Harnita Rahman, Life’s Journey as a Homemaker

KOMPAS/ABDULLAH FIKRI ASHRI

Harnita Rahman

Her friends and family often ask why Harnita “Nita” Rahman, 34, decided to become a housewife. However, the Hasanuddin University (Unhas) graduate in international relations is unmoved. Her decision enables her to teach literacy, theater, recycling and remain close to her children.

Harnita had just arrived home on Friday evening (12/28/2018) to her rented house in Wesabbe C 17, Taumalanrea in the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar. The director of the Jenny Book Store (KBJ) – a bookstore, a library and art venue – had just finished hosting a discussion on Mencari Rumah Pram (Looking for Pram\'s house), which KBJ had published.

Two days later, she and her husband, Zulkhair “Bobi” Burhan, 37, traveled to Bone regency, about 130 kilometers from Makassar, to participate in literacy activities. At a commemoration marking Mother\'s Day on Dec. 22, Nita was a speaker in reviewing Metamorfosis Ibu (Maternal metamorphosis). This is just small part of her busy schedule as a housewife.

Nita starts working every morning as soon as her front door is unlocked. The 6-by-8 meter house is ready to welcome residents. Some walls are decorated with murals. The living room has been transformed into a library and contains around 500 books that line cabinets and shelves.

The titles include Naruto comic books, the novels of Pramoedya Ananta Toer and several foreign books on international relations. The library books have also been lent to several regional public libraries.

Paintings by local students and children are displayed atop the cabinets. Some origami birds hang near the window. A fan mounted on a blue wall helps keep the room cool in the hot Makassar weather.

Students, lecturers and journalists often visit the library, which is called Malala, after the female Pakistani student and Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai. The central room is often used as a reading room when the library is crowded with visitors.

Don’t imagine that the library is a quiet one where talking is not allowed, like most libraries. “Here, our only private space is the bedroom. The others have become public spaces,” Nita said, laughing.

Next to the living room is a small room containing books, record jackets, and tapes and CDs of indie bands, including Makassar bands. Nita calls the room a shop. Nita and Bobi not only sell the items, but also converse with their visitors about the books and music. It is not like in

supermarkets, where people come, buy and then leave. The shop, which is open until midnight, often hosts a number of events like KBJamming, which dozens of young people attended.

KBJamming is a live show of local indie bands. Anyone can come and jam for free. The one condition is that there is no distance between the audience and the band, and the stage has no barricade. In addition, the space holds other activities, like poetry readings, daydreaming sessions and storytelling. In December, the space held five events.

Homemaker

Nita has been active in a variety of areas since 2011, when her husband Bobi, an international relations lecturer at Makassar’s Bosowa University, and a friend, Aswin Baharuddin, 32, founded KBJ. Both are fellow international relations graduates of Hasanuddin University. Nita fulfills her role as a housewife concurrently with her role as KBJ director. “I still cook, clean house and take care of the children,” she said.

She had to think about how to have a kitchen while maintaining the reading room. This is why KBJ relocated several times, depending on a house’s rental price. “We returned to Wesabbe here, because this is the cheapest, the rent is Rp 10 million per year. Praise God, we’ve only had luck. We are now building a house,” said Nita.

Nevertheless, various friends and family often ask cynical questions of Nita, who does not from a wealthy family. Her father is a public transport driver on the Bone-Makassar route, while her mother is a retired teacher.

“Some ask me, why have you turned the house into a library and opened it to the public? Are you capable of taking care of others? Why isn’t there a sofa at home? Why did you choose to be a housewife, not a civil servant, when you are a university graduate?” she said.

“Usually, Maha [Mahatma, Nita’s first child) answers, ‘There are no chairs at home. There are only books’,” said Nita. Actually, Nita’s house has a few chairs, but they are not from a furniture store; they are homemade.

For example, the two small seats in the library are made from ecobricks: non-recyclable waste packed into bottles of used mineral water. The ecobricks, which is a form of waste management, were then topped with cork to provide comfortable seating. On the terrace are several chairs made from used plastic drums.

“In fact, sometimes, some want to rent the chairs,” Nita said, smiling. Nita also shares her recycling knowledge freely with neighboring children. They have learned to make gift boxes and pencil cases from used cardboard and scrapbooks.

“Ten to 15 children are involved. All are Maha’s friends. They take home what they make during the activity. Initially, I was concerned because children always buy things they can actually make themselves,” said Nita, who took part in the 2017 Makassar Biennale art workshop’s #sulapsampah (waste magic) category.

Indirectly, Nita is teaching her two children to make peace with waste. “Now, Maha and Suar

collect waste. I always believe that education starts at home. We have opened the house to anyone as a reading room, and also for teaching the children how to accept people,” she said.

This is why she decided to become a housewife. “I am happy. By becoming a housewife, I was able to achieve my dreams, such as managing KBJ. Housewives don’t have to be confined at home in a housedress,” she said.

In fact, these days she does theater, which has been a hobby since school. Six months ago, she founded Teater Anak Ketjil (little children’s theater). Elementary school children in the neighborhood were invited to join the theater. Nita has also taught theatrical groups at the polytechnic and Hasanuddin University.

“What is not taught at school, like theater, I teach at home. I teach the students theater through games, like how to be a rock. The theater has singing, role playing and dancing," she said.

Nita’s pursuits have now been rewarded. In addition to frequent invitations to speak at various events, including the Makassar International Writers Festival 2018, she also received the Women in Equal Education award from the Education and Culture Minister in 2018. Nita’s family and friends are now proud of her.

According to Nita, her husband\'s support kept alive her flame of enthusiasm to stick to her decision.

Harnita Rahman

Born: Watampone, Nov. 29, 1984

Occupation: Housewife; director, Kedai Buku Jenny bookstore

Education: International Relations, Hasanuddin University

Husband: Zulkhair Burhan, 37

Children:

- Mahatma Ali El Gaza, 9

- Suar Asa Benderang, 5