Today, October 27, by 1 pm Wisnu did not want to take his afternoon nap and Aji had classes to attend from1 to 7 pm. I decided to take Wisnu and Akira to Bandobashi, eventhough it was raining cat and dog for all morning the sky became clearer after 1. Then we went for it.
The journey from Nishi Kamadai to Yokohama Station went smooth as Wisnu was excited by the idea of getting on the bus during his nap time. We could even stop to buy Papa Beard Puff Bread before taking the subway to Bandobashi.
Bandobashi shotengai was not too crowded and we managed to buy two cans of milk, mikan (Japanese orange) and mango (imported from the Philippines). Wisnu asked to play at the park nearby before we left although he was too tired to play. He met a Japanese girl and attempted to converse using Bahasa Indonesia. The girl looked puzzled by Wisnu's utterances, but after awhile she also used body languange to respond to Wisnu. Wisnu grabbed her hand, shared his mikan and gave her a bunch of dry leaves. Unfortunately the girl had to leave earlier since her little brother cried and her mother beckoned her. Wisnu sadly cried.
It began very difficult to talk to Wisnu. He refused to sit on his stroller, he insisted on approaching some dogs but cried in terror as the dogs barked and jumped over him. He said he wanted to walk, but when I put him off from the stroller he wanted me to pick him up but I can't. I was carrying Akira on the sling. We left the park with everybody's eyes were enjoying this tantrum scene. Wisnu stopped crying for awhile when I cheered him up by saying that we were going to take the subway.When we passed a cafe, I decided to buy some bread for Wisnu to avoid another 'explosion'. It turned out to be a terribly WRONG decision. He pointed at the strawberry cake but it was too expensive, so I bought cheesecake instead. He cried again, but when I put the cheese cake into his mouth, he realized that how tasty it was to let the cheese melt in his mouth.
I thought I could bribe him with the cake so that I could do some chicken-fish shopping at the supa --Yokohama Basement near the bus station. At the supa, Wisnu was trying to put the sliced pork into the basket but I had turned down his favor by saying, "No, we do not eat pork and are not going to buy any.Put them back to the shelf, please". After that he tried to grab the snacks and again I let him down by saying, "Perhaps that is too expensive. Would you try to find something else cheaper?". Then there he went. Lying on the floor, kicking out his booths, drumming his heels, crying out loud. I had been warned by the books and friends before that such thing would happen to me, so I rushed to the cashier to put the basket down and got him back. He might have thought that I abandoned him so that his cry became more ear-piercing and teeth-jittering. A lady came approaching us and tried to help me pick Wisnu's boots.
After paying the groceries, I kneeled down and tried to hug Wisnu. He just could not stop crying but I got my hands full. I tried to talk to him that we will still have to take the bus home because it will cost a great fortune to take a cab home. And if you wonder why I just make it a big fuss to take two children with me perhaps this picture could help you figure out.
Several minutes passed, but the whine did not come to cease.Out of nowhere there were two elderly ladies approaching and I just could smile at them and let them figure what happened. One of them picked Wisnu up in her arms and the other one went back in to the supa to buy some beverages for him. I was speechless.
Wisnu refused to drink but he stopped crying as these two ladies tried to talk to him in such a way that not only Wisnu but also I become so relaxed.It's the tone they were using that was really soothing.
They took us up to the bus platform and eventhough I still needed their help but I did not feel quite right to make them wait for us as the bus was getting crowded at 4.30 pm and they might miss their bus. When we was in the queue, I tried to carry Wisnu in my arms. A lady saw this and lent her hands carrying my groceries from my hands. We got into the bus and as soon as Wisnu got seated, he fell asleep.
The next problem I encountered was how to get to off the bus fast? The bus driver won't wait for me to get off to put down the groceries and went back into the bus taking Wisnu. I just had to move fast. I decided to put Wisnu on the stroller and pushed him of the bus so then I could carry the groceries and Akira at the same time. Easy? You bet!
First, I had to put my ransack off my back and unfold the stroller while the bus was moving. I was in the doorway and gave a hard time for people getting off the bus. Second, still with Akira on the sling I had to pick Wisnu up from the seat and seat him on the stroller without losing my balance. Third, I had to take the groceries and put it in my arms and at the same time hold the stroller to stand still. Fourth, I had to push the stroller out of the bus and make a way out for myself inspite of being squeezed by the other passengers.
There was a lady helped me keeping the stroller at balance. Wisnu almost got off the stroller when I tried to get out of the bus as I did not have time to buckle him on it. Luckily, the lady saved Wisnu.
When the bus left us, I remained at the side of the street catching my breath. This is what happens when we have to travel without Aji but we have to find the way to survive. It might reoccur in the future. We just need to be ready with more smarter tactics.
picture: www.naturslinstinct.com
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