Ojek<\/p>\n
By Chairil Gibran Ramadhan<\/p>\n
No! My wife and two children must never know about this. I must
\nkeep it a secret from them, my family, my wife's family and my
\nneighbors. What will they say about me if they know that I -- who
\nfor six years made millions of rupiah each month, worked in an
\nair-conditioned room, ate good meals, bought nice shirts, shoes
\nand expensive perfume and provided my wife and children with
\ndelicious food and expensive clothes -- am now only an ojek
\ndriver.<\/p>\n
I don't mean to look down on the job. It is in fact a noble
\njob, much nobler than resorting to begging in the streets,
\nstealing or cheating. The point is I just have not been able to
\naccept the fact that I, who used to be waited on, now have it the
\nother way round.<\/p>\n
It would be different if, from the very beginning, I had
\nstarted working as a porter, an office boy or an ojek driver. I
\nwould, of course, have treated the profession with disdain but I
\nwould not have resented my current fate now.<\/p>\n
I come from a wealthy family and I when I got married I had a
\nlife as decent as my parents'. The problem is that now I have
\nplunged into a position which my wife, children, family, my
\nwife's family and neighbors might regard as drastic, totally
\nchanging my daily life: From a life of comfort to mere survival,
\na life fraught with struggles to make both ends meet.<\/p>\n
Every morning I start my motorbike, excuse myself and leave
\nthe house, advising my wife to be alert and mindful of burglars
\nwho might break into the house any time not only during the night
\nbut also in the daytime. I kiss my wife on the forehead then
\nRizky, my one-year-old son. His sister, Imas, has left for
\nkindergarten, taken by a neighbor's child.<\/p>\n
After I moved to this village to live in a house given by my
\nfather six years ago, I have passed the same street and greeted
\npeople by nodding my head, blowing the horn or responding to
\ntheir greetings.<\/p>\n
I have never told them about my job because I do not think it
\nnecessary to tell them. And besides what could they do if they
\nfound out that now I'm only an ojek driver? I'm sure there is
\nnot much they could do to relieve my burden.<\/p>\n
To give advice, extend sympathy and to tell me to be patient
\nin facing my ordeal are what they would be able to do at best. In
\nfact, I do not need their comforting words, because I know they
\nare financially no better off than I am.<\/p>\n
Basically speaking, they have lived a harder life much longer
\nthan I have. (I do not wish to look down upon or insult them).
\nBut deep at heart, I am proud of the way they live: Slow and
\neasy. Never have I seen a frown on their forehead and this is
\nprobably due to the fact that they are used to a hard life.<\/p>\n
Poverty has been part of their lives for ages, from one
\ngeneration to the next. Had they never experienced any hardship
\nbefore, I am sure they would have felt what I now feel.<\/p>\n
I have to thank my wife, my children, my family and my
\nneighbors for preventing me from ending my life in a foolish
\nmanner. They have gradually made me realize that this is all just
\na trial from God. They, particularly my neighbors, have given me
\na mirror with which I can see all of their experiences in life,
\nthat life is beautiful if you know how to cope with it.<\/p>\n
Without them, without a role model, without their happy faces,
\nI am certain that I would be lying in a tomb today. And perhaps
\nright after receiving the letter informing me that I was being
\nlaid off three months ago, that very morning, I would have jumped
\nto my death through the window of my office on the 16th floor.<\/p>\n
That morning, I thought that I had to be strong and prevented
\nmyself from feeling sorry for losing what I had enjoyed for
\nyears: A good job with a substantial salary.<\/p>\n
What makes me strong is that even my economically weak
\nneighbors, who have never enjoyed life, have never expressed
\nregret or complaints. It is they who have encouraged me to move
\non.<\/p>\n
And here I am now -- an ojek driver.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
I enter the back of the foodstall where I always have my
\nmeals, far from my house and away from my former office or the
\narea where people would recognize me. The food stall, sandwiched
\nbetween office buildings along the city's main road, stands near
\na street leading to a luxury housing complex.<\/p>\n
I take off my long-sleeved white shirt, black pants, my tie
\nand shoes. Then I put my helmet on the table. Afterwards I put on
\nmy sandals and a different helmet to cover my face because I
\ndon't want my wife, my children, my relatives, my neighbors or
\nother people who know me to see my face. I change into a T-shirt
\nand a pair of jeans that I have had the foodstall owner keep for
\nme since I started my job here. Then I leave the dirty clothes to
\nbe washed. I put them on alternately. When a piece of clothing
\nbegins to make me itch then I wear the other one. Of course I
\nneed their help as it is impossible for me to ask my wife to wash
\nmy clothes.<\/p>\n
Only the food stall owner's family know about my previous job.
\nThey, helpful and understanding, only charge me Rp 35,000 a month
\nto use their back room to rest and store my belongings plus the
\nlaundry.<\/p>\n
I have promised to myself and God, because I believe He is the
\nonly One who can help me, that if one day I get everything back,
\na nice job and good life, I will give them money to renovate
\ntheir food stall.<\/p>\n
Yes, only the foodstall owner's family know about my previous
\njob. They can understand me because their parents were once rich
\nbut became destitute and impoverished after being cheated by a
\nbusiness partner. Their late father had to pay all the losses to
\nthe bank, otherwise he would have been failed for eight years,
\nwhile his good-looking, sweet-talking business partner vanished
\nwithout a trace.<\/p>\n
However, they never regret their fate as they are sure that
\nGod is responsible for everything.<\/p>\n
\"Everything we have in this world belongs to God. If He wants
\nto take it back from us, we have to be prepared for it. There is
\nno need to regret. Perhaps we had some ill-gotten wealth with us
\nbefore.\"<\/p>\n
I listened attentively.<\/p>\n
\"You see now we practically have nothing but we can live more
\npeacefully. We used to have everything we wanted: A beautiful
\nhouse, several cars, a lot of money and holidays at dad's villa
\nor other famous recreational resorts, but we were restless. God
\nknew we were restless and He relieved us by taking all the joys
\nthat He had temporarily lent us, which according to a cleric,
\nmeans that God still loves us.\"<\/p>\n
I kept on listening.<\/p>\n
\"So Mas Ari, you don't have to feel ashamed about working like
\nthis, as a laborer, an office boy or an ojek driver. You only
\nneed to be ashamed if you are a beggar, a thief or a swindler. We
\nourselves are not ashamed of being a food sellers. We should only
\nbe ashamed if we possess ill-gotten wealth.\"<\/p>\n
I was quiet, but his words kept ringing in my ears.<\/p>\n
\"When we first became poor, we were temporarily ashamed in
\nfront of our neighbors and relatives but gradually we got used to
\nit. People keep on reminding us that all we have in this world
\nbelongs to God and if the Owner wants to take it back, we have to
\nbe prepared. No need for regrets, much less resentment\".<\/p>\n
But to me, it seems hard and it will take me a few months
\nbefore * Oto tell my wife and children about my present job. I am
\nnot used to being poor and still feel ashamed about living in
\npoverty, although I am fully aware that everything we have in
\nthis world belongs to God. I am just not ready to live in
\npoverty.<\/p>\n
For the time being, within these days, these weeks, these
\nmonths, my beloved Daike, my sweethearts Imas and Rizky must not
\nknow about my job. I will continue to keep it a secret from them.<\/p>\n
Translated by Faldy Rasyidie<\/p>\n
Note:
\n - ojek : motorcycle taxi
\n - Mas : big brother<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ojek-1447899208",
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