5 Minutes Freewrite | Storytelller (Bilingual EN-ID)

Once upon a time there was an old man who liked to sit in the corner of the market and loved to tell stories. Every time he meets another person, he will ask for time for that person to listen to his story, as a result, people start to stay away from him.

One day he called for a man who was walking proudly with a group of horsemen and heavily armed who were passing through the market. At first the man who was called was hesitant, but he gave up a little time for the strange old geezer.

Meanwhile, people were starting to feel a little scared about what the old man was doing. They wondered if the old fart didn't know who the person he had just called was.

But the old man didn't seem to care at all. When the summoned approached, he immediately whispered.

"Come here, I'll tell you something," he said.

The man also ducked, until the hem of his robe covered the ground where they were then looked around. He signaled to all the troops who immediately dismounted their horses at that very moment. Dozens of troops were lined up on standby, making a circle that no market residents should pass.

"Please old man, I will give you a few minutes of my time," said the robed man.

"Okay. Before that, did you know there's a kingdom down here?"

"Yes..." replied the man. "You know who the king is?" continued the man.

"No, no..., you only need to answer yes or no, that's all, that's if you want me to continue my story," said the old man.

"Okay, I agree, go on."

"Do you know that the kingdom is very rich, abounding in gold and jewels, where every royal door is adorned with emeralds with sparkling silver engravings, while the king's throne is clad in everything that is impossible for anyone to achieve in this land of the wind," he started his story.

"I know all that, give me something else," said the robed man.

"Oh, well, all right, listen. That majestic palace was once suddenly attacked by soldiers from the southern kingdom, but the king couldn't do anything about it, he threw fear in the bed and armpits of the empress. Lucky the people willing to stand in front, defend the kingdom, and their king with all efforts, forming additional troops armed only with perfunctory combat equipment, from everyday equipment, when the spoiled royal troops can do nothing, but when the enemy fails to control the kingdom, who party as if they had just fought to the death are the king and his troops," he said.

The robed man was silent for a moment, his heart like being stabbed repeatedly with a dagger. Without saying much, he got up, threw off his oversized robe so that it left a trail of dust on the old geezer's face.

The people in the market fell silent. Earlier they also listened seriously to the fairy tale, and they began to understand what the old man who they had thought was crazy meant.

When the group disappeared in the distance, they realized that the storyteller's grandfather had been executed on the spot. The royal butcher placed his head right on the footprints of the king who had just listened to the grandfather's story.

Several decades later, when the revolution toppled the royal system, a small monument was built in the middle of the market, as a reminder that the spark of resistance was born from that place. The resistance that was originally born from the mouth of a storyteller.

In Indonesian

Dahulu kala ada seorang kakek tua yang suka duduk di sudut pasar dan senang sekali mendongeng. Setiap kali berjumpa dengan orang lain, dia akan meminta waktu agar orang tersebut mau mendengarkan dongengannya akibatnya orang-orang mulai menjauhinya.

Suatu hari ia memanggil seorang lelaki yang sedang berjalan dengan angkuh bersama sebuah rombongan berkuda serta bersenjata lengkap yang tengah melewati pasar. Awalnya lelaki yang dipanggil ragu, namun ia merelakan sedikit waktu untuk kakek tua aneh tersebut.

Sementara itu, orang-orang mulai merasa agak ketakutan atas apa yang dilakukan oleh kakek itu. Mereka bertanya-tanya, apakah si tua bangka itu tidak tahu siapa orang yang baru saja dipanggilnya.

Tetapi kakek itu tampak tidak peduli sama sekali. Ketika orang yang dipanggil mendekat, segera ia berbisik.

"Ke sinilah, aku akan menceritakan sesuatu kepadamu," katanya.

Lelaki itu ikut merunduk, sampai ujung jubahnya menutupi permukaan tanah di mana mereka berada lantas melihat ke sekeliling. Ia memberi isyarat kepada seluruh pasukan yang segera turun dari kuda mereka saat itu juga. Puluhan pasukan pun berbaris siaga, membuat lingkaran yang tidak boleh dilewati oleh satu pun para penghuni pasar.

"Silakan wahai orang tua, aku akan memberikan beberapa menit waktuku untukmu," kata lelaki berjubah.

"Baiklah. Sebelumnya, tahukah kau bawah di tempat ini ada sebuah kerajaan?"

"Ya,..." jawab lelaki itu. "Kau tahu siapa rajanya?" sambung lelaki itu.

"Tidak, tidak..., kau hanya perlu menjawab tahu atau tidak, itu saja, itu juga jika kau ingin aku melanjutkan ceritaku," tepis kakek itu.

"Baiklah, aku setuju, lanjutkan."

"Tahukah kau bahwa kerajaan itu sangatlah kaya raya, berlimpahan emas serta permata, di mana setiap pintu-pintu kerajaan diberi zamrud dengan ukiran perak yang berkilauan, sementara singgasana raja berbalut segala hal yang tidak mungkin akan dicapai oleh siapa pun di negeri bawah angin ini," ia pun memulai ceritanya.

"Aku tahu semua itu, berikan aku sesuatu yang lain," tepis lelaki berjubah.

"Oh, baik, baiklah, dengarkan. Istana yang megah itu dulunya pernah diserang secara tiba-tiba oleh bala tentara dari kerajaan selatan, tapi sang raja tidak dapat berbuat apa-apa, ia menyuruk ketakutan di tempat tidur serta ketiak sang permaisuri. Beruntung rakyatnya mau berdiri di depan, membela kerajaan, dan raja mereka dengan segala upaya, membentuk pasukan tambahan hanya bersenjatakan alat tempur ala kadar, dari peralatan sehari-hari, ketika pasukan kerajaan yang manja tidak dapat berbuat apa-apa, tetapi ketika musuh gagal menguasai kerajaan, yang berpesta seolah-olah baru saja bertempur mati-matian adalah raja dan para pasukannya," tuturnya.

Lelaki berjubah terdiam sesaat, hatinya seperti ditusuk bertubi-tubi dengan belati. Tanpa banyak bicara, ia bangkit, mengempaskan jubah kebesarannya sehingga meninggalkan jejak debu ke wajah kakek tua tersebut.

Orang-orang yang ada di pasar ikut terdiam. Tadi mereka juga ikut mendengarkan dengan serius dongeng tersebut, dan mereka mulai paham apa maksud dari kakek yang selama ini mereka anggap gila itu.

Ketika rombongan menghilang di kejauhan, mereka baru sadar bahwa sang kakek pendongeng telah dieksekusi di tempat. Penjagal kerajaan menempatkan kepalanya tepat di atas bekas tapak kaki sang raja yang tadi baru saja mendengarkan cerita kakek tersebut.

Beberapa puluh tahun kemudian, ketika revolusi menumbangkan sistem kerajaan, sebuah monumen kecil dibangun di tengah pasar, sebagai pengingat bahwa percikan api perlawanan lahir dari tempat itu. Perlawanan yang awalnya lahir dari mulut seorang pendongeng.

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