Plus & Minus

Plus & Minus

Solomon had a lot of pluses that favored him. He was a king, handsome, young, rich, intelligent, wise. He certainly would be loved, liked especially by women because of his pluses. But suppose he became poor, sick, a prisoner, perhaps he would be left alone as what was liked, loved of him were his pluses.

A vagrant, has a lot of minuses. He is poor, dirty, not handsome, has no proper education, has his home and sleeps under a bridge. Who would have him as a friend, like or marry him? But if there was one who still would like or love him then he certainly must have some thing very good, special, at least recognize him as a human being, not observed, seen by others.

And I think of Subandrio who had so many minuses as he was prisoner with a death sentence, shunned by the community and old, yet was chosen among all men by a loving woman to be her husband.

That would be an invaluable credit to them as they were loved, liked despite so many minuses.

Suppose there was a painting with a plus of being extraordinary costly. Than there’s no credit to the painting as the owner treasures it because it was of a high money value. When it’s value drops, he might throw it away. And so is a flower, a fruit, a job, a sport, a hobby, … with many pluses. When the pluses fall so will their eagerness for it, also fall, drop, flop, then leave it, stop, throw or go away.

That’s the drawback, disadvantage behind a lot of pluses as it was pursued because of the pluses, on the other hand, there’s the advantage, strength behind many minuses since it was pursued, achieved despite the minuses. A man with a big minus of being blind could still “see”, read and write.

November 2010

Joy

Joy

When we were children, we began the day with picking “Kenari” fruits. There’s an aged woman, who begins the day with picking sweet smelling “Melati” flowers.

November 2010

On Staying Young

On Staying Young

No matter how old you are, as long as you learn, excercize, striving for better, improving yourself and on top of it, are still capable of love, you would stay young. Except you want to be a decrepit old man soon.

November 2010

What Is Beautiful, What Is Ugly?

What Is Beautiful, What Is Ugly?

A pigeon baby chick is awfully ugly, yet the parent birds regard her as the most beautiful. A cock is fairer than a chicken hen, yet he doesn’t choose a cock but the “uglier” hen. There is the lovely lotus flower, yet the dirty mud had nurtured her. And in the moon light, an “ugly” frog on one of its leaves was watching over her, heightening her exquisite, delicate beauty.

November 2010

On Disciples

On Disciples

A disciple doesn’t follow his own heart’s dictates, conscience. He is only good, virtuous, upright, loves his neighbors on order, as is prescribed by his teacher

November 2010

Birds Celebrate Their Wedding Every Day

Birds Celebrate Their Wedding Every Day

Humans who are regarded as wiser have to remember their marriage with a copper, silver, golden wedding as Indonesians say. The birds celebrate their wedding every day without having to remember it.

November 2010

Choose A Grain Of Corn Or A Mercy?

Choose A Grain Of Corn Or A Mercy?

What would you choose, a grain of corn or a Mercedes were there nothing else in the world?

A grain of corn so tiny, which seems so worthless, yet can grow, multiply itself and might cover the whole world.

November 2010

The Big 8 Pledge

The Big 8 Pledge

What’s the G 8 pledge to cut green house gas emissions in half by 2050 when they’re already dead?

November 2010

Want To Hurt, Gladden Someone?

Want To Hurt, Gladden Someone?

Whenever you want to hurt or gladden someone do it when they’re still alive. When they’re dead it’s too late.

November 2010

Becoming Wiser

Becoming Wiser

Becoming wiser is just to unlearn all the nonsense, foolishness, stupidity that is praised as wisdom to trick you into believing it.

November 2010

Didn't Feel Like Waiting So Long

Didn’t Feel Like Waiting So Long

An eternity had passed before I was born. Yet didn’t I feel like waiting so long.

November 2010

Avoid War Instead Of Saving It's Victims

Avoid War Instead Of Saving It’s Victims

November 2010

The Artist

The Artist

He doesn’t seek after the dazzling light of clever people. As a firefly he carries his own (God given) so precious, breathing, living light.

November 2010

A Cricket's Consolation

A Cricket’s Consolation

“Don’t be downcast, downhearted, unhappy if you have no success with your writings. It’s God who intentionally did so to you, in order to make you, Mr. Chew not arrogant, lazy and your writings become poor, having no weight.”

November 2010

I'm Queen, She's Prisoner

I’m Queen, She’s Prisoner

What we do not know, do not see are the huge sacrifices behind a star’s success.

I imagine Joan Collins, a beauty, willingly disciplined herself to swimming for at least one hour every day, besides her morning exercizes, a tight diet to keep fit, healthy and her line, studied carefully her coiffure, her make up, her dress, her shoes and regularly goes to the boutique, fashion salon. She had to study, exercize acting, her film scripts, keep her many appointments, … I don’t think she had a lot of leisure time for herself.

Rubinstein perhaps started playing piano when he was a child. For years he exercized, studied hard and even when he was a star he said that he still had to exercize for hours – not just one or two hours - every day to maintain a good performance. When he didn’t exercize just one day, he himself would notice the difference, when he didn’t excercize for a week, his close friends would notice this.

Think of Rudy Hartono, the badminton champion, Federer the tennis champion, Tiger Woods, the champion golfer, Lance Armstrong champion of Tour de France, … what did they not sacrifice?

“Would you like to be queen Elisabeth who is still healthy and graceful? She’s over 80 by now.” So asked Opa Johan his wife.

“Certainly not, as I think how ‘imprisoned’ I would be by the rules, good manners, a very tight time- schedule in a palace. I never can laugh openly, roar with laughter, I should always suppress it for decorum’s sake. Now can I eat what I like, how to sit, to stand, when to sleep, to work, to exercize, … as I choose, decide, have fun and a lot of leisure time without anyone watching me. I’m queen, she’s ‘prisoner’. Ha, ha.”

November 2010

The Garden Of Eden

The Garden Of Eden

In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve lived in perfect happiness and unconscious goodness. Since God planted the forbidden apple tree they became restless, unhappy, eager to know, why it was forbidden to eat its apples. So the miseries follow from transgressing, disobeying the prohibition. They then became conscious of good and evil and sin,

Animals, all other creatures are not subject to this law and so don’t, can’t sin.

November 2010

Self Portrait

Self Portrait

And I were jealous,
And I feared,
And I desired the forbidden apple
And I fell
And hurt myself.

Kin to those who’re so human,
To all creatures, all life.
I am Nature’s Child.

November 2010

A Cricket's Song

A Cricket’s Song

Warble as a Nightingale? I can’t,
Though you would teach me.
Not chirp as a cricket? I can’t,
Though you would un-teach me.

November 2010

Enlightened Whisperings

Enlightened Whisperings

What’s the most beautiful thought, feeling, painting, song, music, novel, … but an enlightened whispering, a revelation God’s? And when I fail to appreciate, grasp, understand it, then God hasn’t revealed this to me.

November 2010

A Cricket's Foolishness

A Cricket’s foolishness

Oh, my delightful foolishness. Yet, in front of the Creator, the exalted thoughts of the greatest sage are not less foolish than mine.

November 2010

Name The Lowest

Name The Lowest

Name, choose the lowest, most worthless person whom we “sentence” to die in the place of Anne Frank.

November 2010

A Thought On Love

A Thought On Love

For a mother, the smallest corner is so roomy to share, the littlest food so much to give it all to her child. For a miser, a palace, all the treasures of the world is him too small.

November 2010

Revealing The Secret Of Indonesian Fruits

Revealing The Secret Of Indonesian Fruits

Leisure, fountain of our Joys!
To be delightfully occupied during our leisure time. Reading leisurely, working leisurely, learning leisurely, traveling leisurely, eating leisurely, ... and fall asleep. To feel the throb of being alive, to escape the clock or trap of routine duties. To be master of one’s time.

Should you happen to visit or stay some time in Indonesia, I would like to treat you - instead of visiting the well known famous tourist’s sites - to tasting, touching, seeing, smelling, eating, picking, plucking, cutting, cracking, watching the many kinds of our country’s fruits in a leisurely way. Imagine the funny faces you would make by “savoring” such subtle delights or perhaps ... tremendous tortures and miseries.

Nangka is as big as a roasted pig on the table. You never know what or how to eat. But after a surgical operation, the sight of the golden sweet-smelling fruits within makes one say “mmmmmmmm”.

Durian is as awesome to the touch as a heavy spiked mace-head. Those who don’t know how to handle it will make a mess by hacking it to pieces and so spoiling it. The fruit “stinks” enormously, but lovers have only praise for its creamy flavor and particular aroma.

Then have a look at the Rawit, which is as small as a match-head, so innocent and harmless looking. But even a tiny bite is enough to give you a shock of blazing hell in mouth, lips, throat, ears, eyes and makes you scream for help and water. Nonetheless, it can’t be lessened or extinguished even by buckets and tanks full of water. Though most wouldn’t like to miss Rawit at dinner time.

Pare is as bitter as gall or perhaps as bitter as when you ever have tasted any forbidden fruit. But cooked in proper ways, it is for many people still a very appetizing food and delicacy.

Don’t mistake eating the fruit of the Kenari for its kernel and say it’s tasty. Its stone is nearly as hard as stone. You’d have to get a big stone to hammer it open and see to it you don’t crush its kernel or hammer on your finger as a “souvenir”. Lovely souvenirs are cut out of the fruit’s seed. In the golden days of childhood, Kenari picking, cracking, eating is such a delightful occupation, one couldn’t stop until all the Kenari gathered have been eaten.

Then there is the Harum Manis. People say that stolen fruit tastes sweeter. But after tasting the Harum Manis, you would swear, avow, they never could excel the sweetness of this sweet-smelling mango-fruit.

And there is the Manggistan: open its chamber carefully and decently with your knife and behold nature’s sweet queen of beauty slumbering on her dark-brown couch.

And you should manage to stay some time in the country and see the Mango or the Kemang tree during their bridal festivities, draped and veiled with the richest of blossoms.

Then watch the colorful Buni berries or the Rambutan or any other fruits ripen, luring, stirring God’s creatures and man alike.

Still, there are so many fruits I haven’t told you: the Puan, Pala, Jambu, Blimbing, Salak, Duku, Lengkeng, Lontar, Ketapang, Gandaria, ... but that is for you to take a try and enjoy them as memorable souvenirs from Nature’s hand.

The Jakarta Post, February 10, 1986

No matter whether people praise or blame you, you always remain the same.

November 2010

The Nobel Prize

The Nobel Prize

And there’s Lech Valesa. Isn’t he “bound” by the Nobel Prize? Better “bad” but free, rather than good, honored but “tied”.

November 2010

Free Will

Free Will

Man is created after His image, in His likeness, that is according to His own discretion. Man certainly is not like God.

I’m happiest as I am. My free will is but what Nature, God has implanted in me. My Free will is His will.

November 2010

Opa Johan On Being Kind And Loving

Opa Johan On Being Kind And Loving

You shouldn’t be kind because I am your brother but be kind as real brothers and sisters are, even though I’m not your brother.

Would you like it if your husband were just good and loving because you’re his wife, - that’s not worth anything -, instead of being good and loving because he loves you, even though he’s not legally married to you. Besides, is it wrong, a sin, is it his fault if a married man could still love some woman?

You needn’t agree, needn’t reply.

So e mailed Opa Johan his sister in The Netherlands.

November 2010