortunately, people are often discouraged to dream by the pressure of being pragmatic as they grow. Nothing can limit everyone’s dream. People are able to make their dreams come true if they try to do their best to achieve the dreams. Many successful people had to work extremely hard and failed for a myriad of times prior to chasing their dreams.

One of them is Thomas Alva Edison. His inventions including phonograph and a durable light bulb have been fundamentally influential in this world even until now. He was dropped out from school after 3 months due to his wandering mind. Her mother decided to home schooled him by herself. He had various occupations and accidents before he succeeded. He became tremendously famous that his name is used for the name of places, awards, and other items currently. However, uphill struggles had been done to realise his dreams. His experiments had made him fired and even deaf. His sacrifices definitely did not end in vain. He lighted up the world.

Another successful person is Sir Edmund Hillary, the first climber that has reached the peak of Mount Everest. Initially, he was a shy small boy who spent his time reading. He found his interest in climbing at the age of 16. In 1952, his team failed because of the lack of route. He joined another team in 1953 that finally managed to conquer the gigantic monster. He suddenly earned international acclaims. Nevertheless, it was not the end. He stepped his feet on 10 other peaks in the Himalayas.

Besides his triumph over the highest mountain on earth, there are more of his deeds to be appreciated. He devoted his life to build schools and hospitals in remote areas of the Himalayas. He once told a newspaper, “They don’t give a damn for anybody else who may be in distress and it doesn’t impress me at all that they leave someone lying under the rock to die.” He was referring to the climbers that only desire to achieve the top egoistically with unwillingness to concern the others along their journey. Hence, one should still be caring and considerate while pursuing his or her dreams.

The next triumphant dreamer is Kit Chan, a popular Singaporean singer. She is also an actress, a budding entrepreneur, and a writer. Her true passion was singing since she was only five. Although she had though of becoming a teacher in her teenage years, she finally decided to follow her dream to be a singer. She persevered until she succeeded. Her albums are also popular in Taiwan. She has received a number of awards as a singer.

However, Kit also pursued another childhood dream – humanitarian worker. Kit is a National Youth Ambassador for Singapore’s National Youth Council. In 2002, she received an Award for Excellence in Youth Work. “We brought some kids {in their} late teens to Cambodia to do charity work, build playgrounds and toilets. It was good for me to see how young people need to be reminded of what a good life they have.” She actually enjoys doing these humanitarian works and care about youths despite she is a famous entertainer.

These people had struggled hard before they made their dreams come true. Nonetheless, the realisation of the dreams is not the last part. They improve and do more to the society. People should learn to dream like a child, without the barrier namely ‘Be realistic’. Dream can provide a spirit to live life to the fullest. Therefore, everyone has to have dreams and pursue them. Otherwise, you go nowhere.