Manusia Ombak (The Wave Man)
Kapal reot itu terombang-ambing.
Sepertinya ombak yang berwujud manusia itu terlalu sibuk merunduk, meratapi tanah, sambil meriuhkan dirinya sendiri.
Kapal itu hampir karam. Manusia ombak tak tahu mengikuti arus ke mana. Ia tak tahu akan menjadi apa.
Ombak itu tak memiliki tujuan.
Ia terbungkus rapi— berbalut kulit, berbalut kain yang disebut pakaian.
Terkadang ombak itu mengguncang seisi lautan. Terkadang ia begitu tenang, seakan berubah menjadi laut mati.
Terkadang ia mendidih.
Terkadang ia membeku.
Buih-buihnya semakin membesar, menunggu saat untuk pecah.
Terkadang ikan-ikan di dalamnya berubah menjadi hiu.
Terkadang mereka hanya tertidur.
Sepertinya manusia ombak itu adalah sebuah akuarium yang berjalan, dengan dinding kaca yang hampir luluh lantak.
Manusia ombak menangis.Ia berharap memiliki seekor ikan buntal yang lucu di dalam dirinya.
Ia berharap terumbu karang yang mengerikan itu segera sirna,dan berubah menjadi Atlantis.
Betapa malang nasibnya.
Ia hanya bisa berdoa, semoga kapal reot di permukaan kepalanya masih terus berlayar.
The Wave Man
(English Version)
The worn-out ship drifted helplessly upon the waves.
The wave that had taken the shape of a human seemed far too busy...
bowing its head, mourning the ground beneath it, while drowning in the noise of its own making.
The ship was close to sinking.
The Wave Man did not know which current to follow.
He did not know what he was becoming.
The wave had no destination.
It was neatly wrapped—in skin, and in the fabric people called clothing.
Sometimes, it shook the entire ocean.
Sometimes, it became so still that it resembled a dead sea.
Sometimes it boiled.
Sometimes it froze.
The foam upon its surface swelled larger and larger, waiting for the moment it would finally burst.
Sometimes, the fish within it became sharks.
Sometimes, they simply fell asleep.
The Wave Man seemed like a walking aquarium, its glass walls trembling, on the verge of shattering.
The Wave Man wept.
He wished there were a tiny pufferfish inside him.
He wished the terrifying coral reefs would disappear, and in their place, Atlantis would rise.
What a tragic fate.
So he prayed, hoping that the worn-out ship floating upon the surface of his mind was still sailing.