Kemaren siang, saya dan suami nyambangi makam Ayah & Ibu mertua saya (which we called them Ayah Kakek & Ibu Nenek). Ritual ini sebenernya nggak rutin kami lakukan, hanya kalo lagi kangen aja sama mereka. Kebetulan, kemaren saya dan suami lagi iseng pengen jalan, daripada bertujuan nggak genah, mendingan kami dolan ke ‘rumah’ Ayah & Ibu. Disana juga ada makam Mbak Santi, kakak ipar yang sangat saya hormati dan sayangi, yang baru menghuni less than 9 month.
They passed away, leaving their loved ones and those who loved them behind to start their new journey to see their God. Was I sad?, of course. I still I am. And I’m sure lots of people closer to them than me, feels even worse. Even though, I don’t see them that often, there is still that empty space in my heart/my mind that was usually filled with their presence. And I bet, all of you that once lost a dear person, know what I’m talking about.
Seven days after Mbak Santi left, I went to her house for the ‘tujuh harian’. One of ayat in The Holy Qur’an : “idzaa ashooba mushiibatun, qooluu Innaalillaahi Wa Innaa Ilaihi Raajiun”. In my opinion, it is the most beautiful ayat. Simply, because it reminds us that we come from Allah and to Allah we will return.
Going home is the most wonderful thing, isn’t it?. See, during lebaran, people actually sleeps in terminals or stasiun just because they want to make sure they can come home.
So, “going home” is actually a good thing, even though we may not feel the same way. That’s what I try to keep in mind that Ayah Kakek, Ibu Nenek and Mbak Santi are not leaving; they’re actually going home, to THE ONE that created them in the first place. And that, we cannot be sad, because our tears would only keep them worrying -just like your kid’s tears when you leave for work, makes you worried about him and makes you going to work quickly and keep looking back.
What we could do is make their departures as a momentum to be a better person, so that when we meet again, we can say; “thank you, you have made us become a better person”.
Safe journey Ayah, Ibu and Mbak Santi… We all miss you…
