"A Letter to My Imaginary Child"

Dear, my only son.
Mahabone.

You might curiously speculate about who I am, where I am, and what I am. One thing you need to know is, I've been born before the millennium era begins. And let me ensure you that every mankind has their history, I am, a history, too. I write this letter in the middle of a stormy weather, I even use my hand to write it for you. Along with the symphony that I've been heard since the earliest time of my life. Yes, it was Debussy's symphony.

Now, I am far looking into the window, seeing that the weather is unrest, it's a big and murky clouds out there. Then, a moment bygone. Hence, the ticking sounds of my semi modern clock is the only sound that I've heard at this very moment, while I am sitting in silence.

I wish, I can walk with you. Walk along beneath the sunset in my hometown, Bandung Paris van Java, Bandung, the paris of java. Doing simple things with you, like dressing in our proper gentleman's suit jacket while catching ladies somewhere beyond.

***

You know, I am far from perfect. I've been beaten, sunken, drowned into the hell of life.

I am born almost dead, I had blood transfusion twice, and I had myself facing down the deepest hell of the earth, and it's called anger, it's the divinity of a villain power used by my father to forge me. I am born curious, I always joint myself in many explorations, I am the wanderer of life, and I am the wanderer of my childhood times. Searching and seeking for true life meanings and qualities over thousand things within. 

Son, I am being blind too often, even I can see the brightest light in life shining through my sight. Why? Because I am a human, then a question appears behind my reality. Why blind when I can see the original result? Why?

I know that logical calculation never made human blindfolded, there must be a measured result in every multiplied object. Emotion, is. Indeed, emotion makes human blind, emotion is huge, dangerous, wild and often uncontrollable, and emotion is a complexity in life.

There will be a king surrounded by the human emotion. That is ego, the king of emotion, the greatest bodies of a dominating roleplay in human nature.

Realizing emotion is far greater than realizing logic, emotion is a flowing market, it changes their nurtured appearance, and it drives the fate of something, just in time.

***

Motion is seamless, similar to invisibility, it can't be seen, can't be touched, can't be equal to anything of some point in life. Life... is an unstable condition, son. It's like a circle of gear. You don't need to stay high, you don't need to believe your self-centered opinion that comes from the top of your mind. You don't need it.

Now why don't you go down.... hear the darkness, and spot the greatest weaknesses on yourself. Well, life is an aviation, it flew over the time, sometimes high, sometimes low. Just go with the flow.

***

A long time ago, I learned something crucial. Something called life-contemplation. Which in Bahasa Indonesia is called, "Renungan hidup."

Betul, nak, saya adalah seseorang itu, seseorang yang dibentak, dipukul, dimarahi dan dikurung itu untuk masa depan yang lebih baik. Untuk menjadi pedang yang tajam, logam perlu ditempa, dalam panas, dalam dingin, dan dalam pukulan - pukulan dahsyat seorang pandai besi yang menempa nya.

Semakin ahli dan presisi keahlian seorang pandai besi tersebut, semakin bagus lah pedang yang dibuatnya. Dalam hidup, kita perlu memulai dari angka kosong, untuk dapat mencapai angka sepuluh, bahkan hingga angka seratus. Dalam hidup, kita perlu menjadi sederhana, nak, dan memiliki prioritas.

Dalam hidup, kita perlu selalu berusaha dan yakin terhadap sesuatu yang ingin kita gapai, jangan menyerah, jangan menyerah sebelum suara perang dikumandangkan. Karena jika kita langsung menyerah, kita sama saja dengan menyia nyiakan sesuatu yang pada awalnya sudah kita rencanakan agar berhasil, namun kita putuskan sendiri di tengah jalan.

Maka, jangan menyerah, meski kita tahu diri kita bodoh, terkadang angkuh, keras kepala, dan segala macam sifat buruk yang masih terdapat di dalam diri kita. Janganlah menyerah, karena kehidupan tidak melihat apakah kamu kaya raya, miskin, tampan apalagi cantik.

Kehidupan itu bukanlah sebuah penyakit, kehidupan itu adalah sebuah karunia yang tercipta begitu saja. Saya pernah dihina, dicaci maki, sebagai seorang anak lelaki, saya pernah tahu bagaimana rasanya berdiri atas perjuangan diri sendiri.

***

To life, is to try to becomes a lion, an eagle, a snake, and even a chameleon. Life is about versatility, kid. Life is simple, so keep it simple. If you want to become a hotshot, I'll lend my hand to you, I'm going to teach you my old-life lesson, the lesson that has been proven to make yourself not a better person, but a hotshot in role.

You will be quiet, reserved and be meaningful in approaching the life proximity. But there within, is no tolerance for withholding a dangerous failure, the first time you made a failure, you read, the second time you read about your failure, you understand, the third time, you will maintenance yourself.

It is to get a desirable expectation. As long as I keep you, as long as I stay on your side, I will make it firm; make it bitter and not sweet, not after you find your own long journey, kid.

You will plant your own tree of life, you'll be sick of what you see, and there, you'll behold, where the storm is coming, you will tremble! You will be stained, gullible and polluted by the political lullabies; you'll see the dark herdsman walking through the life, the huntsman, and it's a series of life atrocities.

Then you'll understand the vital point of the life mesmerizing process. You'll see your trees is growing bigger, it will prop yourself from the hot-sunny weather, and it will protect you from undesired circumstances, it will teach you sooo many lessons in life, kid. --- I'll pledge you a commitment; I'll build you with my bare hand, with my own brain anddd abilities.

Some day later, I believe, I still have this dream, not an American dream. But it was a dream of living alive, living a valuable life. Get married in my golden age, have and raise a child, a boy, and he will prevail among every man in the universe.

Ah, I forget to mention your name. Your name is Niccor Jahbulon Rangkuti, a name that echoes is as precious as mine.

"Two little mice fell in a bucket of cream. The first mouse quickly gave up and drowned. The second mouse, wouldn't quit. He struggled so hard that eventually he churned that cream into butter and crawled out. Gentlemen, as of this moment, I am that second mouse."

Frank William Abagnale, Sr.

Gomer, Oz, Dabar
Regards, Nau Jahbulon Rangkuti