01 March 2006

the truth, please..

i remembered when i was 6 -7 years old, during the fasting month of Ramadhan.Masa tu awal2 belajar puasa, jadi tahap letih dan 'longlai' tuh memanglah extreme. ( kdg2 sengaja buat2 extreme letih, untung2 ayah kesian bagi bukak puasa..ehheheh..=p ). We were spending the rest of Ramadhan at our hometown,RAntau Panjang, Kelantan (kampung mama). I was sitting in the kitchen,( dgn muka se'sepuluh' sen yg mungkin )..looking at my grandmother peeling mango for berbuka time. Recalling the thirst, hunger, tiredness...gazing longingly at the juicy-looking mango. ( lagi nak renung bende tuh dh tahu lapar..perangai2..)

Suddenly enter my Auntie, Cik MAh, my mom's youngest sister, jumping happily and went straight to the mango, taking a few slice into her mouth. And there i was, drooling with hunger, watched her unexpected act during fasting month with bewilderment.Spontaneously, i asked, ( more becos of tak puas hati, apsal Cik MAh boleh makan..?! )
" eehh..bakpo Cik MAh makan, tak posa ke..?" questioningly i looked at my grandmother, who smiled knowingly. Cik Mah, on the other hand, still munching mango.
.." DikMAh takpo, dia demam.." replied my grandmother.Demam?
And Cik Mah added.." demam berdarah!" before going off to take her bath, leaving me with a baffled expression. Demam berdarah..?

If only they had explain the truth to me, in easy term that is, about why she cannot puasa, i think i could have understand...rather than leaving me pondering over 'demam berdarah' on my own. Not that i blame them,..most of the ppl in the older generations are like that, they think some things should not be told to childrens or 'kanak2 bawah umur'. It's either they say.." budak2 tak boleh banyak tanyalah !.."..or they lie, telling make-up stories, avoiding to explain the actual reasons or causes. Putting myself back in the 6 yrs old girl shoes, i would want to know the real reason why CikMah was allowed to eat when the rest of us were salivating hungrily ( esp me!), because years later when i was 'big enough' to know the truth, i felt stupid for being lied to. Esp when i had believe the lie told to me in the first place.

Well.. we dont have to be too precise, by explaining in details about the 'blood-y' matter, ..at least no lies, or we could use simple words to tell how it happens to a curious child.( HEheh.. tetiba berangan jap)...if im the mother and my child asked me about that, i would have explain, because im her mother. The one she puts her full trust behind that wide, blinking eyes of hers looking innocently at me. The only person a child expect to guide and support her in the process of making ways in this world.

I dunno..i guess, the trends are changing. In todays 'world without boundaries', with various ways to gain access for information, and the childrens are becoming smarter and more knowledgeble,.. (thanks to Internet, TVs and some kids who make reading 'child's encyclopedia' as a hobby..)..the challenges are greater for us who live in the more senior generation. ( nope, dont want to use the word 'old'..=] ). I used to be quite worried about my youngest brother, scared that unnecessary 'ilmu' would be bombarded into his innocent, young mind. But now, ( after series of discussions and arguments with kakak and imah, who as usual, are the opposition team ..=p )..i finally accepted, that that's how the childrens are now, stuffs which were 'alien' to me 15 yrs ago when i was at their age, they gained the knowledge with a 'click' of a TV button.

heheh, teringat sekali tuh, years ago..i was washing dishes after 'buka puasa', and my youngest brother was standing next to the kitchen counter behind me, looking at sthg in the bowl...when suddenly he said,..
" kak, bende kat dalam mangkuk nih mcm telur manusia yg Adik baca dlm buku.." pointing at the thing in the mangkuk. Gulping, i turned to look at the thing. Now..how am i going to respond to this situation. The thing is 'sagu'. ( tahu tak rupa sagu yg dh direbus..? )
" apa dh nama dia kak..sperma ke apa ntah..?" Adik added, who obviously still thinking about it. ( Okay..now here's the moment Naz..answer brilliantly..please.)
"..ooh..adik baca dlm buku ehh...Bukan sperma dik, ovum yg rupa mcm tuh. Sperma lelaki rupa dia lain sikit, ada ekor kan..ingat tak gambar dlm buku.."
" ha'ah lah..betul2.." Adik nodded , with satisfaction. ( Fuuh.. )

" ..telur2 untuk persenyawaan manusia ..Adik baca dlm buku sains.." ( Ops. i thought he's over with the 'egg' issue ). But, i do remember too, feeling slightly proud of my little brother, for a boy age 8-9 yrs old, he really read the 'Encyclopedia for Children' series my mother bought him.( oohh..and gladly it's an ilmiah book as well )..

soo..to all future fathers and mothers...explain and spare our childrens the truth,..intelligently, i mean...

1 comment:

Folgore said...

Kadang2, tak semua soalan perlu dijawab dengan jawapan. Ada yg boleh dijawab dengan soalan balik..

"Iye ke adik? Mcm tuh ke?"

Atau,

"Rajinnye die belajar.. Apa benda yg adik ckp tu ye? Akak pun tatau.."

Biar dia je yg explain dalam bahasa dia, lagi mudah.. Berbanding kita nak explain kat dia sampai pening2 nak pikir ayat.. Ye tak?