Lost in Words

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2013/09/25/your-letters-lost-words.html

I raised my eyebrow slightly in confusion reading the words such as harmonisasi, kudetanisasi, statusisasi, kontroversi hati, and konspirasi kemakmuran among others over my facebook wall, news feeds and whatsapp. The words seem Indonesian enough, but they make nonsensical gibberish in my head. Odd and weird as they may seem, the newly created slangs went viral in the social media; discussed, imitated, reproduced and recreated.

Later I find out that this new hype originated from a man named Vicky Prasetyo, aka Hendrianto, who rose to fame after his much publicized bizarre love affair with dangdut singer Saskia Gotik reknowed for her goyang itik  Oh yeah, he has definitely secured one spot in our celebrity world! Just like the Arya Wiguna’s Demi Tuhan…

And how we love such hilarious uproar, a butt of joke to kill the stressful days!

Watching and hearing his speech, I had to scratch my head several times. I could barely understand what he was trying to say by his wrongly mixed Indonesian-English. I got the impression that he was attempting to climb up a social ladder, trying to sound sophisticated and intellect.

After all, refinement is the quality that separates ditsy celebrities from the true elite; lack of sophistication is a crime in the socialite world, some would say.

Unfortunately, he failed. Yes, he may succeed to steal people’s attention, bringing a new trend on how Indonesians use the language incorrectly. But, in the end of the day, he becomes a butt of the joke in which people draw mirth and laughter from his false sophistication.  

Nonetheless, don’t we all have a bit of Vicky within ourselves?

Just to be accepted in a certain social class, we have to pretend to be something that we’re not. We strive to pepper our talk with foreign words, adorn our appearance with the latest fashion and modern gadgets, or go to fancy restaurants while we hardly afford them.

In the end of the day, piles of bills give us constant headache. To find the way out, we take short cuts, corrupting our character bit by bit. Living a lie becomes unbearable. To get accepted by pretending is killing us. It sucks.

But sometimes we still do that despite the torture, lol.

I remember trying so hard to be accepted in certain circle with such pretention. I peppered my talk with foreign words, discussing things I barely knew while smiling in agony, as I didn’t feel it as where I belonged.  

I was wrong. Able to speak foreign language does not make you smart or intellect. It does not automatically guarantee you to obtain a higher status or carve a cooler image. It’s the way you present yourself through your words, attitude and character that matter the most.

Lesson learnt from this hype is that we do not have to use sophisticated dictions just to look smart, or intellect. What is the use of speaking in a mixed Indonesian-English while your audience does not understand a word you are saying?

Worse, speaking with unintelligible words solely to make you look smart will only make you a butt of endless joke.