A Letter for Ara Before the Final Exam

Dear Ara, It feels like it was only a few days ago when we rushed to the hospital after you kicked your mom’s belly and broke the water so that the doctor had to get you out of her belly long before the due date. We still cannot believe that it has been twelve years since the first day we laid our eyes on you while you were sleeping in a box with cables and tubes attached to your body. Despite the troubles and distress, we can still recall the joy of welcoming you to this world. However, it is hard for us to find the words to describe how happy we are to be blessed with such a precious girl like you. How quick the time has passed since the first day you learnt to talk, sing and read. It seems like it was yesterday when you went to Embun Pagi for your first day of school. Now, you have almost reached the end of your elementary school days as the final exams are looming large. You may still recall our high-pitched voice howling at you to do your homework or to open and read your textbooks before tests; or how impatient your mom and I can be when we helped you with your homework and tasks. Rest assured that we mean nothing but the best for you, but we are clueless as to how to convey it better. Times and times again you have made us proud with your commendable achievements. You have done so much that you deserve a place among the best at school. Our tears of frustration in helping you to comprehend and master the lessons from your teachers have often times become tears of joy when we received the reports. We cannot thank you enough for your hard work. No words are suitable for describing our contentment with your accomplishments. We are so proud of you. We are so blessed to have such a beautiful and smart daughter like you. Do you remember our frequent talk about school, or about formal education, but most importantly about the process of learning many things that may be useful for your future? Or the stories we told you about people who were able to make great achievements, even though they had nothing but strong intention and vast knowledge, or about people who failed themselves in life despite the luxury they had during their childhood? Do keep those words always in mind as we meant them as words of encouragement and inspiration for you. You may still have it fresh in your memory our lengthy conversation about what kind of future you want to have, about what profession or occupation you are yearning for, and about what it takes to achieve those desires, including your intention to attend the best junior high school in town. Remember that your mom and I will always support you and we will always be there for you no matter what happens at the end of the process. Make the efforts, do your best and Allah will do rest, but you shall never forget that best results can only be achieved with best efforts. We have never asked you to be perfect or to be the best. In fact, we do not want you to try to be perfect or to be the best. We just want you to do your best, because we know you can. We do not care about the results as long as we know that you have tried hard and done your best. We wish you good luck for your upcoming exams. No matter how hard those exams might be, we believe that you can breeze through them easily. We know that you have focus and the ability, the patience and stability and you are so well prepared and fully ready. Be confident in yourself like we have full confidence in you. We are sure you will ace the exams easily. Remember that whatever happens, we love you with all our heart and soul. Love, Mom & Dad

Gak Ada Pesta Tahun Ini

Tanggal 30 April akan selalu menjadi tanggal yang istimewa untuk kami bertiga. Tapi, tahun ini gak ada perayaan yang istimewa buat Ultah Ara. Setahun yang lalu, ketika merayakan Ultah Ara yang Ke-7, gw dan Tia udah bilang ke Ara bahwa itu adalah Ultah-nya yang terakhir yang dirayain dengan pesta istimewa.

Alhamdulillah, kami diberkahi Allah SWT dengan anak yang cantik luar dalam. Meskipun hari ulang tahunnya hanya dirayakan dengan makan malam sederhana dengan menu pesanan dari Pizza Hut yang dipilihnya sendiri, Ara tetap ceria. Semua makanan yang dia pesan, dimakannya dengan lahap (satu porsi spaghetti & meatballs, beberapa potong chicken wings with BBQ sauce & satu potong pizza). Dan Ara pun pergi tidur, setelah menyelesaikan makan malamnya dan mengulang kembali pelajaran science karena akan ada tes pada pagi harinya, dengan senyum yang masih mengembang. Entah mimpi apa yang menghampirinya selagi dia tidur ….

Tahun lalu, kami memutuskan untuk merayakan Ultah Ara secara istimewa. Jauh-jauh hari kami telah memesan tempat di KFC Pangkalan Jati Kalimalang. Kami memilihkan kue ulang tahun istimewa untuk Ara (sesuai pesanan tentunya, “yang banyak princess-nya ya!” hehehe). Untuk menambah kemeriahan acara, kami pun menyewa seorang pesulap. Undangan pun kami bagikan ke teman-teman Ara di sekolah dan beberapa temannya di tempat les musik Yamaha. Tak ketinggalan dan yang paling penting, kami pun mengundang gerombolan sepupu Ara dari Menteng Dalam dan Azka sepupu kecil Ara.



Pada sore hari yang sudah ditentukan (08/05/2011), kami pun berangkat ke tempat pesta dengan membawa bungkusan kue cupcake yang kami pesan khusus untuk dibagikan ke semua tamu yang datang. Persiapan pun akhirnya kelar, termasuk koordinasi terakhir dengan KFC Kalimalang. Satu per satu teman-teman Ara datang ke ruang pesta Ultah Ara. Mereka pun asyik bermain dan bercanda sambil menunggu acara dimulai.



Pesta ultah Ara berjalan lancar dengan segala permainan standar pesta ultah bocah yang dipandu MC. Tapi tukang sulap yang kita sewa menjadi penarik perhatian utama hari itu karena dia berhasil membuat anak-anak tercengang atau menjerit histeris, termasuk pengunjung KFC lain yang bukan undangan.



Segala kemeriahan itu sengaja kami berikan buat Ara agar menjadi sesuatu yang bisa dia kenang sepanjang hidupnya mengingat itu merupakan ulang tahun terakhir Ara yang akan kami rayakan dengan pesta. Pada tahun-tahun yang berikutnya, seperti tahun ini, ulang tahun Ara akan kami rayakan secara sederhana saja sebagai pesta hari istimewa untuk keluarga kecil kami ….

Selamat ulang tahun, nak … Do’a terbaik kami untuk kamu akan selalu menyertaimu sepanjang hari dan sepanjang hidup …