Moment To Remember: Being Introduced To Mr. Vice President of Indonesia

It was in his palace, in lovely June, I was invited to meet this humble Indonesian prominent leader, Mr. Budiono, The Vice President of Indonesia.

I was not alone when presented in front of him, after a long queue, as I accidentally reunited with my former thesis advisor; Mr. Anies Baswedan. Another humble national leader who was -out of the blue- coming to personally introduce me to Mr. Budiono. I didn't expect to see him that afternoon. I didn't even know that Pak Anies was also scheduled to be there at the palace, at precisely the same time as me. What a coincidence! He has always been a celebrity, surrounded by his fans everywhere he went, so I didn't expect he would notice me.

Standing next to me, Pak Anies told Pak Budiono: "Pak Budi, this is Yenni. She is one of my best students in Paramadina and she will serve as a voluntary teacher in Papua. She speaks excellent English, even though she's never been to any English speaking country yet".

I was so surprised that he had time for making me feel so seen and special in front of Pak Budi. I felt deeply honoured. I was even blushing knowing that he could still recognize me in a room full of competitive young achievers. This very moment definitely became my favourite moment with Mr. Anies Baswedan by far. To me, Pak Anies has always been a mentor, a teacher, and someone I admire and respect greatly. Even my father is also one of his biggest fans. So, obviously, he's very special to our family.

Apart from that, Pak Budi was very warm and kind, as well, he treated me like his daughter. So, I felt so lucky. Alhamdulillah. 

I still couldn't believe that Pak Anies would give such a kind and sweet introduction about me in front of a top leader like Mr. Budiono. It was like a dream. But, dreams do come true, anyway. What a sweet surprise. Alhamdulillah.

Well, I do hope that in the near future I will have an opportunity to study and live in one of the English speaking countries, just like both Pak Anies and Pak Budi who have a PhD from The US. And recently, I just found out that Pak Budi even had a Master’s degree from Monash University, Australia, which is another coincidence, because I've always wanted to continue my master's degree there, as well. And I think I'm going there soon, Inshaa Allah. Australia will be a perfect destination for me to study a Master of TESOL, Inshaa Allah. Well, actually Australia and England have been my dream destinations since childhood. My plan is to go to Australia first, and later; England,  Inshaa Allah. 

It's so ironic knowing that I've been learning English my whole life since childhood. And I've been teaching it since I was 18. But, haven't got any chance to visit any native English speaking country yet. And I'm not even joking. 😂🤭📖✒️🌹So, Inshaa Allah, I'm coming to Australia soon, it will be my first time abroad.