Endurance

I decided to write this article after a flash of inspiration that came across my mind yesterday. I am currently searching for a "good" distributor of imported books – that is, one that can offer low prices/discounts; I would like to "resurrect" my "now-extinct", precious dinosaur and English books, which have brought me to this point of my life.

As you are a close friend of mine, chances are you already knew that my little house got burned by a big fire last year. The much sadder thing is this disastrous event decimated almost ALL my imported books, which were worth approximately 8,000,000 rupiahs (around US$605). And, "uniquely", this took place after my second trip to Vietnam, which was very exciting.

Sad? Of course, I was. But this is life. We cannot really predict what is going to happen, and both good and bad will surely come along in our lives. I didn't let myself get carried away and made up my mind to be a tough cookie instead.

I reckon endurance is a quality that everyone must possess in this world. We need to foster an accepting attitude towards reality and stay strong. Life is not always full of sweet and sparkling things; there are a lot of rocks and spines ready to torture you down the road. These can be in the form of getting dumped by your boyfriend/girlfriend, losing your dream job, being lied to by your best friend, experiencing bank fraud, and so on. Many people have decided to end their lives, but it is not a very wise decision. We have the opportunity to live (although only once) and there is always more we can do. :)

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We Are Killers

"We?" "Do you mean 'you and your friends'?" This is what might be in your head now. But "we" here means "you and I". Yeah, YOU and I. How come? Okay, let's go to the explanation.

You might think kill means "to make someone die by stabbing them with a knife, shooting their head with a gun, pushing them from the top of a fourteen-story building, twisting their head powerfully, etc." BUT if you think more deeply, you'll find out something else.

To kill is to reduce someone's lifespan. It does NOT matter what means you use. In other words, When you are making someone's life shorter, actually you are killing them.

When you are smoking beside someone, you are producing gas that is destroying some of their cells. Maybe 200.000 or 300.005 cells. Numbers don't matter. You are killing them.

When you are running a red light, you are probably making someone (more) emotional. They probably just got a problem at the office, so you are adding insult to injury. When they arrive at home, they will probably wreak their anger on their spouse or children or anyone else. They will probably do harm to them. You are probably reducing one-billionth of their life. You are killing them.

When you are littering, you are probably contributing to flood that kisses off people. You are killing them.

When you are not giving an old man your seat on a bus... Okay, you know it.

I believe you can find many more examples. And yes, we are killers. Continue reading

Patience Makes Perfect

One day, I was waiting for a transjakarta bus, a typical bus operating in Jakarta. There were several persons waiting with me. A bus came and stopped. Then, the door opened. What next?

Yeah, you are right. Pushing! And, pushing makes "pusing"—"pusing" is an Indonesian word meaning "dizzy". I was quite surprised. Maybe you have seen this kind of "event" too. Was it that hard to be slower? Did it "kill" them to wait a few seconds more? I don't think the people meeting them would have said, "Hey, you look old, my friend. What happened?" if they had been more patient.

There is another. On Jakarta streets, you will see many motorcycles stop in front of the white line while the red light is on. Many even go forth! What if an accident happens? Two lives are sacrificed for two minutes!

Time is precious. But, using time for something silly is .... (please fill in the blank yourself) Let's cherish others in very details of our life.

People say practice makes perfect. I want to add one, "Patience makes perfect." Continue reading