PINTU GERBANG AJAIB - THE MAGIC DOOR (Indonesian/English)
This is a fascinating, bi-lingual (Indonesian/English), short story. A teaser follows:
"Mrs Rebekka, came along too. She was a good-hearted person who wanted to cheer up the children. She sang songs. Her voice was sweet, but Melati, Mertha and Mariana still felt depressed. Mariana’s eyes filled up with tears and she held onto her big sister Melati tight. Mertha sat by himself, watching the traffic. After they passed Tabana the minibus at last was outside the city. For the first time, the city children saw rice-fields as far as the eye could see. The bus stopped at Soka. All the children were bought ice creams by Mrs Rebekka. They ate the ice creams gazing at the magnificent ocean. The sea was like a blue jewel, which twinkled in the sun. How beautiful Bali is, thought Mrs Rebekka. There is always water everywhere…the sea around us, rivers, lakes, and rice fields inside. The rain always falls and refreshes the land. But for the children who were suffering because they had lost their fathers, the magnificent view was less impressive. Their memories were full of the traditional ceremonies…the water which had been sprinkled on them to purify the participants, to drive away evil. The chickens that had been sacrificed in the name of the people…their blood which fell like the blood of their beloved fathers…what was the use of it? Was evil truly cast out? Or were their sacrifices in vain? Was their hope for Bali and the people of Bali now? The children got into the minibus once again. After an hour and a half, they arrived at Dukuhsari village. Eight Junior High students got off…in a few minutes the minibus went on to Nangkasari village. There Melati, Mertha and Mariana got off. They carried their things into the dining room. In the dining room there were more than fifty faces with their eyes fixed on them. Mariana continued to hold on to Melati, her eyes wide. "
"Kepala Panti, Ibu Rebekka, ikut juga. Beliau adalah orang yang baik hati yang mau menghibur anak-anak. Dia bernyanyi beberapa buah lagu, Suaranya merdu. Tetapi Melati, Mertha, dan Mariana masih merasa sedih. Mata Mariana bengkak dan dia memegang kakaknya, Melati kuat-kuat. Mertha duduk sendirian memandang kendaraan yang lalu-lalang di jalan. Setelah lewat Tabanan minibus itu akhirnya tiba di luar kota. Untuk pertama kali anak-anak kota itu melihat pemandangan sejauh mata memandang hanya sawah-sawah. Minibus berhenti di Soka. Anak -anak dibelikan es krim oleh Ibu Rebekka. Mereka makan es krim sambil memandang laut yang sangat indah. Laut itu seperti permata yang biru, yang berkelip-kelip karena matahari. Betapa indah pulau Bali, pikiran Ibu Rebekka. Air ada dimana mana….dalam samudera, samudra,di sungai, danau,dan sawah. Hujan selalu turun dan menyegarkan tanah. Tetapi untuk anak-anak yang menderita akibat tewasnya ayah-ayah mereka, pemandangan yang indah itu kurang menarik perhatian mereka. Ingatan mereka penuh dengan upacara adat penguburan ayah mereka …air yang diteteskan untuk menyucikan umat, untuk menyingkirkan kejahatan. Ayam yang dikorbankan atas nama bangsa…darahnya yang jatuh seperti darah ayah mereka yang tersayang …apakah ada gunanya? Apakah kejahatan sebenarnya sudah disingkirkan? Atau apakah semua korban itu sia-sia? Apakah ada harapan untuk Bali dan orang Bali sekarang? Anak-anak itu naik minibus sekali lagi. Sesudah satu setengah jam mereka tiba di desa Dukuhsari. Delapan anak SMA turun…beberapa menit kemudian minibus terus menuju ke arah desa Nangkasari. Di sana Melati, Mertha dan Mariana turun. Mereka mengangkat barang barang mereka ke dalam ruang makan. Di dalam ruangan itu ada lebih dari limapuluh mata yang menatap mereka. Mariana terus memegang Melati, matanya terbuka lebar."
