Railway crossing guards stay alert for trains during holiday
Railway crossing guards stay alert for trains during holiday
Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Suherman woke up at dawn to pray. He then had breakfast, took a
bath and went down to the mosque near his house in Tangerang.
People from the neighborhood had already started gathering to
perform the morning Idul Fitri communal prayer.
Along with his wife and his four-month-old baby, Suherman went
afterwards to his parents' house. He knelt in front of them and
asked for forgiveness, another important custom of Idul Fitri.
But he could not stay long. After a brief conversation, he
changed into a blue uniform, walked over to his wife and kissed
their baby daughter. "I have to go now," he told his wife.
Half-an-hour later, speeding on his motorcycle through the
seemingly deserted streets of Jakarta, the 25-year-old man
arrived at the railway crossing in Pejompongan, West Jakarta. It
was already 9 o'clock.
"Minal aidin wal faidzin," which means please forgive my
faults, both physically and spiritually, he greeted a colleague
whom he was supposed to replace at 6 a.m. "Thank you for waiting
for me," he said.
Suherman works as a railway crossing guard, in charge of
opening and closing the gate to warn motorists of passing trains.
"We can't take leave near Idul Fitri, it's company policy," he
said. "I feel sad about not being with my family, but well, this
is my duty."
The phone rang and a bell struck once. "That means there is a
train coming from the direction of Kebayoran," he said after
briefly talking on the phone.
"If we don't work, then people wouldn't be able to travel by
train," he added, emphasizing the importance of his work.
Further celebration, visiting relatives and friends, would
have to wait until his shift finished at 1 p.m. "I don't want my
family to come and celebrate Idul Fitri here with me. It is
enough already that I would be sad today," he smilingly said.
For these railway crossing guards, going to their hometown for
Lebaran, is almost impossible. "I have worked since 1979, and I
have never, not even once, gone home to Pacitan for Lebaran,"
said Tubari, a 53-year-old employee whose parents still live in
Pacitan in East Java.
"My wife and my children don't go there either, as they don't
want to go unless I can join them," said the guard of the railway
crossing in front of Permata Hijau housing complex in South
Jakarta.
"Well, we just have to accept this," Tubari said. His
disappointment obvious as he hammered on, "but it's not fair that
other people can take holidays and we always have to stay and
watch the trains here."
He also complained that his salary was held, as the banks were
not open during the holiday. "I have bought some new clothes for
my children from the holiday bonus, but my money is running out,"
he said.
"My youngest kid asked me to go to Dufan (Dunia Fantasy in
Ancol). Her mother scowled at her. She thinks it's a waste of
money," he said. It would have to wait until Friday when I get a
day off, he added.
In the meantime, after his shift is done, he would just go
home and wait for his relatives to visit, he said.