Kampong
A lot people thought I come from Johor and some even thought I was from Borneo. During my orientation for my first year, a guy came to me and asked
“Are you iban?”
I was like.WTF??
No.I’m not iban and no, I was not originated from Johor. My kampong name is Hulu Langat, my mum’s side and Kajang, my father’s side but we usually will go back to Hulu Langat instead of Kajang.Anyway, when I was a small kid I was reluctant to tell people that my kampong name is Hulu Langat coz they will laughed their ass out and mocked me
“Hulu?Hahahahahaha”
Macam sial.
Despite the atrocious name, I used to love that place so much. When I was a kid, me and my bro would plead to my mum so that we could stay with my late atuk and nenek along with my youngest aunty, cik ell. To me, cik ell was one of the coolest chic I ever met. She got like tonnes collection of watches, earrings, shoes, clothes and er.. cigarettes. On staying there, nenek will brought us [me, my bro and my cousins] to bathe at ’sungai air panas’ early in the morning.Oh my, tell you..it was much more stimulating than sauna. Afterward, my late datuk will brought us to the nearest stall to have breakfast,usually nasik lemak and black coffee. If we didn’t for bathing at the river, every morning we will be awaken up by either atuk or atuk’s tiong,aswad who loved to swear such as “celake”, “mampusla kau” or even “bodoh” . He picked up those languages by listening to my atuk everyday [ha!]. Breakfast then will be roti buku which we bought from the bai roti, toasted in the oven and to be spread with margarine labeled dorina. The kerak was so black and we have to cut it ourself sebab dia memang betul-betul buku and if it’s wednesday, nenek will bring us to the pasar rabu and we will get a colourful cekak each.Siap ada reben lagi ok.
And on weekends when everybody were there, we the whole family will play rounders or galah panjang.Or just play at the playground where atuk made specially for us.Siap dengan buaian, gelongsor seme. While we children do that, mommies will bake something for tea and daddies will either climb rambutans tree or talk craps will puffing their ciggies. Nenek will water her flowers using some kind of pump and atuk will polish his rifle.
But the best time was during ramadhan. Atuk will light up pelita around our compound and I think at that time every house will light their own pelita. My atuk was full of surprises, besides love to tango in the house and driving his green mercedes, he loved to pamper us by buying lots of colourful firecrackers. After break fasting, we will united to play with the firecrackers.Ha!That was the best time ever. Nothing beats the misery of kene kejar dengan mercun ayam or mercun gasing.
But that was then. After cik ell left for state, atuk passed away. I missed him dearly, I wasn’t there when he went away coz I was sitting for my PMR.Since then everything changed. My nenek renovated the house and rent half of the house to strangers. She then went for vacation all over the world and stop being a ‘nenek’ that I used to read in malay books. In fact she’s not the ‘nenek’ type from the beginning. I seldom see her now, maybe because she’s not in the country or maybe because I couldn’t careless anymore.
I don’t really like to go back to Hulu Langat anymore. The sense of calming is no more there. Even the grass doesn’t smell that sweet anymore. Everything is modernized. Our orchard had been chopped down to build houses for my mom’s sibling only my family refused to live there coz ehe..we siblings refused to move there. Flowers nursery was also no where to bee seen, I guess it’s been brought down to build a porch for my grandma mercedes. Even the playground that atuk used to build for us is no more to be seen. And during ramadhan, there’s no more pelita , only colouful light highlighted the night. I guess, the only thing that last was only memory. And when I think of it, it makes me want to cry.
The last time I went back to Hulu Langat was last Syawal. No, it’s not that I hate my kampong.It just that everytime I go there, I feel empty.
You know.. I wish.. some things should never change.
Coz when they does, they leave a big hollow in your heart.