"Patriotic feelings, principles, or efforts," says my Macbook dictionary. Alright...what is patriotic? "Having or expressing devotion to and vigorous support for one's country." Right. Why do we vigorously support our country, again?
Because it's our country?
But isn't that a bit like..."I believe in my religion because it's my religion"?
In other words, "There's nothing really special about Indonesia, I love it simply because it's the country I was born into."
I don't know about you, but this doesn't make sense to me. I believe this is a false and lazy interpretation of nationalism. Unfortunately, it is a rather popular interpretation.
This interpretation underlies a number of problems about nationalism that I would like to discuss today.
The first of which is a line of thinking about nationalism that we are easily susceptible to and one that I once possessed, I must admit.
Some people love Indonesia because of its achievements or its gifts. And some love sharing about them. While I appreciate their intentions, I do so with a slight cringe.
Surely it doesn't hurt to let other people, especially foreigners, know about the positive side of our own respective countries, but nationalism that is defined only by the positive aspects of our nation is a hollow one.
"I love Indonesia because it has beautiful mountains, beaches and rice paddies; because its economy grew while others shrink; because of its diversity; because its students win gold medals in international science competitions; because of etc, etc..."
While these are things that we can be proud of, loving Indonesia only because of its wonders is a bit like, "I love my girlfriend because she's beautiful."
There are at least 3.291.805.000 women in this world. Surely there are more than one beautiful woman?
Switzerland has staggering natural scenery. Japan has geniuses in all shapes and sizes. China and India have a massive and skyrocketing economy. And talking about diversity, there are an estimated 800 languages spoken in New York, USA alone.
They are also beautiful, why don't we love them?
Sure you can appreciate the fact that your girlfriend has beautiful eyes, lovely hair and flowery scent. But if you only love her because she's beautiful, then your love is pretty damn shallow and, therefore, unsustainable.
Another problem that I would like to discuss is symbolic support.
Many would limit their definition of nationalism to expressing symbolic support - in the form of singing Indonesia Raya, waving the Red & White flag, using Bahasa Indonesia in every single waking moment of your life or wearing Batik. Some even extend the definition by expressing utter disrespect to a certain neighboring country in 'defense' of such symbols, foolishly convinced that somehow expressing disrespect towards others, while losing composure and elegance along the way, proves that we are any better.
Symbols are created to represent something, it is not the thing itself. Showing symbolic support should only be a representation of our love towards Indonesia, it should not be the love itself.
So what is the true definition of nationalism, then?
I love how the dictionary comprehensively defines nationalism as expressing both support and devotion. Supporting is one thing; devoting is another. So according to my Macbook, if you only support your country without devoting to it, you are not nationalistic.
Aha. Bingo. Devotion - that's the whole point.
For it is neither helpful nor useful to love your country without devoting to it. For it is useless to try and define nationalism without trying to figure out, "How can we best serve our country?"
Why should we serve our country?
I believe this is a personal question. My answer does not necessarily have to be yours, and vice versa. But I also believe that there is a certain fundamental truth that applies to all of us; and it is the following:
Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential, and discover the role that you'll play in writing the next great chapter of your country's story.
-BHO
For me, this means that in life, if we chase only after the big house, the nice car and all of the other things that our money culture says we should buy; if we only forge a career path that adheres to the society's definition of success even though it doesn't necessarily reflect our own values; if we are leading a life in such a way because others tell us, "This is what success looks like", I think that eventually we'll get bored. We'll eventually suffer the worst kind of pain - the silent pain of not being able to live our lives to the fullest; of not being able to make a difference.
Now, there are 195 countries in this world, spread across seven continents. Why are we born into this particular country?
Why wasn't I born into the ruins of Somalia or in the deserted islands of the Solomon Islands? Why wasn't I born among the wealth of the United States of America or among the rocketing pace of growth in China? Why wasn't I born into the Islamic state of Saudi Arabia or under the repressive regime of Iran?
Why Indonesia?
To tell you the truth, I am still looking for the answer myself.
But what I do know so far is that we were born into where we were born because we have something to offer that that particular place needs. I was born into Indonesia because I can play an important role in the betterment of Indonesia, and only through Indonesia will I learn the values that can help me become the best man that I could ever be.
And you know what?
Serving Indonesia does not necessarily mean you have to become a politician or work in the government. Our passion and skills are unique; and the best way for us to serve is to follow our own path.
We are living in an era with so many grave challenges. This also means that there are endless opportunities for us to contribute. And each of us has something to contribute to the life of our nation.
Indonesia needs genuine politicians as well as innovative entrepreneurs. Indonesia needs dedicated educators as well as passionate students. Indonesia needs creative filmmakers as well as hard-working athletes. Indonesia needs sterling diplomats as well as tenacious local community workers.
And Indonesia needs selfless parents as well as selfless children.
We all have our own roles to play; and if Indonesia is to move forward, we all need to play our roles to the best of our abilities.
Our quest, then, is to figure out what are our unique qualities and how we can best utilize them to serve Indonesia. Who knows? In the process, we just might become the best version of ourselves.
So in the end, this is about ourselves. We serve ourselves through serving Indonesia.
And for me, it is the only way to live life to the fullest. To be able to look back one day and say in my deathbed, "I've made a difference."
Happy 65th birthday, Indonesia. I love you.
