Stand In Wife & Mom?

       Since I was a kid, peoples know me as a tomboyish little girl. Riding my 2 wheels bike since I was three years old with the neighborhood boys, refused to wear a skirt even when my mom promised me to buy me a delicious ice cream, I was preferred to climb a tree and spit from the top than play acting chef or play with dolls with others little girls of my age.
I remembered accompanied my Dad watching World Cup football matches in the middle of the night when I was still in elementary school and I play Power Rangers with the neighborhood boys but I declined to be the Pink Ranger although I'm the only girl available and insist to be the Black Ranger. What did that say about me?

       Growing up, I still love football, finally emerged from Power Rangers or other super heroes struck syndrome and want it or not, must learn to wear a skirt because that's the school uniform for girls and I'd had wore skirt for 12 years during school, from elementary school until high school (what an achievement for a girl like me). But since childhood until I reach adulthood, I'm still despised cooking, unless I have to, I'm avoid cooking like plaque. Oh, don't get me wrong, I can cook basic foods that I like plus I can do a survival kind of foods and I know in my heart that if I want to learn advanced cooking and cook special and complicated food like Rendang, Opor Ayam or Soto santen Daging Sapi, I can, because I'm a fast learner and dedicated lady (Oezil, I hope you reading this ^_^). I just not into cooking but I love making cookies and cakes, it's more fun and challenging.

    When this Ramadhan my Mom is 'kidnapped' by one of my sister, whose around four months ago gave birth to my second niece and she really need my Mom expert hand with babies. So, my sister held my Mom from Monday to Friday, Mom only home on weekend, it was chaos at first, because whose gonna cook for Sahur and prepare foods,etc to break our fast during Ramadhan? (Ok, foods to break our fasting is easy to find, from kurma, kolak pisang, lontong, bihun, gorengan, etc. It's everywhere if you want to buy). The problem is meal for Sahur time, my Mom is very good at cooking, so it's only natural if my Dad and youngest sister went haywire when my Mom absent cooking Sahur during Ramadhan (We can't have delivery foods, because sahur time is between 3 am until 4.30 am, so you need to cook or eat junk foods every Sahur time, tough choice hah?).

       So, as a good and the oldest daughter, I volunteer to replace my Mom housewife duty temporarily, that's including cooking. First week during Sahur time, there was no comment from both of my Dad and my sister, they ate in silent while watching World Cup match on TV. I was only cooked simple and basic foods and I thought it's time to step up the game, so I cooked vegetables for us with other side dish, it was supposed to be one of their favorite vegetable, 'sayur kacang panjang'. So when I watched my sister munching and try very hard to swallow it and then with a little tears in her eyes, she said to me 'Teteh (that's mean older sister for Sundanese tribe in Indonesia), all my life I never ate sayur kacang panjang like the one you've made,' for a split second, I thought I did it, if I manage cooking, I'll manage anything, but then I saw my sister sour face and her tears (It was'nt relieve and happy tears, it was like somebody who just eat dirt and a cardboard with a sauce in it and maybe that's her up-chug reflex tears). Gosh, there goes my chef ambition, what went wrong, I'm not sure, because I follow recipe accordingly and when I tasted it, I really can't tell, because I'm not a fan of that vegetable or any kind of vegetables that available in the market, it's a shame.

        I know when I signed up to filled in my Mom shoes, it won't be a walk in the park, particularly pleasing and try to bend to their liking, whose very alike in many ways without their even realizing (they should know because in look department, they also alike, my sister is my Dad's feminine version, she just taller than him), maybe I got a better shot to pleasing the Queen and King of England than them. Well, I want to salute and give my thumbs up for all moms and housewives in the World, they are amazing, especially when you manage to work but not neglecting your main obligations as a mother and a wife plus all kind of households duties. I mean, do you know that housewives duties are varied and challenging especially if they don't have any assistant to help them, they should cooks, keep the house clean, do laundry to all family members plus ironing it, take care the kids plus teaching them about many things and manage the households financial, etc (I'm sure God have special place in heaven for devoted wife and mom ^_^). It's tiring and split my head into seven direction when I try to be a 'stand in wife and mom', I barely manage to do my own work and had a very little time to sleep.

       My Mom is amazing, she can do and fix almost anything by herself, all the housewives 'job desk' she can do it, that's including sewing, knitting, resizing cloths, dye my Dad's white hair and shave my Dad's beard, etc. It's like you name it, she's got it. Like any other peoples of course she also have flaws, but still her shoes are too big for me to fill in. It's still Ramadhan and I'm aiming to do lots and lots of good deeds, that's include 'stand in wife and mom' part, I hope (although my Dad and my sister will think otherwise, I'm really sorry Dad and sister, I still need a lot to learn to be a good daughter and sister ^_^). Well, my respect and love is gaining by the minutes to my Mom, it's definitely not easy to do her tasks and she manage to do it all with a light heart and a smile in her mouth, thank you Mom, I won't take you for granted anymore (come home please, Dad and youngest sister need you here). Devoted mothers and housewives around the World, from the bottom of my heart, I salute you.