In God We Trust - Ranti Aryani: Merentang Hijab dari Indonesia sampai Amerika

You might find this book quite boring just by taking a look at the cover because it's sort of too formal and stiff; well, it is, for me. I like to read an autobiography novels, but this one is the most rigid. However, it is a good autobiography written by Ranti Aryani, who was a former military officer in USA. It was first published in 2013 and told us about her ups and downs during the struggle to maintain her hijab back then.

Ranti Aryani, an Indonesian muslim, who was born and raised in Bogor, lived happily and well as the only daughter out of the other 3 brothers, which made her was so close with her dad and mom. Her childhood was sadly introduced with legal issues due to the company's problem faced by her mother. By time, more problems had come to her childhood life and slowly disrupted it. That's what started her to try to find out the meaning of life. Then she met someone who inspired her to learn more about her religion, and made her to attend a pesantren in between her busyness of studying at school. Her first struggle was when she decided to wear hijab when she'd started her study at SMPN IV Bogor. But, wearing hijab wasn't as easy as she thought before; instead, she had to undergo her early teenage life hard because at that time (in Soeharto's era) hijab was strongly prohibited to wear by the government. She and some of her friends kept their hijab at school, and finally they were permitted to wear it freely.

The struggle hadn't ended yet; after she got her bachelor degree in Indonesia and married to an American muslim, she had to move to the USA with his husband due to Indonesia's monetary crisis on 1998. Her struggle was much harder since the incident of WTC attack on September 11, 2001 was happened when she had moved to America--which caused the discrimination for Muslims was worse. In there, she also continued her study and enrolled for military officer (as a dentist). Still, it didn't get easier for her to get in there just because the matter of her hijab, though at the end she finally got accepted as a military dentist. Moreover, she got the Dental Corp Captain military rank there. Unfortunately, her 14 months of devotion in USAF should be passed by terrible discrimination because of the same reason.

All the storms that kept coming to her life made her realize that she should understand every lessons given by Allah swt. through those rain and storms. She then found a great man who led her to know herself better, and her understanding made her to feel and see that all of the problems in her life was the form of God's affection for her to make herself be a better human being and to teach her to have stronger soul for facing the future life.

Truthfully, sorry to say this again, I find this book quite boring, but once again it's a very good writing especially for those who are interested in religious or spiritual stories because this book is dominated by Mrs. Ranti's spiritual adventure. I'm actually not that kind of person, but I'm interested in this book because I like her adventure in America while struggling with her hijab through the hard discrimination there. It has inspired me to be brave to keep my hijab no matter how hard the storms try to ruin it.

So, are you as much interested in this story as mine? :)

A Few Words about Peace

Well, hi, everyone. It's been a while since my last writing, and uhm... yeah, I have postponed this assignment for a month (or more, perhaps), so for the sake of having my grades increased... I'm gonna finish this right now. ((I really apologize Mrs. Wiwin for this case))

OK, so, today's topic is PEACE. Hm... I bet each of you must have different opinions about that word. Some of you may think about Palestinians whose rights is taken away by the Israels, or maybe you'd imagine the situation where there is no any fights nor bullied kids in a school, and so on.

Peace, to me, is the condition or situation when there is no violence, no war, no hypocrites around, happiness is spread everywhere, and where everybody just feel... peaceful, and have calm minds. However, I think it is kind of hard to have such peaceful lives like what we have imagined in today's life, isn't it? Well, let's take a look at this quotes first:

Yes, it is absolutely true what the quotes above said; we can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves. Let's back to our previous talks. It is hard to find a peace in today's life. The war between Palestine and Israel and bullied kids at schools (as I said before), social, economic, and political problems in a country, and many more have made peace seem vague. Even us, as students, hardly feel the peace because of several reasons that comes from school, such as overload tasks, daily test, high standard of minimum grades for each subjects, etc. Moreover, we might think that this life is full of problems that we hardly be peaceful. Now, let's go back to the quotes above. The fact is, we make ourselves as the keys. It is our minds, it is what we do that determine whether we'd be peaceful or vise versa. If we think that school is stressful, then it would be stressful; and it would bring less peace to our lives. If we think a lot about something that might be a big problem for us, without even try to solve it, then it would also bring much burden in life. Instead, we should face our problems not only with such deep thoughts about it--which just make us be more stressful and frustrated-- but also with an act to solve it as well. Or, the simple thing to do is actually to suggest our own minds, our own selves, to not make so many things as a burden or is stressing for us. Truthfully, I myself ain't those kind of individual I said above, but let's we try together to be so. Perhaps, after that, we will be more peaceful and by that we can obtain peace in our circumstances, like what is said in the quotes by Dalai Lama.

Great Leader, Great Characteristics

As social human beings, we definitely do not live alone but in groups. And every group of people, or let's say, every community or organization must need a person to lead the others in their surroundings, which is normally called as leader. A leader is not only responsible of leading and guiding the members and taking care of them, but also a "role model" the members would look up to. This means one should has good characteristics to be a good leader in order to lead the organization well, some of them are commitment, good communication skill, honesty, trusty, and wisdom.

First of all, commitment. Without good commitment, a leader won't be able to lead well. A strong commitment is needed to make the leader being loyal to the organization. If a leader's commitment is just too weak, means that he/she isn't that loyal, how can he/she lead and guide the members to have good commitment and be loyal to the organization as well?

Second, it is certainly necessary for a good leader to be good at communicating with others, especially with the members. It will make the relationship between leader and members become closer and friendlier, and it is very helpful to build stronger kinship in the organization that will make the people in it feel more comfortable.

Honesty is super important characteristic ones should have, especially for someone who wants to be a good leader. When a leader is responsible to a group of people, he/she obviously has that one goal to change the group or organization to be better than before. And in the progress, you reflect your members and the organization as well. So, if you make honest one of the "key" for it, then the members will follow suit.

Trusty doesn't only mean that a leader must be able to be trusted, but it does also mean that a leader must trust his/her team. If a leader divide the group into small groups where each small group has its own function, then a leader should be able to delegate the organization's tasks to the appropriate "small part" of the group. It will be very organized and efficient, but if the leader doesn't learn to trust others, it might obstruct the progress of the tasks to be done, or even worse; the leader might be stressed by this condition and cause the organization to start having problems.

And the last one is about wisdom. Of course, a good leader is the wise one. In every group of people, there must be problems. A leader's responsibility, in this case, is to decide the best solution to solve it. Imagine if someone, as a leader, doesn't that wise to decide things, how would they be able to solve their problems? Wisdom is also needed to build justice between the people in it. And if a leader is wise, the members will respect him/her, won't they?

In brief, to be a good leader, someone should have at least those characteristics that are explained above because the characteristics reflect the whole organization someone leads. If you behave good then the group you lead will also be good, and vice versa. It obviously means other people can see what kind of human being you are. So, having good characteristics since today is absolutely necessary because even though you have no chance to lead a group of people, at least you become the leader of your own self.

References:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyaprive/2012/12/19/top-10-qualities-that-make-a-great-leader/

https://www.google.co.id/search?q=leadership+quotes&rlz=1C1UXZO_enID490ID490&espv=2&biw=1024&bih=537&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAWoVChMI3b6b_vvnxwIVxSmUCh0m6AD0#imgrc=LdxjlL9tsB9AOM%3A

Medina Savira: Keep Writing while Making School as No. 1 Priority

Young, smart, talented, and humble; those words are the right ones to describe her, I think. I have actually been admiring her since the first time I knew that she's a writer, which brought my interest to interview her for this blogging task.

This interview was begun by my greeting for her through LINE on Sunday evening. Firstly, I told her that I got this task to interview someone I found inspiring, so I asked her whether I could interview her or not; if she didn't mind it, of course. And... fortunately she said yes!

Since she said so, then I started the short virtual interview with her.

First of all, I asked about when and how she started to write. Then, she answered, "I have started to write books since I was 10. When I was a 5th grader, my teacher took me to a journalistic training where I met Sri Izzati, a famous, senior children novels (KKPK) writer. There, she told me about how fun it was to be a writer, how to write, and also she introduced me to KKPK (Kecil-Kecil Punya Karya) books. Since then, I started to write short stories. After collecting all of them in a month, I sent them to DAR! Mizan Publisher. Alhamdulillaah, they gave me positive response. That's why I have addicted to write until now, hehe."

This 17-year-old girl has produced 18 books until today. Well, it means she's been very productive during her 7-year career as a writer. I wonder how does she manage her time so well, because she's also an acceleration class' student like me and I thought it'd be hard for her to spend her time for writing during her accelerated study in high school. But, she just simply said that she kept school as her first priority. "I started to write if I've done my school things; finishing my assignments and study. So, I wrote whenever I had free time, like during weekends or school's holiday, for example."

After that, I asked her if she had any plans ahead, whether it'd be writing again or something else. This new student of SAPPK ITB then answered, "I actually have a plan to continue my novel script which was delayed due to the exams preparation. Just wish me luck :)"

Sure, I immediately wished her luck. And for the closing, I would like to quote the words from this 2014 West Java's Students Language Ambassador for her juniors in SMAN 3 Bandung, especially for me and my fellow friends as acceleration class' students. Here it is:

"Although you undergo Kurtilas (Kurikulum 2013), don't make it as a burden. Do not waste your 2 years needlessly (for the accelerated students). Look for new experiences as much as you can, because life lessons will not come from your study at classes, but if you are willing to try new things :)"

So, that's how my short interview with Teh Dina ended. Thanks for being so much inspiring, Teh!

Here is the photo of me and Teh Dina! :)

One Day at Braga Street

I often pass this iconic street, especially when I'm on my way to school. Many people also walk on its sidewalks or just sit on the benches which are placed along the sidewalks; were many of them who like to take some pictures there, too, just to capture every single moment they spent at the beautiful street.

Yes, Braga Street. It is a small street in the center of Bandung, Indonesia, which was famous in the 1920s as a promenade street. Chic cafes, boutiques and restaurants with European ambiance along the street had made the city to attain the Paris of Java nickname. The street starts from a T-junction with the Asia-Afrika Street (or De Groote Postweg during the colonial times) to the north until the city council (Balai Kota), which was formerly a coffee warehouse. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braga_Street)

It is still famous until today, anyway. It has not only some historical buildings, but also its part of street called Braga Andesit since it has andesites used for the road instead of bitumen (asphalt). Unfortunately, this Braga Andesit often gets roadwork because the andesites are not so firm that it's easily broken. This roadwork always cause traffic jam along the street, too.

However, yes, Braga Street has this unique views for me, especially at Braga Andesit. It also has many food stalls and painting outlets. There is also a mall called Braga City Walk (BCW) located at Braga Andesit. Despite not having so much things in it, BCW still quite worth it to visit. Besides foods, you can also watch movies at the cinema with low price! :p There are usually some events held in this street, like Braga Culinary Night and Car Free Night that was held just few weeks ago.

Even though I often pass this road as I said in the beginning... but actually I haven't spent so much time on its sidewalks with its beautiful views, which I'm really waiting for! But, since I hardly have someone to accompany me... would you like to visit Braga Street together with me if you are free? *winks*

PAMAN GOBER 2015

Paman Gober is one of annual events held right after Dewa Athena--SMAN 3 Bandung's sport event--tournament's over. It's an event where all of the school's students and teachers ride bicycles together and plant some trees in certain places at the end of the ride.

This year's Paman Gober was held on May 9th. Most of the students brought their own bicycles; like I did, and some others had to come earlier so that they could borrow the bicycles provided by the committees. That day, I woke up late so I had to get myself prepared in a hurry. I'd decided to ride my bicycle from home to school since the day before anyway, but since I was late so I had to rush to school--well, it's Lapangan Bali to be precise. Lucky me, I arrived there on time. I just needed to wait for few minutes and finally all of us started the bicycle convoy.

We left Lapangan Bali to head to Tegallega. We passed through Belitung St., then we down the Sumatera St. and passed Tamblong and Lengkong Street. The police car which guarded us during the convoy suddenly stopped us before Pungkur-Lengkong intersection. I personally didn't have any idea about it, neither nor my friends. After waiting for quite a while, the polices started to drive their car again, but it turned out that they're heading back to Lapangan Bali since they said that Tegallega was too crowded for us to stop by and take a rest there at that time. So, yeah, we just followed the police car. When we arrived at Sunda Street, our group split in two; some of us were heading back to Lapangan Bali, and some others were going to watch the symbolic trees handover from our committees to the representation of the residents at Buton Street; including me and some of my friends. After that, we finally went back to Lapangan Bali.

There, at Lapangan Bali, the committees gave each of us a box of nasi timbel since it's time for lunch already. My classmates and I sat together and ate our lunch, before we started the final round of Dewa Athena tournament. Our class went to three finals; tug of war, dodgeball for girls, and table tennis. And... guess what??? We finally won all of those finals which brought us to be the 2nd Grand Champion! Yeay, congratulation to us!!

Well, for me, these annual events have given new experiences and it was very exciting as well, though me and my fellow friends who are also acceleration class' students would probably not experience next year's Dewa Athena and Paman Gober... but anyway, thanks to everyone involved in these events this year!! :)

Photo of me and my friends during the bicycle convoy~

Story behind Kelly Clarkson's '"Because of You"

I will not make

The same mistakes that you did

I will not let myself

Cause my heart so much misery

I will not break

The way you did, you fell so hard

I've learned the hard way

To never let it get that far

Because of you

I never stray too far from the sidewalk

Because of you

I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt

Because of you

I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me

Because of you

I am afraid

I lose my way

And it's not too long before you point it out

I cannot cry

Because I know that's weakness in your eyes

I'm forced to fake

A smile, a laugh everyday of my life

My heart can't possibly break

When it wasn't even whole to start with

Because of you

I never stray too far from the sidewalk

Because of you

I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt

Because of you

I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me

Because of you

I am afraid

I watched you die

I heard you cry every night in your sleep

I was so young

You should have known

Better than to lean on me

You never thought of anyone else

You just saw your pain

And now I cry in the middle of the night

For the same damn thing

Because of you

I never stray too far from the sidewalk

Because of you

I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt

Because of you

I try my hardest just to forget everything

Because of you

I don't know how to let anyone else in

Because of you

I'm ashamed of my life

Because it's empty

Because of you

I am afraid

Because of you

Because of you

"Because of You" is a song recorded by American pop singer Kelly Clarksonfor her second studio album, Breakaway (2004). It was written by Clarkson along with its producers David Hodges and Ben Moody. It was released on August 16, 2005 by RCA Records, as the third single from Breakaway. Clarkson originally wrote "Because of You" when she was 16 years old to cope with the emotional distress caused by her parents' divorce. She wanted the song to be included on her debut studio album, Thankful (2003), but her record label thought that it was not suitable to be included in the album. She then polished the song with Hodges and Moody before successfully convincing her label to include it on Breakaway.

To know about the song's background further, here are some comments from Kelly Clarkson about what inspired her to write "Because Of You" :

“’Because Of You’ isn’t about breakups, it’s about my family. It is about growing up in a broken home. My parents were together for 17 years or so, and then all of the sudden, something went wrong. But I’ve talked to lots of friends who have seen domestic violence in their homes; I didn’t. But if you see those things as a child, you see a family member cheating or people not trusting each other or people not communicating with each other, that effects you. You end up afraid to trust people, because you think you’re going to get screwed over. Me and a friend of mine were up late one night talking about our lives, and it led to this song. I wrote it when I was 16, my friend was having a really hard time with her family. It was a different situation than mine, but I could relate to what she was going through. My parents were together for a long time, and suddenly one thing happens, and it’s over. That could happen to me. It made me feel like, why would I want to open up and trust someone? I know that it’s a childish way to look at it; life is a risk, and anything worth having is worth taking a risk for, but I wrote it when I was 16. I have learned a lot since then. At the same time, it doesn’t matter how old you are, you can still relate. I was 6 when my parents got divorced. I used to be the most closed off person. I didn’t want to get hurt. I had been messed over by friends, and I had been through a lot with my family. I didn’t pity myself, but I did put a wall up. I’m smarter now, but I have a good relationship with God, and that’s gotten better over the years. That’s why I’ve gotten smarter about situations. I’m a very trusting person now. I’m not going to let people screw me over left and right, but at the same time I’m not going to close myself off. That’s a big step for me.”

So, in conclusion, in the song, Kelly sings about trying not to make the same mistakes her parents did, and how because of the divorce, she is scared to fall in love, in fear of going through the same pain her parents did.

Hmm, such a really sad love story happened in the family that is implied in the song, isn't  it?

Sources:
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070624182126AAaSP9Z
http://www.metrolyrics.com/because-of-you-lyrics-kelly-clarkson.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Because_of_You_(Kelly_Clarkson_song)
http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=5176