Chang Shih Yen: Return | Kembali

Oct 2023 | Found in translation

Return

I want to go back, but not go back to my house. I want to go back to my hometown. Go home, back to the arms of my family. Go back to foods that I miss – the blue of kerabu rice, the fragrance of nasi lemak with spicy sambal. I miss that so much. Now I am in other people’s lands. But I know that I won’t explore forever in other people’s countries, always thought of as an immigrant. One day I will definitely return, and at that time, I will board a Malaysian Airlines flight. Upon arrival, the flight attendant will make an announcement. Not ‘Welcome’ because that is for tourists. But an announcement to the citizens onboard the flight, which is ‘Welcome back to your homeland.’

 

Kembali

Aku mahu pulang, tetapi bukannya pulang ke rumah. Aku mahu pulang ke kampung halaman. Balik kampung ke pangkuan keluarga. Balik ke makanan-makanan yang dirindui – biru-biru nasi kerabu, keharuman nasi lemak dengan sambal pedas. Sungguh aku rindu. Sekarang aku di rantau orang. Tetapi aku tahu aku takkan selamanya mengembara di negara orang, selalu dianggap sebagai pendatang. Suatu hari aku pasti kembali, dan di masa itu dengan menaiki pesawat MAS. Sesudah tiba, pramugari akan membuat pengumuman. Bukannya ‘Selamat datang’ kerana itu untuk para pelancong. Tetapi pengumuman kepada warganegara di dalam pesawat, iaitu ‘Selamat pulang ke tanahair.’

 


 

Chang Shih Yen is a writer from Malaysia. She speaks English, Malay, Chinese, Spanish and Portuguese. She graduated with first class honours in English and Linguistics, and has a Master’s degree in Linguistics from the University of Otago. She is the author of ‘Chang Shih Yen’s Pandemic Diary: Surviving Covid-19 lockdown alone and without internet’, and ‘Around The World’.

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