Those familiar with Negeri Lima Menara (The Nation of Five
Towers), the first novel in a best-selling series by Ahmad Fuadi, will
recall how Alif Fikri discovered truth in the mantra "man jadda wajada" (there is always a way for those willing to go the extra mile).
Now, in the second installment, Ranah Tiga Warna
(The Land of Three Colours), as life becomes more complicated
for Alif, he finds this mantra is not enough to keep things under
control. But all is not lost, as he discovers another mantra, "man shabara zhafira" (luck comes to those who wait).
This novel shows that Alif’s ambition to study in university and go
abroad remains high despite doubt from his close friends and family
financial hardships.
As an Islamic boarding school graduate, Alif
faces a daunting challenge that might destroy his dream: he must pass a
senior high school equivalence test before he can take the state
university entrance test. Alif knows his father is not rich and can only
finance his study at a state university.
With his dubious and
restless effort to learn high school materials that he never learned
before, he finally succeeds in entering one of Bandung’s prestigious
universities, Padjadjaran University, where he studies international
relations.
In his own way, Alif enjoys new friendships in college
that depict (perhaps) forgotten feelings of youth, devil-may-care
attitudes, idealistic hopes and dreams and unexplainable bonds that
provide comfort and security.
However, not long after college
starts Alif receives a telegram from his mother telling him to go back
to his home village, Maninjau, West Sumatra, as his father has fallen
ill. Back home, Alif almost cannot recognize his father’s face in the
hospital. He can see a mixture of delight, joy, and gratification on his
father’s weary face after seeing his son’s arrival. Alif senses that
his father is holding something back, a worry he tries not to show.
Death,
the only certainty in life, finally comes to take his father away. With
cold hands and words weakly spoken, Alif prays to himself: not here,
not now.
Regrets, sorrows and promises fill his head as he heads
back to Bandung. He cannot help the tears that run down his face upon
remembering the simple, almost forgotten experiences he had while
growing-up, feelings left unsaid, promises left unfulfilled and the
sometimes the impolite things he wishes he hadn’t said. Left with
regrets, he realizes that he never expresses his love for his father in
words. After his father’s death, the only thing left he can do is to
fulfill his father’s last wish: finish school and be the father of the
family.
Six months after his father’s death, Alif becomes absorbed
in self-pity and grief. He is drowned in his own emotional battle
between being realistic (quitting school and taking care of his family
back home) or keeping his promise to his father (to finish school,
especially after the sacrifices his father made to get him into
university).
The never-ending difficulties make him doubt man
jadda wajada. How can we identify the thin line between being realistic
and optimistic?
Man shabara zhafira becomes the mantra that
initiates a turning point of his life. Admitting the truth is often the
hardest thing, and that is what Alif does to overcome his despair. He
admits that he is weak. He admits that he is fatherless — but a strong
person. Penniless, but will soon be rich.
Unfortunate, but fortune will come. Go the extra mile and be patient, and you will succeed, he says to himself.
“The
teacher will appear when the pupil is ready”, a proverb said. Indeed,
Alif somehow manages to learn to write from whom he idolizes, a man
named Bang Togar. Little by little, his writings make it into well-known
newspapers, which eventually bring him overseas to Canada — with a
scholarship in hand. His dream is finally fulfilled.
Arabic
proverbs are indeed the foundation of this novel since A. Fuadi, the
author, was once educated at an Islamic institution.
However, the
moral messages and essence are not far from inapplicable in our daily
lives. It does not matter whether you are a Buddhist, Christian, or even
an atheist, this book carries messages that may just shed of light in
times of darkness.
Perhaps some of us have been caught up with
chasing our ambitions, but Fuadi’s semi-autobiographical novel
encourages us to reflect on what is important and where we come
from. Sometimes, we might even have forgotten the sacrifices our parents
have made in order for us to be here. His emotional departure of his
father would perhaps remind us to treasure what we have before it’s
gone.
Change is inevitable, as well as challenges and
difficulties. The hardest battle, however, often takes place within
ourselves. When that happens, we must remind ourselves that we always
have a reason to live, and sometimes, must be willing to get out of our
comfort zone to find out the most important things life.
And if
that happens, would we drown in regrets, or would it push us to grow?
Inspirational, emotional, and honest, this book will take us to a world
we had once been in but perhaps have been forgotten.
