I actually was busy with a bunch of tasks on writing articles when my son and daughters asked me to accompany them watching movie Kung Fu Panda. I was on the middle of writing when all ideas to write has just been flowing smoothly into the order of sentences that it felt like hard to interrupt. I prefer to complete all the stuff before going for Kung Fu Panda movie because I didn’t want my mind to be hassled by uncompleted work while I was supposed to enjoy the movie.
However, it has been two weeks since my daughters arrived in Medan to spend their holidays, and I haven’t had enough time to spend on outings with them. They will be going back to Bandung in three weeks. So I decided to leave that uncompleted writings for a while.
The movie title doesn’t sound interesting to me, and I imagined this movie as cartoon movie about Panda with its common Kung Fu story, something to do with a warrior and the like. I did not expect too much other than amazing Dreamworks animation movie, bright colors and off course a few laughs and smile. I was thinking about watching the audio technology, scene art and animation techniques developed in this Dreamworks animation movie rather than paying attention to the story; while my daughter was in the line to buy tickets when it was announced that the tickets were all sold out, so we have to buy for the next scheduled show tickets and have to wait for another 2 hours. The theaters were full.
The story is about a big and fat panda called Po, whose father is a noodle maker who wants Po to take over his business one day. In another place the Valley of Peace, the tortoise warrior called master Oogway has a feeling that a former student of his own protégé Shi Fu, who is an evil leopard Tai Lung will escape from prison and return to attack the Valley of Peace. Oogway needs to choose the mighty Dragon Warrior who can defeat Tai Lung. Everyone in the Valley assumes that the Dragon Warrior chosen will be one of the Furious Five : Tigress, Monkey, Mantis, Viper, or Crane, a skilled martial artists trained by Shi Fu. No one expected that the Dragon Warrior chosen is Po, a fat panda with no Kung Fu skills at all. The way how Po was chosen is interesting; and this is when the main part of the story begins.
The tale of how Po was eventually chosen as a Dragon Warrior, humiliated by the Furious Five, trained by Shi Fu until finally defeated Tai Lung is full of fights and lessons. A lot of moral message is put in during the process of humiliate Po to become an honored Po. The film also had an authentic Chinese and Kung Fu feel, enriched with parody and comedy and, adorned with wise words from traditional Chinese philosophy. At last I did not pay too much attention on the audio, scene art and animation techniques, but more on the tale and the wise words appear in an appropriate moment of the course to becoming a factual warrior. I was impressed with the nice quotes in the story which are presented in a pleasant way, so memorable and also inspires lessons in life. The meaning behind the story is so great. A good message for kids in believing oneself; and a reminder that even one might not be the best among one’s peer, as long as he or she wants to learn, he or she can achieve to be the best. My favorite quote in that movie is “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mistery, today is a gift. That is why it is called the present”.
Very nice story, great animation techniques and scenery. I really enjoyed the movie after all.
25 June, 2008
Kung Fu Panda
19 June, 2008
Bear in Mind on My Daddy's Birthday
“Daddy, you know how much I love you ……….. “
That song of Ricardo, besides a song entitled “Ayah” by Koes Bersaudara, and the song of the same title “Ayah” by Ebiet GAD have always been turned on whenever I think about my dad, especially today on my dad’s birthday. These songs always remind me of my childhood when my dad took an important role in making me self reliant. All those moments flashed back in my mind, the way my dad had always taken care each of his child.
When I was about 4 years old, daddy took me to Kinder Garten at Jl. Kartini – Bandung. He took and picked me up everyday by himself. The next year he wanted to send me to private school SD Paulus I/II Jl. Dr. Rajiman following my brother who had already studied there for a year. I was not accepted by the school because I was too young to attend the Primary School. So my dad sent me to public school at SDN Pasirkaliki. After I successfully passed my first year, I was accepted to attend the second year at SD Paulus I/II which daddy viewed as the best private primary school in Bandung at that time.
Every morning after breakfast, daddy gave each of us vitamin C, vitamin B Complex and Calcium tablets, while every night after dinner each child was given a soft gel of cod fish liver oil. Sometimes on Saturday night, my parents would take us outing for dinner at noodle restaurant at Jl. Kejaksaan. On Sunday morning before going to Sunday school, daddy used to train us riding bicycle around Jl. Ganesha. He wants his children to love reading, so we subscribed a popular children magazine at that time : Si Kuncung. He took us to either Panti Budaya or Panti Karya theatre to watch a series of movie entitled Heintje. Even once when we were going to the theatre and my dad’s old car was down, we did not postpone going to the theatre but kept going to the theatre by becak. Daddy also used to take us to Bandung Fair at the town hall, to watch circus show at Gelora – Jl. Banda, and to go swimming at Karang Setra.
Finished from Primary School, daddy applied me and my brother to SMP Taruna Dharma (Yayasan Taruna Bakti) – Jl. Riau. That was the first time for me to follow admission tests. After completing Junior High School, I went to SMA Negeri III – Jl. Belitung Bandung. Our house is located in Jl. Lombok, which is not far from the school, so we could get to school by foot. We all attended the schools at Jl. Belitung, five of us went to SMA Negeri III, one of my younger sister went to SMA Negeri V, and my older brother went to SMA Negeri IX. All is located in the same building at Jl. Belitung that we spent nothing for transportation to get to school.
My daddy used to be very strict and self discipline. Early in the every morning he always drink a glass of plain water followed by praying and then doing light exercise. Although we had a house helper, each child had a turn to do part of the house works such as washing dishes, watering plants, washing the car, sweeping the house floor, cleaning the front yard etc. Daddy typed the time table of each job and the name of child who has a turn, on a piece of paper and attached it on the wall.
Daddy himself also trained each of us to ride motorcycle and to drive car when he thought we are mature enough to be trained for. Early in the morning he would wake us up and trained us driving car and riding motorcycle surround Jl. Bangka, Jl. Menado, Jl. Aceh and Jl. Belitung. I remember how at the first time I was not brave enough to drive his big old sedan Opel Capitan as well as to ride his big old motorcycle Vespa, but daddy was brave enough in encouraging me to drive a car when there is traffic jam. He even trusted my brother at his 18 years old to drive a car to Jogyakarta when we all went there on vacation.
Although to me he sometimes overprotected us, but in general he is successful in raising up each his child to become self reliant. Sometimes I ask myself whether in return I have done enough to make him content in his elderly. Now, although his sons and daughters live spread apart in Jakarta, Cilacap, Medan, Kuala Lumpur, Tuban and Surabaya, daddy is always be the first person who rings up to greet happy birthday on each one’s birthday, very early in the morning. He sends us email and sometimes chatting through internet. In every opportunity he reminds us to always be humble and be grateful.
My daddy now is not as strong as he used to be, but he is still eager to do his daily activities as usual. This morning I heard him cheerfully answered our birthday greeting on the phone, unlike his weaker voice I'd used to hear when he talked on the phone lately. I am so glad to hear him talked cheerfully, and I kept turning on the song “I love you daddy” along the day.
“ Daddy.......
sometimes I might do wrong
but I never stop trying
to be your number one
…………………………………….
I love you daddy,
You are my hero...............
..............................................
You are my superstar……….”Happy 81st Birthday, my dear daddy. I wish you all the best.
Live in Harmony - Let's Learn from Nature
Labels: societyOver the years, scientists and researchers have been striving to find the connection between triggers of violence and societal violence. The argument between researchers, who say that human behaviour is acquired from our social environment is not about the facts of how humans do behave. Aggressive behaviour, greediness and anarchism are features of life today. The question is not whether they exist or not but what causes them.
In developing country, particularly a country with many citizens lacking of education and knowledge, violence appear very often as a solution to their problem. Violence is frequently used in expressing their unsatisfactory feelings over problems they might have. Not only poverty and economic burden, but diversity, has been one of the triggers that could make people attack others of different believe, color or gender. Anarchism, violence and rumors of violence continue to spread - feared yet also expected in daily life. With all the chaos in our societies, have we never took a step back and wonder why we, humans, have the tendency to attack each other and make others suffer? Isn’t it an irony how the creatures in nature are able to maintain balance and harmony while we humans – civilized creatures –, seem to always have difficulty living in harmony?
In the face of this, what are we as educated people called to be and do? What resources of our knowledge can we bring to bear on this apparently intractable predicament? What shall we do as we seek together to build understanding in our communities? There are many that we can do. One of them is to aware people about diversity as one of nature’s facts that God creates. We can start with our family, neighborhood and our communities at any opportunity of sharing or discussion.
There are many that we can learn from nature characteristics and behavior. Some of them are the facts that : Everything in the community is connected, all things work together ; All the parts work together to make a balanced system. If one part is removed, then the system will lose its balance ; A healthy system has lots of species diversity. The more the merrier. By maintaining diversity, we help keep our community a healthy relationship, live in harmony ; The world has lots of different living organisms that interact with each other. Each person has a position or activity that particularly suits somebody's talents and personality or that somebody can make his or her -own. Each of us have the role we play in the community ; Environments support a diversity of living organisms that all share limited resources.
Let’s view diversity as positive values. Each of us work together to make a balanced community!
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