“Deal?” Angela asked, she forced. “What Deal?” said her father. “OK?” and she held, shook her father’s hand. “Deal” she said and embraced and kissed her father sweetly. She meant, a promise to grant her, her wish.
Never deal, promise, swear first or you might be sorry afterwards. I remember the cruel, nasty wish of queen Kaikeyi who demanded of the King, the banishment of Rama, crown prince and her son, Bharata, to succeed to the throne or the daughter of Herodias who asked the head of John the Baptist on a tray of King Herod.
But this was about a new jacket in Grand Indonesia of more than one jut. (million) Rp. But she’s such an angel, he couldn’t resist her wish, though he hadn’t made a deal.
I won’t send you my “best wishes for a Happy New Year” but my best wishes, especially for your happiness, for every new year to come, for as long as life.
God bless us all.
That was the Choir Conductor’s e mail to his friend who had aided him during his recent Choir Concert in his church.
The Choir Conductor’s Thoughts After A Reading On Hell
I had read the thoughts of an ancient, very famous poet in a mentor classic, in beautiful verse “The immortal drama of a journey through hell” something like that was said. It was so praised by famous, learned people, translated into so many languages. I only succeeded to read half way, as it was a scare, - even worse than a sermon threatening the listeners with hell - of the nine circles of hell, of sinners, of the damned, of the great poets of all time, Homer, Ovid, Horace, Lucan, Virgil, including himself, of “the blest and beauteous shining of the Heavenly cars, ...”
I can’t imagine a God so pitiful, so weak that He could ever be offended, blasphemed by His creatures and take measures for the insult, wrong doing by punishing them in such a torturous way. A God so partial who would take sides, welcome the chosen and reject the damned.
As I think of human dignity, who could pride himself to be a better man than another? How degrading, to praise one and humiliate the other, more so for a God. I imagine God far greater, far more generous, impartial, no words ever could grasp, rather than a God so humanlike as depicted that way.
And I thought of the wonderful songs, thoughts so heartening and so hitting the mark as “Bliss”*, “I Believe**” and for days am I in a happy, cheerful mood. I would rather sing those songs than recite the credo of the church: “I believe in God the Father, The Son and the Holy Ghost …”
To watch the wonderful flight of dragonflies in the air, so light, so fast “jumping, diving” catching small insects, of the pigeon’s solo flight with powerful wing-strokes skiing, soaring high up in the sky, of the flutter of two, tree butterflies chasing after one another in the wind, see the leaves of the flamboyant as snowflakes falling, see fallen flowers on the grass as a milk white 4-petal tea tray of the barringtonia asiatica, see angsana blossoms as a yellow carpet on the ground, watch the little honey bees, flitting hovering, perching, visiting flowers, … while leisurely sitting with my wandering thoughts. I could endlessly write about paradise that’s around me.
I remember a Chinese painter said about painting beauty with the least possible strokes or with the most possible strokes and I thought of beauty just composed as a simple song or beauty as rich as composed as a symphony or find a paradise in a short story and I think of O Henry and Andersen or in a novel.
Why keep myself occupied, busy with hell, as I listen to Elly Ameling singing Schubert, Brahms, Schumann, … songs. I remember some one saying “See heaven in a wild flower” or remember the wonderful thought: “One Earth, One Sky, One Humankind” or have my picnic on the bank of a lake, a river or on the side of a brook, … What delight!
But I might judge him wrong. Perhaps am I a bad church choir master to have such unreligious, disrespectful ideas.
Thus he disclosed his thoughts to me.
Bliss* (Seligkeit)
Joy and peace and love reign in heaven above; Angels praise God’s glory, such the ancient story. Would that I were there such sweet bliss to share! … I would rather stay here, with thee says May, Sit here at thy side, love, as thy bonnie bride, love! And with one sweet kiss seal our heavenly bliss!
I Believe**
I believe for every drop of rain that falls, a flower grows. I believe that some where in the darkest night, a candle glows. I believe for every one who goes astray, some one will come to show the way. I believe above the storm the smallest prayer will still be heard. I believe that some one in the great some where hears every word. Every time I hear a new born baby cry, or touch a leaf, or see the sky, then I know why I believe!
“I’m sorry, I can’t come singing this time. My leg awfully hurts.” Ade telephoned her choir master just an hour before the Christmas Eve service began. He was downhearted. She was his “locomotive” in his choir. Now they would sing without her, - try, make the best he can with the others.
Then during the warm up he was so happily surprised to see Ade hobbling coming in. “Thanks God” he said inwardly.
After the service the choir master said to her: “Thank you, We sang very well. That was your Christmas gift for me and us, I never would forget” as he imagined her pain climbing down the stairs and walking to the church with a hurting leg.
What about having an International Kite Festival in the Evening/Night. The kites scotch-lighted, (light shining on the kites). Wouldn’t it be a very delightful, enchanting, spectacular show?
To the attention of Mrs Endang W. Puspoyo (founder of the Kite Museum Of Indonesia) and flying kite lovers.
Faisal and Setiawan, still school boys, were arrested for just stealing chocolate, deodorant at the time of social unrest. Better take it home than burned or destroyed. It would be too bad if you’re not allowed to take home you on purpose would destroy the goods and burn the store as many did. Perhaps so they thought,
Why take them to court while it could be easily pacified among those concerned?
I remember the house which was build of bread, chocolate, sweets in a fairy tale. There is no child who would ever wish to destroy, burn it. It’s better to eat them. Suppose the store, supermarket which they destroyed, burned, was not build of cakes, sweets, … but had gold coins pasted on the floors, the doors consisted of Rp. 100 thousand banknotes, their walls of Rp. 50 thousand banknotes and banknotes to the value of all the commodities in the store. If all the money would amount to the same value of that supermarket including all the goods, I think they would never ruin it, were it (in) money. They never realized it was that much.
For weeks the boys were detained in jail.
“Well, the verdict was two month in prison because of stealing such a trifle worth only Rp. 7.900.-“ Upik said, “calculated, how many hundreds, even thousand years in jail should be the sentence of those who stole, destroyed, burned to a value of billion rupiahs, harmed, even caused death and laborers without work. Many thousands of them were not arrested.”
Meanwhile owners silently wept, wept for their loss of goods, motors, cars, shops, homes, … that had been destroyed or burned, - the fruits of working, building for years with sweat and tears - for their family members that had died without any wrong-doing. As in a war, whom should they ask for justice?
