Hikayat Santren : Dul, Announcement and Information Center

Dul, Announcement and Information Center

Semalem umi ngasih saran biar cerita si Dul ditulis dengan bahasa asing. Jadi, akan ane coba pake bahasa inggris. Soalnya keyboard ane cuman latin, haha. Kalau mau ngasih saran, komentar, dan sejenisnya, bisa langsung komen disini atau send email ya. Oke, check this out.

Did you ever heard announcement? That stuff are just common in any of holiday places, such as beach, lifestyle mall, and theme park. In many reason people are avoid to be called via announcement, because of one reason. That’s embrassing. And place like information center have such bad image, like place for lost children, last hope for finding family member when he or she lost, and somewhere that we never want to visit, when we go to the beach in November-February.

But, there is some different kind in PPNK. As you know, that was very rare, when you find a boarding school that allow their student to bring cellphone inside dormitory. Because, you know, using cellphone mean you can get lot of acces that can destroy, what we call sterilized place-for-any-unnecessary-information-except-for-study-and-such-religionism. So, only few ways student in PPNK could get in touch with anything outside the dormitory. Even when you are inside, because the dorm in insanely big (the maximum population inside PPNK are about 20.000 people), you cannot easily get any information when only rely on mouth-based telecommunication.

And then, there some genius invention called “Boarding School Information Center”, we called it “PIP NK, Pusat Informasi Pondok NK”. This information center had many different things, compared to normal information center in other places. 

First, this information center did not use as a “central for lost stuff”. You cannot bring lost children there, but when you find some lost wallet, you can give it to information center. Probably after you took all the money. 

Second, this information center always play some weird music in weird language (at last I know that song was an Arabic song) every morning and evening. That put lot of pressure, because in the morning somehow people want to enjoy their breakfast. In the evening they just want to have a good rest. Why I said that? I know, maybe the singer and the song is really, really well. But you cannot expect a nice audio from some audio system that had a same age with you.

Third, this information center almost hold every information from outside. Even the places a newspaper (censored newspaper of course) outside their office, so the student can still know what happen outside. Any phone call from parents or someone you love must get through this people before you can get that. And in many reason, the system is only one way, very rare stuff happen when the operator lend their cellphone to you, so you can send messages or some such.

And fourth, this is the only place, when you had sisters, to arrange meeting with your sister. And place when you can meet with your sister. Really, just like something happen in jail or some such. The different is, when you want to arrange meeting, you can do it under a blessed mango tree. Haha.

The bad audio quality, very complicated procedure, information monopoly system, and they-know-exactly what or who is your sisters or brothers in PPNK, make information center hold many key role in our life. Especiallay for me. 

I have no brother or sister in here, any of them. Even I do not know where exactly I life, where in the world this place was. So, for knowing information about me, my parent should use this information center wisely. Why? Because when they missed to arrange the plan, only sorrow and pain that await.

Like on this day, I am on my way to cafeteria when I heard my name called using that old audio. That old audio, and bad announcer, make a perfect combination of misunderstood information. I heard my name, like a gay in some old bar, I heard “phone call” like “puhnkals” and such else. And you know, because we are an international boarding scholl, everything announced using foreign language. Mostly Arabic or English! Bloody hell. 

So that evening I don’t get right informatioan, and do not care, and just go away, back to my dorm.

When I am napping, because the PSNK ended early that day, Fathan dan his Bandung’s Friends come to my room and said..

“Hey dul, your name has been announced before. Your parents call you,you should go to the information center right know”

You know what? Knowing information on very, very last minute is the worst. Why? Because I know, 5 minutes again that information center will closed.

With haste I go and forget to wear my slipper. So I run bare footed to the information center that about 300 metres away from my dorm. Crossing the road, when the laundry day for woman student is the worst. Simply because you can become a gossip topics, especially when you run bare-footed like me. In the very last minute, I can get to the information centr, just in time.

The operator face, somehow, look like a human getting hit by bunch of monkeys. Look tired, with red eyes and greasy face. Ihave no idea why PPNK choose this kind of person in customer service line (lately, when I entered to college, I realize this kind of guy, get F ranked in customer service line). With baritone voice, he told me to wait until my parents call me again. He still put his face in front of computer, and someow I understand, that computer is his only friend. Not so long, the phone is ringing. He pull the phone, talk some words to my parent and lend that phone to me.

Of course I miss my parents, and only this F Rank information center and F Rank announcement could make me heard my parent voices. Unbelievable, what kind of place is this? Of course this place had some telephone center, but the tariff is so high! Cruel! Talking for 5 minutes you must give up your one day money. 10 minutes you die man. I cannot imagine how people that came from place like Papua pay his phone bill (wait a minute..ahh don’t mind).

In the middle of my chat, with my mum of course, I see a young-handsome-guy walking through, and get in to the information center. He put a very nice smile, not a normal smile, maybe closer to gay smile, but no, different (how could I know how gay smile?), that smile is adorable. Feels like, he can let everything go, after his business done. Lately, I know that kind of smile is “Missing Smile”, smile when you can meet with your girl friend (or gay friend) after such a long time. And that time, I didn’t know that information center can hold a very, very important role in romance life of PPNK.

I heard name of a woman, very cute name. I can imagine a very georgeous woman wearing a well ironed hijab, with crunchy smile or some such. After that call, that handsome guy come out, start to walk faster to the blessed mango tree. I know, this is not the feeling between brother or sister, not the feeling about family. Something more, more romance, more lovely, and of course, more dangerous. In that time, I don’t care very much, because I only miss my mum, but in the next story, in next day and year, I could become that handsome guy, fall in love.

(Even I am not that handsome, though)

-Continued

Azzam Abdullah Artwork/Azzam Abdullah
(masih) kuliah di UNS. Mencoba Menulis dan Menggambar.
follow @azzam_abdul4 on Instagram. or sent me email on : felloloffee@gmail.com

Untuk seri sebelumnya bisa tengok disini : 

http://fellofello.blogspot.co.id/2017/04/dul-physical-education-dan-tour-de-ppnk.html

http://fellofello.blogspot.co.id/2017/04/hikayat-santren-dul-malam-pertama-dan.html


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