Rumah Kakek dan Nenek; Grandma and Grandpa House

Rumah kakek memang unik, dibangun dengan bentuk seperti perahu. Ada buritan dengan bagian depan dipasang kaca mobil bekas sedan holden. Dikanan kirinya dihiasai dengan pelak ban dari besi, ada dua didepan disamping kaca dan enam lagi di sebelah kirinya. Kata kakek  pelak tadi bisa menjadi ventilasi udara. Kakek memang selalu memanfaatkan barang bekas menjadi seni. Begitu juga dengan ban-ban bekas yang memenuhi rumah yang diolah menjadi bermacam-macam barang, mulai dari timba sampai sandal karet. 

Aku ingat teman-teman kakek sering main dan berkumpul di rumah, sekedar bermain gaplek atau bernostalgia, kadang-kadang sampai tengah malam. Rumah kakek tak perlu kipas atau AC karena udara terbuka akan bertambah dingin dengan bertambah larutnya malam. Teman-teman kakek juga bebas merokok. Kami biasanya dilarang mendekat karena tak sehat dan membuat baju kami bau tembakau. 

Rumah kakek itu dilengkapi dengan beberapa lampu tapi bukan listrik,  aku tak tahu kenapa kakek tetap saja memasang petromak atau strongking, aku biasa menyebutnya begitu, mungkin itu juga bahasa Belanda. Kata kakek, karena selama penjajahan belanda kakek sudah ada jadinya sedikit-sedikit kakek tahu bahasa Landa (sebutan untuk belanda). Soal listrik tadi rumah kami juga punya televisi, tapi aku tak ingat apakah memakai baterai kering atau pakai listrik. Kakek juga punya beberapa benda sejarah seperti radio transistor yang sangat besar sehingga aku bisa masuk kedalamnya. Tapi tetap saja yang membuat aku penasaran soal listrik  dan strongking tadi, kenapa harus ada keduanya jika mau hemat?. Bisa jadi saat itu listrik masih mahal, sehingga kakek hanya menggunakannya untuk menyalakan televisi, menonton Dunia Dalam Berita dan Siaran Niaga, itupun cuma satu saluran TVRI, dan hiburan lainnya selain itu cuma RRI, selalu berita dan wayang orang.

Bagian rumah yang disukai kakek adalah, halaman tengah yang menghubungkan rumah depan dan belakang. Setiap hari sehabis magrib, kakek selalu meratakan butiran pasir, yang lebarnya hampir seluas lapangan badminton, menjadi rata bersih dan tak sebutirpun sampah yang tersisa. Setelahnya barulah dilanjutkan dengan ritual merokok “sigaret sintren”, sambil melamun memandangi langit, santai luar biasa. Aku tak ingat apakah kakekku juga menyukai kopi?. Tapi yang juga kuingat dari rumah dan kakek adalah kesehatannya yang luar biasa, jarang aku melihat kakek sakit, bahkan kacamatapun tak pernah dikenalnya. 

Rumah kakek juga semacam rumah singgah, meriah jika sudah dikunjungi tamu, baik itu sekedar teman lama atau rekanan bisnis. Jadi rumah itu berfungsi ganda, rumah dan kantor sekaligus, karena kakek memang suka bisnis dan mewariskan darah bisnis, kepada anak-anaknya, karena hampir semua anaknya kemudian meneruskan jejak kakek menjadi pengusaha.


Grandma and Grandpa House
by hans@acehdigest 

Grandfather's home is unique, built in the shape like a boat. There was stern with the front mounted glass used cars holden sedan. Decorated with doubt left on the right tire of the iron, there are two front and six more in addition to the glass to his left. Inevitably grandfather had said could be the air vents. Grandpa was always utilize the junk into art. Likewise with tires that meet the home that is processed into many kinds of goods, ranging from buckets to flip-flops.

I remember my friends and my grandfather used to play together at home, just playing card or nostalgic, sometimes until midnight. Grandpa did not need a fan or air conditioner because of the open air will increase with increasing cold night wore on. My friends grandfather also smoke free. We usually are prohibited from approaching due to unhealthy and makes our clothes smell of tobacco.

Grandfather's house was equipped with several lights but not electricity, I do not know why my grandfather still installing the lights petromak or strongking, I used to call it, maybe it's also the Dutch language. Grandfather said, because during the Dutch colonial rule would grandfather existing grandfather knew little "Landa" language (call for dutch). The electricity was home we also have television, but I do not remember whether to use disposable dry batteries or electricity. Grandpa also had a few things like the transistor radio history is very large so I could enter into it. But it still makes me curious about electricity and strongking before, why there should be both if you want to save?. It could be the time electricity is still expensive, so the grandfather only use it for powering television, watching the World in Commerce News and Press, and even then only one channel TVRI, other entertainment moreover only RRI, always news and puppet people.

Part of the house is like my grandfather, central courtyard that connects the home front and rear. Every day after sunset, grandfather always flatten the grains of sand, of a width almost as badminton court, a flat clean and no rubbish is left a course. Afterwards then continued with the ritual of smoking "cigarettes Sintren", dreamily looking at the sky, relaxing remarkable. I do not remember if my grandfather also liked the coffee?. But it is also remembered from home and the grandfather is great health, I saw my grandfather rarely sick, even glasses ware never know.

Grandfather's house is also a kind of halfway house, the merrier when it is visited by guests, whether it's just an old friend or business partner. So it serves a double house, home and office all at once, because my grandfather like business and did pass on the business of blood, to his children, because almost all of his grandfather's footsteps and continue to be an entrepreneur.