My Life, My Story, My Testimony

Have you ever feel like you don't belong? Yes, I have. I don't talk that much to people for what I have been through since not everyone would understand the story. Yet, there is a family, Pak Kurniadi and Mam Ambar as well as their three childrens, Billy, Varetta, and Amanda, that I don't mind to share my stories. I hope this writing could please them in some way. On Tuesday, 25 July 2017, Pak Kur's family pays a visit to my home town and we meet up in one of the famous tourist attractions. If you are wondering who they are, well, they are a happy family that I met when I studied in Leeds, United Kingdom. At that time, I pursued a master degree, while Pak Kur joined the PhD. I often spent time with them for either special occassion or just regular visit. When the school holiday came and I was alone in the flat since all of my friends went on a trip, I slept over at their house. So, for me, they are like my family. It has been a year since I graduated and now, Pak K...

On Tuesday, 6 June 2017, I took my time for a walk starting from Gambir Train Station to Kuningan City Mall. Wait, hold on, did you say you go to Kuningan on foot? Yes, I did. Actually, we did, I and my younger brother. Are you guys insane? We were just having fun, in an uncommon way, I guess. From Central Jakarta to South Jakarta within 2 hours and it’s 45 minutes longer than Google Maps predicted. Such an achievement for us (haha). Anyway, it’s not what I am trying to say. When I walked over a bridge, I saw 3 skyscrapers on my right side which made Jakarta looked as modern, fancy, and fabulous as any other capital city. However, on my left side, a river with garbage, plastic bottles, and dark muddy water. It is dirty, polluted, and not a welcome sight. I am not trying to dramatize thing. Yet, indeed, it grieved me. The Skyscrapers on the Right The River on the Left As a chemist which has a major in environmental chemistry, I know the standard parameter for a good, cl...

Have you ever been in an unexpected turn in the road of life and you have no choice but to follow it? Because I have. I never mean to be either a researcher or a lecturer, but I have got an offer for a researcher. Do I accept it? Of course I do since it is a lucrative offer from one of the best countries in waste management. For someone with an interest in energy and material recovery from waste, what can be more honorable than this? You may ask, after you finish with that, what will you do?  Well, words ain't even been invented yet. Yeah, finally I quote a saying of Dominic Toretto in Fast and Furious 7 when he speaks to Sean Boswell. Lol. If you have been in this situation too, proverb said it will end up in the place we are supposed to be. Hopefully so. Before getting the lucrative offer, here is what I am dealing with when my plans perish. A steep hazy road laid in front of me.  Stage 1. Blaming others: dad, mam, little brother, even the government, moreover The Creator ...

You may ask, where on earth did you get an idea to write about marriage? Even you haven't been married.  I know, it seems like an absurd topic by someone like me, but I feel like my brain's engine is flooded with too many pieces of speculations. So, I decide to complete the puzzle by writing it down. Here it is. Starting from when I got back home after finishing my master degree. One day my mom asked me to buy some essentials in a store nearby. The store owner knows my mom which means she also knows me though I rarely have even a small talk with her. Soon after I set my foot in her store, she asked whether I already have a boyfriend or not and when I will get married. Lol. I was like having a surprise welcoming party. Anyway, I don't feel offended by her rude questions since it is a fact that I am on marriage age, well, at least that's what the regulation in my country states, additionally, almost all of my friends from high school and college have been married...

I’ve ever wonder how could someone study overseas? How does s/he pay the tuition? If their parents do, then how much do they earn monthly? Later, I have friends who study abroad and they are self-funding. I was very glad because they didn’t mind when I cross-questioned them. Believe me, the amount of money they have, no, their parents’ to be precised, very abundant. They are very rich. Up until now, I still couldn’t imagine a number with that bunch of zero. Geez! As for me, I’ve got a master degree in the United Kingdom because the government of Indonesia financed me.   I am from mid-low social status family. My parents are civil servants. If they were in the top-level position, I might be able to study abroad with their supports. Unfortunately, they weren’t. They even don’t have a legacy from my grandparents since my grandparents also have nothing, except their house they live in ‘till now. So, nothing to sell for studying overseas. If there is no reason to hope, it is reaso...

What can you give to the country? For all this time, I have the concept in my head, but I never take my time to put the details of it until that question had been asked. I tried to look again deep inside of me and found this. I am a chemist, graduated from Satya Wacana Christian University, Salatiga, Indonesia. I took a major in Environmental Chemistry and that led me to many research projects related to waste recovery. Sounds boring? I know, but I am kind of enjoy it (haha). Okay, you’re weird. What can I say? This is what people called passion, I guess. When I discover a method that can change a waste into a valuable material, I take delight of it. However, I feel futile because all of those projects only ended up in laboratory or, at best, being published as regional research papers. If that’s the case, how I could give a real solution towards zero-waste and green environment? how I could make a real impact in society to have a better living in healthy environment? Ah, crap!...

Ellen Moran, a writer in Bitesize Bio, a knowledge-sharing platform that concerns Bioscientists in the lab, wrote about a variety of reasons people pursue PhDs: some know from the start that they want to run labs at a university, some feel pressured to go for the top degree in their field, some see it as a natural progression after receiving their masters, and some continue on because they just don’t know what to do next. Which side I am on? None of them (haha). I am confident in my own decisions. I esteem people’s outlooks without looking for their approval for everything. At that time, I was thinking a PhD is a reasonable advancement for my research topic until I changed my mind as the time passed. Here is the story. I was working on waste recovery, particular of which for converting waste plastics into fuel oils, as my project for getting a master degree in the University of Leeds. I have the forethought to put the research into action. You get it, don’t you. The things like e...