2020, Some Twenty Years From Now

2020, Some Twenty Years From Now

Willingly, gladly am I to travel the road that must be trodden by all living beings. Just in 2015 many of us would have passed away, those who are now young, strong and active will be old, but I still have a lot to know, to see, to hear to express my thoughts, my feelings, ... To tell about this age and send my greetings to people far-off in the future.

What about internet? My grand-grand children perhaps aren’t going to school, college, university anymore, or to their office as they could do it by internet, while my grand-grand child now isn’t yet born. What a lot could be saved on time, transport, books, paper, teachers, lessen traffic jams, air-, noise-pollution and more. They could perhaps communicate in any language via a standard language similar to changing money to any foreign currency via the dollar.

What about the progress of medical science in fighting cancer or AIDS? What other kind of deseases haunts mankind? Would it be better to give birth by Cecar operation and determine the date of birth and gender instead of a natural birth or by giving birth to a baby as small as a thump or in a lab?

I also want to know the progress in Volley Ball and Basket Ball that are monopolized by very tall players. Will there be a classified system according to stature to ensure the chances, opportunities for relatively short players? I wish I could see the World Cup, the Olympic Games, World Boxing, Tennis in 2100 and a lot more.

Then what about the age of my grand- grand-, grand-, … children in the far future? How nice to be able to space-travel to other planets and meeting other planetarians. Yet, though impossible to turn back to the distant past or to the very distant future,- which according to Stephen Hawking is possible -, I still can visit these in my mind, even to the day the universe was born and doomsday when the world would collide or become cold and all life would be extinct as the sun would slowly be cooling down.

Now, this is the trouble, how to write the things that would cover so many books in a short reader’s letter?

Yet, why complain about a short, limited life? I’m not only grateful for the joys, happiness, but also for the adversities, failures, misfortunes, suffering, disappointments. “What’s happiness, joy if there weren’t sorrow, sadness”, said a Chinese philosopher in olden times.

I’m grateful for having to say farewell.

As life must come to an end, life becomes so dear, so near, so warm, so precious as precious and dear as the close of a beautiful song, or a wonderful story. It’s a tear, the pearl of gratefulness. And I imagined eternal life, eternal happiness, I don’t wish it. Would you?

From Jayakarta, January 14, 1998

February 2011