Surat Terbuka Untuk Seseorang Pernah Kupanggil Kakak Disana

 

Yogyakarta, Indonesia, 5 November 2025

Hai, Kak….   

Apa boleh aku memanggil nama lengkapmu? Aku masih hafal lho, Kak. Sangat hafal. Karena nama itu pernah tidak putus kupinta pada Allah. Hebat ya, Kak? Tapi, disurat terbuka ini aku tidak ingin memperlihat nama aslimu. Karena bagiku Kakak hanyalah seorang tamu yang pernah mampir dihidupku 13 tahun yang lalu. Terima kasih sudah sempat datang kehidupku ya, Kak?! Terima kasih sudah membiarkanku tahu akan adanya sosok seperti dirimu.

Kak, kalau kamu menemukan dan membaca surat terbuka ini, aku hanya ingin kamu tahu keadaan aku saat menulis surat ini, saat ini dimana aku sudah tidak lagi ingin bertemu denganmu, ingin tahu kabar dan segalanya tentang dirimu. Sekarang, aku mulai bisa menuliskan isi hatiku kepadamu karena aku sudah merelakan jikalau kamu memang tidak pernah ditakdirkan Allah untukku. Allah hanya ingin aku mengenalmu, Kak, untuk membangkitkan kembali semangat belajar, berkarya, dan ikhlas menerima apapun takdir-Nya.

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The Beginning

Hai, Kak,

Boleh kamu putar kembali memori diotakmu? Kakak merupakan individu yang pintar, jadi aku yakin sekali (kalau kamu suatu hari) kamu mendapati surat terbuka ini, kamu akan bisa mengenali siapa aku, Kak, berdasarkan klu yang kutulis disini.

Hari itu Hari Selasa, tanggal 29 Mei 2012 disebuah tempat kursus Bahasa Inggris di  Area Kotabaru, Kota Yogyakarta (perlukah kusebut lembaga bahasa itu?), pertama kali aku melihatmu. Mungkin kamu tidak sadar ada seorang gadis yang mengamati gerak-gerikmu sejak kamu pertama kali membuka pintu ruangan kelas itu. Pada hari pertama itu kamu mengambil kursi diarah seberangku sehingga aku bisa melihat dirimu dengan jelas. Selain itu, jika aku tidak salah mengingat, kamu merupakan peserta kursus terakhir yang datang pada malam hari itu, tentu seorang dengan karisma se-tinggi-mu langsung mencuri perhatianku. Kemudian, tutor kelas kita dihari itu meminta dirimu melakukan perkenalan dihadapan teman-teman  sekelas.

Saat itu Kakak sedang menempuh studi bidang Manajemen di  Fakultas Ekonomika&Binis Universitas Gadjah Mada, kan? Kalau aku tidak salah juga Kakak masuk perkuliahan ditahun 2019—satu tahun sebelum aku masuk universitas. Setelahnya, aku bahkan bisa menebak tanggal lahir dan zodiak Kakak, lho! Hehe. It is because I was your biggest fan, Kak!

Oke, kita kembali kemasa kita mengikuti kursus Bahasa dulu ya, Kak?!

Apa Kakak ingat tutor kita pernah memberikan tugas presentasi didepan kelas dengan tema sebuah tempat atau sebuah negara dimana mengibaratkan kita sedang berlaga sebagai seorang pemandu. Apa Kakak ingat ada seorang peserta kursus yang membawakan materi tentang Negara Taiwan? Itu aku, Kak! Aku sangat terobsesi dengan segala hal berkaitan dengan Taiwan. Negara itu masih merupakan bagian dari Negara Tiongkok yang sedang mengusahakan kebebasannya menjadi negara sendiri dari induk negara, Tiongkok (seperti aku yang pernah berusaha sekuat tenaga melepas bayang-bayangmu).

Kamu ingat nggak, Kak? Saat itu Kakak memperkenalkan negara-negara Skandinavia kepada kita yang hadir dikelas itu. Kakak menyampaikan presentasimu dengan percaya diri, tidak seperti aku, Kak, aku justru grogi setengah mati ketika memperkenalkan Taiwan kepadamu dan teman-teman dikelas. Sama grogi dan salah tingkah ketika mendapat giliran praktik group speaking denganmu dan satu orang lagi (maaf, aku lupa siapa dia). Aku menjatuhkan bolpoinku, kemudian bukuku, karena aku tidak bisa menahan rasa senang berbicara denganmu, Kak!

Sayangnya, waktu pertemuan kita tidak sampai akhir periode kursus itu, Kak. Kalau tidak salah jelang lima atau empat pertemuan terakhir kelas, Kakak berbicara pada tutor yang mengajar hari itu, kalau Kakak tidak memungkinkan untuk ikut final test bersama kami karena Kakak perlu mengurusi  urusan perkuliahan Kakak juga di luar Indonesia (hanya saja aku tidak begitu jelas ke negara mana Kakak akan pergi). Kenapa aku tahu ya, Kak? Padahal kalau Kakak ingat saat itu semua peserta sudah keluar kelas, mungkin Kakak pikir hanya tinggal dirimu seorang bersama tutor kelas. Saat itu aku masih berada dikelas, Kak, mengepak buku kedalam tasku. Aku kaget dengan apa yang baru kudengar. Tidak menyangka akan secepat itu pertemuan kita dikelas. Aku bahkan belum berkenalan denganmu lebih serius, Kak. Dan, benar saja. Dipertemuan kelas berikutnya, aku sudah tidak melihat Kakak lagi. Kakak sedang dimana saat itu? Aku mencatat tanggal pertemuan terakhir dikelas itu adalah 18 Juni 2012, Hari Senin.

Image is taken from: Pinterest/Flickr

2013

Hai, Kak...

Kamu tahu, Kak, demi bisa melupakan dimana kamu setelah satu tahun sejak kelas kursus itu, aku coba melirik teman-teman laki-laki dikampusku. Ya, berharap ada seseorang sepertimu yang bisa mengaburkan rasa penasaran tentang dimanakah dirimu saat itu, aku ingin tahu keberadaan dan kabarmu. Aku kembali melihat dalam-dalam seseorang yang pernah kusukai sebelum bertemu denganmu. Tapi, hasilnya sudah berbeda, Kak. Tidak ada lagi rasa suka untuknya. Diawal perkuliahan, aku bisa jadi melihatnya begitu rupawan (meskipun kata teman dekatku tidak begitu), namun, mataku melihatnya sudah beda. Dia berubah menjadi seorang playboy, buaya darat, dan sejenisnya. Mungkin kalau dimasa itu sudah muncul istlah “redflag”, ya itulah dirinya. Tapi, dia—teman sekelasku sewaktu semester pertama dan kedua diperkuliahan waktu itu, terlanjur kujadikan visualisasi dari tokoh novel yang ingin segera kuselesaikan ceritanya. Dia telah menginsiprasi lahirnya tokoh Charly Abraham Putra, sementara Kakak-lah yang menginspirasiku menciptakan tokoh Romeo Dirgantara. Rasanya aku sudah saat ingin memperkenalkan tokoh Romeo Dirgantara kepadamu, Kak. I wish I can finish my draft as soon as possible, Kak!

Kak, ditahun ini, satu tahun setelah kamu menghilang, aku mulai mencoba buka hati untuk laki-laki lain. Harapanku cuma satu: ketika aku bersamanya aku bisa mengikis semua ingatanku tentangmu yang tak kunjung berkabar saat itu. Orang itu merupakan laki-laki yang baik, Kak, dia rela berbuat apa saja untuk membuktikan perasaannya. Teman-temanku banyak yang mendukungku melanjutkan kisah kita. Namun, sepertinya aku yang belum siap dengan itu, Kak. Aku justru merasa bersalah kepadanya. Karena didalam kepalaku, aku masih saja membandingkan dirinya dengan diri Kakak. Aku memutuskan akhiri semuanya begitu saja, tanpa memberi tahu dia yang sebenarnya. Karena pada waktu itu akupun tidak yakin dia bisa menerima alasanku yang masih terjebak perasaan pada orang lama.

Berakhirnya hubungan kasih aku dan orang itu tentu saja diketahui teman-temanku yang lainnya. Ya, mereka menyayangkan karena jalinan kasih kita terlalu singkat. Tapi, apa mau dikata, aku juga tidak bisa membohongi isi hatiku, kalau aku masih ingin berpetualang mencarimu jejakmu, Kak. Akan tetapi, tidak ada seorang teman dekatku yang tahu tentang dirimu lho, Kak. Semua tentangmu kusimpan rapat-rapat hanya untukku diri sendiri. Jadi, kalau mereka menanyakan aku sering memasang status dan tweet galau, gundah gulana pada waktu itu karena siapa, hanya bisa kujawab karena seseorang, tetapi bukan orang yang terakhir datang saat itu.

Hai, teman-teman dekatku, kalau kalian secara kebetulan maupun tidak menemukan surat terbuka teman kalian yang satu ini, Kakak yang ada disinilah yang sering membuatku memasang status galau dan gagal move on.

It's like a Forbidden Love |
Image is taken from: Pinterest/Saujasvi

2014

Aku tidak ingat banyak tentang tahun ini, apakah aku masih terbayang-bayang olehmu karena ditahun ini aku sedang disibukan dengan persiapan ujian komprehensif dan penyusunan skripsi sebagai syarat akhir masa studi dan mendapat gelas Sarjana Ekonomi. Ya, kita sama-sama bertitel S.E., Kak. Pernah aku memimpikan gelar kita bersanding dicetakan kartu undangan pernikahan kita kelak. Hehe. Angan tinggallah angan. Lupakan saja.

Sedikit yang kutahu tentangmu ditahun ini, kalau tidak salah mengamati akun Facebook-mu, Kakak sudah kembali ke Jogja, kan? Kembali meneruskan perkuliahan Kakak di Kampus UGM? Mungkin Kakak juga sedang menyusun skripsi juga?

Oh iya, Kakak ingat, aku pernah menghubungi Kakak lewat message di-Facebook. Aku menanyakan bagaimana aku bisa mendapat data untuk penelitian skripsiku dicabang bursa efek yang ada dikampusmu, dan apakah bisa non-mahasiswa kampus tersebut mengaksesnya. Kakak menjawab, bisa dan menyuruhku untuk datang langsung. Sebenarnya saat itu ditengah energi yang banyak tersita dalam penyelesaian tugas akhir, aku mencoba peruntungan kembali untuk mengobrol singkat denganmu, Kak. Maaf ya, Kak, kalau hanya membuang waktu Kakak untuk balas message tidak penting dariku.

Ditahun ini juga aku menyelesaikan studi S-1-ku. Aku sudah lulus, Kak! Sekali lagi, ingin sekali memberitahumu tentang hal ini sekaligus mengundangmu untuk datang keacara wisudaku, Kak. Tapi, tapi, aku terlalu malu untuk mengutarakan hal itu. Lagi-lagi sampai tahun itu berlalu aku hanya bisa memendam perasaan tak bertuan ini. Karena aku tidak tahu kemana dan bagaimana harus mengejarmu.

Satu tahun setelah aku diwisuda, Kakakpun diwisuda dan lulus dari jenjang S-1. Selamat ya, Kak. Ucapanku yang ingin kukatakan padamu lewat message FB pada waktu itu. Tapi, ah, aku malu lagi. Hehe. Kak, tapi, saat kamu mengunggah foto-foto wisuda dengan toga universitas milik Kakak dulu, aku nggak melihat Kakak foto berdua dengan seorang wanita yang mungkin saja jadi bagian paling spesial buat Kakak. Apakah saat itu memang ada dan kalian hanya stay private? Atau, ........?

Ah, sudahlah, Kak, it is okay. As long as you are happy and enjoy to your life, I am happy, too.

 

Mezuniyet | image is taken from: Pinterest/edabeyazzz

2017

Tahun-tahun sebelumnya aku sudah tahu Kakak bekerja di Jakarta. Oleh karena itu, aku memberanikan diri untuk merantau kekota yang sama denganmu. Harapanku masih sama seperti dulu, Kak, yaitu bisa kembali bertegur sapa denganmu. Tahun sebelumnya aku memutuskan keluar dari pekerjaan pertamaku sebagai Staf Marketing diindustri MICE di Jogja dan menguatkan hati dan niat mencari pekerjaan di Jakarta.

Aku mendapatkannya setelah berulang kali mengalami penolakan. Ini merupakan hal yang wajar kan, Kak? Aku sangat bersemangat menjalani hari-hari sebagai pekerja di ibukota ini, Kak. Karena setiap hari aku memiliki keyakinan memiliki kesempatan untuk bertemu denganmu dimanapun itu.

Informasi yang kubaca lagi dari Facebook Kakak—eh, bukan, kali ini sudah lebih modern dan profesional, karena kita sudah saling menambahkan jejaring di LinkedIn. Pasti Kakak nggak ingat yang satu ini ya? It does’t matter. Aku cuma mau bilang, sepemahaman aku, ditahun ini kalau tidak salah, Kakak berada di Australia, tepatnya di Sydney bukan, Kak? Kakak Sedang menempuh post-graduate study disana? Lokasi yang sangat jauh dan tidak mungkin kutempuh lagi, Kak. Akupun berpikir kalau memang Kakak tidak pernah ditakdirkan Allah untukku. Kakak hanyalah seseorang yang Allah lewatkan dan perlihatkan padaku agar aku bisa memotivasi diri untuk berkembang lebih baik dan memiliki semangat menggapai cita-citaku seperti Kakak yang sangat beruntung mewujudkan setiap mimpimu.

Oh iya, Kak, sampai pada masa inipun aku masih berusaha dan terus berusaha untuk menamatkan cerita Tiara, Charly, dan Romeo. Meskipun penuh keterlambatan, aku akan tetap melanjutkannya. Sebelumnya aku sudah pernah menyelesaikan draf pertamanya, Kak. Aku mematikan karakter Romeo Dirgantara karena keputusasaanku menemukan dirimu kembali. Namun, setelah kubaca ulang, aku terlalu takut tulisanku ini menjadi kenyataan, seperti halnya ucapan adalah doa. Maka, aku menuliskan ulang dan ingin merubah akhir ceritanya.

Kak, tungguin ya, akhir cerita mereka bertiga. Aku janji akan menyelesaikan dan menuliskan dirimu dalam Ucapan Terima Kasih Penulis kelak.

Image is taken from: Pinterest/ben87850183

2022
Pandemi Covid-19 yang tidak pernah disangka-sangka oleh semua orang didunia ini ternyata sudah sedikit berlalu. Semua orang seperti sudah biasa dengan kebiasaan barunya. Online class and meeting, work from home or anywhere, selama mereka tidak saling berinteraksi langsung. Kak, disaat seperti ini aku sebenarnya ingin mencari kabar dan keberadaanmu lagi.  Aku ingin menanyakan kabarmu; apakah Kakak baik-baik saja, apakah Kakak pernah terjangkit virus itu; bagaimana caramu untuk bertahan dimasa itu? Bagaimana caranya, Kak? Sementara Kakak menghapus akun Facebook Kakak? Karena aku tidak bisa mencari namamu lagi disana. Kakak bahkan mengunci akun Instagram-mu Kak. Sepertinya semesta mendukungku berhenti mengejar bayangmu. Baiklah, aku menyibukkan diri dengan bekerja dikantor. Sekalipun seringkali mengalami hal-hal tidak mengenakkan dikantor dan ingin rasanya punya teman untuk berbagi cerita yang dilalui hari itu. Tetapi, aku memiliki semangat baru dalam bekerja diperusahaan itu, Kak. Aku bertemu seseorang yang mirip sepertimu: dia terlihat kalem, namun memiliki ambisi kuat untuk maju dan berkembang, dia juga seorang yang bertanggungjawab dengan tugas-tugas yang diletakkan padanya, sayangnya, ada satu hal yang kuingin tau darinya, kenapa dia menolak jabatan yang akan diamanahkan kepadanya. Yah, ternyata dia memilih mengundurkan diri dari perusahaan satu tahun setelahmya. Tanpa adanya orang itu, terkadang bayang Kakak muncul lagi dibenakku. Bertahun-tahun aku berhasil move on dari segala rasa penasaran akan dirimu seakan sia-sia. Seolah menyuruhku untuk kembali meminta jaga asa dan mencarimu lagi. Tapi, aku menolak keinginan diriku sendiri untuk kembali mengharapkan dirimu tiba-tiba datang lagi kehidupku. Hampir dua tahun aku berusaha menghapus bayangmu, tentu tidak akan kubuat diriku kembali terjebak dalam penyesalan masa lalu. Aku harus terus berjalan maju kan, Kak?! Memang tidak ada yang menemaniku dalam proses hijrahku saat itu. Aku niatkan agar Allah kelak membantuku lupakanmu dan memiliki rasa kasihan padaku sehingga ia mengirimkan seorang pengganti sepertimu bahkan lebih baik untukku. Ya, mungkin seseorang seperti mantan pegawai dikantorku itu.

 Oh, tidak, Kak. Aku menciptakan karakter lain sebagai temanku bercerita tentang menjalani proses hijrah ini. Mereka adalah Ardyan dan Erika. Cerita mereka akan kubagikan nanti di-link diakhir surat ini ya, Kak?

Cover is designed by my friend: @nanangmr

Baca: Cerita Mereka (Ardyan&Erika Berkisah) - Klik disini

 

2024

Hai, Kak...

Ditahun ini aku sudah cukup berhasil move on dari bayanganmu bahkan aku sudah tidak mau tahu apapun tentangmu lagi. Yang aku selalu pinta kepada Allah adalah hanya aku minta untuk pertemukan aku dan Kakak kembali bukan sebagai takdir pasangan, tapi temukan kami sebagai rekan kerja atau relasi profesional saja. Sehingga dengan begitu aku akan bisa tersenyum bangga seraya menjabat tanganmu dan berkata dalam hati, “hai, orang yang tidak pernah putus kudoakan dalam doa usai shiolat-ku agar selalu dipermudah jalan kehidupannya dan selalu diberikan kebahagian oleh Allah.”

Meskipun ditahun ini pula aku baru mengalami sebuah kejadian yang berhasil mendewasakanku, bisa membuatku semakin menerima ketetapan Allah, Kak. Beberapa teman pernah kuceritakan tentang hal ini. Akan tetapi, tidak ada yang benar-benar bisa menenangkan pergolakan batinku pada waktu itu. Rasanya ingiiinnn sekaaaliiii punya teman cerita, teman berbagi cerita apapun itu, Kak. Aku ingin didengar, terkadang. Ada kalanya aku juga butuh memberi masukan, berdiskusi dua arah dengan seseorang. Sekali lagi perrnah kubayangkan orang itu adalah kamu, Kak. Sudahlah. Aku menepis bayang itu lagi dan kucoba fokus menjalani hidup, mengejar cita-cita yang baru akan terealisasi.

Ditahun ini aku beranikan diri mendaftar sertfifikasi bidang profesi yang sedang kujalani saat ini. Kita tidak mungkin hanya diam ditempat semula saja kan, Kak? Suatu hari nanti kita harus melangkah maju terus, kan? Itulah kenapa aku memutuskan mengambil sertifikasi profesi itu, Kak. Suatu saat ilmu yang akan kuperoleh akan bisa bermanfaat untuk Bapak/Ibu, Kakak-Kakak Pengusaha, serta membantu teman-teman pegawai diluar sana mendapatkan haknya. Semoga aku bisa dan konsisten mewujudkan cita-citaku, Kak.

Image is taken from: Pinteresr/salsabilazuhraa

 2025

Kak, sekian dulu ya, surat terbuka-ku ini. Sekali lagi, tujuanku menuliskan surat terbuka ini bukan untuk mencarimu, berharap kamu kembali lagi, tidak sama sekali. Aku juga mau move on, Kak. Aku ingin memberi ruang bagi orang lain masuk dalam hidup. Seseorang yang mungkin seperti Mas “L”.

Kak, Bahagia selalu dimanapun Kakak berada saat ini. Bahagiakan juga seseorang yang sudah beruntung mendapatkan hatimu. Jaga dia ya, Kak? Oh iya, Kak, sejauh apapun Kakak melangkah, jangan lupa untuk selalu memberi kabar pada keluarga, terutama orang tua Kakak ya?!

Kak, sampai jumpa dipuncak kesuksesan kita masing-masing. Aku percaya dengan kemampuan yang kita punya, kita akan bertemu didunia profesional.

Ada Tiara dan Erika yang sudah menungguku untuk menyelesaikan misi kita. Sampai jumpa!

"Hai, kita akan segere bertemu.
Tunggu aku ya?" - A

Images are our own property

Warm regards,

 

M. G. T. - 顾梦琪 

Note: 

Kak, ini sebuah lagu buat Kakak, yang selalu kuputar: 

Selamat (Selamat Tinggal) - Virgoun, Audy

***

Credits: 

Allah Subhana wa ta'ala, selalu umat-Nya meskipun penuh dosa dan Maha Pengampun;

Diri Sendiri yang sudah berani melangkah maju dan melupakan rasa dimsa lalu; 

Mas L, atas kehadirannya ditempat kerja waktu itu yang bikin bahagia kalau lihat dia;

Pinterest, sudah menyediakan gambar-gambar relevan; 

GWP; 

Wattpad;

Spotify; 

Youtube.

A Book Review "Well, That Was Unexpected!" | #blogsocialdiary

Blurb:

Mortified by her mother’s matchmaking. Sharlot Citra agrees to ONE date with George Clooney Tanuwijaya, son of the most famous family in Indonesia. But when the media gets wind of it, things quickly spiral and the two families get swept up in a highly publicized romantic stunt where everyone has a role and a secret to play.

 

Here is my review…

First of all, I will start with the characters:

·        Sharlot Citra:

I could imagine the visualization of her. I also find it easy to love, hate (for a little), and pity her. She had been stirred by her single mother all the time. It made sense since her mother is a full-time Asian mother typically even though they lived in the U.S. Her mother brings Asian values toward her only daughter. I can imagine how she was disappointed and upset when she found out her only daughter tried to lose her virginity to her boyfriend, Bradley.  Her mom plans to take Sharlot (she has a Chinese name called Shi Jun) to Jakarta, Indonesia for summer vacation. During the time her mother hopes Sharlot breaks up with her boyfriend. Back in time, Sharlot’s Mom grew up in Indonesia. So, she wants Sharlot to know her basic identity, that she still has Indonesian bleed. However, the things that happen in Jakarta are out of her mind. Her mom has trapped her for a “blind” date with a guy. However, who could guess it? That guy is the heir to a big Indonesian company. He is….

·        George Clooney Tanuwijaya:

His family background is that of a wealthy Chinese-Indonesia family in Jakarta. He is the elder son of the family.  He is only about 17 years old but is forecasted to be an heir to their family company. Also, he is pointed to have a responsibility to develop and launch its mobile application. It almost doesn’t go smoothly because of his behavior before it is launched. At the story's beginning, he gets caught by his dad and younger sister when he does a normal personal activity for a teenage boy in a room alone. It leads his dad and younger sister to use his account to chat with a girl nickname on the internet. His younger sister and dad introduce George's identity to the girl. It ends up with them having a vacation together in Bali while his family plans to launch their mobile application at the same time.

The image is provided by Goodreads

Author Jesse Q. Sutanto created the storyline, and each character is so good. She started by describing a female adolescent (or she can be called a young adult?!) who has a high curiosity about things that only adult people do. That girl teenager had discussed "that thing" with her boyfriend before her mother caught them in her room. I also could say that the author is easy to describe how the Asian parents act since she is an Asian person, too. I could feel her characters' emotions when I was reading it. It feels so touching. Perhaps, I also live in Southeast Asia—the country where George Clooney and his family live.

 

Sharlot Citra is an Indonesian daughter who has lived in America since she was born. For the exact, she is a Chinese-Indonesia bleed. Her mother never told or brought her to their home, Jakarta. Her mother has her own words related to it. So, Sharlot felt unfamiliar when they landed at Jakarta Airport for the first time. She thought that her life was in California, not in Jakarta. Additionally, her mom hacked her ShareIt account with her daughter’s profile and chatted with a young man. Who thinks that it will bring Sharlot’s Mom to her high school memories, too? Sharlot and her mom’s trip to Bali is not only unforgettable for Sharlot but also for her mom.

And, the young man who is Sharlot’s Mom chatting with is George Clooney. A teenage boy whose ShareIt account is being hacked by his dad and younger sister to get a new girlfriend. At least, they could make George and that girl’s relationship value their company stock and brand since they are working to publish a mobile network application. George is the person in charge of it.

 

Thanks to Jesse for bringing up and letting the whole world know how beautiful my hometown is! It is Bali!

 

Sharlot and George developed their feeling while they had a short vacation in Bali. George’s family plans to launch their mobile application, OneLiner in Bali. They invited a journalist team to shoot their daily vacation there. In the end, the journalist becomes so cruel to Sharlot. She leaked Sharlot’s past affair with her ex-boyfriend in America and forced George to take responsibility for it. George’s family was mad, no, they only thought they were a bit disappointed in Sharlot. It made Sharlot's mom and George’s Eighth Aunt keep their distance for a while since the news was spreading out.

Sharlot’s mom plans to take back Sharlot to America and make her forget about the thing that happened recently. Sharlot realized that she could not leave George with this misunderstanding. For a fact, Sharlot has already fallen for George due to their time together in Bali. So, she could not leave the situation between them just to end in that way. George’s idea is to make it up and launch his family company’s mobile application for the young generation while they open up their feeling and relationships to the public.

 

Read: Petualangan Sherina 2 Movie Review, here

This is my first review in English fully. I am sorry if it is not perfect completely yet. Furthermore, it is my first time to complete English reading literature. So, I still do not know how to write it well. I will make it better again in my next writing. Anyway, thank you for visiting this simple #blogsocialdiary. Feel free to scroll down some posts you are interested in. 😊 

You can also read my review on Goodreads here. 

Read, also: A Week To Forever Book Review, here

32 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ME | Alika #blogsocialdiary

 

Edited by Canva | @blogsocialdiary 

Why it should be 32? 

It is because I am turning 32 this year. Welcome To 30's Club!

Here they are!

1. I was born on the most beautiful island in Indonesia. 

2. I have a lot of stories on this island.

3. I guess I dropped my first love at first sight on the island. He was one of my classmates in the English course class.  

4. I am truly Indonesian—I am a half-bleed of Javanese and Sundanese. 

5. Religion? Let’s be a friend without asking about it. 

6. Some Taurus traits define me so much.

Image is taken from Openverse | The Rock Bar Bali

7. When I was young, my parents put me in some courses (math, language, etc.) but, I am only interested in language.

8. In junior high school, my English final test probation was higher than my Indonesian score. I got scolded by my mom because of it. (Of course, at the time I thought English was easier than my own native language);

9. Also, in junior high school, I studied Japanese for a very short time. I learned it because of FOMO (if that phrase existed in 2005). 

10. I have studied in two different types of schools (the state and private schools); 

11. When I was in a religious private school, I learned more about tolerance. It was so much fun since I got friends from any religious state, and we never made it a big problem!  

12. I had a friend who was always in the same school (since I was on the island and Java). It was accidental, but it will be a fun fact to remember forever! 

Image is taken from Openverse | school life, now a memory

13. I got my first glasses in the first grade of senior high school. The minus scale in my glasses ranges from approximately -1.50 to -1.25. 

14. It seemed I was an introverted person since I was young; 

15. I did not have many friends in high school. I was busy finding my real adolescent identity. Also, what truly my passion is;

16. My passion is about the literature. Yes, it is Indonesian literature. I started to love to notice my Indonesian teacher taught it. I loved it more than when she taught me about grammar things. (I am sorry, Madam.);

17. I joined the Indonesian literature intra-curricular class. I enjoyed making the short film, making a script, and discussing it with my teammate and the teacher. 

18. I have just found that my hobby is writing. I started to write a Fan-Fiction.

Image is taken from Openverse | Introverts march in the streets

19. My first Fan Fiction comes from my favorite contestants from Akademi Fantasi Indosiar (AFI). Now, I am feeling ashamed to recall that fan fiction. (LOL) 

20. After writing Fan Fiction, I started to write short stories about adolescent friendship: adventure, friendship-romantic themed. 

21. When I was in the university, I got a chance to join a writing short course. It was my big dream to dare! From that moment, I never expected I would meet many friends who are interested in books and writing, and they are also authors! 

22. Because of that writing short course, the alumni formed a reading community. Our “Oldman” said a reading community is needed to support us—he means if there are no readers who would get our published book one day? However, The COVID-19 pandemic made our community go down. We were inactive. ☹

Image is taken from Openverse | book

23. Since the First Love I met in junior high school, I never fell in love again until I met him in 2012. He was my senior in our English class. We are from two different universities.

24. He wasn’t my first love however he was the one who I think that he is my first love. 

25. Actually, my favorite type of man is different from his looks. But, I also don’t expect that I could fall for him so badly. 

26. I didn’t regret it. I made it as a lesson for my future love-life in the future. I won’t give anyone to pursue myself if I still have another feeling haven’t finished yet to another man. I won’t make a similar mistake twice. 

27. I met my Ex when we were in the university. To be exact, when we did our pre-final thesis as our university requirement for taking the next step in the university—thesis. 

Image is taken from Openverse | robot love

28. However, my Ex has nothing special compared to my crush who I had met in the English course outside the campus. (Eh, could I insist on calling him a Crush? We even didn’t to each other much) 

29. I feel sorry to my Ex in that moment. 

30. From 2011 to recent days, I have kept in contact with my close friends, some Super Girls who turned into Super Women now, I have met them as fans of one of the Indonesian boy groups. Now, I never feel ashamed anymore that I have liked SM*SH. Because of it, I have the Super Girls until now! Thanks, our heroes! 

31. I even imagined that one day, on my wedding day my Super Girls could be my bride-maids. Hopefully. 

32. My Other 7-Super Girls haven’t known yet about the man I met in my English class until now. I only keep his face, his shadow alone by myself. All of my best prayers go to him even though I am not on his side (for now). 

Image is taken from Openverse | Thank You!

The Most Stable Badminton Players from Taiwan 2023 - Badminton Players Review #blogsocialdiary Version

 I think The Chinese Taipei National Badminton surprised us with their players starting to show their skills last year. Some players showed their techniques and shots to the audiences who enjoyed their matches. As we see, a player became a winner of the Super 300 tournament earlier. After that, some other newcomers to the World Tour series are also being competed to show the result of their training period. Last year, we also had a comeback moment from the Gold Medalist Tokyo Olympics. They had been down after they got it. Yet, they built their confidence, maintained their skill and technique, and kept their communication way. 

Image from Lee Chia Hsin's Facebook FP

I have chosen these Taiwanese badminton players based on their best performance (as long they got into the Quarterfinal, Semifinal, and Final rounds). I have three singles players and a couple of pairs who I think have the best progress in their plays and could keep it up until the end of the year. 

I will start to talk about the Men Singles (MS) discipline. 

Image by Lin Chun-Yi IG

The Chinese Taipei Badminton likely has two players who are playing in the World Tour Series 300 and above. In early 2023, they make more players to join his senior, Chou Tien Chen and Wang Tzu Wei at the World Tour level. There is a single player who is consistently playing at that level. He is Lin Chun-Yi. Last year, Lin Chun-Yi was 24 years old. He had the best start. The Taipei Open 2022’s Semifinalist became a Champion in the Thailand Master Super 300 2023. He played well and defeated Weng Hong Yang in a rubber game in the first round; he defeated Christian Adinata, Kenta Nishimoto, and Shi Yu Qi in a straight on his road to the final round. Finally, He beat Ng Ka Long Angus in the final round in a straight set. A week later, he reached the quarterfinal round after Li Shi Feng defeated him. Next, in the Malaysia Master Super 500, Chun-Yi reached the quarterfinal round after beating the Japanese representative, Kodai Naraoka in a dramatic rubber game: 17-21, 30-29, 21-19 in two hours. On the contrary, Lin Chun-Yi lost to Li Shi Feng only in two sets in the semifinal round. Then, in his home country tournament, the Taipei Open Super 300, Lin Chun-Yi entered the quarterfinal round after beating his teammate, Lee Chia Hao, and his senior, Chou Tien Chen. Yet, in the quarterfinal round,  Wang Tzu Wei defeated him. 

Lin Chun Yi entered the semifinal round of the US Open Super 300, and he lost to the Thailand representative, Kunlavut Vitidsarn. He got his second title of this year in the Kaohsiung Master Super 100 after beating Yushi Tanaka from Japan in three games. He reached the quarterfinal round Korea Master Super 300, and lost to another Japanese, Koki Watanabe, in a straight set; He was A Quarterfinalist in the China Master Super 750. He lost to Zhao Jun Peng; he reached the quarterfinal round in the Syed Modi International 2023. 

[The Women Singles picture will be updated soon] 

In 2021-2022, the Chinese Taipei Badminton National Team started to have a promising female player in the Women's Singles (WS) discipline. Hsu Wen Chi had won some titles in the International Series and Challenge-level tournaments. In 2023, another female player seemed as promising as Hsu Wen-Chi. Her name is Huang Yu-Hsun, a girl born 20 years ago. Let’s have a look at Huang Yu-Hsun’s match results below. 

Huang Yu-Hsun is the Champion of the Estonian International Series 2023 after defeating Kristin Kuuba in a rubber game. At her first tournaments in 2023, she struggled hard from the qualification round to the final round. She defeated her senior, Liang Ting Yu in the first round of the main draw Thailand International Challenge 2023. In the second round, she defeated a young Indonesian representative, Ester Nurumi Tri Wardoyo.

Asuka Takahashi beat her in the quarterfinal of the Thailand International Challenge 2023. Still, at the International Series level, Huang Yu-Hsun also became a Champion of the Dutch International Series 2023. In the final round, she defeated Kaloyana Nalbantova in a straight set. Next, Huang Yu-Hsun won the Slovenia Open International Challenge 2023. In the final round, she defeated Neslihat Yigit in two games.

Huang Yu-Hsun and Wang Yu Si, the other promising female badminton player from Taiwan succeed in making an All-Chinese Taipei final in the Austrian Open International Series. Huang Yu-Hsun won the match in a straight game. It is still in the Austrian Open 2023, Yu-Hsun played in the Women's Doubles (WD) with Chung Kan-Yu. Yet, Chung Kan-Yu/Huang Yu-Hsun lost to their compatriot, Hsu Yin-Hui/Lee Chieh Chen 22-24, 21-17, 16-21. Next, Huang Yu-Hsun reached the semifinal round of the Bonn International and lost to Hung Yi-Ting 7-21, 8-21. With Chung Kan-Yu, she also reached the semifinal round at the same tournament. The Turkish WD defeated them in two games.

Since Huang Yu-Hsun is still 20 years old and still in college (like other Taiwanese players who keep their studies while playing badminton), we may see Yu-Hsun about two or three years later. Otherwise, the Chinese Taipei Badminton Association has other considerations for Huang Yu-Hsun. 

We move to the Men’s Doubles section.

Image from Wang Chi-Lin Facebook FP 

It seems to back to their peak performance on the road to Tokyo 2020 is very hard for the Gold Medal Olympics, Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin. A year after they won the Gold Medal in the year 2021, the only highest achievement of Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin got is in the final round of their home country tournament, Taipei Open Super 300 2022. The Malaysian pair, Man Wei Cong/Kai Wun Tee defeated them in three games: 18-21, 21-11, 18-21. Slow but sure, they could get their confidence again. In 2023, they reached the quarterfinals consistently in the Arctic Open Super 500 and China Master Super 750; Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin got into the Semifinal round (finally….) in the Canada Open and Australian Open Super 500.

Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin entered the final round in the Hylo Open and Korean Master Super 300. Unlucky, Liu Yu Chen/Ou Xuan Yi of China defeated them in the Hylo Open, and Lee Jhe-Huei/Yang Po-Hsuan defeated their MD#1 in the Korean Master. However, in 2023, Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin won the Japan Open Super 750. They also got the bronze medal in the Badminton Asia Championship 2023 and Hangzhou Asian Games 2023 (Individual Event).

Oh, I forgot to tell you that Lee Yang/Wang Chi-Lin back to the Top 10 World Ranking at the end of the year. 

Read: The Coolest and Promising Badminton Players From Taiwan (mid-2023 update) Part 1

Now, we discuss the next discipline that has a stable performance of play in 2023. 

Image from Lee Chia Hsin Facebook FP

Two years ago, the Mixed Doubles section of the Chinese Taipei Badminton started to have a promising Mixed Double pair. Lee Chia-Hsin and her junior and new partner, Ye Hong Wei, showed significant results in the lowered-level tournament. I posted their progress in mid-2023 on the previous blog posts. After being a Semifinalist in their home country tournament, the Taipei Open Super 300, Ye Hong Wei/Lee Chia-Hsin reached the final round of the US Open Super 300 after defeating their compatriot, Yang Po-Hsuan/Hu Ling Fang. In the final round, Hong Wei/Chia-Hsin defeated the Danish pair, Mathias Thyrri/Amelie Megalund in three games. 

Ye Hong Wei/Lee Chia-Hsin reached the semifinal round in the Hylo Open Super 300. They lost to the Hong Kong pair, Tang Chun Man/Tse Ying Suet in three games. Ye Hong Wei/Lee Chia-Hsin collected many tournament points by playing to the quarterfinal round in the Japan Open and Denmark Open Super 750. Unfortunately, they were withdrawn from the quarterfinal match of the Japan Open, and their opponent, Zheng Siwei/Huang Yaqiong entered the semifinal round. The Mixed Double number 1 of the Chinese Taipei team failed to get a ticket to the World Tour Final 2023 after they lost to Tang Chun Man/Tse Ying Suet in R16 of the China Master Super 750. 

Also, read: The Coolest and Promising Badminton Players From Taiwan (mid-2023 update) Part 2 

Image from Tai Tzu Ying Facebook FP

Finally, I should put her name in any review of the Chinese Taipei Team I have posted. She won the Silver Medal in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. She is Tai Tzu Ying who ended 2023 with a champion title in the World Tour Final after defeating An Se Young, her eternal rival. Previously, I said that Tzu Ying didn't play in many tournaments. So, she would maximize her plays for each match she competed. At least, she entered the quarterfinal round for some tournaments and was entering the SF and final rounds. She also won the three titles last year.

After the Taipei Open Super 300, Tai Tzu Ying entered the final round of the Korea Open 500 after defeating Akane Yamaguchi in the semifinal round. But, she lost to the host country representative, An Se Young in a straight game. In the Japan Open Super 750, An Se Young defeated her again in the semifinal round in a straight game. Tai Tzu Ying reached the quarterfinal round in the Arctic Open, Kumamoto Open Super 500, Denmark Open Super 750a, and the BWF Badminton World Championship 2023. Tai Tzu Ying also reached the final round of the French Open Super 750. But, she lost to the Chinese Single, Chen Yu Fei in two games. In the last 6 months of 2023, Tai Tzu Ying retired from two tournaments because she was unfeeling well. She ended her match in the first match of the Hong Kong Open Super 500 and the second round of the China Master Super 750. We hope 2024 she will have a fit performances in the year of the Paris 2024 Olympics. 

Alright! I completed the review of The Most Stable Badminton Plays From The Chinese Taipei National Badminton Team. I hope all of us know that there is a badminton association in a country where badminton isn't a popular sport to play getting ready to appear a potential player in the world. It is the Chinese Taipei Badminton Association of Taiwan. 

Thank you for visiting my simple #blogsocialdiary. See you on another title of blog post, guys! 

Recommended Taiwanese drama to watch: Mother To Be (2021)