Wouldn't It Be Nice

Tajuk karangan saya hari ini ialah "Rumah Impian Saya".

Wouldn't it be nice if all of my siblings and I were mega mega rich and we'd pool some of our money and buy an acre or two of land. Then all of us would each build a house for our families on the perimeters of the land, leaving a large expanse of field in the middle for our children to run around in. Like the Backyardigans. Or Big Love. There'd be no fence between our houses, everyone shares one great big backyard.

We'd all live together in this made-up mini community of ours. We'd carpool our kids to school and collectively help them with their homework. We'd take turns cooking dinner for everybody, or maybe our maids will, so we'd only have to cook at least once a week. Then we'd all congregate in one house and pray Maghrib together. If it's a nice night we'd pray outside on the patio or deck, under the stars. During the day the deck will be used for plays, concert rehearsals and barbecues. On Sundays we will have a pot-luck brunch.

My kids will always have their cousins to play with. They'll fight and annoy each other but they'll also laugh and protect one another. I'll never have to worry about them running into the street or a stranger coming through the gate to kidnap them as they will be ensconced by our houses. The first house I remember we lived in was the house on Jalan Tok Sera in Kuantan. It had a big lawn on its side and I remember playing Pukul Berapa Datuk Harimau with my brother, my sisters and my cousins from Gombak and Kuching. I want that for my kids. I want a great big lawn for Aliff and Armin to run around. I want them to play all the games I played and didn't play. And then I want them to come into the house, have a tall glass of something cold and piping hot karipaps, and then run outside again.

If my husband and I want to go out on a date, I can always send my kids next door. We don't even have to go out. Just kick my kids out to their cousins' house and we'll have the entire house to ourselves for a couple of hours. Convenient, no?

Can you imagine the kenduris we can have, with all five houses so close to each other? One house can be the cooking station, another for the guests to tumpang sembahyang, another to corall all the little kids. A great big lawn in the middle and a huge wooden deck for eating, mingling, maybe even dancing.

My siblings and I will watch our kids grow. We will always be within shouting distance, and there will never be a missed birthday, an unsupported school performance, a forgotten sports meet. No child will be alone unless it's what he wants. No child will feel left out, neglected or abandoned. I will mother all their kids and everyone else will mother my kids. The children will grow up protected, safe, happy in a big big family.

I've read enough books to know man-made Utopias never ever work out. But still, wouldn't it be nice?