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When you speak, your words echo only across the room or down the hall. But when you write, your words echo down the ages (Bud Gardner)
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I want to tell you a special thing. This is an important thing. I wrote this title for you are all as English students in the Faculty of Training Teacher and Education, Tama University, Jagakarsa, South Jakarta. As English students you have to know about this story. This story is about a big result of writing process.This story is about an English teacher and his books, and he gave me a book for me. He is a good friend of me. We are the best friend in a period of time. The best friend is a retired English teacher in International Senior High School of Balik Papan, East Kalimantan. He is also a retired head of Board of Education in this district. At that time I was a personal consultant for the Board of Education and School Committee in the Ministry of National Education (MONE). So we often attend work shop meeting for the board of education in Jakarta, Bogor, or Bandung. He has a critical thinking for every things, especially in education. His name is Satria Dharma.
He gave me a special book. His is very interested to write. His writing habit brought from writing letters with his special student who at last to become the mother of his children. Then, he like very much in writing. There is no time not for writing. As a teacher he writes educational issues, both of national and international issues. His writings are very simple, but in a critical thinking.
He have me a book as special gift. The book is entitled Twenty Years of Joy and Happiness. For me, this is a special gift that I ever get. I try to read the book, and try to read all of the sub-chapter of the book. There are 430 pages of the book. There are seven chapter. Would you like to know about all chapter? The first chapter is about writing, book, and reading habit. The second chapter is about teacher. The third chapter is about School and Education. Then, in the fourth chapter is about the national examination (UN) and the Preparation of International School Standard (RSBI). The fifth chapter is talking about Reflection. In this chapter he wrote a sub-chapter entitled “Whats Wrong With SBY” He tried to criticize SBY. He said that actually SBY is in the right man, in the right place, but not doing the right thing”. Then, family is in the chapter six, and the last chapter, the eighth chapter is about on faith.
From these chapters of his book, we know that all of his writings are talking about many things, about education or life as a whole. Similar with John Dewey said that “Education is not a preparation of life, but it’s life itself. A a teacher, his writings are very important for teachers, and whoever who works in educational domains.
Back to the book as a gift, I want to try to close my writing. Giving a book as a gift is unusual in our habits. Giving a book as a gift is the highest values in our life. Thank you very much, Mr. Satria Dharma. I want to be a writer like you. I want to write in my life up to the end of my life. I hope that these writings will be very useful for us. In his preface of writing, Satria Dharma quoted a wise word from Bud Gardner. Writing has more impact in our life compare with speaking.
*) I try to write in English and to upload in my website.
Depok, February 4, 2014.
