Thursday 30 December 2010

2010

Growing up in a family with Chinese values is not easy for me sometimes. I get this impression that the most important thing in life is money, money, money so I need to work, work, and work. Prosperity, insurance, and playing on the safe side, seem like the magic formula to get it right. My grandmother told me that after I am graduated, I need to earn money, find a good affluent husband, and have a happy life ever after. In addition my relatives said that the most important feature of a good life partner is the one who can work, and then surely he would be able to fulfil the family needs well. I also often have this stressful conversation with my parents about me arriving at the time to get a good job and of course making a considerable amount of money. Yes, I was graduated a month ago and I have not got an office to go to every day and a pay check to receive every month.

After all, I feel that I am one step behind of everyone else. Many friends of mine have been working even since they have not finished the study, my cousins who have got decent position in prestigious company, the children of my parents' friends who already have good monthly salary, and so on. What make things worse is that my parents sometimes say it to the world that they are proud of me, a master graduate, on the other hand underestimating me of not having proper job and earning my own money. It is not that I do not try to apply for a job, but yes I did not apply to many.

In my defence, I do not want to work with something I am not passionate about. Maybe there are persons who can work anything offered in front of their face as long as they could earn cash out of it. For example, my friends who were also graduated in mass communication end up with a job in bank, automotive business, airlines, and other things we did not learn at school. It is absolutely not a crime. I think that what makes things different between me and my “already-hired” friends, passion. I clearly know that I am passionate about movies, culture, sports, and music, things that in my country cannot guarantee you having prosperous life unless you do it for the industry, and they absolutely will not bring me big and fixed monthly income. Too bad am not passionate in business, trading, or investment, things that Chinese are well-known to be good at.

...

By the way, today is the last day of 2010. I keep on thinking about this, whether my idealism in those passions keeps me away from my parents' expectation. I clearly understand they want their daughter having assured life, but this rebellious lady keeps longing for uncertain things. At one point this year I might feel that I have done nothing and fail fulfilling the expectation. However, if I look back for the entire year, I wow myself that I was not that jobless. In fact, I think I have achieved many things although it might not sound as big as job promotion or winning awards.

In 2010, I step my foot for the first time in a movie set. I had my first movie production experience in February and I learned a lot from it. Having the responsibility as a script supervisor, editor assistant, and translator of the movie are new things for me. Although I had to work more than twelve hours a day under the intense sun until my skin was two levels darker, I did love enjoy the job. Moreover, the experience also brought me new friends with great mind and attitude. They have showed me integrity, and reminded me to be true to myself. These connections make me keep my commitment until now in preparing the film road show.

"Cendol" Movie Set
 
This year I also am convinced that I can be a good writer. In the same month, I had my first feature story published in national media, The Jakarta Post. Although I have not put other stories yet again there, the travel feature about Belitung was quite a masterpiece, I think. Once I searched it in web, it has been quoted by some other traveller writers. 

Feature Story: a personal achievement

Last year I could not ask somebody's name in Spanish. Right now I can have a long and nice Spanish chat with Spaniards or Latinos. In fact, I have several Spanish, Mexican, and Argentinean friends in facebook at the moment. Thanks to my little brother who inspired me to learn other foreign language than English. He studied German first, and I caught up a couple months later studying Spanish. Yet my initial goal of studying was to have a nice Spanish conversation with Fernando Torres, and now by also knowing some Hispanic culture, it turns me to be a fan of Spain and some countries in Latin America. Studying Spanish also meets me with several new and fantastic amigos (friends) in the class. I met new people with various background, interests, and behaviours, yet somehow we can laugh together every Saturday for a whole day. Also in this new community, I made my first directing debut. Hahaha...

Spanish Community of Usakti Jakarta

Another good thing was the opportunity to join Mia Patria. I love singing, I might not good at it, but I am grateful I can involve myself in such full of musician group. Mia Patria is a Catholic cultural music group which works at God's service. We perform mostly religious songs with traditional Indonesian touch, like Balinese, Javanese, Batak, and so on. Therefore, besides the members themselves, gamelan set, angklung, and some other musical instruments along with Indonesian traditional costumes are precious assets of the group. Sometimes I do feel shame of myself for ignoring Indonesian music and dances before joining Mia Patria Choir.

Right now I maybe am not attached to every one of them much as I have just joined recently for the last three months in 2010, while they have been together for two years. However, I did get many lessons from my three months involvement. My brain was trained to memorise lyrics so that I can sing from the heart. I can recognize the name of gamelan's part and some Indonesian traditional costumes. Finally, I can put up make-up and hair bun myself now.

Post Graduate Journalism and Media Studies Class of 2010

The final great moment happened in 2010 was my master degree graduation on 9th December. There are only seven graduated from my major. Thesis writing was not an easy process at all. I took four months constructing the concept, yet only four days only in writing. It was not recommended to follow, but I saw it as an achievement too. The whole process taught me that nothing or no one is more true than the others. In the end, what is counted is what you believe is true. Now I sound like a master, don't I? Hehehe... And thanks to the year 2010 too, now I know what discourse and framing mean, thus I can apply it in writing and editing stories for the Government's cultural magazine “Friends of Indonesia”. Yet again, I am doing it freelance with no big amount of money.

Parents and most people may not see I have done fast progress in 2010 in terms of getting a job and earning money. However, I am still amazed at things I have done this year. Maybe I cannot compete with the pace of others, but I am happy in working things I like. Quoting my friend here that maybe I am not really looking for coins, am looking for points.

Welcoming 2011, I am expecting other great and significant experiences come to my life. Hopefully I will learn many new things in a year ahead. Hopefully my idealism can be friend with family's expectation. Hopefully the points will lead me to coins.

Happy New Year!!!

Spanish Community of Usakti Jakarta's picture is taken from Efi Yanuar's facebook photo album
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=468777896630&set=a.468777786630.250684.664471630#!/photo.php?fbid=1561359311870&set=a.1561347711580.72716.1171933673

3 comments:

  1. well, sometimes we really are having that some kind of thought Flo. just enjoy. ypu'll find a way. :)

    encantada conocerte Flo. :D

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  2. Gracias amiga...

    The best is yet to come, right?

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  3. i love your writing! you really are a good writer, you should really be an author or travel writer. but anyhow, i really think it's so cool to already have a master in journalism, it's definitely my dream. wohoo, happy to be your new co-worker (:

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