"People remind us of
their gifts; God never reminds us. We have to remind ourselves to be mindful,
to remember. The greatest gift is life itself" – Robert A Emmons (in Words of gratitude book)
Since sunrise, until night give
greetings, they went through a long journey. Their feet begin to brittle to
move, but complaining will not make everything alright. A crowd of people
wearing buoys began to put their feet on a small boat. Drifted by the magnitude
of the waves, the children cried, the cold pierced, and hunger could not be
stopped. In some cases, the family gets separated especially because of
uncertain fate. The most important thing is to survive, and how hope becomes
their grip to keep them alive until they reach the land that is part of another
country.
They perforce to leave their home
because the environment in which they live there were wars, violence, or
persecution. Whereas it is very valuable for them, but now everything that they
have at home has been destroyed. Home becomes a nightmare, it endangers their
life. Blood and someone body can be lying on the streets, there is no more
security. The camp became their first
stop. They could stay there for months or even years before they finally got a
status to permit live in a settlement, but there is limited access to get a
settlement, and certainly not all of them could get it. Access to sanitation
and food is sometimes difficult. Moreover, getting a comfortable bed and
watching TV with the family. They miss their home, family, friends, school,
office, the dish that they cooked together, the smell of the bread from their
favorite local shop, how the breeze on the porch ran towards their faces, and
so on.
I am interested in refugee issues, I
often read books, articles, journals, and news about them. To get a visual
image, I often watch documentary films about the experience story of refugees.
The few paragraphs above are just a little illustration of how refugees are
perforced to leave their homes and neighborhoods, do a long journey to
someplace and most of them don’t bring any documents. They go without knowing what
happen later to their fate and future. Sometimes people are not aware and
realize something that they have is very valuable. Sometimes they are not aware
that many people out there are praying to be able to have that. This is also
happening to me.
Sometimes I don't want to eat the food my mom makes,
complaining why I can't play outdoors when it's raining, a tiff with my sister
made me complain and said: "I hate her". But often reading and
watching stories about the struggles of the refugees and the suffering they
experience makes me very grateful for home and comfortable environment that I
live with my family. People say home is where your heart belongs to. I am happy to have a home and
neighborhood that is warm, comfortable, and safe as a place for me to grow up.
At home, there are thousands of memories and stories that cannot be written,
they are all so precious, ranging from joy or sorrow. Although occasionally
scolded for my delinquency, the love and affection given by my parents are far
greater. Even though tiff happened with my siblings, but their understanding of
me was much greater. There is always food at the table, and I am happy every
time I gather with my family to eat delicious food made by my mom.
When it's rain, I'm not getting wet
and cold. When the sun is sweltering, I don't feel hot because there is a roof
that always protects. When the night comes and I'm getting sleepy, I can go to
my bedroom and sleep in a comfortable bed. In the morning, I have to go to
school with a clean and tidy condition. I have a bathroom with abundant water
for me to take a shower. When I get bored, I can watch cartoons on TV and laugh
for funny jokes. I love playing on the
terrace and the yard, running around accompanied by the breeze. In the house, I
also used to do my hobbies which is singing, drawing and coloring.
The warmth, safety, and comfort that
exists in my home make me not afraid to have hopes and dreams. Since I pursuit
an education for my undergraduate degree in another city, and following wander
again to work makes me far away and cannot be home every day. But every time I
go home, I always feel happy. My mom always welcomed me with her delicious
dishes made especially for me. Even though my siblings didn't live in one house
anymore with my parents because they were married, my siblings and their kids
always visited my parents. So I often play with my niece and nephew whenever
I'm at home. I am very grateful to have a comfortable home and neighborhood. I
want to continue to feel comfortable, warm and safe every time I’m at home. I
hope, someday things will get better for the refugees. I hope they always have
passion and hope in their life. I hope the war in their country stops so that
they can return to the things they miss, especially their home.
