Surat Dari Oslo Letter from Oslo

Surat Dari Oslo

Sudah kuterima surat undangan
Terima kasih, jadi anakmu akan menikah?
Baru ini kali terima berita, ah, ternyata
anak-anak kita telah merasa cukup dewasa.
Katakan saja sebagian tugasmu selesai sudah
dan tentu selamat saya ucapkan, terbayang, kalian
mendampingi penganten "jejer-jejer ngagem sinjang"
tak sempat terharu barangkali, terlalu sibuk
semua harus berlangsung sesuai rancangan.
Pasti kalian juga merasa sangat dekat, - saat itu -
terikat lagi oleh peristiwa khidmat, - lebih dari biasa -
Bagaimana, apakah memang jadi
menikah dengan yang dulu itu pacarnya?
Sayang, aku tidak dapat hadir apalagi membantu
meringankan dalam kesibukan yang meriah
sekaligus mengukhuhkan suatu keberhasilan.
Bukankah orang tua ikut mencetak nasib anaknya
meski Khalil Gibran agak berbeda pendapatnya.
Aku ingat sekali waktu masih kecil,
ia berbaju biru kotak-kotak, dengan rambut tebal
dikepang dua, sehat, bulat dan manja -
ikut bertamu dengan ibunya, menarik-narik baju
berbisik merengek: ‘mama pulang!' -
Apa masih tetap manja, apa mereka dengar nasehat,
bahkan masih mau menurutinya
Lalu kini, siraman air kembang dahulu, midodareni
sebelum esok menghadap penghulu -
Tarub janur, gamelan dang ending kebo giro
penganten bertemu, berlempar siih, wijidadi,
sindur ibu, pangkon ayah, dulangan, kucar-kucur
sesuai adat upacara Jawa.
Aku mohon pada yang Maha Kuasa supaya
Terkabul semua keinginan mereka, dan . . .
 
Aku sendiri, dahulu sesudahnya merasa sangat kehilangan
Waktu anak gadisku menikah, kemudian diboyong pergi
Di rumah lengang, kamarnya kosong tak tega kujenguk
di meja makan setiap kali, setahun lamanya
piring-gelas tetap tersedia
Lalu apa kerja kita selain tenang menjadi tua
sedangkan tenang itu soal kepuasan, tetapi
merasa waswas dituntut terus, entah oleh siapa -
 
Sementara itu hidup sehari-hari belangsung terus
di Norwegia cuaca mulai dingin, dan kesibukan biasa
untuk membuat manisan frambos, arbei, tak berhenti
memburu waktu mengejar musim dingin dengan cuaca keruh
beda jauh dengan kesibukan kita di Indonesia
Lalu, aku akan melukis pandangan alam salju
tapi dengan pancaran terang aneka kembang tropika
teriring hampa mendambakan kehangatan khatulistiwa . . .
 
Kami telah terima undangan, terima kasih, sedangkan
lukisan hadiah untuk penganten akan dikirim segera
dengan doa selamat bahagia, serta maaf, tak dapat
mengunjungi pernikahannya.
 
Iowa, 1985
 
 
 

Letter from Oslo

I have received your invitation –
thank you.
So your daughter is getting married?
I get news from you after so long – and it turns out
our children feel they’re grown-ups already!
Now you can say part of your duty is finished
and I certainly congratulate you, imagining
how you will escort the bride to the sound of gongs
probably unable to show your feelings –
far too busy; everything must go according to plan.
I’m sure you’ll feel closer than ever at this moment
bonded by the solemn occasion.
Tell me – is the man she’s marrying the boyfriend I remember?
I’m sorry I can’t be there, and even more sorry that I can’t
share in the hard work of this joyful get-together,
and celebrate your achievement –
isn’t it true that parents shape the fate of their children
even if Khalil Gibran thinks differently?
I have a vivid memory of her as a child
wearing a blue checked dress, her thick hair
in two plaits, healthy, chubby and naughty;
she was visiting with her mother, tugging at your dress
whispering and nagging Mama, let’s go home!
Is she still that wilful? Children – do they ever listen to advice
let alone follow it!
I’m imagining the sprinkling of the flower water,
before they face the priest tomorrow;
the wedding platform – the young coconut leaf,
gamelan instruments, the kebo giro tune;
and the meeting of the bride and groom, the sprinkling of betel leaves
mother’s red and white handkerchief, father carrying
the food tray and the sweet cakes – all the Javanese traditions.
I pray that they get everything they wish for, and. . . .
 
I remember it myself - how, afterwards, it was a great bereavement.
When my daughter got married and was taken away
the house felt too large.
I couldn't bring myself to look into her empty room.
For a whole year a plate and a water glass were set for her.
But then, what can we do but grow old calmly -
though calm depends on contentment, and I feel
uneasy, constantly pursued - who knows by whom.
 
Meanwhile, life goes on.
The weather in Norway is getting cold, and there's the usual
scramble to make raspberry and strawberry jam in time,
before winter sets in, with its turbulent weather.
So different from our lives in Indonesia.
I shall paint a view of this world of snow, but with a bright
burst of tropical flowers
to convey my hopeless longing for the Equator . . .
 
I have received your invitation - thank you.
The painting is a present for the bride, and it will be posted soon
with prayers for their happiness - and apologies
for not being at the wedding.
 
Iowa, 1985
 
Coming soon!
 

Original Poem by

Toeti Heraty

Translated by

Ulrich Kratz with Carole Satyamurti Language

Indonesian

Country

Indonesia