Bermimpilah, karena Tuhan akan memeluk mimpi-mimpi itu.
Berhenti bercita-cita adalah tragedi terbesar dalam hidup manusia
Hiduplah Untuk Memberi yang Sebanyak-banyaknya, Bukan untuk Menerima yang Sebanyak-banyaknya. (Pak Harfan)
Pesimistik tidak lebih daripada sikap takbur mendahului nasib.
Aku telah mengidap sakit gila nomor enam belas: yakni penyakit manusia yang membuat dunia sendiri dalam kepalanya, menciptakan masalah-masalahnya sendiri, terpuruk di dalamnya, lalu menyelesaikan masalah-masalah itu, sambil tertawa-tawa, juga sendirian.
Orang-orang itu telah melupakan bahwa belajar tidaklah melulu untuk mengejar dan membuktikan sesuatu, namun belajar itu sendiri, adalah perayaan dan penghargaan pada diri sendiri. (hlm. 197)
Untuk sesuatu yang paling kuinginkan melebihi apa pun.
...Kawan, seandainya kita bisa tahu kepada siapa kita akan berjumpa lalu jatuh cinta seperti tak ada lagi hari esok, maka beruk bisa melamar pekerjaan menjadi ajudan bupati.
I am a writer who has a policy to allocate 90 percent of my time for research and the remaining 10 percent to write.
I think what matters most in literary work is the context, not the text.
Happiness is actually found in simple things, such as taking my nephew around the island by bicycle or seeing the stars at night. We go to coffee shops or see airplanes land at the airport.
I changed the course of my life, from the rigidity of mathematics and the corporate rhythm to a more bohemian world.
I think writers of memoirs need to be respected for the bold decision they take to bare their lives open. That alone should be enough. The things I write about, if you notice, are sensitive issues for a lot of people. If I told you my age, they would get ideas. The next thing you know they'll be filing lawsuits against me.
From a building right in front of my windows, I can observe the speed of the sunrises and sunsets. The voices of children playing, laughing, yelling, and crying on the playground crawl up to the eighth floor, where I write. Their voices sound so innocent from a distance.
I'm a small-town boy who comes from a traditional family on a tiny island called Belitung. I may not know where I'm going, but I'll always know where to come home to.
