DUSK PAINTING
Chapters 17. Your Face Distracts My World
Your Face Distracts My World (Your face shifts my world)
Mizyan took off her sarong and cocoa shirt after praying for the congregation, because Dado had just knocked on her bedroom door. The thick-bodied young man reported that he was called by Umi to join dinner together. Just removing the pecans, he checked again his appearance in front of the mirror, tidying his hair with his fingers, before coming out of the room.
In the living room, the Abah family was assembled in complete formation, two children and a son-in-law and 5 grandchildren. Mizyan sat down next to Azis who was sitting while holding her 2-month-old second child.
"Teh Ratna, when did it come from the Lake?" Mizyan greeted his wife Azis who at that time chose a place to give birth in Tasikmalaya at her parents' house.
"Last afternoon, Yan." said Ratna while helping Olla arrange the side dishes in the middle of the group of people sitting in a circle.
"God, cute, kang." Mizyan turned to pay attention to the baby girl who was twitching her eyes, occasionally the brown eyeball moved left and right as if scanning for unfamiliar surroundings.
"Eat him a spit had a wife. Let's get a hold of a kid." Azis chuckles at Mizyan who is asked when she wants to marry, only answered with a grin.
"No need to wait to have a wife. Now you can also carry. Herein, kang." Mizyan reached out to grab her baby girl Azis.
"Ah, this really is a good fit to be a dad." Sarah, his wife Fahri also commented to see Mizyan holding baby Humaira despite still looking stiff. "Who would you like to propose to, Yan? Teteh mah ready to nganter."
"Eh I'm also ready to nganter dong." Ratna doesn't want to lose the pumping. "In Lake the fish gurame already big-gede. Ready to be completely discordant for your preaching, Yan."
"There are 2. Noh...." Fahri pointed with his chin towards Olla who was sitting at Umi's side.
"Ih, what the hell is A Fahri." Olla rolled her eyeballs because she had to hit her brother's joke.
Mizyan just laughed discordantly in response to the guyonan Abah family members that he had considered like his own family.
Abah cleared his throat. It's understood by everyone if it's a code to no longer be noisy. The meal together began in a warm family atmosphere. And Mizyan always enjoyed this kind of eating atmosphere, sitting down with a meal without using a cutlery.
After the meal, Azis invited Mizyan to move to sit on the terrace chair. He took out a piece of paper from his pocket and extended it to Mizyan.
"The Hijrahku community will conduct a youth study at the An Nur mosque, open to the public." Azis explained the paper in the form of a draft study event that was being read by Mizyan.
"This is indeed an impromptu show. And my Hijrah chief asked me for help, wanting to use you for an inspiring story session. How can you, Yan?"
"When, kang?" Mizyan was not surprised by the invitation to share her story as a convert. In fact, he has even performed live on one of the television stations on a study show that aired every morning.
"Two time. Friday night and Sunday night at 8."
"I received the info already from Friday yesterday, only we just found it now. Less afdol when talking by phone."
"They asked for confirmation tonight as well. You want to make a pamphlet on his instagram."
Mizyan asked for permission to briefly go to the pavilion to retrieve her phone. Before deciding, he must see the schedule arranged in his cellphone reminder.
"Jum'at InshaAllah can."
"If Sunday night can't, kang. There is a wedding invitation.Temen I who in Jakarta marry dapet Bandung people. I promised I'd come."
Azis nodded. "OKAY. I'll confirm that."
****
Mizyan moved to sit again in the gazebo in the backyard. Olla told him that Abah wanted to speak with four eyes.
"Thank you, Olla." He smiled at Olla who delivered 2 glasses of bandrek drinks to accompany the cold night atmosphere.
"Together, brother." Olla smiled back with a blushing face. He passed by while hugging the tray on his chest with a face of a sumringah and a smile on the dikulum.
Mizyan chose to wait for Abah to start talking. He did not dare to ask why he was called so respectful and solemn to the humble and charismatic cleric.
"There are a number of theories that say that boys who do not get the attention and presence of their fathers, often experience sadness, depression, hyperactivity, and gloom."
"While girls who don't get paternity care will tend to be individualist." Ustad Ahmad, who was usually called Abah by his children, began to open his voice. The string of prayer beads with round brown granules adorn the fingers of his right hand while moving slowly following the sentence dhikr in the heart.
"It does not condemn or justify these theories. Because the family environment is also a social environment plays a very important role in shaping personality."
"It only wants to convey the truth from the eyes of Islam."
Mizyan listened with focus to all Abah's words. He thought maybe Abah would tell the story of the exemplary figure of Islam.
"The first name must be the Prophet SAW. His father died while he was still in the womb. His mother died when he was 6 years old. The role of father was later replaced by his grandfather Abdul Muttalib and his uncle Abu Talib. The two father figure substitutes are the ones who forge his personality into extraordinary."
"Not only the Prophets, many scholars are also destined to be orphans since childhood."
"The most famous is the story of Abu Abdullah Muhammad bin Idris asy-Shafi'i al-Muththalibi al-Qurasyi or known as Imam Shafi’i."
"His father died when he was just 2 years old. His mother is an extraordinary figure. Feeling not “sanggup” provides a decent education, he brought the little Syafi’I to his father's hometown in Makkah."
Abah sipped the bandrek as much as three sips as a pause before continuing the story.
"There he gave his son's education to extraordinary figures such as Imam Muslim bin Khalid Az-Zanji, Imam Malik bin Anas, Imam Sufyan bin Uyainah. From these extraordinary teachers, he got a replacement for his father's figure."
"The result, at the age of 9 years has hafidz Alqur’an. At the age of 10 years memorized the book Al-Muwaththa by Imam Malik which contains 1,720 hadith. It is said that the book was learned in just 9 days!"
"At the age of 15 he had become the mufti of Makkah, allowing him to give fatwas and teach at the Grand Mosque."
"There are still more stories of Imam Bukhari, Imam Hanbali, Imam Ibn Kathir, and many more scholars who were destined to be orphans since childhood. But they are special. Orphans do not mean losing everything, because God does not mean they change the world."
"Maasha Allah." Abah smiled faintly accompanied by twinkle eyes of astonished gazing at the dense star-studded sky. He looked at Mizyan closely.
"If you are Mizyan. You are neither an orphan nor an orphan."
Mizyan fused her eyebrows at Abah in wonder and question.
"What do you mean, Bah?" He could not bear to ask for an explanation.
"You left your parents because of a divorce you didn't expect. Rebelling without giving a trace and living wandering to seek identity, until finally the direction leads you to become a Muslim."
Mizyan lowered her head deeply. Abah's words open the dark pages of adolescence when her blurred threats fail to reunite her parents. And he really ran away without looking back.
"Are my actions wrong, Bah?" He raised his head to look at Abah who gulped down the remaining bandrek until the toilet.
"Nobody's to blame. The story of the past is gone. And you've become a new useful human being and spread benefits."
****
In his room, Mizyan mused over Abah's words that did not feel like talking for 2 hours.
"Take heart, put hate out. Now it's time to find your father and mother."
"Hope your mother's father still exists."
"Show him if you've become a good Muslim. Show adab respect for parents despite differing creeds."
He closed his eyes. Promise yourself to return to your hometown as soon as possible. But the step towards his deep sleep was blocked by the shadow of a beautiful woman with a thin face.
"Don't call me Mother!"
"Only Dika can call that."
Without realizing it, he smiled to himself with his mischievous eyes staring at the ceiling of the room depicting the face of a woman's bitch.
For some reason since getting the protest, he was even addicted to upset his mother Dika.
Mizyan chose to wake up because she found it difficult to close her eyes. He switched to taking paper and pencils to create images according to his current imagination. If the imagination has been set out in the form of images, it will be easy to sleep because the obstacles in the mind have been moved.
The done!
Not houses, villas, buildings, or bridges are drawn. But the sketch of a beautiful face wrapped in hijab that became the result of his work tonight, with the caption ;
Your Face Distracts My World
****
Sc: Orphans of the World - Replubika.co.id edition August 21, 2021
