The New Life Milestones

“Faj, when abundance of happiness strikes your life, find any way to share them with people inside and outside your circle. Because shared felicity would double its natural healing effect. Writings, photographs, drawings, conversations, anything would work!” – A Good Friend I Met in Brazil.

     With the basis of that very thoughtful wisdom from a good friend, I am here to share certain happiness I have encountered recently in my very ordinary life. Interpreting this as a showing-off attempt of a realistic attention-seeker is your call. My call is that I earned all this happiness with all my sweats and by sharing it here I’m having a good expectation to inspire my loved ones not to give up easily, but more into persistently maintaining their perseverance at achieving their ultimate goals of life. So ladies and gentlemen, I present you, my recent milestones of life!

1. My very first almost-four-flat GPA.

        Throughout most of the previous semesters of my uni life, the appearances of B(s) or C(s) in my examination results were always there. They said it's normal here in UM, being first ranked uni in Malaysia, it demands extraordinary performance from the students. They said if you can score above 3.30 out of 4.00, you are considered as above-average students. They said due to its extremely high standard, getting 3.50 in UM can be equalized as getting four-flat in other universities throughout the country. I simply don't believe in all those myths. There must have been something wrong with the way I study. Almost gave up trying to find my way back to become a first-class student, I've found the answer last semester. I was so proud of this particular academic achievement. Especially after mentally-suffered from final year thesis project. Huge pressure, pretty tough times. My hard works were being paid off so well at the end. I won the battle :')

2. Internship experience with UMCARES.

         University of Malaya Environmental Secretariat was established 5 years ago. It's a great campus-wide environmental initiative and I have participated as a volunteer in a few of its programs since I entered uni life. This year, I had to do a 2-month long industrial training program as a requirement to finish my undergraduate studies and UMCARES agreed to have me as one of their interns. It was really such a fruitful practical experience. I met inspiring environmentalists, worked with remarkable supervisor and colleagues, made good friends with other interns, and experienced a conducive-yet-highly-educating working atmosphere. Oh, not to mention that I earned some money, too! :D But the most important thing is the fact that I finally came to realize that I've been very busy finding international platforms to create big changes, forgetting the fact that I have so many of them in my own backyard. I've been completely ignoring the "think globally, act locally" principle! It was indeed a milestone of life after all (and a slap in the face, too). Please kindly like UMCARES facebook page here!

3. Visiting Europe and performing in the United Nations Assembly Hall.

        Yes, visiting Europe was always on my things-to-do-before-I-die list. But man, it never crossed my mind that I would ever step my feet on the United Nations headquarter. It was all started with me daring myself to join global audition to be one of the international core casts for a musical performance entitled "2050 - The Future We Want" organized by Peace Child International and Green Cross International. Long story short, they were apparently impressed by my performance video and CV that I made it to the top 70, went through online interview session and  finally made it to the top 25 of all applicants coming from all over the world.

       Yes, it was unbelievable! I flew to Geneva in the middle of last August, met many important people, worked with unbelievably talented young people from many different countries, being the only Southeast Asian of the force promoting the global youth voice, environmental sustainability and world peace through a platform that suits me so well: Performing Arts! Oh, two of my biggest dreams also came into realities: I went to Paris and kinda created a beautiful family filled with people whose different races, beliefs, and skin colors. I'm definitely gonna write about them later on. It was indeed the greatest 25 days I have ever had in my life! I learned so many life lessons that I could write a book based only on the experience. Hahaha. Anyway, if you wish to watch our performance, please click here and here to see all the pictures taken during that prestigious event :)

President of Green Cross International, Alexander Likhotal (in the middle of the bunch) with international musical core casts coming from all over the world and David Woolcombe, the director.

4. Featuring in a local media.

  
   It's another slap in the face, really. I had been featured in a local media for a few times before, but it's a slightly different case this time. When I was invited to be interviewed by the media, all I expected is another small article about a young high-achiever on a small corner of the last page of the newspaper. But when my cousin tagged me the article on FB, I was crying like "No, this is not happening! Not a full page of my story! Not in the effin' "Inspiring People" section!" 
  
  Yes, I totally appreciate the way they recognized my achievement, but I don't think I'm already deserved to be publicly acknowledged as an inspiring person. I'm pretty sure I am not mentally ready to be a good role model yet. Nonetheless, I could do nothing about it. Me trying to be positive believes that it is what you get when your hard efforts are being highly appreciated by the society: Popularity. Haha. But never expect me to let the society defines who I am. Naah. I'm simply gonna be myself, with all big dreams I am trying to reach on top of all obnoxious weaknesses I might have to offer the world.

5. Graduating from Young Leaders for Indonesia 2013 Leadership Program.

   Young Leaders for Indonesia (YLI) is one of the most prestigious leadership programs in Indonesia initiated by a world-class management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company. I was named as one of Top 60 successful participants of this year's batch six months ago, after a competitive selection processes with hundreds of other applicants coming from all over Indonesia and overseas. It's a full scholarship worth USD 1500 in the form of 6-month long leadership training series where all 60 of us had to attend 3 leadership forums every 2 months, filled with most inspiring Indonesian leaders as keynote speakers (e.g Anies Baswedan, Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama, Sandiaga Uno, Handry Satriago, you name it), provided with leadership workshops and learning sessions, and also conducted individual leadership project and group project in between the forums.

   I would say it was the most fruitful experience throughout my entire leadership journey so far. I went through both motivating and demotivating turning points a lot, those almost-gave-up and my-spirit-is-burned moments, and well-equipped with a lot of new lessons and softskills on how to be a good future leader for myself and for the nation. Not to mention the connections and friendships made with the other 59 inspiring young leaders of Indonesia. Ah, I was so grateful to gain such an experience :') I have graduated from the program last week and am now officially a proud YLI alumnus! I highly recommend you all Indonesian future leaders to give it a try next year!

6. Keep covering songs and posting them on Youtube and SoundCloud.

     I was told that one of the habits of highly effective people is that they focus on the things they naturally do well - to remind themselves of their talents and strengths and to overcome discouragement. Thus, I've been keeping this not-so-humble activity as regular as possible. I seriously don't care anymore about how many views and comments I get, or how many people like and dislike my covered songs. All I care is this peculiar hobby helps me a lot to stay positive whenever I'm living in a cloud and everything seems pointless and negative. So yeah, the followings are the four most recent covered songs I've posted on my Youtube Channel and SoundCloud Account :)

     Well, that's practically all happiness I need to share this time. I always keep reminding myself that every single of it started with a dream and none of my dreams are unachievable as long as I am willing to put my hardest efforts to make them into realities. After all, life is a revolving arena. When you are up, prepare yourself to go down. When you are down, take a short break and fight back to reach the top again as soon as possible, as hard as you can. So, that's how my story of happiness goes, keen on sharing me yours? ;)

Kuala Lumpur, 28 September 2013, 5:00 am in the morning.


Fajri Usman    

Bachelor's Thesis vs. Germany Trip

The so-called Bachelor's Thesis

I was motionlessly staring at the ceiling of the building, glancing awhile at the empty air, then staring back at the ceiling. Smiling from ear to ear, then frowning like one of  the guys from that Grumpy Old Men film for a moment, then smiling as widely as before again, then continued my thoughtful frowning back again.

That fatuous moment happened for almost half an hour. I was drowning in a deep reflective contemplation.

I have just submitted my bachelor's thesis earlier and simultaneously decided to give up all efforts to make it to Germany next week for an international student event in which I have luckily got selected among thousands of people to attend.

Those mixed feelings I have not been experienced for so long have eventually filled up the heart again. Those feelings which arise when the overwhelming relief and sadness choose your life as their meeting point. I'm sad and relieved at the same time. I'm 'slieved'! (don't bother to check the dictionary, it's my own vocabulary).

I'm relieved because such an energy-consuming and mental-excruciating anguish has finally come to its end. I'm sad because I over-estimated my capacity, overly confident that I could manage my time to succeed  in both my academic and non-academic undertakings throughout this particular semester. It seemed like I am winning the battle at the beginning, but I'm not. In fact, I'm completely losing it without even having the slightest realization about it. The bachelor's thesis won the battle alone.

Another thing is submitting my bachelor's thesis doesn't mean I'll be graduating this year. I'm still gonna have internship and some compulsory subjects to be taken in one (hopefully the last) whole semester. The fact that my campus has changed the minimum study duration up to 7 semesters made the feelings even worse. The suffer shall continue, soldier.

But wait, cancelling my trip to Germany this time doesn't mean my seemingly-impossible dream to visit another European country wouldn't come into reality this year, right? Having one more semester to be accomplished could also mean I'm actually granted an extension of time to achieve what I have not been able to achieve yet, couldn't it? The other bright side is I finally came to realize how I have got much better at prioritizing things now.

That's it. I'm being given a longer time to improve my CGPA so that I could go to my dream universities for my further studies. A longer period to look for scholarships to step my feet on the famously breathtaking land of Europe. Another chance to right my wrongs, to achieve the ultimate goals of my life. For that, I shall not lose my faith. For that, these mixed feelings shall be remedied before they generate more severe wounds.

That's it. I saw this wrongly before. God is actually granting me another opportunities. Chances that I should never ignore.

Yes, that's right, I'm still winning this battle.

The dejected gentleman who is still continuing his struggle to win the battle.

"Doa untuk Maya"

Namanya Maya Uspasari dan tulisan ini bukanlah sebuah cerpen ataupun surat cinta.

Maya adalah seorang wanita penuh akurasi dan presisi yang terkadang agak sulit mengendalikan emosi. Meskipun dianugerahi kecantikan hati dan fisik diatas rata-rata oleh Tuhan, arogansi tidak pernah ada dalam kamusnya. Ia terlatih untuk selalu menjunjung tinggi independensi dan mengedepankan transparansi sejak kecil. Tipikal anak sulung.

Jarak umur kami sepuluh tahun. Kami tumbuh dirumah yang sama, dibesarkan oleh orang-orang hebat yang sama. Bedanya, aku tumbuh sebagai bungsu yang selalu mengincar superioritas sedangkan ia tumbuh sebagai sulung yang seringkali terpaksa menjadi inferior demi adik-adiknya.

Physical features kami begitu serupa. Tak jarang orang-orang berasumsi bahwa aku ini versi laki-lakinya dan dia adalah versi perempuanku. Aku memanggilnya Ayuk, panggilan paling mainstream untuk kakak perempuan di kampung kami dan beberapa daerah di southern Sumatra.

Ya, Maya terlahir sebagai kakak sulung dan saudara perempuanku satu-satunya. Perempuan kurang beruntung yang sudah terjebak diduniaku selama lebih dari 20 tahun. Kasihan. (Hahaha)

Entah tanpa disadarinya atau tidak, ia selalu menjadi role model bagi dua adik laki-lakinya. Dari hal yang paling superfisial seperti gaya tersenyum, tulisan tangan, sense of humor, sikap sewaktu membaca, dan memandang lawan bicara sampai hal-hal yang sangat profound seperti cara menyelesaikan masalah, mengutarakan argumentasi, dan mendemonstrasikan afeksi terhadap orang-orang yang dicintainya. Mungkin tanpa mencontoh tingkah polahnya, aku sekarang masih akan menjadi seorang introvert yang bahkan tidak punya nyali untuk sekedar bersosialisasi dengan sepupu-sepupu terdekat.

Kedekatan kami sangat eksesif. Waktu kecil, aku tidak bisa berhenti menangis berhari-hari dipelukan ibu saat ia harus meninggalkan kampung halaman untuk melanjutkan studinya. Aku merasa sangat cemburu saat ia menemukan pendamping hidupnya dan mengakhiri masa lajangnya. Aku menangis bahagia sembunyi-sembunyi saat ia dianugerahi Allah anak pertamanya. Aku tidak bisa tidur waktu ia dan kedua keponakan kecilku harus menempuh perjalanan berjam-jam, menyusul suaminya yang diberi kesempatan untuk berguru ke negeri kangguru. Entah bertepuk sebelah tangan atau tidak, tapi kecintaanku terhadap wanita satu ini levelnya infinity. Limitless. Tak terbatas, tak mengenal horizon.

Seperti saudara-saudara kandung pada umumnya, we don't always wear the same shoes and travel in the same boat. Kami berselisih paham. Kami bertengkar. Menurutku ia terkadang terlalu berpihak pada spontanitas, menurutnya aku berusaha terlalu keras untuk menjadi seorang visioner. Menurutku sikap dan pola pikirnya terkadang kelewat konservatif, menurutnya aku seringkali salah dalam menginterpretasi dan mengimplementasi istilah liberalism dan open-mindedness. Menurutku ia kadang kurang sensitif, menurutnya tingkat sensitifitasku sering diatas kewajaran.

Tapi untungnya, kami selalu berhasil menemukan cara mediasi yang tepat saat emotional disputes tersebut mulai naik ke permukaan. Mungkin karena kami berdua sangat paham bahwa being siblings maknanya tidak jauh berbeda dengan interdependensi emosional. Kami akan selalu saling membutuhkan dan mencintai satu sama lain sampai kapanpun. Sejak kepergian Ibu, Maya selalu menempati posisi teratas dalam daftar VVIW (Very Very Important Woman) di hidupku.

Hari ini Maya genap berumur 32 tahun dan tulisan ini sebenarnya sudah rampung sejak pekan lalu.

Doa-doa indah untuknya kukirim setiap hari kepadaNya. Semoga Maya tambah cantik hati dan parasnya, semoga ia  dan keluarga kecilnya senantiasa diberi kemudahan serta kemurahan rezeki, semoga impian-impiannya dalam hidup bisa segera tercapai, semoga keras kepala dan nafsu makannya cepat berkurang, dll. Namun, di hari spesialnya ini, aku hanya mengirimkan satu doa untuk Maya kepada Tuhan. Satu doa yang kukirim dengan intensitas yang lebih tinggi dari biasanya.

"Semoga dalam rentang waktu satu tahun kedepan, sosok Maya dalam hidupku dan ayahku tidak akan berubah sama sekali. Senantiasa indah dan sederhana seperti sekarang. Semoga dengan jarak dan waktu yang memisahkan kami, batin kami akan selalu dekat  dan semakin merapat"

As simple as that. 

Selamat Ulang Tahun, Yuk! I love you so much!

Quick Updates!

Hello, abandoned journal! Just wanna post some quick updates this time. I promise to write more here once I've finished all my thesis businesses, the deadline is getting closer and I've been performing such a snail progress so far >..<  So yeap, bottles of luck are utterly needed here! Countless of unfortunate events have been showing their asses lately, but so did the fortunate ones :) Lemme share the great ones for the sake of helping me to get the negativity riddance:

1. Older Interest: Applying for International Youth Empowerment Events.

I am always known as one of those youth conference mafia of the town. I couldn't help it, the global competition to get selected as delegate of your country is just so addictive. Once you got it, you would crave for some more. When you failed, it always taught you not to give up easily and keep doing more trials. As you can see below, there are three prestigious events I've got selected to attend lately. I want to go so bad, yet some academic and financial constraints are still blocking my way. Nonetheless, it's not Fajri Usman if he won't fight hard to reach his dreams. May Allah ease my way..

ISWI, Young Leaders for Indonesia, UN Musical in UN Headquarter. Would be insanely amazing experiences!

2. Newer Interest: Making Covers on Youtube.

I was told that singing and performing arts have always been my biggest passions since I was a fetus. However, I have never thought that my singing is particularly good until tonnes of friends convinced me in so many ways (mostly harsh and mean) about it. So yeah, I've decided to start going public and joining the new normal: posting your singing in online medium, regardless of your skill level. Some are really horrible at doing it, but I respect their courage a lot. So yeah, below are the first four covers I've made so far. I don't care what people think about them, it's the happiness generated when I created them that only matters :)

That's all for now. Lemme close this post with a quotation I really loved yet I've forgot who said it: "If you want people to always remember you once you are gone, either write things worth reading or do things worth writing". Adios! 

In A Glance: My Amazing 2012

Aloha, my neglected virtual diary! The amazing 2012 is ending today and I'm still pretty lazy to write a good quality entry here so I'm just gonna review what happened in my life throughout the year based on statuses I've updated on Facebook just like what I did in previous blogposts. Well, I actually have been going to twitter more frequently since the beginning of the year, but still quite active sharing momentous points of my life on Facebook though. This will be pretty long with a lot of pictures to enjoy :) 

• 2 Jan: "Happy new year 2012! May Allah bestow His blessings toward us this whole new year, as much as last year! I wish everyone will get a much better life this year. My 2011 was quite colorful..bad things happened, good ones occurred even more :) Have an awesome 2012, people!"  #BetterLateThanNever

Last New Year's Eve celebration at Puchi's

• 2 Jan: "I am having a sudden trip to Singapore with my relatives. It's free of charge, but will screw my exams preparation schedule for sure T..T Shall I be happy? -..- Well, anyway, if you urgently need to contact me, you can reach me through fb, twitter, and email. I'll only be there for a few days though ;)"

 Free Trip to Singapore! Sweet treat from my uncle :')

• 12 Jan: "Bismillah. Second Final Paper. Environmental Health and Safety. 8.30am sharp. Wish me the best of luck in the universe! Let's find out whether or not miracles really exist! :D"
• 13 Jan: "IELTS exam. Corus Hotel and British Council of KL. 8.45am - onwards. Hope everything will be alright. Bismillah."
• 18 Jan:  "I'll be having my last exam paper within two hours. This means that in the approximately next 4 hours from now, I'LL BE AS FREE AS A BIRD! The bald eagle one! Haha. Huga huga! XD P.S: The lecturer of today's subject hates me. I have to give the hardest shits I can do. Wish me the best of luck in the world puhleaaase.. "
• 27 Jan: "My IELTS result is finally out. It was quite okay since I didn't prepare for it well. Why didn't I prepare for it very well? *regretting face* Hope it will work for those programs I would like to join, after all. Deep sigh."
• 31 Jan: "January has eventually bailed and February has just arrived. I utterly believe that 'she' is going to surprise me with blasts and become the prettiest out of all months. Hopefully."
• 11 Feb: "The appearance of the first ever C letter among the six A letters in my result is really such a heartbreaking. But, I know that I deserve it as I didn't push myself hard enough on that subject :( But still, Alhamdulillah..I am gonna work hundreds times harder this semester! I have to! Huga huga!! \m/ "
• 15 Feb: "Alhamdulillah, I am surprisingly on the top 25 and made it to the octofinal of the 2012 Asian English Olympics, speech category. I am begging for your prayers here. Please wish me the whole luckiness in the next rounds ya!"
• 17 Feb:  "I only can make it to the top 8 best speakers. I didn't make it to the top 4. I lost. All I am bringing home is only the semi-finalist of the 2012 Asian English Olympics certificate. I am sorry :("

Great event. Will definitely join it again next year.

• 24 Feb: "You treat me well, I am gonna treat you best. You hate me well, I am still gonna treat you best B)"
• 26 Feb: "Have a safe flight to Korea our super-careless-yet-lovely Widya Handini !! We're gonna miss you so much yo! T..T Don't get tricked by those cute-face korean boys, they are dangerous :p Instead, bring me back some cuties from there! mahaha"

Widya Handini a.k.a "The Silly Bubu"

• 28 Feb: "Just got a surprising email : Dear Applicant, Congratulations! You are invited to participate in the 6th World Youth Congress in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from June 4th to June 13th 2012. You have been chosen as one of 300 successful applicants out of 5000 applied from all corners of the world for your motivational and interesting essays in the themes of the Rio+20 Summit. All expenses related to food, accommodation and domestic transport in Brazil will be covered by the organisation during the period of the congress and participants are expected to raise the funds to travel to/from Rio de Janeiro--Should I cry? Should I laugh? Should I just ignore and delete it? or..Should I go for it?"
• 12 Mar: "We are busy growing up, sometimes we forget that our parents are also growing up. Happy birthday the most favorite old man of mine, Mr. Usman Zuhri. May Allah bestow His blessings toward you much much more this year. Semoga umurnya sentiasa berkah :) Stay healthy, Daddy! I don't miss you, but yeah I still love you more than anyone else in the whole universe! ;)"

My Old Man :')

• 16 Mar: "Today, it's been exactly 4 years since the last time I saw the peaceful face of my mother. Ah, I miss that angel in disguise so much. Every single day of my life, I beg Allah to treat her well over there. I hope He has been doing what I have been praying for Him to do. We are now in different worlds, yet our love makes no distance! I still and will always love you till my last breath, Mama' :')" *read the story of my beloved mother here*

• 25 Mar: "Nope, you are so wrong. I am not giving up, I am opening the new doors. I am too strong to be broken, dawg!"
• 27 Mar: "Have a safe and sound flight to Japan abang Ihwan Ghazali !! May Allah ease your superlong journey!! See you in seven months :) And yeah, enjoy Vietnam to the fullest masbro Muhammad Irfan and kak Dwi Rizka Zulkia :D" *virtual hugs*
• 28 Mar: "Yesterday was a day when a very bad bad news and a very good good news struck my life simultaneously. I seriously didn't know how to react Y..Y Today is hopefully the day when all good news come together and embrace me. Bismillah.."
• 30 Mar: "Just gave a super-late surprise party to our Gilang Ramadhan ! Sorry man, my bad :( Happy birthday, ma boooyy! May Allah always ease your days and I wish you all the best for your future undertakings. I still can't believe that you've just had your 20th one! Maturity is like your middle name and it's like you've left your teenage waaay before I did -___- Please keep standing by my side dude, my life is a total mess without you! Seriously. *wet kisses* Muahahaha"

Mr. Gilang Ramadhan, the best roommate I ever had.

• 9 April: "This is life. It's either you disappoint people by your decision or people disappoint you by not being able to accept your ideas."
• 11 April: "Selamat ulang tahun ke-27 lelaki penghibur favorit saya Insan Ramadhan. My life wouldn't be this wonderful without your presence :') I wish nothing but the best for your future undertakings, mamen. Stay awesome! Stay healthy! Stay by my side! and STAY ONCEL!! :* P.S: ANGKET TELPON KO YA KERBAK LUTONG!!!! -..- "

Lelaki-Lelaki Penghibur Terkemuka

• 30 Apr: "Good morning, people of the world. Really hope this last Monday of April will be an awesome closing of the month and a great opening of the week for each of us. Carpe diem! Seize the day! \m/"
• 30 Apr: "Just got selected as one of Indonesian representatives to attend Global Youth Cultural Summit on the UN Millenium Development Goals. Another free ticket to meet exceptional young people from all around the world. Alhamdulillah :')"
• 1 May: "You said I've never failed? Dude, I've failed a lot these last few months! I've lost in some competitions, I've failed in accomplishing my school assignments and tests, I've failed in executing jobs assigned to me by my organizations, I've failed of being a good son recently, I've failed in attending two international events I've been waiting my whole life to join, I've failed of being a perfect boyfriend, I've broken my bestfriends' hearts, I've failed in volunteering activities, and tons more. But then, I've been always keeping in my mind that just because you fail once or twice or thrice of for so many times, doesn't mean that you are gonna fail at everything for the rest of your life! Keep trying, hold on and always believe in yourself, because if you don't, who will?? So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling! because life's a beautiful thing and there's countless of things to smile about! :) 
• 10 May:  "Each night, when I go to sleep, I die. And the next morning, when I wake up, I am reborn." - Mahatma Gandhi.
• 16 May: "There is only one thing which can make your dream becomes impossible to be achieved: The Fear of Failure."
• 17 May: "Good day, citizens of the earth. Stop judging people from their past, they don't live there anymore ;)"
• 23 May: "Even though it was only an hour rendezvous, nothing in this world can beat the joy of seeing your face in the airport today, Khoti Muliya Damiyati :') Have a safe flight to Korea, girlfriend! and please make sure to contact me as soon as you reach Incheon. I love you :* "

The Girlfriend: The One Who Knows Me the Best <3

• 25 May: "My band and my saman dance group will be performing in the International Cultural and Food Fair 2012, Auditorium KPS UM, 6pm onwards. So, if you are around, you are cordially invited to come and enjoy our performances :D Really hope to see y'all there, UM fellas!! XD"

The Asymmetry

Saman Mirah Puteh! Cekiii!

• 26 May: "Just unexpectedly received an email saying that I have passed through competitive selection and been selected as one of Indonesian representatives to attend the International Youth Forum 2012 which is gonna be held in Seliger-Russia, 9-17 July 2012. It's a prestigious world-class event which will gather youth from more than 80 countries. Fajri Usman is one lucky guy. All praises to Allah :')"
• 1 Jun: "Don't be afraid to take an unfamiliar path, sometimes they are the ones that take you to the best places. Welcome, June! I can see your awesomeness already :D May Allah ease every single day of this month! Amiin! (a kinda late updated status -__-v)"
• 2 Jun: "Received the official invitation to attend ISWinT 2012, an International Student Week which will be held in Timisoara, Romania. I've never been to Europe before and am freakin' interested with the programs, but the dates are overlapped with the Russia one :( Well, there's always next time. Maybe next year, Romania..Wait no, It HAS TO be next year! :D"
• 3 Jun:  "I'm on my way to the airport. I'll be flying to Dubai then straight away to Brazil to attend the 6th World Youth Congress very shortly :) Mohon doanya ya..I'm freakin' nervous yet super-excited >..< Shall you need to contact me, please do so either through email, fb, and twitter :) May Allah ease my journey to experience this once in a lifetime opportunity :') Bismillah.."

It's never easy to get visa to visit Brazil, fellas. In my case, it was free of charge :')

Dubai International Airport. Freaking Huge!! And Mesmerizing!!

• 5 Jun: "This status is updated in the middle of a very breathtaking rain forest in Rio de Janeiro called Sitio das Pedras :D This is also as the confirmation to all families, relatives, friends, and colleagues who are worrying about the Malaysian and Indonesian delegates that we all have arrived in Brazil very safely and sound :D The internet connection here is kinda weak that we can´t really update our daily activities in the 6th World Youth Congress tho :( Nonetheless, It`s RIO Babyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!

It's Rio, baby!

• 14 Jun: "Alhamdulillah, I've finally arrived in KL after a long long flight from Brazil tanpa kekurangan sesuatu apapun :') The 6th World Youth Congress was a remarkable experience which can't ever be described in words. I've left a piece of my heart in Rio and I promise myself to go back there one sweet day in the future. It's now the time to face a very harsh reality called the final examination! Huga huga! P.S. Pictures and stories will be kindly shared once all my exams are done -___-v"

300 exceptional young people from all over the globe were gathered to create a better world.

Cultural Performance. I sang, for the world.

Action Projects with the Local Communities. Priceless experience.

The Roundtable Discussions, Peer Workshops and Plenary Sessions have extraordinarily  improved my learning curve.

Friends were beautifully made.

Brandon, delegate from South Africa. The former roommate of mine.

Santiago from Uruguay, a quite close friend during the event.

Julio from Peru, Zetong from Malaysia, and Nadine from Brazil. Amazing people.

Bintou from Mali, Luntha and Donald from Bostwana. Remarkably talented youth!

The Favelas: Poor Community Settlements.

Oh, somebody please bring me back to Brazil!! 

• 30 Jun: "Having 6 final exams in 5 consecutive days without sufficient preparation really drove me nuts last week. The fact that I can clearly foresee my CGPA for this semester will be significantly decreased make it even worse *cries* I swear I will never ever 'escape' during my study weeks in the future!"
• 3 Jul: "Wahai teman sejawat, berhentilah mencoba menginjeksikan konfusi nisbi itu kedalam diri saya karena saya tergolong dalam kaum kuriositas yang akan selalu memiliki afeksi berlebih dalam mencari sinkronisitas setiap aspek kehidupan. Keep that on your mind, douche! ;)"
• 4 Jul: "You don't necessarily have to own a perfect family to achieve higher than others. All you need the most is believing in yourself" - A living proof :)
• 5 Jul:  "Selamat pagi! When some things go wrong, take a moment to be thankful for the things which are still going right. God always has a perfect timing; never early, never late. It takes a little patience and faith, but it's worth the wait :)"
• 6 Jul: "Allahuakbaaar, beasiswa ke Rusianya udah cair doong. Dua kali lipat dr yg diharapkan pulak! ehehe Segala puji bagiMu yaa Allaaaah :D *sujud syukur 2000x*"
• 7 Jul: "Bismillah. It's finally time to go. I will be flying to Abu Dhabi very shortly and will continue to fly to Moscow on the next day. I really hope I can be a good representative of my country in this prestigious International Youth Forum. Oh man, I still can't believe this is happening >..< I seriously require a bottle of luck from you! P.S. Shall u need any queries, please contact me through email, fb, or twitter."

Abu Dhabi International Airport. I love the architecture.

• 7 Jul: "Happy 27th Birthday Mister Lailatul Qodri, a living super-absorbent sponge whom I am always extremely proud of, an awesomely idiot brother of mine whose the worst sense of humor in the universe, a life-time supporter of mine who always stands for me (literally) in any circumstances, a fake cheerleader who has unfortunately appeared to be one of the best friends in my entire life. Tons of great returns for you are wished from Abu Dhabi International Airport. Have a great one, Dude!! *hot smooches* HAHAHA"

Lailatul 'Katul' Qodri. Artis Ibukota.

• 12 Jul: "Day 4 in Russia. The impression hasn't changed : This land is sooo breathtaking. I am enjoying the summer school so much that I'm recommending you to apply for this program next year. Especially for those who love to be educated in modern ways and amazed by the beauty of our nature in the same time :) This international youth forum is very well-organized and well-prepared even though the lectures are sometimes very dead boring. HAHA! P.S. It's 10pm in the evening here but it's still as bright as 12pm in the afternoon O_o"
• 16 Jul: "Just had the last dinner in the International Youth Forum Seliger 2012. I am kinda sad :'( I am definitely gonna miss the breathtaking forest, the amazing lake, the camp, the people and the classes. But extremely excited at the same time, as we'll be travelling to St. Petersburg and Moscow up to next week! Wooohooo! :D"

The most memorable summer school ever!

The delegates of Indonesia. Tampang TKI semua XD I love you people so much!!

• 17 Jul: "Arrived in Saint Petersburg already. This city is just sooo MIND-BLOWING! XD Ga heran lagi deh kenapa kota ini dinobatkan sebagai salah satu kota terindah didunia. Arsitektur gabungan Vienna, Paris, dan Londonnya bikin merinding ga berenti2 >..< Mimpi apa ya gue bisa sampe kesini?? Alhamdulillah. Allahuakbaaar! :')"

Kampung. Udik. Bodo Amat.

The birdy hated me -__-

The State Hermitage Museum, salah satu museum terlengkap dan terindah didunia :') 

Didepan Masjid Biru yang diperjuangkan Bung Karno bagi kaum Muslim Rusia di St. Petersburg

Katedral 'Berdarah' yang sangat indah :') 

• 20 Jul: "Arrived in Moscow yesterday, after deadly amazed by countless of incredibly beautiful buildings in St. Petersburg. Sholat di Blue Mosque, masjid biru yang diperjuangkan oleh bung Karno buat kaum muslimin disana. Visited The heart-robbing State Hermitage Museum, salah satu museum terlengkap didunia. Visited the Kremlin and St. Basil's Cathedral in the famous Red Square of Moscow. I am so blessed :') I am welcoming the Holy Ramadhan here from Moscow. Ramadhan Kareem for all my brothers and sisters in Indonesia and Malaysia! Selamat menunaikan ibadah puasa! I'll be back home really soon! :D"

The Worldwide Famous Red Square!

Pemuda-pemudi Indonesia taklukkan Rusia!

Moscow tidak kalah cantik kok dari St. Petersburg :)

• 22 Jul: "Currently in Domodedovo International Airport, waiting for my Moscow-Abu Dhabi flight. This marks the end of my adventure in this largest country in the world :'( Representing Indonesia in the International Youth Forum was indeed a remarkable experience. Travelling throughout St. Petersburg and Moscow engraved priceless memories in my mind and my heart. Dulunya hanya bisa berimajinasi tentang keindahan Rusia melalui salah satu bukunya kan Habiburrahman El-Shirazy. Ga nyangka banget kalo akhirnya bisa menyaksikannya dengan mata sendiri. A dream has really come true :') Alhamdulillah. I am so excited to be back home now! :D"

Demodedovo International Airport, Moscow, Russia.

• 28 Jul: "Ketakutan saya dulu tidak terbukti. Dompet dan paspor tidak lenyap di Dubai. Handphone dan kamera tidak dicuri di Brazil. Tidak ada dokumen penting yg tercecer di Abu Dhabi. Tidak ada barang yg tertinggal di Rusia. Bahkan tidak ad uang yg tidak saya catat kemana perginya. Tingkat ketelitian saya tampaknya meningkat dgn sgt signifikan. Tidak terlalu ceroboh lagi. Perubahan yg patut dibanggakan :)"
• 1 Aug:  "Musibah dan cobaan dari Allah bisa datang kapan saja, dimana saja, dan kepada siapa saja. Jangan diratapi. Jadikan bahan refleksi. Sesungguhnya ada hikmah dan pelajaran berharga dalam setiap ujian dariNya. Bad things happen in life. Insya Allah saya sudah ikhlas. I've had much worse losses than this, moving on is a piece of cake :) Selamat datang wahai Agustus! Mari bersahabat! :D" 
• 4 Aug: "Never get tired of doing small things for others. Sometimes those little things occupy the biggest part of their hearts. (Inspired by the sincere kindheartedness of Mr. Jamaluddin Syakirin )"
• 8 Aug: "Kepulangan saya ke kampung halaman hari ini terpaksa ditunda karena urusan visa belum kelar. I was really really sad :( Then I had skype session with the nephew and the niece, the sadness just simply disappeared. Emang ya, nothing can entertain me like the way they do :') Plus, I'm finally about to watch The Dark Knight Rises with a very good friend of mine. Life is not that bad :)"
• 11 Aug: "Alhamdulillah, everything has been settled. I AM COMING BACK HOME TOMORROW, PEOPLE!! XD Babeh, anakmu pulang besok beeeh! :')"
• 16 Aug: "Being Home = Good Foods = No Good Internet = Higher Sleeping Quantity = Becoming An Ugly Giant! *deep sigh*"
• 17 Aug: "At last, the term "Independence" itself for me can't be merely defined as the declaration of freedom. It has to be appreciated much more than that as it was acquired through rough struglings, heaps of sacrifices, by a high number of parties who loved their nation more than anything. Happy Independence day, Indonesia! Dirgahayu ke-67 tanah tumpah darahku yang mulia!" - A very proud (and young) Indonesian. :)"

A proud (and young) Indonesian.

• 18 Sep: "As I am now back in Malaysia already, this fb account won't be neglected anymore :) It wasn't the best holiday I had back then, but thanks to the girlfriend, the best friends, and some relatives who turned the idea of celebrating Eid Fitri and summer holiday in my homeland without the presence of the father and the sister to be not as bad as I thought :) And for ten great (and thick) books I'd been finished reading over last three weeks, thanks for your companions as well! :D"
• 22 Sep: "Ga kerasa udah harus mulai nulis proposal skripsi aja. Time awaits for no man. Yes, It'd never await for you, once you stop to look after it, it will leave you behind. True story indeed."
• 11 Oct: "Submitted my thesis proposal today. I hope it's alright. I really do. My fingers are crossed. Please cross yours for me as well :)"
• 14 Oct: "Volunteered in an Indonesian's non-formal education center in Klang + Volunteered in KL Eco-Film Festival + Hosted acara Sosialisasi Online Database Pelajar, Guru, Mahasiswa dan Dosen Indonesia di Malaysia at the Embassy + Hosted and participated dalam Pelantikan Pengurus Persatuan Pelajar Indonesia se-Malaysia 2012/13 dan Raker Perdana PPIM 2012/13 + Visited by an old friend , Jefri Efranda + Great Lunch with Persatuan Pelajar Bangka Belitung = The very blessed weekends."
• 17 Oct: "That blue moment when you are surrounded by so many people that care about you but you still feel all alone :'("
• 18 Oct: "Conducted my first youth-empowering discussion on challenges we face in expanding education opportunities. I am amazed by the fiery spirit of a group of youth who participated to make a big change. Never felt this great for so long. My greatest gratitude for those who came tonight, you guys are gonna make great future leaders :') Huge thanks to Greg Nance and The ChaseFuture Tribe for the guidance. Debrief will be submitted after my mid-term exams, okay, Mr.Nance? :P What changes the world is consciousness and what creates consciousness is education alone. So, keep educating yourself and people around you, fellas!"
• 21 Oct:  "Inspirasi itu sejatinya tidak mengenal dimensi. Bisa datang dari mana saja dan kapan saja. Aku bisa menjadi inspirasi bagimu dan mereka, pun kamu bisa menjadi sangat inspiratif bagiku dan mereka. Tidak ada inspirasi yang memaksa, hanya ada yang menyegarkan dan mengekspansi horizon serta energi positif dalam diri."
• 24 Oct: "Bought a little time to teach the children of Indonesian migrants again in the middle of my exams, assignments, and organizational activities today. The kids call themselves underprivileged, impoverished, and stateless. I call them education warriors, dream catchers and the best teacher of sincerity. Their spirits to pursue their dreams are much more enormous than mine. Educating them really revives me. Thanks for today, budak-budak hebat Klang! :')"

Anak-anak hebat Indonesia di Malaysia :') 

• 4 Nov: "It's exactly 5 months ago, I left for the breathtaking land of Brazil and stepped my feet in South America for the very first time, to represent the nation of Indonesia in the 6th World Youth Congress. I was really fortunate to meet 300 exceptional youth from every corner of the world, whose remarkably great minds and spirits of making changes. Young people who've constantly been my motivation to play my roles in creating a better world. I really miss seeing them in the mind-blowing land of Rio de Janeiro. I'm wondering how they are doing now, must have been very busy making changes in their own countries :')"
• 10 Nov: "Forum Diskusi "Pemuda Bicara" malam ini benar2 membuka mata saya bahwa pemuda-pemudi Indonesia yang berkarya di luar negeri memiliki rasa nasionalisme yang tidak kalah masif dengan mereka yang berkarya didalam negeri, malah malam ini saya bisa melihat dengan jelas tendensi mereka yang sangat jauh lebih besar untuk mewujudkan secara nyata rasa cinta terhadap bangsa Indonesia. Thanks for coming, everyone! Indonesia (harusnya) sangat bangga memiliki generasi2 pembawa perubahan seperti kalian! Tetap semangat dalam membangun bangsa! Dan Selamat Hari Pahlawan! :D"
• 10 Nov: "So, I've surprisingly been selected among 1000 applicants from throughout South-East Asia to represent Indonesia as well as University of Malaya in the 2012 ASEAN Student Forum. Seems like my campus has started to treat International and Local students equally, as all expenses I need are being covered by the university. All praises to Allah :') I'll be leaving for Thailand very early in the morning tomorrow. Wish me the best of luck in the world, everyone! :D"

One of the best International Students Events I've ever attended!

With Firman and Zakwan, the selected representatives of University of Malaya.  We're like brothers :')

The Delegates of Indonesia. Remarkable young people!

I enjoyed every session of the event. Every bit of it was so impressive!

Don't get trolled. I was acting as a pro speaker HAHAHA

The White Party. Mook (left) was my Liaison Officer and Eunice (right) was a delegate from the Philippines . Lovable young ladies!

The Mask Partaaaay! Awesome enough!

The Certificate Awarding Ceremony. We were called to the stage one by one.

• 17 Nov: "Arrived back home very late last night as my flight from Bangkok was being delayed quite long. Nevertheless, representing Indonesia as well as University of Malaya in the 2012 ASEAN Student Forum was indeed a remarkable and fruitful experience. I loved the people, the hospitality, the activities, the foods, the punctuality, the organization of the event, and the impacts it brought so much! It was one of the best international youth events I've ever attended. Thanks ASF 2012, I'm now much prouder to be a part of ASEAN! :')"
• 21 Nov: "I was born and raised in one of the smallest and youngest provinces in Indonesia called the Province of Bangka Belitung Archipelago. Some people call it secluded, boring, and isolated islands. I call it the land of perfections. Some don't even know where it is located or whether it is really exist in this world or not. They may say it's in the middle of nowhere, but for me, it is always in my heart and occupies the biggest part of it. Happy 12th anniversary, Bangka Belitung! I wish you the endless prosperity! Thank you for shaping me so I can become who I am right now :')"
• 22 Nov: "If only he is still around, today would be his 27th birthday. We might have been much closer than before. We would have that so-called brothers' birthday dinner, just the two of us, sharing stories about movies, books, games, or even girls. I miss those moments when you teased and mocked me till I cried and then you got scolded by Mom and Dad, moments when you taught me the broken english that I'm still using up to this day. I miss all the laughs, fights, tears, and jokes we used to share together. I miss you, my dear brother, M. Fauzan Ilhami. I pray you are resting in the eternal peace. Amin Allahumma Amiin :')"
• 7 Dec: "I'll be serving as the moderator of a panel discussion for tomorrow's "International Outreach Program of University of Malaya". It will be conducted in KPS Auditorium of UM from 9am, but my session shall be around 2pm. If you are international students studying in UM, I strongly encourage you to come as this event is specially created for you ;) So yeah, I really hope to see you there! :D"

It was a great experience moderating such a great event. The panelists were very informative that I learned a lot from them :')

Puan Halimaton, pihak yang berjasa besar dalam keikutsertaan saya dalam ASEAN  Students Forum 2012 dan   dipercayanya saya untuk memoderasi International Students Outreach Program.

• 14 Dec: "I sincerely congratulate my brother and sister, Budi Kur and Maya Uspasari for being officially graduated from Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University today. And my good friend, Tyas RizkyAstriningtias for her first student-run art exhibition in University of Malaya. I really wish I could attend your big days :( Nonetheless, I am a very proud brother and so happy for you guys! :') Keep up the good works!"
• 20 Dec 2012: "Three days ago my Saman traditional dance group was awarded the best performance in the 2012 Friendship International Networks Cultural Event. Today, my Choir group named as the Champion of the 2012 University of Malaya's Co-Curriculum Festival. Our hardworks have been paid off"well :')"

The Saman-ers won! Watch our performance here.

The Choir group for co-curriculum subject. Watch our performance here.

• 21 Dec: "Below are those faces you show to the world when a rough semester has officially ended and you kinda survived well, your role as vice-president in your organization has also been officially completed, yet the world is still pretty alive and the Mayan people are being screwed :D"

Such a long post! I can't feel my fingers anymore writing this. Haha.

Well, so that's how I went through 2012. I'm so ready to welcome the 2013.

I wish everyone an amazing year ahead!