JP\/8\/STORY<\/p>\n
THE HOMECOMING<\/p>\n
By Claudine Frederik<\/p>\n
Ingkan stole a glance at her traveling companion who had been
\ntalking for the past three hours since the plane took off from
\nSoekarno Hatta Airport in the early morning hours. Thank God, her
\nfriend had dozed off. She was grateful for the break in the
\nconversation as she had tried to follow the stories of her friend
\nwith great difficulty.<\/p>\n
Her mind was preoccupied with other things since she had
\ndecided to embark on this trip to visit the graves of her
\nparents. It had been too long since her last visit to North
\nSulawesi. It had been more than a decade ago.<\/p>\n
How time flies, she thought. It felt like only yesterday when
\nshe had transported the remains of her mother to her last resting
\nplace. She wondered if she would find her parents' grave sites
\nwell cared for.<\/p>\n
"We will be landing soon, ma'am," the stewardess' voice broke
\nher train of thoughts. The view outside the plane's window
\noffered nothing much but a deck of white clouds; heavy and
\nimpermeable, blocking the view of the land below. The plane
\nshuddered slightly as it gradually descended.<\/p>\n
She swallowed rapidly as her ears started to fill with air; it
\nalways happened during landing.<\/p>\n
"What time is it?"<\/p>\n
"Nearly eleven local time," she answered her friend who woke
\nup from a fitful slumber. Right up front a red light warned
\npassengers to fasten seat belts.<\/p>\n
The voice of the captain crackled through the mike as he de
\nscribed the plane's approach to Mapanget Airport. The plane, at
\nan altitude of 5,000 meters was flying above a clear blue sea
\nwith the island Menado Tua making an impressive background.<\/p>\n
"We will be landing in about five minutes at Mapanget
\nAirport," the voice of the captain announced. True to his word,
\nthe wheels of the plane hit the ground in less than five minutes.
\nThe Boeing 737 trundled at a leisurely pace toward the building
\nat the far end of the landing strip.<\/p>\n
Ingkan could hardly suppress a feeling of impatience. All of
\na sudden, she could not wait to get home. She loosened the
\nseat belt and got up from her seat and reached for her overnight
\nbag on the rack above.<\/p>\n
"Where will you stay?," asked Diana. "You can stay at my
\nplace," she offered. " Thanks, but I have my own place," Ingkan
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
"Are you sure you can cope with the inconvenience of staying
\nin an old place?" Diana looked at her with unbelieving eyes.<\/p>\n
"Yes, I'm sure," she said, fully understanding what Diana
\nmeant. Her parents' place held great value to her, in spite of
\nthe inconveniences of staying in a traditional wooden house.<\/p>\n
The passengers shuffled in long lines toward the exit where
\ntwo stewardesses waited to bid them goodbye.<\/p>\n
Nobody was at the airport to welcome her. Of course not, after
\nall she had not sent her aunt word of her arrival.<\/p>\n
"Well, let me give you a lift then," Diana insisted.<\/p>\n
After a drive of about 20 minutes, Diana's van grounded to a
\nhalt in front of her parents' place. The front windows were
\ntightly closed, also the bedroom shutters, giving a cheerless
\nimpression to passersby. Nobody was busy in the rickety back
\nquarters either.<\/p>\n
"There is no one there. How can you stay here? Come with me,
\nyou can visit your aunt later," Diana pleaded.<\/p>\n
"No, I'll wait," Ingkan decided. "She might have gone to the
\nmarket."<\/p>\n
" Whatever you say. If you change your mind, you know how to
\nreach me." Diana waved a hand in the air and told her driver to
\nmove on.<\/p>\n
Ingkan stepped hesitantly toward the short flight of wooden
\nsteps that led to the front door of the house that held so many
\nmemories of her youth.<\/p>\n
She carefully stepped over a hole in one of the steps before
\nshe reached the front door. She peered through the glass panel
\ninside but the house seemed empty. In the back quarters she
\nnoticed on arrival a single wooden chair in front of the kitchen.<\/p>\n
Ingkan went down the steps and headed straight for the kitchen
\nat the back. There was no smell of smoke in the dark place, nor
\ncould she detect fresh ash on the traditional bench which still
\nheld the remnants of a stove made of stone.<\/p>\n
As she looked at the antiquated cooking facilities, giggles
\nand the happy voices of her sisters in their teens, trying to
\nmake cinnamon sugar filled pancakes, rang in her ears.<\/p>\n
How time flies, she thought again. A stream of sunlight fell
\non the old cooking bench. Ingkan looked up and noted a gap in the
\ncorrugated roof over the kitchen.<\/p>\n
"Ingkan, is that you?" Ingkan turned around and saw a frail
\nfigure, her back hunched over, in the doorway. She had not heard
\nher aunt returning from the market. Her aunt had aged
\nconsiderably since she had seen her last. "Aunt Wulan," Ingkan
\nwalked swiftly to the old lady and embraced her.<\/p>\n
"How are you doing? I'm sorry I did not let you know that I
\nwas coming."<\/p>\n
"I am glad you came as I need to talk to you. But, it can wait
\ntill later. You will be staying I'm sure." The old lady took her
\nby the hand and together they went into the house.<\/p>\n
Inside she found everything as her mother had left it before
\nshe joined her children in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
There was the easy chair in which she used to sit and there
\nwere the pictures on the wall. Her parents wedding picture and
\nher own. She did not think that her aunt would display her
\nwedding picture. After all, her wedding did not work out for her,
\nit ended in an ugly divorce with both parties pointing the finger
\nat one another.<\/p>\n
Ingkan looked away from her wedding picture on the wall with a
\npained expression on her face.<\/p>\n
"Have you had lunch? I cook my food myself. It is very hard to
\nfind a good and trustworthy servant nowadays. There are
\npractically no more servants here in Manado. And besides, I could
\nnot afford one, even if there was one. But, tell me, what brings
\nyou here?"<\/p>\n
"It came to me all at once that I have not been to Mom and
\nDad's graves for ages. I want to visit their graves."<\/p>\n
"That is good of you. You will be blessed if you keep the
\nmemory of your parents alive. Only, I don't know if their graves
\nhave been properly taken care of. If the grass is not cut
\nregularly, you might have a hard time looking for their graves. I
\nhave not visited them for quite some time myself. Nowadays, I
\nhave all sorts of aches and pains in my bones, especially in my
\nfeet and legs."<\/p>\n
"I'd like to pay my respects today. I am leaving the day after
\ntomorrow. How can I charter a van to go to the mountains?"<\/p>\n
"That's easy. You just have to catch one of those public
\nminivans. They will take you into town where you can charter one
\nof those vans. You just wait in front of the house until one of
\nthose minivans passes by. It is quite convenient for me, you
\nknow. I don't need to walk so far."<\/p>\n
"Do you want to come along with me, Aunt Wulan? You can tell
\nme what I need to know then."<\/p>\n
"Yes, I suppose I could. But, who will cook dinner for us if I
\ncome along. "<\/p>\n
"I don't want you to worry about dinner tonight. We'll catch
\nsomething on our way home. I want you to relax today."<\/p>\n
Ingkan's parents were laid to rest in the hilly grounds of
\nTondano, a lakeside town in the mountains. Both hailed from the
\nsame town, a rustic town which seemed to have escaped the touch
\nof today's developers. Many of the houses still date back to the
\ncolonial days with traditional wooden homes dominating the
\nlandscape.<\/p>\n
Ingkan inhaled the unpolluted air, expanding her lungs fully,
\nas they neared the lake town and cruised along a vast expanse of
\ngreen rice fields.<\/p>\n
A cold wind caressed her face which reminded her of the days
\nwhen she used to roam the paddy fields with long forgotten class
\nmates.<\/p>\n
"You better put on your blazer, Aunt Wulan. This is nippy
\nweather."<\/p>\n
"Yes. I'd better. I don't want to worsen those aches in my
\nbones. It is cold and damp out here, isn't it? How could your
\nmother and I have stood it in those days!"<\/p>\n
At the cemetery, they had to walk further inside before they
\ngot to the graves. Ingkan planned to say so many things to her
\nparents, but, when she finally stood before their graves, she
\ncould not find anything to say. All the words seemed to have
\nstuck in her throat. She could not even say a prayer.<\/p>\n
In the end, Aunt Wulan who had looked at her with hopeful
\neyes, said: "Let's pray in our hearts. Words are so superfluous
\nin such situations. God reads what is in our hearts."<\/p>\n
They did not stay long since the wind was blowing with a more
\nbiting force through the weathered tombstones in the cemetery.
\nAunt Wulan had begun to shiver in spite of the blazer she wore.<\/p>\n
" Bye Mom, bye Dad," Ingkan said silently. Where were those
\nwords that she had wanted to say? She shook her head, half angry
\nfor not being able to come up with a reason or answer.<\/p>\n
Aunt Wulan nudged her arm. "Let's go now. I'll freeze to death
\nhere."<\/p>\n
After that the driver of the chartered van introduced them to
\na small restaurant serving local food close to the town's market.
\nThe eatery offered a wide variety of freshwater fish, chicken and
\npork dishes. There was not much choice in veggies, except for
\nswamp spinach (kangkung), string beans and bean sprouts.<\/p>\n
"So what is it you wanted to tell me Auntie?" Ingkan took a
\nsip of her unsweetened tea and looked over at her aunt from her
\nplace. Aunt Wulan swallowed uneasily and looked on her plate. She
\nwiped her lips with a serviette.<\/p>\n
"Ah yes, I've wanted to write to you about it for quite some
\ntime. But, it was not easy. Now, that you are here, I am sure you
\nwill understand when I tell you that I have decided to enter an
\nold people's home. There is a good one here that is very
\nreasonable. And it is managed by friends of mine."<\/p>\n
"Why do you want to move away Aunt Wulan? Why would you
\nprefer to stay in one room instead of having a whole house to
\nyourself?"<\/p>\n
"That's it, Ingkan. I can't manage this home any longer. It is
\ntoo much and too large for me now. Since I have lost my agility,
\nI find the household work too burdensome for me. I told you
\nbefore, there should be someone who is able to clean the house
\nand take care of the garden. I am no longer fit to do that. You
\nhave to find yourself another caretaker for the house, Ingkan."<\/p>\n
Ingkan sat still as she tried to digest the news. This was
\ntotally unforeseen. Yes, it certainly would be a problem since
\nthere was no one at the moment she could leave the house to with
\na peaceful mind.<\/p>\n
On the other hand, Aunt Wulan was quite old, she deserves to
\nenjoy her last days without having the burden of doing housework.
\nShe smiled at her aunt and reached for the old lady's wrinkled
\nhand. "I fully understand Auntie. Don't worry."<\/p>\n
"What will you do about the house Ingkan? Are you going to
\nsell it?"<\/p>\n
"Selling the place is the last thing I want to do. I can see
\nthat I will have problems finding a trustworthy caretaker like
\nyou, Auntie. I have to make a decision soon."<\/p>\n
That night when Ingkan slept in her old room, she dreamt of
\nher father.<\/p>\n
They stood on opposite sides of a river. Her father waved and
\nsmiled at her, but said nothing. Bursting with gladness, Ingkan
\nran with open arms toward her father. But, before she could reach
\nhim, he seemed to evaporate into thin air.<\/p>\n
Aunt Wulan was already up when she woke up at six in the
\nmorning. The smell of freshly brewed coffee filled the cramped
\ndining room. The soft glimmer of a low wattage bulb cast a warm
\nlight over the table on which two steaming mugs of coffee were
\nready to drink.<\/p>\n
Ingkan told her aunt about the dream.<\/p>\n
"Your Dad had something to say to you," Aunt Wulan said
\nconvincingly.<\/p>\n
"He did not speak at all," Ingkan protested.<\/p>\n
"Nevertheless, he had something to say," her aunt insisted.<\/p>\n
"I have made a decision about the house, aunt."<\/p>\n
Aunt Wulan watched her closely with expectant eyes. "And what
\nhave you decided?"<\/p>\n
"I am not going to sell the house. I will repair the place and
\ngive it a good and friendly interior. I will take care of the
\nplace myself Aunt Wulan."<\/p>\n
Eyes shining, Aunt Wulan, smiling broadly, said jubilantly:<\/p>\n
"That is what your father meant to say to you, Ingkan."<\/p>\n
*****<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/jp8story-1447899208", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }