Too Old to Learn
Posted on: March 19, 2010
When I saw my student, I resented with their youngness and their energy. I was little late to realize that the best time to learn is when we are young and full of energy. Worst than that, even the society believe that the best time to learn is when we are young. As an example, just try to visit a music course in your town than observe who join the course. Yes, mostly they are kids! A woman of my age, will come to the course to drop and then to fetch their children. If I insisted to join the course, probably when I asked for an application form, the course officer would ask “for your son, mam?” The question that made me speechless. Then, if I determined to join the course whatever the price was, the other common question that I had to faced –because I was not realized that I was too old to learn– was “do you want to join the course? what for?”
Expectation
Posted on: March 19, 2010
Expectation is something inside us that can drive our emotion. Let me give some example using my own experience. I have ever been angry with my student just because I have high expectation on her. She was a sweet and smart student. She was clever, that was why she was able to catch every lesson quickly. That was also a reason why I expect her more than my other students. One day, she was absent. Frankly speaking, I missed her. Next lesson, she was absent again. Actually, I was disappointed with her, why she was absent again. Frankly speaking, I did not really care when my other student was missing from class. However, I was disappointed with her because I thought that she was different. She was diligent student that I have ever known. Months passing by, I started to realized, actually I did not have any good reason to be angry, but just because I believe she should be better than any other student, I disappointed with her, even she just did small mistake.
The story was different, when I faced e a lazy and naughty student. He was a usual boy that liked to sit at the last row in class. Frequently, I found him give no attention to the class discussion. He looked at me with empty eyes. One day I remind him to concentrate and ask him to move to the front row. One miracle happened. He changed his attitude. He tried to concentrate to the lesson. Another miracle happened. He got a better mark in every quiz. I was so happy with him. I expected him nothing, than a great progress made me really happy. His achievement was beyond my expectation.
You see our expectation have impact on our emotion. Just imagine, if we believe that our brother will and can help us. As an example, we want him to fetch us from the airport. Then he refuses us. We will be disappointed. However, when we ask him and expect him nothing. Then, he calls us and informs us that he will not be available to fetch us. We will say it is ok, I know that you are busy and thank you for your attention. I think we will not be disappointed because we have no expectation to be fetched.
Should we have no expectation? Buddhism taught his follower to have no desire. Desire was the one that made man happy and sad. Thus, people should kill their desire to reach happiness. I don’t think as extreme as that, but I really hope I can control my expectation so I will not be easily disappointed with someone.
Why I Become an Accountant
Posted on: January 29, 2008
At my high school, the students had to choose a subject. They offered four subject, physic, biology, social, and language. At that time, I chose physics. It used to be a favorite subject. Anyway, we, as students, had to pay our proud with difficult lesson everyday. We had to study math for 10 hours in one week, physics for 8 hours, chemistry for 6 hours …. It was a hard task. The most difficult subject for me is physic. My nightmare experience with physics was a red mark when I was in the second grade. Frankly speaking, I loved to be a high school student. After three years of fun in high school, we were graduated. The time was came we had to choose a college we liked. As a physic student, I choose chemistry subject and computer subject in one of favorite university in my country. Anyway, I realized that, many clever students from all of Indonesia liked to pursue degree in the same university. Thus, I chose accounting subject, as a bumper. If I was rejected by those two engineer subject, I hoped there was still an opportunity to study in accounting subject. Why it was accounting and not other? The other irrational reason was ‘my brother already chose accounting subject and he look like happy with his accounting.’ Sad story, I was really rejected by engineer faculty. Guess what, yes it was true. I was received by economic faculty. Little sad, I told my friend that next year I considered to follow them, pursue a degree at Institute Technology of Bandung ….. Anyway, I still gave thanks to God because I was not rejected at all. Then, I started my days as a university student. First three days were orientation days. Soon I realized that my third choice is not the worst choice at all. I learned, so many candidates failed to join the accounting department in my university. I started to thank more than before ….. I become aware that my choice was not really bad as I think. I did not know how, I started to love accounting …. and I already forgot about Institute Technology of Bandung. Five years was passing by, I was graduated and I worked as a faculty at private university. I started to learn that accounting profession is such a great job with great responsibility. I found that society needs an ethic accountant. I discover that as an accountant I can make value to the society. There are two requirement anyway, competency and integrity. Guess what … I really love accounting, especially in the accounting information system topic. The reason behind my decision to choose accounting subject is not rational at all. It is just a grace that makes groundless decision become a precious experience.
Wayang, a traditional puppet show
Posted on: October 6, 2007
Before, I share a story about my first date with mahabarata tale around twenty years ago. That time, I thought that Mahabarata is an epic originated from Indonesia because in my grandfather era, the mahabarata story is a favorite show for Javanese society. They played part of mahabarata episode in many ways, as a puppets show (wayang golek and wayang kulit) and also as a drama played by persons (wayang orang and kethoprak).
I remember, when I was a kid, there was no television in my hometown. Only the chief of village had a television. Thus every afternoon, many kids gathered at his house to see television. It was black and white television with only one channel. Still it was very interesting show available at that time. I thought that situation can explain why wayang golek, wayang kulit and wayang orang were the favorite shows in the past time. Those were the only entertainment available for the society.
Wayang golek was a wooded puppets show to tell the story of mahabarata episode. Interested to know more about wayang golek. I just find a great website about wayang golek. If we visit www.wayanggolek,net, we will find many names of mahabarata characters. Wikipedia also have explanation about wayang golek in Indonesian language or in English.
Wayang kulit is a puppet show. The puppet is made from leather. It was two dimensional puppets. The show usually plays mahabarata episodes. The show usually will be held in the open area, like field or open theatre, and the usual show time is the whole night. Usually they will be started around nine PM and will be finished the next morning, may be two or three AM.
When I was a teenager, I really do not know that actually the mahabarata story that was played in every village through wayang orang or wayang kulit have came from India! Yes, there is a little deviation from the original story, but still all the characters are same.
The job I love
Posted on: October 5, 2007
Eight years ago, when I was a master student, my friend had ever told me. Choose a job that you loved. When he said this, I thought that it was true, because we spend almost one third of our days just to do our job.
Today, I understand the statement better than before. I believe that it is true, not because I think it is true. I realized, that it is really true, because of my experience tell me.
Here are all the jobs during nine years of my adventure as a worker,
- Research assistant
- Teacher
- Researcher
- Translator
- Accounting System Analyzer
- Education Administrator
- Secretary
- Accounting staff
Two month ago, after I had resigned from my last job, I meet my friend, and he introduces me one kind of freelance job, go blog. I started to learn to blog. What it is. How do blog. I read more and more about blog. I love it. I spend many hours in front of computer just to blog. It is fun.
Today, I am very busy. The whole day I help my friend to cut textile. My friend receives order to make 400 shirts. I just helped him. Then, afternoon, I discuss some business with my other friend. Thus, I arrive at home at 09.30 PM. I feel tired. Still, I choose to open my computer and start to blog, before I went to bed.
I was born in the little village. It is such a nice place with beautiful nature, because my village lay beneath two mountains, Sindoro and Sumbing. One kilometer from my home to the west, we can see tall mountain standing in front of us and a green valley. I remember, in the morning when I left my home to go to school, my father and I have to go through the thick mist. Even today, my mind still can feel the morning dew, the fresh air and the cold weather of my hometown. So nice …..
One drawback of living in a village is there is not much opportunity for studying compared to living in a big town. It is just a village, and it is around 25 years ago, thus, you will not find any English course, dance course, or many other courses. As a consequence, I just get an English lesson from my English teacher, in the Secondary School. I am still lucky, because my English teacher thought me very well, especially in the grammar lesson. However, my conversation skill was so bad. What must I say … he has to teach around 40 students at a time.
When I was 18 years, I left my hometown to study in a college. I choose accounting subject. Then …. Came a nightmare!?! My faculty asked me —as his student— to read an accounting book, “Introduction to Accounting.” With my limited English, I have to read an English book ….. How came.
It is good, because my mother have taught me since I was young that I have to hear whatever a teacher says. Then, with that believe, I started to read ….. I spent around half hour just to finish one page. So tiring and boring ….. It is good, because my mother lesson, regarding obedient to a teacher is stronger than my human feeling. Even it is hard, I read and read again …. Never give up. Short story, now, reading a book —especially about subject that I like— is one of my favorite jobs.
Later then, I started to work as a faculty. I found another difficulty. Learning English is already difficult … but you know? Suggesting others —I mean students— to learn English is more difficult. When I came to a class and bring an English book, my students would show reluctance. Some students —not all— were angry. They said, why used a book with planet language. With a motivation “to be liked by my students,” I started to prepare my own module, using Indonesian language. Now, I give up …. Better to be in a lower standard that to be hated by students. You see, it is easier to learn than to teach …..
Last month, my friend called me. She is an accounting manager in one of multinational company. She just interviewed some candidates. Accidentally, one of her candidates is my past student. She told me about him, my past student. She told me, how good my student was. She said he had good theoretical and conceptual understanding and he already passed the company test. Unfortunately, she thought it would be difficult for him, because he had to be interviewed by the general manager. Her GM is a foreign guy. She said, my student could not speak English well. She said, might be, it would be difficult for him to pass by the last interview. One job opportunity was gone because he could not speak English well …
A Little Shop
Posted on: August 31, 2007
Ten years ago, I had a chance to assist a small shop. This little shop located in good place and also had regular customers already. Total sales per day could reach US$500.
The little shop had one manager —that will work as a cashier when the cashier is not available—, one cashier, maybe four or five storekeepers, and two administrators. The first administrator had responsibility to handle all suppliers, to receive and to check the product arrive from supplier, to keep all the invoices from supplier, to prepare payment and cheques to supplier. The second administrator had responsibility to check product arrived from supplier, to determine the price of every product, and to put the price label in every product. Every night, when the shop was closed, the manager would count the cash in the drawer, make a record of the total sales, and submit the cash to the owner. Salary payment was handled by the owner himself. Thus, no body had a responsibility to make a proper record of all the purchases, to prepare a profit and loss report, and also another reports. So, frankly speaking, the little shop did not have good accounting system ––a normal situation in my town. Anyway, the little shop can survive, even we did not know if there was profit or loss ––I should do something, but I did not have enough time to prepare good system for the shop.
Sad story, my country had to face economic crisis. This little shop gets the effect. Price of product increase, even, it become difficult to get product from the distributor ––especially for product with high rate of turnover. After the shop make sales, then the money received will not enough to buy the new product from supplier. The supplier refused to give credit and the shop had to pay in cash. Some kind supplier still give credit but with shorter credit term ––if before crisis they gave one week until ten days, in the crisis they asked for debt payment in three days only. It is natural, in time of very high inflation, people will choose to hold thing than to hold money.
This heavy situation was really a burden for the little shop. The little shop did not have extra capital, and made it worse, the little shop had a long term debt –other than account payable!! In time of crisis, the banks also face difficulty, thus they tried to share the problem with their customer. The interest rate was increased unfairly!!! It was so hard for the little shop to stand. Day by day, the little shop walked like a drunken boy. It was already difficult to pay the account payable in time, it was already difficult to buy new inventory with increasing price, it was already difficult to pay debt installment with “jumping” interest rate. As an information, before crisis, the interest rate was around 20% per annum, but in 1998, the interest rate was increasing, the highest interest rate was in September 1998, reached 40% per annum –based on the information from Bank Indonesia, Interest Rate for Investment by Groups of Private National Banks.
To make it short, finally the little shop was collapse. The little shop is not there anymore, only the memory about the little shop ––as one of my teacher–– still in my mind.
One Idea at a Time 