"REALISTICALLY-SPEAKING: BEING ROMANTICALLY-CHALLENGED" in "REALISTICALLY-SPEAKING: BEING ROMANTICALLY-CHALLENGED"

They say life is funny and unpredictable. You think you always know what to do until you are faced with the unexpected. It doesn’t always come from other people or other outer influences. Oftentimes, it can come from within – which is yourself. You. You think you really know who you are until the day you surprise yourself. After that, you are left with more questions than you can really answer. Who are you, really? You’re a much different person than you were before. You didn’t use to be like this. However, people do change – one way or another. Time and space can change them in so many ways. It’s not always bad. Sometimes it’s a good thing, a necessity. Some people you know who know you too have noticed those – rather drastic – changes in your life. Somehow, your father’s death has started it all. You’ve acknowledged the fact that yes, life is short. You still want to do a lot, despite so little time. Will you be able to do that? Anyway, they’ve told you how much they admire you. After your father’s funeral, you took a new job. You moved to live on your own in the central city. You see, that’s still uncommon for Indonesian young women. They always talk a lot about getting married first or moving in with your husband – or sticking with your family and all that jazz. Well, you’ve gone past that and become more independent now, your dream life gradually is coming true. How about giving love one more try? Hmm, good question. We’ll see.

R.