Date: May 1993
Location: Agam Regency, Final Semester of SMP(Middle School)
Age: 11
Rakha Yudhistira Halim had just turned eleven — and stood taller than most boys his age, in more ways than one.
In the last three years, he had accelerated through the national curriculum, completed every assigned subject with distinction, and audited extra modules from middle school without anyone asking him to. His notebooks were layered with diagrams, margin theories, and philosophical reflections far beyond the sixth-grade scope.
But none of that mattered today.
Today was about competition.
The District Science & Innovation Fair — Bukittinggi
The hall was hot. Packed. Echoing with the shuffle of uniforms and the chatter of children and parents alike.
Dozens of schools across Agam and Bukittinggi had sent their top students to present at the District Science & Innovation Fair, a prestigious event sponsored by the Ministry of Education.
Each student had a table.
Some brought erupting volcanoes. Others, waterwheels.Rakha brought a self-sustaining mini-farm model — powered by compost gas and a low-tech, gravity-fed irrigation design using bamboo and recycled tin.
He called it: "Siklus Hidup Mini: Hidup dari Alam, Kembali ke Alam."
"This model shows how rural homes can reduce food waste, produce biogas, and irrigate vertical crops with minimal cost. A family of four could survive from this setup alone — if applied on a 10x10m plot."
Judges nodded. Scribbled. Asked for diagrams. Rakha handed them full blueprints — annotated in Bahasa and English, with a small footnote in Arabic referencing a hadith on sustainable living.
He didn't win second.He didn't win third.
He won first, unanimously.
And for the first time, the name "Rakha Yudhistira Halim" appeared in the Padang Ekspres newspaper, below a grainy photo of him smiling awkwardly beside his invention.
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
Milestone Achieved: "First Regional Recognition"
System Trait Progress: +10 Innovation | +7 Public Awareness
MENTOR TEMPLATE UNLOCKED
Applied Knowledge Archetype: "Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie — Tier I"
Expertise Template Accessed:
– Structural Engineering (Intro)
Innovation Under Scarcity: +20% Efficiency in Rural Design–
Passive: "Visionary Logic I" — improves multi-disciplinary integration thinking
New System Feature: Mentor Emulation GridYou may now emulate select knowledge domains from historical or living figures.
(Note: deeper levels require social connection or deeper national impact.)
Rakha stared at the new panel glowing in his mind.
Habibie... the man who turned vision into structure.Is that where I'm going?
The Return to Lawang
When Rakha returned to Lawang two days later, the village square was decorated with coconut leaves, reused flags from last August, and a small banner someone painted by hand:
"SELAMAT NAK RAKHA — KEBANGGAAN KITA"(Congratulations, Son Rakha — Our Pride)
Mak Uni handed him a garland made of dried jasmine. Pak Ahmad tried to hold in tears.
Even the grumpy satay vendor gave him free skewers without a word.
That night, they held a simple feast near the sugarcane press. Banana leaf mats were rolled out, and the whole village — young and old — came to eat, laugh, and quietly whisper stories about the boy who was going places.
Halim stood behind his son the whole time, arms crossed proudly.Siti Halimah wiped her eyes every few minutes, pretending it was just the wind.
As the stars blinked above the hills, Rakha sat alone for a moment under the mango tree.
The sun dipped low behind the sugarcane hills, casting long golden shadows across the village square.
Drums made from old oil barrels echoed softly in rhythm. Woven mats stretched across the ground. Banana fritters sizzled in woks, and the air was heavy with spice and pride. Lawang had gathered again — not for a wedding, not for a harvest — but for a boy.
Not just any boy.
Their boy.
Rakha Yudhistira Halim, age eleven, had just completed his final semester of SMP (Middle School) — two years earlier than the norm, with the highest scores in the district. Not one class failed him. Not one challenge slowed him. And now, he was preparing to leave Lawang once more — this time for SMA 1 Padang, the best public high school in the province.
A scholarship had been granted. A place reserved. And the village, in quiet agreement, had passed around envelopes — not for luxury, but for support. Train tickets, uniforms, books.
"Let him go far," Pak Ustaz said. "But let him carry us in his stride."
That evening, Rakha stood in front of a simple hand-painted banner:
"Selamat, Ananda Rakha — Anak Surau, Anak Negeri."(Congratulations, Rakha — Child of the Surau, Child of the Nation)
He didn't give a long speech. He simply bowed, placed his hand over his heart, and said:
"Saya tak mungkin berdiri sejauh ini… tanpa tangan kalian di punggung saya. Terima kasih."(I could never have stood this far… without your hands at my back. Thank you.)
Later that night, beneath the mango tree where he had once drawn diagrams and read borrowed books, Rakha sat alone.
His mother came and gently placed a folded cloth bag beside him — inside, a Quran, an old photo of their family, and a hand-stitched prayer mat.
"You'll forget to pack it," she said softly. "But don't forget to use it."
His father came next. No words. Just a nod. A proud, firm squeeze on the shoulder.
Rakha looked up at the stars.
It's time… to carry my vision beyond these hills.
[SYSTEM NOTICE]
Middle School Path Completed
Age: 11
National Ranking: Top 0.01% (by age-adjusted criteria)
Next Objective: High School Integration — SMA 1 Padang
Survive elite expectations
Maintain humility and vision
Blueprint Evolution Available
Mentor Template Expanding:B.J. Habibie – Tier I → Tier II Unlocked
Bonus Unlocked:Youth Innovation Grant – Seed Capital (IDR 10,000,000)For first social enterprise design in urban environment
The world is larger now… but so are you.