Friday, May 19, 2017

Paman Gober and Why I Didn't Participate

Paman Gober, stands for Penanaman dan Gowes Bersama (frankly, I'm not too sure about whether 'Penanaman' part is right or wrong), is an annual sport and go-green event hosted by OSIS. Basically, students and staffs cycle together to a certain location via a certain route. When they reach that certain location, they plant tress which are already prepared. I wish I can talk about this event more, but that is all I know because I didn't participate in the last Paman Gober. I remember that that day was about a week far from KPA's concert day, and I was dead tired by practicing the night before.

Beside using the concert as my excuse, I should also tell you this. I don't cycle. As in, I can't ride a bike well. My father taught me when I was little, but other than that I've never really picked up a bike and cycle. School is impossible to reach with bike so my father usually escort. When someone in my family need something from Indomaret or the nearest photocopy shop, my brother will ride his motorcycle and I will just tag along. In short, there's no occasion that requires me to ride a bike, which sums to me not being able to properly ride a bike.

Not being able to properly ride a bike, because in fact I can ride a bike. It's the road and traffic I'm scared with. I mean, there is other human being riding his car or motorcycle or bike or just walking, and what if I lose control of my bike and hit them? What if I can't understand the traffic signs and make a traffic jam? What if I can't cycle quickly because I'm too scared by the sounds of beep! beep! coming from a car behind me? What if I fall in front of some boy I like and terribly embarrass myself?

There was this accident happened to me when I was 12. That year, I just learned how to cycle and was really happy to cycle every Sunday mornings. That one morning, I was bored by only cycling leisurely so I decided to pick the speed up a little bit. Unfortunately, my feet don't understand the concept of 'a little bit', so they end up paddling too fast until I lose control. The paddles rotated like crazy and the bike swerved left and right. The bike didn't show any sign to stop when a car (white Avanza car, I still remember) was about to pass. I almost hit the car but luckily missed it by an inch or two. The car passed, but my bike still didn't want to stop. Scared to face another vehicle and the probability to hit it, I throw myself on the sidewalk.

I was glad that this accident happen on a small road where people rarely pass, so I didn't get ooh-ed and ahh-ed and 'are you okay?'-ed by others because I would surely cry if someone asked me that. I didn't cry, thankfully, but my bike got broken and I got bruises here and there (the severe one was beside my mouth, causing me to hate eating for several months). I dragged my bike the rest way home. That bike was never used again after that.

So if you can provide me a pillow-like road on which I can fall cozily anytime and with no other vehicle or people passing, I will, with no doubts, cycle.