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Flights of Courage

Penerbangan Keberanian

Written by Athaaya Handoko | Illustrated by Anke Noack | Translated by Elizabeth Belinda


[ English / Inggris ] 

Naarm, otherwise known as Melbourne in modern times. If you’re here, welcome to one of the greatest cities in the whole world. This is a place where cultures collide, mix, blend in, and create a harmonious melting pot for all. Everyone is welcome, and you are too.

One young woman - who moved to Melbourne to pursue her studies abroad and to reach her dreams - first stepped foot in the land of the Australians years ago. Now, she’s setting foot for a much longer time.  One year, two years, maybe even forever, if the time has come to decide. While the possibilities are endless, she knows that there will be many golden opportunities awaiting in this much-loved city.

This young woman is stepping foot in Melbourne from Indonesia, an archipelagic country with thousands of different cultures, tribes, and an extremely rich history. While she knows that she’s about to experience lots of cultural differences, it makes her feel an uncontrollable sense of excitement… and nervousness.

Yes, you might have guessed, this is her first time away from her family for an extended period of time. School trips may count, but they didn’t last as long. 

As the days went by, she grew nervous, yet excited, to finally leave her home country. While it filled her with melancholy,  she promised to come back soon and thrive in Melbourne to make her family proud. Golden opportunities were awaiting. New friends were waiting. Everlasting memories were waiting as well. Everything to restart herself in a brand new city, she was going to embrace it all.

One day in February, tearful goodbyes happened, and questions such as will you come back, will you remember me, and when will I see you again were asked. All she could do was give affirmative answers. She will come back.

And so finally, this young woman lands. It’s now time for her to start over and make a good and lasting impression on all. It took lots of courage for her to finally open up and live in a city alone, without the companionship of family. But she did it - she pierced into bravery - knowing that courage is not something that you gain, but something you learn to gain. Not everybody will have the opportunity to fly alone, as a clueless teenager, whilst pursuing their dreams. We have to work on gaining courage as it will come to us eventually. This young woman who was scared of flying alone and messing up on her first day did just fine, because she had courage by her side.

I am brave, I can do this, I am confident and I will not screw up.

She knows that those words have stuck to her until this very day.

These words of affirmation have resulted in an abundance of everyday memories, from going to parties to drinking coffee with her newly found friends. Whatever comes, there will never be a dull moment in the city.

Naarm, otherwise known as the city of Melbourne. If you’re here, welcome to one of the greatest cities in the whole world. Expect people from different backgrounds, cultures, religions and orientations to welcome you in the most heartwarming way possible. If everyone is welcome, then you are too.

. . .

 

Indonesia / Indonesian ]

Naarm, atau dikenal juga sebagai Melbourne di zaman modern. Jika Anda berada di sini,  selamat datang di salah satu kota terbaik di dunia. Ini merupakan tempat di mana beragam  budaya bersinggungan, bercampur, berbaur, dan menciptakan wadah percampuran seni yang  harmonis untuk semua orang. Siapapun dapat bergabung, dan Anda juga. 

Seorang gadis - yang pindah ke Melbourne untuk melanjutkan studinya di luar negeri dan  mengejar mimpi - pertama kali menginjakkan kaki di daratan Australia bertahun-tahun lalu.  Sekarang, dia sudah menginjakkan kaki untuk waktu yang lebih lama. Satu tahun, dua tahun,  bahkan mungkin selamanya, jika waktunya telah tiba untuk memutuskan. Di antara banyaknya  kemungkinan yang tak terbatas, dia tahu bahwa akan ada banyak peluang emas yang menunggu  di kota yang sangat dicintai ini. 

Gadis ini menginjakkan kaki di Melbourne dari Indonesia, negara kepulauan dengan ribuan ragam budaya, suku, dan kaya akan sejarah. Meski dia tahu bahwa dia akan mengalami  banyak perbedaan budaya, itu membuatnya merasakan kegembiraan yang luar biasa ... sekaligus kegugupan. 

Ya, Anda mungkin bisa menebaknya, ini adalah pertama kalinya dia jauh dari  keluarganya untuk waktu yang lama. Karyawisata di sekolah mungkin serupa, tetapi itu tidak  berlangsung lama. 

Hari-hari berlalu, dia menjadi gugup, namun bersemangat, untuk meninggalkan negara  asalnya. Walaupun dia dipenuhi dengan kesedihan, dia berjanji akan segera kembali dan  berkembang di Melbourne untuk membuat keluarganya bangga. Peluang emas sudah menunggu.  Teman baru sudah menunggu. Kenangan abadi pun menunggu juga. Untuk memulai hidupnya kembali di kota yang baru, dia akan menerima semua hal. 

Suatu hari di bulan Februari, perpisahan yang penuh air mata terjadi, dan pertanyaan  seperti apakah kamu akan kembali, apakah kamu akan mengingatku, dan kapan aku akan  bertemu denganmu lagi pun ditanyakan. Yang bisa dia lakukan hanyalah memberi pernyataan.  Dia akan kembali. 

Pada akhirnya, gadis ini mendarat. Sekarang saatnya untuk memulai kembali dan  membuat kesan yang baik dan abadi pada semua orang. Butuh banyak keberanian baginya untuk  membuka diri dan tinggal di kota sendirian, tanpa kebersamaan keluarga. Tetapi dia berhasil - dia menembus keberanian – dengan mengetahui bahwa keberanian bukanlah sesuatu yang  diperoleh, tetapi sesuatu yang harus dipelajari untuk mendapatkannya. Tidak semua orang akan  memiliki kesempatan untuk terbang sendirian, sebagai remaja yang tidak tahu apa-apa, untuk mengejar impian mereka. Kita harus memperjuangakan keberanian sampai itu datang kepada kita

pada akhirnya. Gadis yang takut akan terbang sendirian dan mengacau di hari pertamanya  ternyata baik-baik saja, karena dia telah memiliki keberanian. 

Saya berani, saya bisa melakukannya, saya percaya diri dan saya tidak akan gagal. 

Dia tahu bahwa kata-kata itu melekat padanya sampai hari ini. 

Kata-kata penegasan ini telah menghasilkan banyak kenangan, dari pergi ke pesta sampai minum kopi bersama teman-teman baru. Apapun itu, tidak pernah ada momen yang  membosankan di kota ini. 

Naarm, atau dikenal juga sebagai kota Melbourne. Jika Anda berada di sini, selamat  datang di salah satu kota terbaik di dunia. Nantikan orang-orang dari berbagai latar belakang,  budaya, agama, dan orientasi yang berbeda untuk menyambut Anda dengan cara yang paling  menyentuh hati. Jika semua orang dapat bergabung, maka anda juga.

    Athaaya Handoko

    Athaaya is an international student from Indonesia studying in the City of Melbourne. Always optimistic to seek new opportunities, she takes chances to broaden her knowledge on anything and everything, making her a lifelong learner. She tries to incorporate her life stories into writing that is fun, entertaining, and readable for all ages with the aim to engage readers. When not learning or writing, she can be found in record stores or cafes.

    Connect with Athaaya

    Anke Noack

    Anke works as an illustrator, author of children books and CG Artist in her studio In North Fitzroy, Melbourne. She started out as an architect, followed by ten exciting years in the computer game industry in London and Berlin. When she’s not traveling the world with her three kids in tow, she’s creating colourful worlds and sharing her love for ‘Wimmelbooks’ and Belgian Graphic Novels with little (and not so little) people.

    view more of Anke's work

    Elizabeth Belinda

    Elizabeth is an architect who loves to integrate community, culture, and sustainability into her design. Most of her free time is spent reading empowering stories, participating in workshops, hanging out with friends, and exploring different aspects of the city. Currently, she is pursuing her Master’s degree in Architecture at Swinburne University.

    Connect with Elizabeth

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