Henson & His Works

Sunday, April 29, 2007

Song: Donna

DONNA

On a wagon bound for market
There's a calf with a mournful eye
High above him there's a swallow
Winging swiftly through the sky
How the winds are laughing
They laugh with all their might
Laugh and laugh the whole day through
And half the summers night
Donna Donna

Stop complaining, said the farmer
Who told you a calf to be?
Why don’t you have wings to fly with
Like the swallow so proud and free
How the winds are laughing
They laugh with all their might
Laugh and laugh the whole day through
And half the summers night
Donna Donna

Calves are easily bound and slaughtered
Never knowing the reason why
But whoever treasures freedom
Like the swallow has learned to fly
How the winds are laughing
They laugh with all their might
Laugh and laugh the whole day through
And half the summers night
Donna donna

Saturday, April 28, 2007

Say What You See and Feel in English!

Suatu hari salah seorang siswa yang belajar privat bahasa Inggris dengan saya bertanya,"Sir, bagaimana sih caranya agar bisa berbicara bahasa Inggris dalam waktu singkat?" Ia yang seorang karyawan swasta itu nampaknya sudah 'kebelet' ingin sekali bisa bercakap-cakap dalam bahasa Inggris.
Lalu saya menjawab pertanyaannya,"Tidak ada cara singkat untuk bisa berbicara bahasa Inggris." Raut wajah siswa saya itu nampaknya berubah dan terkesan menunjukkan guratan-guratan kekecewaan.
Saya segera melanjutkan kata-kata saya,"Tetapi jika kamu ingin sekali bisa berbicara bahasa Inggris, saya akan berikan sebuah kalimat." Siswa saya yang bernama Ari itu masih kelihatan bingung.
Saya ambil sebuah boardmarker dan menuliskan sebuah kalimat di whiteboard. Kalimatnya berbunyi,"SAY WHAT YOU SEE AND FEEL IN ENGLISH!" Ari mencoba membaca kalimat itu dengan pelan. Sengaja saya biarkan ia selama 5 menit untuk memikirkan dan menginterpretasikan kalimat yang sederhana itu. Ia pun mengangguk-angguk dan berkata,"Benar juga ya!"
Banyak sekali pelajar yang mengeluh karena mereka ingin sekali bisa berbicara dalam bahasa Inggris tetapi setelah belajar berbulan-bulan atau bertahun-tahun mereka belum juga bisa berbahasa Inggris secara fasih. Penyebab yang paling umum adalah kurangnya berlatih. Penyebab lainnya adalah kurangnya percaya diri, rasa malu untuk berlatih, atau tidak adanya partner untuk berlatih.
Saya sering memberikan kalimat "SAY WHAT YOU SEE AND FEEL IN ENGLISH!" ini kepada siswa-siswa saya. Kalimat ini nampaknya sederhana, tetapi jika esensinya dijalankan, maka kemampuan untuk bercakap-cakap dalam bahasa Inggris dalam waktu yang lebih singkat bukan mustahil untuk dicapai.
KATAKAN APA YANG ANDA LIHAT DAN ANDA RASAKAN DALAM BAHASA INGGRIS. Dengan kalimat yang sederhana ini, Anda akan dibawa dan diajak ke suatu atmosfer kondusif yang memungkinkan Anda untuk terus berbicara dalam bahasa Inggris.
KATAKAN APA YANG ANDA LIHAT... Misalnya di suatu pagi Anda keluar rumah dan melihat bunga mawar di taman rumah Anda, Anda bisa berkata,"This is a rose. The color of the rose is pink. This flower is very beautiful and it smells good. A rose is a symbol of love. I like this flower so much..." Atau, ketika Anda sedang berada di ruang tamu sendirian, Anda bisa berkata,"This room is very comfortable. There's a sofa at the corner of the room. The color is blue. Beside the sofa there's a very beautiful lamp. I like sitting in this room because in this room I can watch TV, I can read my favorite books, I can have a chat with my parents, my brothers and my sisters."
KATAKAN APA YANG ANDA RASAKAN... Misalnya pada saat Anda baru bangun tidur, Anda bisa berkata,"Oh, I feel so fresh now. I slept soundly last night." Atau, ketika Anda baru pulang dari toko buku, Anda bisa mengugkapkan perasaan Anda dalam bahasa Inggris,"I went to a bookstore to buy a new English grammar book. In the bookstore I met a very beautiful girl. When I took a grammar book from the shelf, she also took the similar book. Then I introduced myself to her. She smiled so sweetly. We had a little talk about English. She was a good person to talk with. Unfortunately, I forgot to ask her phone number. I hope I can meet her again some day."
Bayangkan jika setiap yang Anda lihat dan Anda rasakan Anda ungkapkan dalam bahasa Inggris, berarti Anda sudah bisa berbicara dalam bahasa Inggris, bukan? Untuk tahap awal mungkin praktek ini akan terasa agak sukar. Tetapi percayalah... seiring dengan waktu kesukaran itu akan berubah menjadi kemudahan. Bukankah alah bisa karena biasa?
Cobalah terapkan kalimat di atas dalam kehidupan sehari-hari Anda. Mudah-mudahan Anda akan bisa berbicara bahasa Inggris dalam waktu yang lebih singkat. Jangan lupa untuk selalu membawa kamus Anda sehingga Anda bisa mendapatkan kata-kata baru ketika suatu saat terbentur dengan arti sebuah atau beberapa kata. Teruslah berlatih karena kesempurnaan hanya bisa dicapai dengan berlatih (Practice makes perfect). Jangan takut membuat kesalahan karena tak seorang pun yang tidak pernah berbuat salah.

Monday, April 23, 2007

Thomas Alva Edison: Life's Failures

Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.

Banyak kegagalan hidup menimpa orang yang tidak menyadari bahwa betapa dekatnya mereka dengan kesuksesan ketika mereka menyerah.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Two Sides of the Brain

In the late 1960s, research in the US was done by Roger Sperry and Robert Ormstein into the brain and its functions. They found that we have two brains (cortices) or, to be more accurate, two sides of the brain which is linked by a nerve structure called the corpus callosum. These two different hemispheres function in different ways and serve different mental processes.
The left side, which controls the right side of the body, is predominantly engaged with academic activities such as logical thinking, mathematics and numbers, words, analysis and reasoning, whereas the right side of the brain, which controls the left side of the body, is the artistic part which deals with images, imagination, rhythm, colour, orientation in space, music, humour and dreams, and recognition of faces, patterns and maps.
(Source: Energize Yourself! by Vera Peiffer)

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Info Software: Resize 2.7

Resize 2.7 adalah software yang dapat digunakan untuk memperkecil ukuran foto atau image. Program ini berukuran kecil, hanya sebesar 337 KB (terkompresi) dan untuk menggunakannya tidak perlu diinstal pada sistem komputer karena dapat langsung dijalankan melalui removable disk (CD, flaskdisk, dll). Cara kerja software ini sungguh luar biasa. Foto-foto berukuran besar (ribuan kilobyte) yang diambil dengan kamera digital bisa diperkecil hingga berukuran puluhan kilobyte saja. Jika Anda perhatikan foto-foto yang terdapat di blog ini, semuanya sudah diperkecil dengan menggunakan software ini. Walaupun sudah diperkecil, gambarnya tidak pecah, bukan? Software ini bisa di-download di http://www.geocities.com/peter_bone_uk . Selamat mencoba!

Friday, April 13, 2007

Story: Goodbye

Goodbye
By Hendro Darsono

“Where are you going to take me, Win?” asked Shanti curiously.
“To my house,” replied Winda shortly.
“What for?”
“I wanna show you my lovely Persian cat.”
“Your Persian cat? Hey, since when have you been interested in a cat? You always say you don’t like any pet.”
“Well, I just wanna feel how you feel. You look after several kinds of cats. I don’t know how a cat can give you a great pleasure.”
“For me a cat is a nice, smart, attractive and faithful friend.”
“We’ve arrived, Shan,”said Winda when her car entered her house yard. “While I’m parking this car into the garage, you can get into my house first. The door isn’t locked.”
“Okay, Win.”
“Surprise!!!”
Shanti was startled and got mixed up. She found her classmates in the living room. “Hey, wh…what is it?”
“Happy birthday, Shanti.” Shanti’s best friend Dewi hugged and kissed her.
Winda entered the room and hugged Shanti. “Happy birthday, my best friend. Two weeks ago—beyond your ken—our class discussed to hold a party for you. We do it only for you because you’re so special. You’re a girl of many achievements. You’re not only clever but also active in our school organization. You’re the best student and also an exemplary student who really become a role model for all of us. You’ve created a good atmosphere in our class.”
“C’mon, don’t make me flattered.”
“No, you deserve it!” Winda said smilingly.
“All right, guys. Now let’s sing a happy birthday song for our beloved friend, Shanti.” Heru, Shanti’s other best friend, led everybody to sing.

Happy birthday to you.
Happy birthday to you.
Happy birthday, dear Shanti.
Happy birthday to you.


Everybody clapped their hands. Then Heru lit the eighteen candles standing on the beautiful birthday cake prepared for Shanti. “Now it’s time for you to blow the candle, Shanti.”
“Before blowing the candle, don’t forget to close your eyes and make a wish,” Dewi suggested. “People say if we can put out the candle in one single blow, our wish will come true.”
“All right, I’ll do it.” Shanti closed her eyes for a moment and then blew the candles. “Phuh…!” Everybody clapped their hands.
“What was your wish, Shanti? “ Dewi wanted to know. “Did you make a wish in order that you can have a gorgeous boyfriend?”
“No, no. I just prayed that God gives me happiness… here and hereafter.”
“Only that?” asked Heru.
“Yes.”
“Okay Shanti, now you can cut the birthday cake.” Winda handed Shanti a knife and Shanti used it to cut the cake.
“The next surprise, Heru.” Winda squinted at Heru.
“Sure.” Heru went to take three boxes wrapped with glossy and colorful paper. “These are the birthday presents from our class.”
“Oh, you’re all so kind to me.”
“Unwrap the boxes one by one, Shanti. Starting from the smallest one,” said Dewi.
“Oh… cool! This T-shirt is so cool! It suits me.”
“Next … this one. Please open it!” Heru handed Shanti the bigger box.
“What is it? Ah… some English books.” Shanti took a look at the books one by one. “Energize Yourself! by Vera Pfeiffer, Working with Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman. And these ones… oh novels! Silent Honor by Danielle Steele and If Tomorrow Comes by Sidney Sheldon.”
“We know you’re crazy about reading. Hopefully, you’ll like them,” said Heru.
“Absolutely!”
“Now the last one. It’ll be a great honor if Your Majesty would like to open it,” Winda said jokingly.
“This box is so big. And there’s a hole on each side.”
“Oops! Don’t take a peep. Just unwrap it,” exclaimed Winda.
“Okay, okay.” Shanti unwrapped the box carefully. “Oh my God! A cat! A Persian cat!” She held the cat in her arms. “I love it!”
“Give a name, Shanti,” uttered Dewi.
“Uhm… well, since this cat comes from Persia, I’ll name it ‘Percy’.”
“Hmm… what a good name!” Heru said.
“Guys, now let’s give Shanti a little time to say something about her birthday.”
“That’s a good idea, Winda,” Dewi agreed.
Shanti took her position and began to speak,”Well… first of all, I’d like to thank you so much for your attention to me. I’ve never thought before that you’re gonna hold this kind of great and unforgettable party. Today is my eighteenth birthday. I don’t know for sure whether or not I still can celebrate my next birthday. The proverb says,’Man proposes, God disposes.’ I’m really touched to the core by your kindness, guys.” Winda gave tissue paper to Shanti and Shanti used it to sweep teardrops trickling down on her pinkish cheek. “Yeah…our class is very different from others. We have a strong bond of friendship… and solidarity. That’s why, other classes are jealous of our class. Guys,” Shanti furthered,”in this happy occasion, please let me remind you that next month we’ll sit for final exams. We’re now in the third year of Senior High School. Let’s help one another in our study. I hope our class will be the best again. And above all… these final exams will become a stepping-stone to reach our future. Uhm… I think that’s all. Once again, thank you so much for what you’ve done to me.”
“I think this party isn’t complete without poetry reading,” Heru said. “Shanti is the winner of the poetry reading contest in this city.”
“Yeah, you’re right, Heru,” Dewi seconded Heru’s idea.
“Yeah, c’mon Shanti, show your ability.” Everybody urged Shanti.
“All right, all right.” Shanti didn’t want to let her friends down. “If that’s what you want, I’ll do it. So, what poem should I read?”
“It’s up to you,” said Winda.
“Okay, I’ll read a poem by Christina Rosetti who lived in 1830-1894.” Then Shanti began to read the poem….

A BIRTHDAY

My heart is like a singing bird
Whose nest is in a water'd shoot;
My heart is like an apple tree
Whose boughs are bent with thick-set fruit;
My heart is like a rainbow shell
That paddles in a halcyon sea;
My heart is gladder than all these,
Because my love is come to me.

Raise me a dais of silk and down;
Hang it with vair and purple dye;
Carve it in doves and pomegranates,
And peacock with a hundred eyes;
Work it in gold and silver grapes,
In leaves and silver fleur-de-lys
Because the birthday of my life
Is come, my love is come to me.


The party continued with some kinds of entertaining programs. Everybody sang, danced, and played an interesting game designed for a birthday party. Then they enjoyed the meal. When the party was about to end, something happened.
“Oh… my head!” shanti sighed.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you, Shan?” Winda approached her.
“My head is so dizzy,” Shanti complained. “This earth… looks like turning… upside down.”
“Do you need aspirin?” asked Winda anxiously.
“No. I think… I… I….”
“Shanti… Shanti…!” Dewi cried out. “She’s unconscious!”
“Let’s take her to the hospital!” said Heru.
Shanti was brought to the hospital. In the hospital she regained her consciousness. But she needed more medical treatment and had to be hospitalized. Shanti, in fact, suffered from a serious disease and the medical team wasn’t able to cure it. Five days later Shanti passed away.

* * * * *

“We’re very sorry for what has happened, Ma’am,” Winda apologized to Shanti’s mother, Mrs. Diah.
“No, you didn’t make any mistakes.” Mrs. Diah caressed Winda’s hair.
“But… it wouldn’t have happened if we hadn’t held a party for Shanti,” uttered Heru sadly.
“She passed away not because of the party, Heru,” replied Mrs. Diah.
“But….” Dewi interrupted.
“Did Shanti ever tell you about her disease?” Mrs. Diah asked.
“Her disease?” Dewi was curious.
“What do you mean, Ma’am?” Winda wondered.
“All right, I’ll tell you all about it.” Mrs. Diah took a deep breath and began to tell the story,”Around three months ago, Shanti and I went to see a doctor because Shanti often complained about her head and her sight. From the medical examination, the doctor concluded that she suffered from a brain cancer.”
“Cancer?” Heru was shocked.
“Yes. And the doctor predicted that Shanti wouldn’t live long.” Mrs. Diah’s eyes were wet. Teardrops rolled down.
“Did Shanti know about her illness?” asked Winda.
“Yes, she did.” Mrs. Diah wiped her tears. “But… as you all know Shanti is a tough girl. She didn’t want other people to know about her real condition. She did everything as if nothing had happened. She kept studying hard. She went to school in the morning and gave private English and mathematics lessons to Junior High School students in the afternoon. She ever said,’Life is so short, but meaningful. That’s why, I must make good use of it as well as I can.’ She helped me much in my daily activities.”
“What a girl!” said Heru.
“Yeah, I’m very proud of her. Since her father passed away a year ago, she has helped support the family by teaching Junior High School students. She realized that the pension money I received from her father wasn’t enough to satisfy our daily needs. Let alone, her younger brother and sister need money for their schooling.”
“She’s a great girl!” Dewi praised and admired Shanti. “We are very sorry, Ma’am, we couldn’t attend the funeral ceremony yesterday. It was because…it was hard to say goodbye and to see Shanti leave this world. She has left us for good. We all have lost her, Ma’am.
“Yes, that’s right.” Winda sobbed. “Let us hope and pray that Shanti rests in peace there.”

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Emile Poulsson: Book

Books are keys to wisdom's treasure.
Books are gates to lands of pleasure.
Books are paths that upward lead.
Books are friends. Come, let us read.

(Emile Poulsson)

Buku adalah kunci menuju khasanah kebijaksanaan.
Buku adalah gerbang menuju tanah kesenangan.
Buku adalah jalan yang mengarah ke atas.
Buku adalah sahabat. Ayo, marilah kita baca.

Sunday, April 8, 2007

Quotation: Hellen Keller

When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us.
Ketika satu pintu kebahagiaan tertutup, pintu yang lain terbuka; tetapi, sering kali kita memandang begitu lama pada pintu yang tertutup itu sehingga kita tidak melihat pintu yang sudah dibukakan untuk kita.
(Source: English Proverbs and Quotations by Hendro Darsono, published by Dioma Malang)

Saturday, April 7, 2007

CCleaner: Software Pembersih




CCleaner adalah software yang tergolong freeware alias gratisan, berukuran kecil dan bisa melakukan proses pembersihan terhadap file-file yang tidak digunakan. Setelah diinstal ke dalam sistem komputer, software ini hanya memakan sumber daya hard disk sebesar 1,36 MB.

CCleaner bisa membersihkan temp files, cookies, history, recent documents, recycle bin, dan berbagai jenis junk files lainnya. Selain itu, CCleaner juga mampu memeriksa integritas registry Windows dan membuang referensi yang salah. Cara kerjanya sangat cepat dan benar-benar tidak memberatkan sistem komputer.




Tuesday, April 3, 2007

Save Your Words

A chatter box could be very boring. He or she never runs out of topics. Anywhere and anytime, he or she will talk about anything. We don’t have a chance to interrupt nor to respond. We can do nothing but listen. Most of us have been through such a situation. The following tips are about how to talk effectively and how to avoid becoming a chatter box.

In our daily life, it is inevitable that we meet people with different characters. Each of them has his or her own style and manner in having conversation. Some are talkative, some are quiet, and some others are bossy.

To be a good speaker or conversationalist is not easy. Therefore, this article offers suggestions on becoming a better conversationalist.

What is a good conversationalist and how can we become one? To become a good speaker, we have to pay attention to some important points of conversation. Poh Ai Lin in The art of Conversing puts forward seven points for us to take into account in a conversation. They are as follows:

  1. A good conversationalist is not a person who knows what to say and when to say it. He or she has to learn other social communication skill as well.
  2. Talking continuously is not the idea of successful conversation. Being a considerate and active listener is equally crucial. It takes two to converse. We need to talk as well as to listen.
  3. Express your idea or opinion moderately. Do not sound as if you knew everything. If you have to talk about yourself, do it in moderation.
  4. Avoid being gush. To praise is necessary but do not overdo it. If not, you will sound pretentious.
  5. Avoid being bossy. An attitude of superiority will soon leave you in isolation.
  6. Stay focus. Avoid being too flowery. A person who lacks focus and is easily out of the track could be extremely annoying.
  7. Read your partner’s gestures. Sighs, increasingly longer pauses, restlessness, decreased eye contact and gradual distancing are indications that your partner wants to end the conversation.

There are a lot more to learn to become a good conversationalist. Hopefully the above tips will be of much help to all of us.


(My article above was published in Dialogue English Magazine No. 1/XXII/1997)

Monday, April 2, 2007

Hiding Icons on the Desktop


Some computer users like to see icons on the desktop of their computer, meanwhile some others don't. If you are a user who doesn't like to see the icons on the desktop of your computer, you can hide those icons.

To hide the icons, you can do the following things:

  1. Click Start - Run.

  2. Type "regedit".

  3. Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer.

  4. Right-click on the right side of Registry Editor window and choose DWORD value.

  5. Type a new value name "NoDesktop".

  6. Right-click this new value name and click Modify.

  7. Type "1" on the value data to hide the icons.

  8. Click OK.

  9. Restart your computer.


Sunday, April 1, 2007

Is Honesty Always The Best Policy?


In our daily lives, we often hear the word ‘honesty.’ A great number of literary works, films, dramas, and so forth are made based on this word. Yes, honesty is one of the interesting topics to talk about.

Being honest means that what we say or do is in line with our conscience. If we are not honest, it means that we try to deceive our conscience. Therefore, we, as God’s creatures, are supposed to uphold the value of honesty. No religion preaches its adherents to be dishonest. Having an honest attitude is actually the reflection of moral awareness.

Some people say that it is rather difficult to find an honest person these days. Hypocrisy has colored this sophisticated and modern life. It seems that what they have said is right. Dishonesty has developed in many forms, like cheating during exams, telling a lie, committing corruption, and faking things.
Honesty is our mental attitude. It will have a big impact on our social interaction. When we talk with a dishonest person, maybe we will not trust all she/he is saying. To be dishonest is very bad since no one will believe us. Even we will be called “The Big Mouth” or “The Braggart.”
Nevertheless, we occasionally have no alternative. What I mean here is that we are compelled by the situation to be dishonest. In this case, we are stricken by a dillema. In one side we want to be honest. But, if we indulge our feeling, it will even make the situation worse. So, we must be more tactful in coping with this problem, I think. Being dishonest is sinful. Yet, for some certain cases it will be all right.
Below are some examples of situations which allow us not to be honest:
  1. You are standing in front of your house. A woman is running towards you, out of breath. She asks you to do her a favor. Her husband is running after her. He is furious and wants to kill her because of their family problems. And then, because there is no more time to talk, the woman hastily get into your house and hides in it. Not long afterwards, comes the woman’s husband, taking along a sharp sword with him. His emotion seems to be uncontrollable. He asks you if you know where his wife is. What are you going to do then? Are you going to be honest by telling him where his wife is? If you are honest in this situation, I bet it will be very hazardous.
  2. Johny (just call him so) is your friend. You know each other’s personality very well and you always share your feeling with each other. One day something happens with Johny. He comes to you and tells you that his girlfriend is in the family way. He also tells you how it happened. Unexpectedly, this news spreads out. Some of your friends ask you about it for they know that you are his close friend. You don’t want to disclose Johny’s disgrace. So you are not honest by saying,”I’m sorry I know nothing about it.”
  3. You are invited to have dinner by your prospective mother-in-law. The meal was cooked by her herself. She wants to serve you with her own cooking. When you eat your soup, it tastes insipid. Your mother-in-law asks,”What do you think of the soup?” In order to make the atmosphere good, you reply,”Oh… it’s so delicious. How good you are at cooking, Mom!”
In conclusion, although honesty is a positive mental attitude and one of the indicators of one’s personality, it does not mean that being honest is always good. Now and then we are demanded not to be honest due to the situation and condition. Indeed, honesty is the best policy, but not always!


(My article above was published in Dialogue English Magazine No. 3/XXII/1997)