What a Beautiful Divorce

6. Husband

Mr. Oscar breathed out his hornbill smoke. "Why does a real woman seem to be no more now? Why are there so many household noses that are shipwrecked, even when the dipper has just sailed for a while?

Since most people now view marriage the wrong way, Nak Prapto, Nak Nimo. They do want happiness in marriage, but they go through that marriage the wrong way."

Mr. Oscar paused for a moment. He again sucked the smoke of his shell and exhaled it while staring at the afternoon sky.

"Then they had children. They do not want to know how the responsibility of parents to children. They think that if they get a lot of money, then their families will be happy" said Mr. Oscar.

The Village Chief then shook his head.

"Those people are good to leave their children in daycare in the morning, then in the afternoon they will pick him up while carrying food or toys.

"With hope, the child will not protest because his parents do not have time to be with him. For them, money is the solution."

Mr. Oscar then took a sip of his coffee. Prapto thinks of his parents, his parents who lost the role to Mang Kari and Bi Asih. Prapto also thought of the father and son he had seen at the diner earlier.

Mr. Oscar ignited his shell tobacco extinguished. "That's new about the child," he said, "in a moment, you change the tobacco of this shell."

Mr. Oscar opened the lid of a small jar on a table filled with tobacco. He threw away the tobacco in the shell and replaced it with new tobacco. After igniting his shell, Mr. Oscar again chanted wisdom to Prapto and Nimo.

"What happens when a husband and wife both work outside the home, even though they have no children? The wife will no longer be able to look at her husband with respect. And because the wife no longer respects her husband, then her love decreases, continues to fall, and then runs out.

"Make no mistake, Nak Prapto, Nak Nimo! Respect is not about money, it is not at all. Listen up!" Mr. Oscar raised his hand to emphasize that Prapto and Nimo paid more attention to his words.

"A wife feels happiest when she can take good care of her husband. When a wife makes coffee or cooks for her husband, she will feel uneasy thinking that the coffee or cooking will be delicious or not. Even though it was the thousandth time she made coffee and cooked for her husband.

"And when a wife hears the husband's praise for his coffee and cooking, her heart will be happy and flowery. Wh why? Because he wants to always make a husband happy and love him, a husband who never gets tired of seeing his sweet smile." Mr. Oscar sipped coffee.

Prapto was intrigued by the enlightenment given by Mr. Oscar. "How can a man be a husband who is respected, loved, and looked upon with a loving gaze by his wife, Mr Village Chief?" ask Prapto.

Mr. Oscar nodded his head once, then he turned to Nimo. Nimo nodded. "My question is the same as that of the Prapto boss, sir," he said.

That's a sign of Mr. Oscar's intelligence. He did not immediately answer Prapto's question, but he turned to Nimo first. So if Nimo also has a question, then Mr. Oscar will combine the answers into one.

In addition to saving time, Mr. Oscar's actions also serve to avoid repeated questions that will reduce the value of a teaching.

"A husband is the leader in his household, Nak Prapto, Nak Nimo. A husband must be firm and must not be whiny! The real husband is not the husband portrayed by most love movies and novels today, where the husband is portrayed as a weak husband.

"How can a wife be respectful if her husband confides so? Such a husband is a lazy and whiny husband!" mr. Oscar laughed.

"Ten years ago, my business was exhausted by the fire. I'm not crying. I'm not complaining to my wife. I didn't confide in him about how sad it was that my heart saw the effort I had built up over the past five years and two months gone. At that moment I hugged my wife who was crying over the rubble of our grocery store.

"Then I told him, 'Let's build a bigger store, I'll have a lot of money, ma'am.' My crying wife laughed, because she knew that all our money was in the drawer of the store table and it must have gone to ashes. He hugged me tighter because I didn't become a whiny, but I could still joke at times like that" Oscar said.

The Village Chief continued, "After the fire, I decided to focus more on raising and farming. For the matter of eating from day to day, Kejora villagers never get dizzy. All residents here have rice fields, which although not spacious, but more than enough to eat.

"Until my crops and livestock can be harvested for sale, I work odd jobs to be able to buy our kitchen needs such as chili, onions, side dishes, salt, and so on.

"Inari never complained even though we were living mediocre. Because he loved and respected me. Our home was full of laughter and happiness. That's how a husband should be, Nak Prapto, Nak Nimo."

Prapto and Nimo were stunned. Mr. Oscar then looked inside his house to see his wife. Ever since their conversation began, Mr. Oscar has looked inside the house every once in a while. It was clear that the village chief loved his wife very much.

"Me and Inari have been married for over thirty years, but our affection has never lessened, instead growing over time. I never hurt her feelings. Never have we quarreled, Nak Prapto, speaking in such a high tone of voice never.

"Unless Inari wakes me up early in the morning, her tone must be loud because my sleep is so good. You ask Nimo, Nak Prapto, do his parents ever fight? The answer must be no. In this village of Kejora, let alone divorce, household quarrels are absent."

The long chatter came to a halt when Mr. Oscar forgot to open the door of his chicken house, while the chickens were already wanting to go home to rest.

Before Prapto and Nimo came home, Mr. Oscar gave them very wise advice. "Look at the chicken, or the bird, or some other animal! They don't think about money. Early in the morning they got up to eat, and in the afternoon they went home to the stable with a full stomach.

"They never accumulate money like most humans. But which is happier, which is healthier? Chicken or are most people who adore the money?" ask Mr. Oscar.

Prapto and Nimo seemed hesitant to answer. Mr. Oscar smiled. "Of course it's the chickens, birds, or other animals that are happier. What I mean is, most humans are actually making a living or are they greedy?

"If they want to make a living, then they should have more time with their families at home. They should also be healthier because they have enough time to rest."

Mr. Oscar's face then looked upset. "They're crazy money! You just plant enough rice for the supply of food from harvest to harvest, plant fruits and vegetables, then keep some livestock.

"Then I guarantee you'll never go hungry. You will be happy, and your mind will be at peace even if your money is not plentiful."

Prapto and Nimo were stunned to see Mr. Oscar. Even when Mr. Oscar had turned to walk into his chicken house, prapto and Nimo still stared at the wise old man's back in awe.

Prapto scrunched his forehead. Because there was no wind and no rain, Nimo suddenly stepped very quickly towards the gate of Mr. Oscar.