Language

            In this borderline-scary world, there are still so many things that you can appreciate. 

I, for example, really appreciate language. For me, the idea of language is so beautiful. Through language, people can understand each other much better. Through language, people can express themselves, and I think no other things in this world can help us to express ourselves better than language. What’s more captivating to me, however, is the fact that there are so many languages around the world. Each has its own uniqueness, origins, and of course, stories. I also always think there is so much to language more than what eyes can see, ears can hear, and mouth can say. Things like what the heart can feel.

            I don’t precisely know when did I start to develop such fondness for language, but I think instead of an exact, pronounceable time, it was more of a process. Like, in elementary school, I was exposed to so many songs. The first time was on Bahasa Indonesia, of course, but I didn’t pay much attention to it, I sing and enjoy it, that’s all. Then soon enough, I knew some English songs—from One Direction to 70-90s hits which my father really liked to play around the house. Later, I remember getting awed by Back to December by Taylor Swift. I mean, really, Maybe this is wishful thinking, Probably mindless dreaming, But if we loved again I swear I’d love you right, who in this delicate world wouldn’t like those sentences?

            Around junior school, I discovered two Italian songs—well, one purely Italian and one Italian-English. It was Juve (Storia Di Un Grande Amore) by Paolo Belli and The Prayer by Andrea Bocelli ft. Celine Dion. I think both were, are, vocabulary fascinating. I’m not going to copy every single sentence that I liked, but, Paolo’s Dove tu arriverai, Sarà la storia di tutti noi (which means ‘where you’ll arrive, it will be the story of all of us’) left my mouth hanging. I still love both songs even today.

            I began to read, too, in junior school. Because I haven’t grasped the idea of ‘saving’ back then, I couldn’t purchase books with my own money yet. The solution? Read books online. My favorite genre was Romance (of course), and there’s this one whole conversation from an e-book that I would never forget,

“Kau ingin aku datang?”
            “Hanya jika kau berkenan.”
        “A,” B tergelak pelan. Suara seteduh rintik hujan pertama yang turun setelah kemarau panjang. “Untukmu,” kata lelaki itu kemudian, “aku akan menyebutnya pulang.”     

Lovely. Soon, I purchased two books at a time, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (it was because there’s this Fanfiction I read that mentioned the book) and Summer in Seoul by Ilana Tan. The latter wasn’t necessarily amazing but I cried reading that. Pride and Prejudice, however, was a masterpiece. I’ve read that book four times, and I still tried to fathom each sentences, even today. Please read this one with maximal focus, In vain have I struggle. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you. Truly, those sentences are ethereal. How come one can think to write such engaging words is beyond me.

I read a lot since that time, mostly online (you see not everyone can buy physical books every day). Then one day, I met Call Me by Your Name. Surely I will not talk a lot about it because I’ve poured my adoration for it in my other post. What I’m going to share here is how much the book had changed my way of seeing language. I think it’s because of Aciman’s writing style. In the book, he really showed off how much beauty language can hold. He mixed and matched words so well and, trust me, I’m a fan. After Call Me by Your Name, whenever I read I began to pay more attention to the way its writer strings their words. Or, whenever I heard a song, I devoured its lyric deeply. Most of the time, I fell more and more in love with language.

I really think English is the most beautiful language in this world, but maybe it’s because I haven’t got the chance to deepen my knowledge of other languages. Say, Arabic. As a Muslim I often read the Quran and listen to it (which absolutely on Arabic). I too had the chance to learn it in elementary and junior school. Arabic, for me, is alluring. Once you hear or read it, it’s like you want to know more about it. Especially when a word blends with its right partner to form a sentence then those sentences unite. Here’s an example from the Quran.

Wal-mursalaati ‘urfa (By those (winds) sent forth in gusts)
            Fal-‘aasifati ‘asfa (And the winds that blow violently)
            Wan-naasyiraati nasyraa (And (by) the winds that spread (clouds))

I noticed how great Arabic is not only from the Quran, but also because I watched Omar (a series about Umar bin Khattab r.a.). I don’t know if all Arabian talk like that OR only late Arabians did, but man, every time they talk I feel like I’m hearing a poet reciting their poetry. They kind of having this ‘q’ emphasized whenever they talked. They also often used metaphors. Arabic + metaphor? Amazing just like that.

Fly to Seoul, let’s talk about the Korean language. I’m not going to say it’s superior to any other language, because, in my humble opinion, it’s not. But it has its own charm. And that charm had bewitched me. Hardly, strongly. Tell me I’m biased because I’m a fan of a Korean boy band (EXO), but I’m being fairly objective here. You can try to listen to a Korean song, or watch a Korean drama, and I guarantee you the charm will slowly getting into you. You will quickly feel all familiar with the language and couldn’t help but mimicking words like jal meokkeseumnida (I will eat well), mianhae (I’m sorry), hajima (Don’t go), sarangahaeyo (I love you), and of course annyeonghaseyo (HELLO!) all the time.

In addition, these Indonesian songs’ lyrics:

Buka Hati by Yura Yunita

Duhai diri

Ubahlah arusmu jadi arah

Yang dia sukai

Rendahkanlah hatimu

Pilu Membiru by Kunto Aji

Akhirnya aku lihat lagi

Sederhana tanpa banyak cela

Wangimu, Berlalu

Akhirnya aku lihat lagi

Jemarimu yang bergerak bebas

Seiring, Tawamu

Kangen by Dewa 19

Kuterima suratmu

Telah kubaca dan aku mengerti

Betapa merindunya dirimu

Akan hadirnya diriku

Di dalam hari-harimu

Bersama lagi

Kasih Tak Sampai by PADI

Tetaplah menjadi bintang dilangit

Agar cinta kita akan abadi

Biarlah sinarmu tetap menyinari alam ini

Agar menjadi saksi cinta kita

Berdua

Tanah Air by Ibu Sud

Walaupun banyak negeri kujalani

yang mahsyur permai dikata orang

Tetapi kampung dan rumahku

Di sanalah ku merasa senang

They are heavenly. All in all, thank you Language for being irresistibly amazing and giving me certain feelings I’ve never acknowledge before <3. I hope, I really do, I can learn more languages in the future.

Much Love,
            N.