Gathering = Kids!

"Ustaz, is he Diki?" asked Mr. Siregar, our director, as I entered the restaurant, the venue for our gathering's gala dinner in that evening. "Yes Pak". I could answer no more because he seemed surprised by something else. "Wow, he is tall now ...even taller than his dad. He was so small when I saw him in our 2007 gathering. Congrats boy!" said him again when my son greeted him. I still remember we shared the same house  in Villa Renata, in our directorate family gathering in 2007 whose theme was Wisata Rohani DPbS. It was 4 years a go and my son was still in 5th grade. Now he is in his 3rd year of secondary school and 170 cm height, the height I've never known from whom he derives!

Kids....may be the best word describing my own theme for our gathering. I have been fighting for the inclusion of our family in our office gathering due to, -other than silaturrahim-, my love for kids. Even if we have to pay more for it. It is hard to describe how nice it is to see them playing here and there freely, shouting in the game, crying -when asking from their mothers, or -if it is still a baby- seeing their lovely eyes looking at you innocently. That is why I had been fully prepared with my DSLR camera to capture the best moments with them. Many of them were successfully captured by my lens, such as Bianca (who has been still shy to me until the last minute of gathering), Ahsan (busy with the football), Aqsa (active boy), Aisha (model stylist), Hafsa (silent and soft) and Ayra (baby-looking curiously at me everytime), just to mention some names. But for the ethical reason I cannot post their pictures right here. I have to have a prior permission form their parents to do that.

I was having my dinner in the restaurant (together with other participants) when I saw Hafsa (3 years old) sat next to me, looking at me with her sleepy eyes. Having known that her mother could not come, I asked her whether she was sleepy, and extended my hands to help. She nodded and then accepted my hands. Within seconds she fell asleep in my arm and I kept walking around restaurant to avoid noisy sound from our participant who contributed his/her song on the stage. I really felt a peace in my heart for having a kid sleeping, and her head fall on my shoulder...

It was almost the time when Mr. Bambang Himawan's son then contributed "Bunda"  (sung originally by Melly Guslaw) in honour of his mother. (This teenage was 13 years old and still whimpered to his mom, when we see him  for the first time at Pangrango Hotel, brought by Mr Himawan who worked together for  Standardization for Islamic banking contract in 2006 in Pangrango Hotel, Bogor)

I stopped walking for a while just to make sure that I really heard the right song. This song has become my favorite since my first daughter often sang it when she was in elementary school. But to my curiousity, or may be just a coincidence, now I heard it when I had a sleeping kid in my arm, like what I did with my first daughter, when she was 2 years old. It was the time when her ummi -my wife- was still in Kuala Lumpur, for completing her study. My first daughter would never sleep if she was not in my arm (or my mother's, if I was away).

A grain of tears dropped from my eyes. I could not hold on crying, remembering my difficult times to share with my kids, especially the first born. But I rushed to other spot in the restaurant when I realized that I was sobbing and standing to our close friends, Ms. Ordinary Woman and Ms. Miumiu. Luckily the sound of musical instrument saved my face from everyone in the restaurant hall ....(*sigh)

Whew....sometimes the reality is different from what is expected. While I was thinking of having so many cheerful moments with colleagues, like this gala dinner or futsal match, a sentimental moment just sneaked into our situation...just beyond expectation.

Thank God, for reminding me.
Thanks mate, for your presence
The gathering might not be perfect, but it certainly gave us something