Best Friend

Di film Valentine’s Day (Warner Bros, 2010), si tokoh utama yang baru aja gagal bertunangan bertanya ke rekan sekerjanya.

“Hey, tell me something. How'd you and your wife get it so right?”
(Gimana sih caranya kamu dan istrimu bisa klop banget?)

“That`s easy. I married my best friend,” jawab si teman.
(Mudah saja. Itu karena aku menikahi teman baikku.)

Best friend. Itu keyword-nya.

Menurut ezine (http://ezinearticles.com/), setiap ahli/konsultan perkawinan, pasti memiliki daftar kriteria apa saja yang membentuk pernikahan yang sehat. Masing-masing biasanya memiliki kriteria yang berbeda. Namun, ada satu yang selalu muncul di daftar tersebut di setiap nasihat, artikel, dan kolom tentang pernikahan: true friendship. Cinta, sex, dll, tentu saja penting, tapi true friendship-lah yang dapat mengikat erat suatu pernikahan dan menjaganya bagai karang yang tahan ditempa gelombang cobaan.

Ada yang bilang “Friends listen to what you say. Best friends listen to what you don't say.” Ketika seseorang tahu luar dalam tentang pasangannya: hal yang disukai/tidak disukai, harapan, cita-cita, kebiasaan, dll, itu artinya ia memang sobat karib sang pasangan. Dan itu lah yang aku rasakan dari istriku.

Dia tahu diriku luar dalam.
Dia mendengar apa yang terucap dan yang tak terucapkan,
seolah-olah bisa membaca pikiranku.
Dengannya, aku bisa berbagi perasaan gembira, sedih, atau marah.
Bersamanya aku bisa menjadi diriku sesungguhnya.
Tak perlu takut terlihat tidak mampu kalau memang tidak mampu.

Dirinya lah yang menyembuhkan perasaan terluka.
Yang tahu semua kelemahanku, tapi menunjukkan kekuatanku.
Merasakan ketakutanku, tapi menguatkan keyakinanku.
Mengenali ketidaberdayaanku, tapi mendorong kemampuanku.
She brings out the best in me!

Untuk istriku, Sisi, you are my best friend!

"You're the best friend that I ever had
I've been with you such a long time
You're my sunshine
and I want you to know
That my feelings are true
I really love you

You're the first one
when things turn out bad
In rain or shine
you've stood by me girl
I'm happy at home
You're my best friend."

(taken from You’re My Best Friend, Queen, 1975).

Honey, I AM happy at home…
Happy 11th Anniversary

(c) created by MZ

BM#10 - Life Has A Funny Way...

Life has a funny way of helping you out... [1]
***

Frank Slazak had always dreamed of becoming an astronaut. He held on to his dream.Then one day, NASA opened application for civilian to become austronaut. He filled the application, prayed and continued to dream. But he was not selected. Although many of his friends consoled him, he still couldn't get over it. “Why, God?”

"Tuesday, January 28, 1986, the day I had dreamed about for 25 years, found me gathered with those that I had shared my failed dream with: my students, my family, and people from my community, along with members of the media. We all came to witness history. We watched as the space shuttle Challenger lifted off the launch pad. As it cleared the launch tower, I challenged my dream one final time. God, I would do anything to be in that shuttle. Why can't that be me? 73 seconds later, God answered all of my questions and invalidated all of my doubts as the Challenger exploded, killing everyone on board, including teacher Christa McAuliffe." [2]

***

Someone I know was desperately in need of money to continue building his house. And then he prayed: “God, please give me fortune from any unexpected direction.” What happened next? His office was acquired by bigger company from overseas and many employees were laid off, including him. Why, God?, he asked. He still couldn’t believe what happened, because it was totally the opposite of what he wished. But then God show his ‘funny’ way of helping us out. The employer gave him enough ‘golden shakehand’ money to finish the building of the house. And not more than a month, he was accepted in a new company with salary almost double than the previous one. Isn’t that amazing?

***

Does God grant your wish and deliver it in a beautiful package? No, God does not deliver what you wish in its beautiful form. Instead, He deliver it in an ugly, complicated, and uneasy-to-open package. The question is: why?

That is because He wants to see you to open the gift with patience, one wrap after the other, little by little, minute by minute, on and on. Never stop nor quit, until the last wrap is open and you finally find exactly what you want inside the package.

Truly, there is nothing we can do except to always have a good prejudice on every gift from Him, whether it is pleasure or pain. For even the pain is just a wrapping, where we must have faith that we accept the pain only because He wants us to open the wrapping with love.

Let’s accept anything that happens to us, be it a good or ‘bad’ thing, with love. Og Mandino once put it in beautiful sentences:

“I will look on all things with love and be born again.

I will love the sun for it warms my bones;
yet I will love the rain for it cleanses my spirit.

I will love the light for it shows me the way;
yet I will love the darkness for it shows me the stars.

I will welcome happiness as it enlarges my heart;
yet I will endure sadness for it opens my soul.

I will acknowledge rewards for they are my due;
yet I will welcome obstacles for they are my challenge.” [3]

[1] Ironics by Alanis Morisette
[2] A 3rd Serving of Chicken Soup for the Soul by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
[3] The Greates Salesman in the World by Og Mandino

c) created by MZ