Gone
to Bali for important meeting, Mas Dalih sent Mbak Abmi to teach in his
creative writing class for the last two meetings. Being a guest before, last two
week she taught us by playing a movie “Bag It” – a movie I reviewed on my
previous blog. Then, last week she brought is a beautiful guest with long hair,
and pointed piercing nose. This guest
looked like a beautiful woman, yet I felt something unusual about her.
Surprised
I am when she came to the front of class and introduced herself kindly. I suddenly
I realized that she was a He. That was the first time for me to meet a
transgender in class, and I guest most of my friends were surprised too as they
started whispering.
Born
in Klaten, Mbak Sonya had been living in Jogja since she was in Vocational
School. She is a hardworker and extraordinary people as she has many activities
and jobs such as online shop seller, and PKBI – an Indonesian organization
concerning of marginal society.
Finding
his identity is not as easy as the imagination. Her mother still cannot accept
her being a transgender. She still has to convince her family about his
identity. When she was a child, she prefer played with girl since boys would
bully her. This led him to be girly. She began dressing as a girl, and being
like a girl. As she was in Junior High School, she used to hang out dressing
like a girl at the night. One day, her friends met her in girly dress, and they
laughed out loud and made this “accidental meeting” as a joke. She did not like
when people made a joke of her just because of his difference.
Coming to Yogyakarta, she found
her “new home” where she could be a transgender. She became volunteer in PKBI, helped
people, and joined some communities against HIV AIDS. This is a proof that
being a transgender doesn’t mean being alienated. It is a proof that
transgender also has great contribution to society and world. She is Beautiful
for her inspiring idea, and effort to the world.
