I am Imelda Nasrani Oktafina Sarumaha, from Nias Island, North Sumatera,  studying Psychology in Mercu Buana University, Yogyakarta. I knew Stube-HEMAT Yogyakarta for the first time from my roommate, when she invited me to participate in Stube-HEMAT Yogyakarta training about batik. It was a visit to Batik Museum of Yogyakarta to get to know the history of batik, motifs and the tools used to make batik. At the end of the visit, we were challenged to make batik motifs based on the uniqueness of each region. This is something new and interesting for me because I am so curious about what I will make, that is motif from Nias. A few days later the training continued to Batik village of Giriloyo, Imogiri, Bantul, where we practiced how to make batik from drawing pattern, pouring wax on the patterns and coloring the fabric. I made a motif typically from Nias, that is stone jumping.

The following Stube-HEMAT Yogyakarta training I joined was Parenting Skills training in Kopeng, Central Java. In this training we learned to recall childhood experiences and how parents treated their children, to oberve what treatment we got from our parents when we were children and growing up, and to prepare the participants to be parents and to think whether the past parenting patterns  was still relevant to be applied in the future. It opened up my understanding and I knew how parents behaved towards their children.

From the Stube-HEMAT Yogyakarta training, ‘Together Compiling Indonesia’, I had wonderful atmosphere through meeting friends from different ethnic groups, customs, cultures and religions. I also got stories of experiences about religion, ethnicity and other cultures from other participants, interestingly, I was not afraid anymore to share my experiences with them even though we just knew each other but could create cohesiveness and harmony together. So, now I begin more tolerant to people who are diverse around me especially when I am at boarding house or campus. Thank you Stube-HEMAT. (Imelda Sarumaha).