Brontok eagle.

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By @ayijufridar

ARUNG likes various types of birds without caring about the beauty of sound and color. For him, beauty appears in the bird itself without being bound by anything, including sound and color. When it comes to birds, he does not believe that beauty is absolute. The beauty is free, while the voice and color of the fur are bound.

If he is fixated on the beauty of sound and color, then he will not raise sparrows. Everyone admits that the sparrow is good only in name. Similar to the name of the village head's son in their village; Sparrow Sartika. Regarding sound, the sparrow only wins in noise. Especially when they're in groups, they float in the air like termites that are blown by a tornado. When they see the plump grains of rice, they will swoop down like an eagle trying to snatch chicks. Precisely therein lies its beauty. The flock of sparrows is like a colossal dancer who has harmony in motion. Without warning the body shot to the same point.

Even a stone magpie with a beautiful voice can't do that. They are not agile, just sound beautiful. Maybe that's how God shows His power. Beautiful birds are not given agility. And agile birds are not given beauty. Just as a small pumpkin tree is given large fruit, and a large banyan tree is given small fruit.

Even though he had often heard the stone magpie's beautiful voice, Arung had never actually seen the bird. He only knows that stone magpie also has various attractive colors. Medium body size, round head, rather long legs, sharp and slender beak, with rather wide wings. "Anyway, the stone magpie is very beautiful. The price is also expensive because it is rare,” said Wan Panyang.

"Rare is what?" Arung looked confused.

“That rare…” Wan Panyang thought. Confused about how to explain the definition of rare to a child who has only been in elementary school for a week? In addition, he was also confused because he could not make a definition. Even though it's only been a week, Arung has already eaten at school. Unlike him who never went to school at all. But no matter what, a child is still a child.

"That's rare, yes rare. Not everyone can catch it. Must have special skills.

Arung nodded. “In that case, Bang Wan can catch you?”

Wan Panyang quickly nodded. This little bird has fallen into the trap. “Later, Bang Wan will show you how to make the trap. Stone magpies make nests on tree branches that are not too high.”

"When do we set the trap?" looked at Arung with shining eyes. Within Wan Panyang's eyeballs that stood towering in front of him, he could see the rock magpie's long tail, its colorful wings, and its thin legs like Wan Panyang's. The other children must have been envious because none of them kept a magpie. Even Teungku Haji Muhammad Hamid, who keeps many birds, does not yet have a magpie. If Haji Muhammad asks to buy, what should he give?

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Arung's plan to have a stone magpie is getting closer to reality when Wan Panyang invites him to set a trap. According to Wan Panyang, in the village forest, he saw a cup-shaped nest made of dry twigs. "It's not too big but not small either. The location is not in a tall tree. So it's indeed a rock magpie's nest," said Wan Panyang.

"When do we get there?"

"Right now. But don't ever tell anyone. Magpie stone is expensive. Later, people will fight over setting traps. You have to promise…”

"I promise!"

They departed silently through a narrow detour that was rarely traveled by people. Even if you take the road on the edge of the rice fields, it will be faster to get to the village forest. But now it's harvest season. Lots of people walking by. Wan Panyang said, no one should know that they found a stone magpie's nest. "Later bother!"

Arung believe. He really likes all kinds of birds. But now he feels he prefers the stone magpie that he doesn't have yet. He felt that the stone magpie would become his favorite pet, perhaps most admired by his friends and even Haji Muhammad. If Pak Haji wants to buy, what will he give?

They arrived at the village forest which was not as dense as it used to be. Many tall trees have been cut down. The trunks are for building people's houses, while the branches are used for firewood. Many residents use firewood again after kerosene is hard to come by. In fact, villagers have almost given up firewood after being able to buy stoves, both those that use kerosene or gas. At that time there were only five or seven heads of households still using firewood. But now that number has increased again, a sign that society is moving backward away from prosperity.

The sun's rays freely penetrate through the gaps in the leaves and fall on the bushes. Only in a few places that are free from sunlight, making the coolness in that place even more pronounced. And that's where Wan Panyang lay down with dry leaves as a mat. A piece of an ambarella fruit tree the size of an adult's calf is used as a pillow. Then the young man sagged his pants.

Arung just watched in astonishment. "Where's the bird?"

"Wait a minute. Now you please do this….” Wan Panyang replied while
Move his hands back and forth quickly in front of the groin. All of his trousers had fallen below his knees.

Arung looked at him embarrassed. Don't understand why Wan Panyang ordered him to do that. Adults often act strangely, thought Arung while doing what Wan Panyang asked. He just wanted to complete the task as soon as possible and immediately get a stone magpie.[]

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The short story above was published in the Serambi Indonesia daily, Aceh, in 2017.

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Arung Mencintai Burung

Cerpen @ayijufridar

ARUNG menyukai berbagai jenis burung tanpa peduli pada keindahan suara dan warna. Baginya keindahan muncul pada burung itu sendiri tanpa harus terikat dengan apa pun juga, termasuk suara dan warna. Menyangkut burung, ia tidak percaya bahwa keindahan itu mutlak. Keindahan itu bebas, sedangkan suara dan warna bulu itu terikat.

Kalau ia terpaku pada keindahan suara dan warna, maka ia tidak akan memelihara burung pipit. Semua orang mengakui burung pipit itu hanya bagus namanya saja. Mirip nama anak kepala desa di kampung mereka; Pipit Sartika. Soal suara, pipit hanya menang berisik. Apalagi kalau sedang bergerombol, mereka melayang-layang di udara seperti anai-anai yang dihempas angin puting beliung. Kalau melihat bulir-bulir padi yang montok, mereka akan menukik turun seperti burung elang yang hendak menyambar anak ayam. Justru di situlah letak keindahannya. Gerombolan burung pipit itu seperti penari kolosal yang mempunyai keselarasan dalam gerak. Tanpa aba-aba tubuh melesat ke titik yang sama.

Burung murai batu yang bersuara indah pun tak bisa begitu. Mereka tidak lincah, hanya bersuara indah saja. Mungkin begitulah cara Tuhan menunjukkan kuasa-Nya. Burung yang indah tidak diberi kelincahan. Dan burung yang lincah tidak diberi keindahan. Seperti halnya pohon labu yang kecil diberi buah yang besar, dan pohon beringin yang besar diberi buah yang kecil.

Kendati sudah sering mendengar burung murai batu bersuara indah, sebenarnya Arung belum pernah melihat burung itu. Ia hanya tahu bahwa murai batu juga memiliki warna beragam dan menarik. Ukuran tubuhnya rata-rata sedang, kepala bulat, kaki agak panjang, paruh runcing dan ramping, dengan sayap agak lebar. “Pokoknya burung murai batu itu indah sekali. Harganya juga mahal karena langka,” cerita Wan Panyang.

“Langka itu apa?” tatap Arung bingung.

“Langka itu…” Wan Panyang berpikir. Bingung bagaimana harus menjelaskan definisi langka pada anak yang baru seminggu duduk di bangku sekolah dasar. Selain itu, ia juga bingung karena memang tidak bisa membuat sebuah definisi. Meski baru seminggu, Arung sudah makan sekolahan. Beda dengan dirinya yang malah tidak pernah sekolah sama sekali. Tapi biar bagaimana pun, anak kecil tetaplah anak kecil.

“Langka itu, ya langka. Tidak semua orang bisa menangkapnya. Harus punya keahlian khusus.”

Arung manggut-manggut. “Kalau gitu, Bang Wan bisa nangkap?”

Cepat-cepat Wan Panyang mengangguk. Burung kecil ini sudah masuk ke dalam perangkapnya. “Nanti Bang Wan tunjukkan bagaimana membuat perangkapnya. Murai batu bikin sarang di dahan pohon yang tidak terlalu tinggi.”

“Kapan kita buat perangkap?” tatap Arung dengan mata berbinar. Di dalam bolamata Wan Panyang yang berdiri menjulang di depannya, dia seperti bisa melihat ekor murai batu yang panjang, sayapnya yang berwarna-warni, dan kakinya yang kurus seperti kaki Wan Panyang. Anak-anak lain pasti sirik karena tidak ada di antara mereka yang memelihara murai batu. Bahkan Teungku Haji Muhammad Hamid yang memelihara banyak burung, belum memiliki murai batu. Kalau Haji Muhammad minta beli, apa harus diberikan ya?

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Rencana Arung untuk memiliki murai batu semakin mendekati kenyataan ketika Wan Panyang mengajaknya memasang perangkap. Menurut Wan Panyang, di hutan kampung ia melihat sebuah sarang yang berbentuk cawan yang terbuat dari ranting kering. “Ukurannya tidak terlau besar tapi juga tidak kecil. Lokasinya tidak di pohon tinggi. Jadi itu memang sarang murai batu,” tutur Wan Panyang.

“Kapan kita ke sana?”

“Sekarang juga. Tapi jangan pernah cerita pada siapa pun. Murai batu itu mahal harganya. Nanti orang pada rebutan memasang perangkap. Kamu harus janji…”

“Saya janji!”

Mereka berangkat diam-diam melalui jalan memutar yang sempit dan jarang dilalui orang. Padahal kalau melalui jalan di pinggir sawah akan lebih cepat sampai ke hutan kampung. Tapi sekarang sedang musim panen. Banyak orang berlalulalang. Wan Panyang bilang, tidak boleh ada yang tahu mereka menemukan sarang murai batu. “Nanti repot!”

Arung percaya. Ia memang menyukai berbagai jenis burung. Tapi kini ia merasa lebih menyukai murai batu yang belum dimilikinya. Ia merasa murai batu akan menjadi peliharaan kesayangannya, mungkin juga paling dikagumi teman-temannya bahkan Haji Muhammad. Kalau Pak Haji ingin membeli, apa diberikan ya?

Mereka tiba di hutan kampung yang sudah tidak terlalu lebat lagi seperti dulu. Pohon-pohon tinggi sudah banyak yang ditebang. Batangnya untuk membangun rumah penduduk, sedangkan dahannya untuk kayu bakar. Banyak warga menggunakan kayu bakar kembali setelah minyak tanah susah didapat. Padahal,warga desa sudah hampir meninggalkan kayu bakar setelah mampu membeli kompor, baik yang menggunakan bahan bakar minyak tanah atau pun gas. Saat itu hanya tinggal lima atau tujuh kepala keluarga lagi yang masih menggunakan kayu bakar. Tapi jumlah itu kini bertambah lagi, pertanda masyarakat mundur ke belakang menjauhi kesejahteraan.

Sinar matahari dengan bebas menerobos masuk melalui sela-sela dedaunan dan jatuh di semak-semak. Hanya di beberapa tempat saja yang bebas dari cahaya matahari, membuat kesejukan di tempat itu kian terasa. Dan di situlah Wan Panyang membaringkan tubuhnya dengan dedaunan yang sudah mengering sebagai alas. Potongan pohon kedondong sebesar betis orang dewasa dijadikan sebagai bantal. Kemudian pemuda itu memelorotkan celananya.

Arung hanya memerhatikan dengan heran. “Mana burungnya?”

“Nanti dulu. Sekarang kamu tolong buat begini….” Sahut Wan Panyang sembari menggerak-gerakkan tangannya maju mundur dengan cepat di depan selangkangan. Seluruh celananya sudah turun sampai di bawah lutut.

Arung memandangnya malu. Tidak mengerti untuk apa Wan Panyang memerintahkannya berbuat begitu. Orang dewasa memang sering bertingkah aneh-aneh, pikir Arung sembari melakukan apa yang diminta Wan Panyang. Dia hanya ingin menyelesaikan tugas itu secepatnya dan segera mendapatkan burung murai batu.[]

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Cerpen di atas sudah pernah dimuat di Harian Serambi Indonesia, Aceh, tahun 2017. Saya ingin membaca cerpen @midiagam, @zainalbakri, dan @mollymochtar.

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