A Letter from Bambang
The translation of Ratna Indraswari Ibrahim’s Indonesian short story “Kabar dari Bambang” by Tjahaja.
Dini (a journalist in this city) walked into any doctor’s office (it was almost ten p.m.). Dini could not stand the itch, which had become swollen all over her body (the doctor had actually closed the door of his office).
“Did you eat shrimp? At your best friend’s wedding, shrimp allergy means avoid eating it; here’s the prescription.”
“I’ve never been allergic to anything, including shrimp. Wait, I have to catch the deadline, Doctor. Can it be gone in the next few hours?”
“The drug usually works six hours after taking it; you should sleep first, then type it tomorrow.”
“Doctor, you should give me expensive medicine, not generic, so that I can recover quickly! I’m on deadline for tomorrow’s news!”
Doctor Bambang smiled.
Dini remembered this event at this time because that was the first time she met Bambang (she already considered this gentle man to be her soul mate). The next time they met, she was looking for it (she was 28 years old at the time). Mom urged her repeatedly to get married as soon as possible! It was something that had been talked about a lot lately, not only by her mom…
