cuma enam menit

only six minutes

bukan salah mereka kalau mereka lahir cuma berjarak enam menit. mereka ngga minta begitu. tetap saja mereka adalah dua individu yang berbeda, dan menginginkan apa yang berhak mereka dapatkan.
it wasn't their fault, that they were born six minutes apart. they never asked for it. still they are two different individuals who want to be given what they deserve.

suatu hari aku mengajak mereka ke toko buku, dan meminta mereka memilih buku yang mereka suka. mereka memilih buku yang sama. kataku, "kenapa ngga ambil buku yang beda, nanti bisa gantian bacanya'. dan meraka ngga mau.
one day I brought them to a book store and ask them to pick one book they like. they both picked the same book. I said, 'why don't you pick different books, and read each other's when you finish with your own?. and they didn't want to.

aku selalu membelikan sesuatu di saat yang sama, meskipun barangnya tidak selalu sama. dan jika ada orang mau memberi sesuatu, aku bilang,' kalo mau ngasih dua, atau tidak sama sekali', karena aku ngga mau nanti ada rebutan setelah itu.
I always buy them things at the same time, although not always the same thing. and when somebody wants to give something, I always say, "give them both, or not at all" because I don't want to see fight over the gift after it.

ketika tiba waktunya sekolah, aku meminta pihak sekolah untuk memasukkan mereka ke kelas yang berbeda karena aku ingin mereka tumbuh, belajar dan bersosialisasi tanpa saling tergantung satu sama lain. hari-hari pertama berat banget, karena Ar selalu nyusul ke kelas Ir dan bilang mau sama Ir. gurunya hampir menyerah dan menyatukan mereka. tapi aku ngotot bilang jangan. alhamdulillah akhirnya mereka bisa melaluinya setelah sebulan, dan terima kasih pada bu guru karena telah begitu bersabar.
when it comes to schooling time, I asked the teacher to put them in different classes because I wanted them to grow, learn and socialize independently each other. first days was so hard cause Ar always run to Ir's class and said wanted to be with Ir. the teacher almost give up and put them together but I insist not to. alhamdulillah they finally could make it in a month, and I thank the teacher for their patience.

suatu hari ada permainan di sekolah, siapa yang menang akan dapat 'bintang'. Ar dapat, tapi Ir tidak. dia nangis hampir seharian dan mengatakan bahwa gurunya tidak adil karena Ar diberi bintang sedangkan dia tidak. aku berusaha sebisa mungkin membuatnya mengerti bahwa Ar berhak mendapatkannya, dan dia harus berusaha kalau ingin mendapatkannya. oh entahlah apa aku bisa membuat dia mengerti, paling tidak sudah kucoba.
once there was a game at school, and who won got a 'star'. Ar did, but Ir didn't. he cried almost all day long and said the teacher wasn't fair, because Ar got star and he didn't. I did may best to make him understand that Ar deserved it and he didn't. that if he wanted a reward he has to work hard for it. oh I don't know if he could understand it or not, at least I tried.

beberapa hari yang lalu aku pergi ke toko buku untuk membelikan mereka buku belajar baca. aku tanya Dan, "beli satu atau dua?". katanya,"satu. kamu kan ngga ngajarin mereka bareng-bareng. biar yang satu menyimak waktu yang lain belajar".
few days ago I and Dan went to a book store to buy them a book to help them lear to read. I asked Dan, "do we buy one or two?". he said, "buy one. you won't teach them both at the same time. let the one watch the other one learning".

aku diam sebentar lalu berkata.
"kalau mereka bukan anak kembar, dan lahir bukan hanya berjarak enam menit, apa mereka harus berbagi buku begitu?"
"tidak"
"menurutmu, bukankah mereka berhak mendapatkan yang sama"
"well, okay, beli dua"
I stood for a while, and then asked.
"if only they were not twin, and born not only six minutes apart, they wouldn't have to share books like this, would they?"
"no"
"don't you think they both deserve one book each?"
"well, okay, take two"

sebenarnya aku juga agak bingung tentang hal ini. aku tahu ada orang yang memperlakukan anak kembar mereka persis dalam segala hal, tapi ada juga yang melakukannya bener-bener berbeda. aku merasa nanggung di tengah-tengahnya dan seperti orang yang ragu. aku ingin anakku tumbuh sebagai diri mereka sendiri, tapi kadang aku masih melihat mereka sebagai satu kesatuan.
this is something quite confusing to me. I know people who treat their twins exactly the same. and some who treat them totally different way. I feel like I'm in between, and it sounds like a doubtful step. I want my twins two grow as what they want to be, but at the same time I still some times see them as one.

sebenarnya bagaimana aku harus memperlakukan mereka?
how should I treat them?