Sindroma Anak Bungsu

The Youngest Child Syndrome


 

Ini chat aku dan mbakku, sesaat setelah dia melihat foto ini di gambar profileku.
Dia: akhirnya, kelihatan seperti anak setahun
Aku: padahal sebenarnya satu setengah tahun
Dia: oya? lupa, sori
Aku: gapapa, di mataku dia masih 9 bulan
Dia: sindrom anak bungsu
Aku: opal (opal adalah bungsunya yang berumur 9 tahun) masih 5 tahun ya?
Dia: tiga.

This is a chat of me with my sister, after she saw this as my profile picture
Her: finally, he looks like a year old boy
Me: but he's one and half
Her: really? I forgot, sorry
Me: never mind, he's 9 months in my eyes
Her: youngest child syndrome
Me: Opal (her 9 yrs youngest boy) is five, huh?
Her: three.

***

Mungkin memang begitu ya, anak bungsu selalu jadi bayi sampai kapan pun. Perlakuan Bapak-Ibu kepada kami anak-anaknya relatif sama, tidak terasa pilih kasih dalam hal apa pun. Tapi memang cukup terasa perlakuan Ibu-ku kepada adik bungsu kami beda. Perhatian Ibu kepadanya, sedikit lebih, jika dibandingkan dengan kepada kami, kakak-kakaknya.
Tapi itu tidak membuat kami cemburu. Setidaknya aku tidak merasa begitu. Dan kurasa saudara-saudaraku yang lain juga maklum saja. Dasar bungsu. Begitu saja.


Maybe that's the way should be. Youngest child always be baby forever. My parents treat us their children relatively the same. We never feel they love any child more than any other. But we can't deny that our mother's attention to our youngest brother, is more than to us the elder children.
However it never makes us jealous. At least I never felt so. And I think my siblings never do either. We just understand it, ah youngest. That's all.

Sampai lebih dari enam tahun, aku tidak punya anak bungsu, yang benar-benar bungsu. Aku cuma punya sulung, dan dua anak kembar yang tidak bisa dibilang mana yang bungsu, karena mereka lahir bareng (ya... selisih enam menit sih). Jadi tidak ada 'bayi' di mataku. Sampai Ai' lahir. Dia (insya Allah) benar-benar bungsu. Dan memang, sampai dia usia sembilan bulan, di mataku dia masih enam bulan. Itu sebab aku terlambat menyadari keterlambatan pertumbuhan dan perkembangannya. Sekarang usianya hampir 17 bulan. Perkembangannya sudah lebih baik, meskipun masih tertinggal dibanding anak seusianya. Percaya atau tidak. Aku masih harus berusaha keras menanamkan di kepalaku, bahwa usianya sudah segitu. Karena di mataku dia bayi sembilan bulan...

For over six years, I didn't have a youngest child, a real youngest child. I only had the eldest, and a set of twin which I can call either one the youngest. I mean, they were born at the same time (with six minutes delay, yes). So there was no 'baby' in my eyes. Until there was Ai'.He (hopefully) will really be my youngest child. And it was true, until he was nine months old, I saw him as a six months baby. That is why it was too late for me to realize his delayed development. Now he's almost 17 months. His development is much better though still delayed, compared to other babies of his age. Believe it or not. I need to always remind my self that he's 17. 'Coz he's nine in my eyes...

Kurasa aku memang mengidap sindroma itu. Sindroma Anak Bungsu. Dan Ai' mungkin akan jadi bayiku selamanya. Semoga tidak membuatku mengesampingkan kakak-kakaknya.

I think I'm having it, Youngest Child Syndrome. And perhaps, Ai' will always be my baby. I hope it won't make me put his siblings aside.