I was born on July 21st 1964. It was the luck as I was told to have me born in the family. We did some rice trading, up from provincial towns to the city. The business was all right before I was born, sufficient enough to care well for a family to live comfortable life. After I was born, on the very day I was born, my dad for the first time got a contract to export rice to Europe. After that first contract, the business started to expand. Now our business covers, name it, A-Z, an airlines, beverage factories, properties, telecommunication, department stores, chained supermarkets etc. I cannot even count if some one asks me on the spot. I know all of them, of course, but it takes some certain amount of time to count and recount to make sure that I will not miss any. Never mind, I never bother to count them anyway.
As I said earlier, after I was born, the family business soared to the sky. I have enjoyed the wealth of the family since then. When I was young my parents would dress me up with outfits different from those kids of our neighborhood. I was proud of it very much. I liked to play with all the friends next door. They were nice friends to have. I would bring some import candies and shared with them. New toys I had, my father usually brought from America or Japan, I would share and play with them. I never felt greedy about toys anyway. If they liked it I would give them but had to be after I got bored of them first. After that my parents would get me new ones. Life was fun for me. They gave me what I always wanted, new toys, new clothes, new music, new stereo. I was told that I had always been the good boy in the family. I never smoked while my friends did. I believed my parents were always right. They gave me the best for everything.
When I was 7, the family moved out from the old neighborhood to a new big house. I liked the new house a lot, big compound, big land with a lot of trees and flowers. My mom told me that I should study music. All the kids in my class did the same. I started when my feet couldn’t even reach the ground. My hands flowed very well. Like a pro, my teacher told my dad. So my mom scheduled me for piano lessons 3 times a week in the evening. Every weekend would be the time for sports. I had to study tennis and golf. At that time they were not that popular. I had to learn because my dad told me it would be good for the business in the future.
After tennis and golf I would go for English class. I did quite well. Very natural, my British teacher told my dad. I spoke English well since I was 12. It made my parents look so good when they brought me to any receptions and I had to do some talking with many foreigners. I was cute and could speak very well their language. I answered questions very well – all were taught by my teacher. Sometimes I could initiate something but it was not funny and well received by the audiences. So I stopped. It was actually easier to get the joke from books instead.
After finishing the primary school I was sent to a boarding school in England. I learned how to drive car. I know all the car models. I wished one day I would open a racing car boutique back home. I thought of asking my dad for that. He would know better. He had to put up the money for me anyway. Life there was fun. I met a girl coming from the same country. She was beautiful. We went to restaurant together once a week. She helped me a bit with my schooling. She was very smart and very warm. She took care of me very well. She made me feel like home again. I spent most of my time with her, apart from studying, driving and playing some football, of course, for almost 10 years until I graduated from Cambridge. I graduated at the top of the class. I did very well at that time, thanks to mom and dad for preparing me since I was young
After I graduated I applied for a management trainee job for a large company in London. I got accepted, but my parents wanted me to come back to help on business. I didn’t know whether I could be of any help. My elder brothers and sisters take care of the business anyway. I am always the favorite in the family especially for my eldest brother. He loves me and he will go to the end of the earth to get me what I want.
I left my girlfriend. She had a job in London, a good job. It was sad leaving her. I told her that I would tell my parents that I would marry her. She smiled and told me that I should seek for the agreement from the family first. I was a bit annoyed, why did I have to get permission from the family to marry the one I loved? I told her that I would only marry her. At the airport, that was the last time I ever saw her again. I heard that she married with a businessman and has 3 children. She comes back to the country once in a while but we never manage to meet.
After I came back, I was asked to sign many papers. I became board of director for a few companies. Everyone in the companies knows me. They heard about me even before I arrived. They usually mention about me as the “proud” son of my family. I told my mom that I was in love with a girl back in England. My mom smiled and told me that it was normal for a boy my age. A few days later she told me that she had someone for me to see, a daughter of the Minister of Trade. She told me the family would look so great in the society if I married her. She kept on and on talking about how success there could be for the family. I couldn’t even open my mouth. My brother was better. He told me to meet her first and the decision could be made later. We met at a formal dinner arranged by my mom. My dad was there as well. The Minister seemed to be very closed to my dad. His daughter was beautiful, not bad at all, well educated, and very well manner. My family would always find what is best for me. I smiled.
We got married after a year of knowing each other. The wedding was talk of the town. Grand ballroom at the Hyatt was full. There were tedious things to do like religious ceremony and receptions. We had a lot of gifts considering the rank of her family and mine. Our parents made further noise by donating all the money we received from the guests to build a home for the orphanage. It was again talk of the town. They gave us a house of our own, built in the same compound as my parents, a condominium building that we could take the rent, cash, a lot of cash that we could just spend for the rest of our next 5 generations without doing anything. My wife had, apart from other assets, many sets of jewellery, diamonds, sapphires, rubies, pearl, even so expensive black pearl from south pacific sea.
We have a happy marriage. My dream of opening the racing car boutique never comes true. I am too busy with work. I have to attend the board of directors meeting all the time. Usually, it is not bad given that my brothers and my sisters take care of the companies very well. I usually vote to support my eldest brother’s decision anyway. He is always right. When I raise my hand, I would see his approval smile. I am always happy that he is happy.
I have a mere perfect family, a nice wife, two children, a boy and a girl. My daughter spends a lot of time with me. She will cling on me all the time. She is very much talkative and asks many questions. She is now eight, a lovable eight years old. She will keep asking me different questions with curiosity, like where butterflies in the garden came from, where earthworms came from etc. One day she asked me where the house came from. I told her, her grandparents built it. She knotted her eyebrows. We share a lot of similar things. I put her in music classes. She asked me why. I told her that her grandma used to do it for me; it is the right thing to do. One question stuck me was where flowers in the garden came from. I told her that her uncle built it for us. She said it was beautiful. She asked what came from me. I couldn’t answer. Maybe nothing actually comes from me. Maybe nothing.
The next day I wake up early in the morning. Put some gloves on my hands. I am going to plant a flower today
Sawasdee Ka
Thank you for your kindness while i’m in Indonesia na ka.
all your contents in this blog.. i read already and can’t wait to see your new one.
I like that. It’s reflect the human and his mind, how to take the meaning of life.
I have been looking looking around for this kind of information. Will you post some more in future? I’ll be grateful if you will.