Getaway and Flavonoid

I thought going through hard days and non-stop busy weekend will bring me to an endless desperation. Nothing would excite me, I won't have any energy left to be excited too. But, this moodboosting weekend changed by perception. 

So, on Saturday December 8th me and other +/-60 IR-UGM students (batch 2009-2012!) gathered on ɑ trip called RebaHI (Rekreasi bareng HI/a recreational trip with IR). Early in the morning, the whole members went to the first destination with ɑ bus: Jupiter paintball. 

Although I've never experienced any paintball match before, the match was really fun! My team which has Dodi, Azra, Didit and Delta even reached the semifinal round. and watching the final round was sugooi. I was kinda sure they were fighting on ɑ real battlefield! Oh catching-the-flag game was another thing too, bcs the flag they used was just ɑ black shirt -_- but it's fine tho.

After feeling so stupid because Guilford fooled me by saying the paintball venue was owned by his father, we went to the next destination. But yeah, I truly believed that his father was also there to be our judge for the match. They didn't even look alike! Hahaha. 

And we had two more things to catch. The bus headed south-east to Gunung Kidul while we ate lunch-box that was provided. I think I needed to decrease my fighting spirit when eating foods, feel like ɑ real soldier when seeing my meals unoccupied. 

Gunung Kidul was another regency in Jogja that's famous for its nature, it has huge areas of mountains, white-sand beaches and (this is it) caves! Our next activities of the day would be cave-tubing and river-tubing which were going through cave and river by using ɑ single tube for each person. Putting on ɑ life-vest and plastic shoes on and we're ready to have some fun. 

Goa Pindul used to only be ɑ batcave but as the people lived in the village around saw the river that flown inside as an opportunity, they invited ɑ cave tubing to be sold. The trip was around half an hour, and we were divided into groups consisted of 8 persons each. 

It wasn't the main attraction until we felt like sailing on our own tubes through ɑ real river for more than an hour. 

We reached the Oyo River using pick-up trucks and queueing to be thrown into water. Whoaaa so exciting, some of us made someone else's tube went upside-down just to make the person shocked hahaha. And you know what came after? ɑ 10-metres jump! So we climbed up the rocks and then jump off to the river. Best-feeling ever, don't you think so? Feels like all the bad things just went off along the way. I felt so excited to be able to swim in ɑ real river, then showered by the real pouring rain until the edge. We head back with the same trucks and I sat on the edge to just feel the wind (and sadly, tree branches also!) on my face.

After taking shower, we ordered meatball soup which is also famous at the place too. Oishii desu yo? 

I spent all the trip back just to chat with Dudit-Azra and to sleep. Oh, surprisingly both of them born at the same time (I mean May 15th 1993), so funny. Then I was knocked out and oversleeping the whole way back. 

Reaching the campus by evening and we saw ourselves being ɑ part of Fisipol UGM Dies Natalis. Lots of foods again there. Well, consider it as the perfect closing of the day. But weird tho, no drink was found during the night. 

By the end of the day, I've found myself munching ɑ huge pile of chocolates.  You will never know how good the works of flavonoid till you realized waking up on the Sunday noon. The day was nothing but blessing. Turns out all I need just ɑ getaway, some fun, sleeps and chocolates. 

Thanks God, Depor HI UGM & HI UGM 2009-12. 

☺ 

Galau Akademik

Today I walked through ɑ heavy rain. I didn't mind having all my jeans wet until I saw these spacious lands in front of me were all covered by ɑ small flood. It haunted me right away. Today I realized that I have ɑ phobia on something I couldn't measure. 

I had no idea on how high the flood would be. I just walked pass and ran toward it. I was afraid tho of it, and of everything else that was also unpredictable too. 

This is where I am, Jogja. ɑ student city, they said, where best upcoming graduates of the country struggle for making excellent records upon their capabilites. I'm also walking on the same path, to my self-constructed utopian world called future.

I still remember the day when I got accepted in this university, ɑ midnight quality time with my laptop in my parents' bedroom. Excited, and grateful until my mom thought it was ɑ joke if I ever want to seriously consider living away even to pursue ɑ better academic life. 

Thousands of other applicants wished to walk in my shoes now. International relations studies used to be ɑ huge deal for social-science students all over the country. I had no idea why, it might be because it's already hard to repair domestic conditions that Indonesians have to deal with now. It would even harder to work on our relations to the outside world.

To be connected with something new, something far or even something huge is always fascinating for me. I used to be (or still am) an idealist who wants something better that cost anything even if it's out of my reach. But now at this point I feel lost.

I fear failure, which counts as unpredictable thing too. I fear something I can't measure, something endless where I can do nothing about. So is my academic career at this very moment. As an idealistic scholar I need to do the best which I don't know how exactly. 

All of us are racing with time and competing with our own idealism. Whether we want it to run fast or best, I don't know. But the thing is, I'm now looking at ɑ top of hill without strength to climb up. 

Do I have time left? Or, can I? No one knows, not even me. 

Chances, opportunities, or fates are what has been screwing my head lately. I'm competing against something invisible but also very strong. The question is, do I want to be the ambitious winner or just stare at other fighters by sitting still on my couch. I know, I have to struggle. I am now looking back at the day when I knew I would gamble my whole capabilities in this town. I have paid for all other opportunities to stand proud someday in the graduation. I want to tell my children ɑ heroic story to remember. At this point, ɑ challenge is only to be cracked down to pieces. We can, I can. Those piles of workload are just presents the professors gave us. Someday we are going to miss these days when we have no time to sleep properly and worry in last minutes before the deadline. Being a nocturnal deadliner sometimes can be fun, but why procrastinate if things can be done faster? (this part is easier said than done obviously)

Well, an old-school quotation told us to do the best while I say we need more courages. We have lived our own options, why give up then? Or else, just cut it off and do nothing instead.

 

Just like the floods I was feared of today, walk pass through it and you would look back saying: I won against you. Then smile and go on. There are going to be other problems in life. 

So, don't get stuck and never walk in someone else's shoes. If it doesn't fit it hurts, you know. :)