Nasionalis?

Seorang temen kemarin ini cerita, kalau dia berniat untuk "pindah paspor" ke negara lain, karena sudah tinggal begitu lama di negara tersebut dan selama ini masih memegang paspor hijau sebagai identitasnya.

Kenapa? Gitu tanya gue. Kenapa sekarang, setelah sekian lama?

Jawabannya simpel. Soalnya biar gampang kalau mau traveling. Kalau pake paspor Indo susah dapet visa nya, belum lagi suka dicurigain macem-macem dan imbasnya suka jadi korban tindakan security lebay di negara-negara tertentu.

Gue masih penasaran. Tapi berarti loe bukan warga negara Indonesia lagi donk, officially?

Dan temen gue menjawab santai. I'm still Indonesian at heart.

Oke...hmmm mungkin emang terlalu dangkal kalau nasionalisme hanya dinilai berdasarkan sebuah buku mungil bernama paspor. Dan nggak bisa disangkal juga, paspor Indonesia memang kadang sedikit merepotkan. Bikin visa suka ditolak. Tembus imigrasi di airport asing suka susah.

Isu nasionalisme muncul lagi di benak gue ketika heboh Piala AFF kemarin ini. Timnas bermain bagus, meski sempat ada bahasan seru tentang naturalisasi pemain asing. Nah lhoo...meski tentunya berkat the so-called pemain asing itulah prestasi dan performa timnas jadi meningkat tajam. Sampai-sampai ada yang nyeletuk, "Garuda di pasporku!" instead of "Garuda di dadaku" hehehe...Entahlah apakah pemain yang dimaksud memang bermain sepenuh hati karena memang merasa sudah meng-Indonesia, atau hanya karena memang "kewajibannya".

Sebenernya apa makna nasionalisme juga gue masih nggak yakin sampai sekarang. Iya, gue cinta Indonesia, iya gue bangga jadi orang Indonesia. Dan iya, gue bakal mikir seribu kali untuk memutuskan tinggal for good di negara lain atau mengganti paspor gue dengan paspor negara lain. Tapi apa nasionalisme berarti marah-marah dan ngatain tim dari negara lain yang mengalahkan kita? atau sibuk rusuh sendiri bikin trending topic di Twitter tentang betapa negara tersebut adalah cheater?

Menurut gue, nasionalisme kayak begitu hanya yang jenisnya semu. Mungkin malah lebih semu dibanding menukar paspor hijau dengan paspor berwarna lain.

Akhirnya, kembali ke masing-masing orang sih. Mungkin memang nasionalisme hanya bisa diukur dari hati. Bukan dari atribut seperti paspor atau kaos merah bergambar garuda di dada.

For Parents in Need: The Urban Mama Indeed!

I am not a person with motherly instincts. I love kids, but I've never dreamed to have lots of them since I was a child. I love playing with children, but I know nothing about raising a child on my own, or even doing a simple task like changing diaper or feeding a baby.

So, I was very-very clueless when I was pregnant and finally have my own baby Yofel (yep, not a nephew who I could give back to his parents if he started to get naughty!). I read several books about pregnancy and parenting, but still, so many questions unanswered and so many things I need to ask.

My curiosity led me to internet (of course!) and I stumbled to many websites, blogs, and mailing lists. Some could answer my questions, but some made me feel more isolated and guilty than ever. I couldn't give Yofel ASI Exclusive, and to read many negative comments about formula and bottle feeding made me feel really sad and bad about myself.

Then one day, a friend of mine mentioned a forum I never heard before: The Urban Mama. A bit sceptical at first, but I thought, ok, let's give it a try. And wow! I'd mesmerized of its tag line: There is always a different story in every parenting style. I totally agree with this!

And since that day, The Urban Mama became my saviour. I learned A LOT about many things, from breastfeeding to Baby Led Weaning, from traveling with infants to choose a recommended baby bottle. Ok, there's one tiny bad point from this wonderful forum: It brought out the shopaholic in me! Hahaha, I found out many cute brands that I've never known before, from baby stroller to diaper bag, and it makes me craving for more shopping! =)

At first, I only became a silent reader of The Urban Mama. I'm not a fan of internet forum, and I feel a bit uncomfortable to share my problems or stories with people I don't know. But when Yofel had his colic problem, I had no idea what should I do, and decided it's time to seek an advice from the amazing parents of this amazing forum. And what a surprise when I found out that many people actually answered my questions! They shared their stories, gave advice, and offered support. Imagine, these people whose faces I didn't even know! I felt warmth inside my heart, and quickly became an active member of the forum. I remembered how great it felt when you got support from other people, so even though I didn't have solutions for every problem, at least I tried my best to offer support and comfort, by writing an article or dropping some lines in the forums. I also recommended The Urban Mama to all my friends who are parents and parents-to-be. And although I only got a chance to join the kopdar once, I still feel as a proud member of The Urban Mama: I'm a TUMbler! =)

The Urban Mama is not only helping me to solve everyday problems as a parent (from parenting to financial tips!), but it taught me about the most principal thing in parenting (more important than ASIX, IMD, RUM, BLW or other abbreviations): Respect.

Parenting is about respecting other people's choices, because there is always a different story in every parenting style. And hopefully, one day we can teach our kids to do the same in their future.

Happy 1st anniversary, The Urban Mama, I wish you more fruitful years to come! (And a big thanks for the founding mamas: Shinta, Thalia and Ninit, and all the crew. Keep up the great job!)