During high school, I joined a program where we stayed for a week in a rural village called Cikembang to experience local life. My group was hosted by an elderly couple who lived with their young grandchild. I can’t remember what happened to the parents, but the grandchild stood out—funny, talkative, and full of silly stories. He told us he dreamed of becoming a policeman.
Most of our days blurred together. I barely helped with anything and spent a lot of time eating and sleeping. The school had paid the hosts to let us learn about farming, but the grandfather often went to the fields alone without involving us. I stayed with two classmates I wasn’t close to; one of them was a heavy smoker.
When we had free time, my classmates invited their friends over to the house. They smoked indoors and even taught the grandchild swear words. I hated it.
The religious atmosphere in the village felt unfamiliar. Many of my school friends were Salafi Muslims, and they saw several local practices as bid’ah. People brought stones into the mosque and performed rituals I had never seen before.
Everything was manageable until the school assignments came in. We had to interview our hosts about their work, income, and living conditions. The family grew potatoes and several other vegetables. Our meals were simple—mostly potatoes, rice, and instant noodles, with almost no protein. I assumed eggs or other protein sources were too expensive for them to serve regularly.
Despite being a smoker and the “bad boy” type, my classmate led most of the conversation with the family. He had strong social skills and was well-known at school, while I was the quiet STEM kid. At night, the cold was brutal. I slept in a sleeping bag and still shivered, while my friend stayed up chatting with the grandfather and smoking, keeping me awake.
From what they told us, their monthly income was uncertain—somewhere around one to three million rupiah. Still, because they grew much of their own food, they had a degree of security. They might not earn much, but they didn’t go hungry.