The Wolf on the Name Tag

Wilf stands at the check-in table of the River Weekend and looks at the sticker on his chest. It says WOLF in thick black letters.

Wilf berdiri di meja registrasi akhir pekan River Weekend dan menatap stiker di dadanya. Tertulis WOLF dengan huruf hitam tebal.

"That is not my name," he says.

"Itu bukan namaku," katanya.

"It's what you wrote on the form," says the girl behind the table.

"Itu yang kamu tulis di formulir," kata gadis di balik meja.

"I wrote Wilf. W, I, L, F."

"Aku menulis Wilf. W, I, L, F."

"Then someone at the printer thought you were a wolf." She shrugs and hands him a map. "It's only for the weekend. Tents are down by the water."

"Kalau begitu, orang di percetakan mengira kamu serigala." Ia mengangkat bahu dan menyerahkan sebuah peta kepadanya. "Ini cuma untuk akhir pekan ini. Tenda-tenda ada di bawah, dekat air."

Wilf wants to ask for a new sticker, but a line is growing behind him. He picks up his bag and walks down the grass slope toward the river. Three small children run past in yellow jackets. One of them points at his chest and howls. The other two join in.

Wilf ingin meminta stiker baru, tetapi antrean di belakangnya makin panjang. Ia mengambil tasnya dan berjalan menuruni lereng rumput menuju sungai. Tiga anak kecil berjaket kuning berlari melewatinya. Salah satunya menunjuk dadanya lalu melolong. Kedua temannya ikut melolong.

"Great," Wilf mutters. "A pack."

"Bagus," gumam Wilf. "Satu kawanan."

The campsite is long and quiet. Trees stand on one side, and a slow, shallow river runs on the other. Wilf has never camped before. His office team booked this trip, and then four of them cancelled, so he came alone. This morning he watched three videos about tents. He feels ready, in the way a person feels ready before an exam.

Area perkemahan itu panjang dan sepi. Pepohonan berdiri di satu sisi, dan sungai dangkal yang mengalir pelan ada di sisi lain. Wilf belum pernah berkemah. Tim kantornya yang memesan perjalanan ini, lalu empat orang membatalkan, jadi ia datang sendirian. Pagi tadi ia menonton tiga video tentang tenda. Ia merasa siap, seperti orang yang merasa siap sebelum ujian.

He finds a flat patch of ground under a tall tree and opens the bag. Tent poles spill out onto the grass. They are all the same colour, and there seem to be too many of them.

Ia menemukan sepetak tanah datar di bawah pohon tinggi dan membuka tasnya. Tiang-tiang tenda tumpah ke rumput. Warnanya semua sama, dan jumlahnya tampak terlalu banyak.

"Which one goes where?" he says to nobody.

"Yang mana dipasang di mana?" katanya pada siapa pun yang tidak ada.

"That depends on what you are building," says a voice nearby.

"Itu tergantung apa yang sedang kamu bangun," kata sebuah suara di dekatnya.

Wilf looks up. A woman sits on a folding chair about ten metres away. A large grey tent lies folded beside her. Her right wrist is wrapped in a white bandage. Her name tag says WANDA, and underneath, in small letters, it says BEGINNER.

Wilf mendongak. Seorang perempuan duduk di kursi lipat sekitar sepuluh meter jauhnya. Sebuah tenda abu-abu besar tergeletak terlipat di sampingnya. Pergelangan tangan kanannya dibalut perban putih. Tanda namanya bertuliskan WANDA, dan di bawahnya, dengan huruf kecil, tertulis PEMULA.

"You're a beginner too?" he asks, with relief.

"Kamu juga pemula?" tanyanya dengan lega.

"No," she says. "That's the printer again. I've camped for twenty years. But I carried a cool box up the hill this morning and my wrist said no."

"Bukan," jawabnya. "Itu ulah percetakan lagi. Aku sudah berkemah dua puluh tahun. Tapi pagi tadi aku membawa kotak pendingin naik bukit, dan pergelangan tanganku bilang tidak."

"Oh. Does it hurt?"

"Oh. Sakit?"

"Only when I try to put up a tent." She looks at him and then at his chest. "Hello, Wolf."

"Cuma kalau aku mencoba mendirikan tenda." Ia menatap Wilf, lalu menatap dadanya. "Halo, Wolf."

"It's Wilf. Please."

"Wilf. Tolong."

"Wilf. I like Wolf better, but I'll try."

"Wilf. Aku lebih suka Wolf, tapi akan kucoba."

He sits down on the grass near her, partly out of politeness. Mostly his legs are tired. She tells him that she came with friends. They went to the village for supplies and will be gone for hours. Until then, her tent is a big grey heap on the ground.

Wilf duduk di rumput dekatnya, sebagian karena sopan santun. Sebagian besar karena kakinya lelah. Perempuan itu bercerita bahwa ia datang bersama teman-temannya. Mereka pergi ke desa membeli perbekalan dan akan pergi berjam-jam. Sampai mereka kembali, tendanya hanyalah gundukan abu-abu besar di tanah.

"I can't tighten the pegs," she says. "I can't hold the poles. I can't even open the zip. Which is embarrassing, because I told everyone I'd camp alone this weekend."

"Aku tidak bisa mengencangkan patok," katanya. "Aku tidak bisa memegang tiang. Aku bahkan tidak bisa membuka ritsleting. Memalukan, karena aku sudah bilang ke semua orang bahwa aku akan berkemah sendirian akhir pekan ini."

"Is that a good idea with a sore wrist?"

"Apa itu ide bagus dengan pergelangan tangan yang sakit?"

"It's a stubborn idea. I'm known for those."

"Itu ide yang keras kepala. Aku terkenal dengan ide semacam itu."

Wilf looks at her tent. Then he looks at his own poles, which still lie in a messy pile. A strange thought comes to him. He has watched three videos this morning. She has twenty years of experience, but she has only one working hand.

Wilf menatap tenda perempuan itu. Lalu ia menatap tiang-tiangnya sendiri yang masih teronggok berantakan. Sebuah pikiran aneh muncul. Pagi ini ia sudah menonton tiga video. Perempuan itu punya pengalaman dua puluh tahun, tetapi hanya punya satu tangan yang berfungsi.

"I might be able to help you," he says. "I'm not good at much. But I did learn how to put up a tent at breakfast."

"Mungkin aku bisa membantumu," katanya. "Aku tidak pandai banyak hal. Tapi aku belajar cara mendirikan tenda saat sarapan tadi."

Wanda raises an eyebrow. "From a person?"

Wanda mengangkat sebelah alis. "Dari seseorang?"

"From a screen."

"Dari layar."

"Well, that's a start. Show me what you've got."

"Ya, itu awal yang bagus. Tunjukkan apa yang kamu punya."

They decide to build her tent first, because it is bigger and she can guide him. Wilf carries the grey heap to a flat spot near the water. Wanda follows with her chair and sits down at the edge of the ground sheet.

Mereka memutuskan mendirikan tenda Wanda lebih dulu, karena tenda itu lebih besar dan ia bisa memandu Wilf. Wilf membawa gundukan abu-abu itu ke tempat datar dekat air. Wanda mengikutinya dengan kursinya dan duduk di tepi alas tenda.

"Lay it flat," she says. "Corners first. Don't pull too hard."

"Bentangkan rata," katanya. "Sudut-sudutnya dulu. Jangan menarik terlalu keras."

He does as he is told. The fabric flaps open, and he chases it twice. Wanda laughs, and the sound is surprisingly warm. Then she shows him how to thread the long pole through the sleeve. He must push from the middle so the cloth does not catch.

Wilf menurut. Kainnya mengembang tertiup angin, dan ia mengejarnya dua kali. Wanda tertawa, dan suaranya terdengar hangat sekali. Lalu ia menunjukkan cara memasukkan tiang panjang lewat selongsong kain. Wilf harus mendorong dari tengah supaya kainnya tidak tersangkut.

"Now the second pole," she says. "Cross them at the top. Yes, like that. You've got it."

"Sekarang tiang kedua," katanya. "Silangkan di atas. Ya, seperti itu. Kamu sudah bisa."

"Is it supposed to lean this much?"

"Memang harus miring sebanyak ini?"

"If it leans, we fix it. Tents are very forgiving, if you are patient."

"Kalau miring, kita perbaiki. Tenda itu sangat pemaaf, asalkan kamu sabar."

The tent rises slowly, like a tired animal getting to its feet. Wilf hammers the pegs with a rubber mallet. Wanda points at the places where the ground is soft. When a peg bends, she shows him how to pull it out. He tries again at a sharper angle.

Tenda itu naik perlahan, seperti hewan lelah yang berdiri. Wilf memalu patok dengan palu karet. Wanda menunjuk bagian-bagian tanah yang lunak. Ketika sebuah patok bengkok, ia menunjukkan cara mencabutnya. Wilf mencoba lagi dengan sudut yang lebih tajam.

"My video didn't say that," Wilf admits.

"Videoku tidak bilang begitu," Wilf mengaku.

"Videos never do. The ground is always a surprise."

"Video memang tidak pernah bilang. Tanah selalu penuh kejutan."

By the time the grey tent stands straight, the sun is low over the river. The children have gone to eat. Wilf steps back and wipes his hands on his trousers. He feels strangely proud, as if he has built a house.

Ketika tenda abu-abu itu akhirnya berdiri tegak, matahari sudah rendah di atas sungai. Anak-anak sudah pergi makan. Wilf mundur dan mengelap tangannya di celana. Ia merasa bangga secara aneh, seolah baru membangun sebuah rumah.

"It's a good tent," Wanda says. "Better than I would have done with two hands."

"Tendanya bagus," kata Wanda. "Lebih bagus daripada kalau aku mengerjakannya dengan dua tangan."

"That's not true."

"Itu tidak benar."

"It's a little true." She smiles. "Now do yours. I'll sit here and shout at you."

"Sedikit benar." Ia tersenyum. "Sekarang giliran tendamu. Aku akan duduk di sini dan meneriakimu."

It takes him half an hour. She tells him to face his tent door toward the trees. She tells him to keep his shoes outside and never, ever to put the stove inside. Then he drops the pole bag into the river. She laughs so hard that she has to hold her wrist.

Itu memakan waktu setengah jam. Wanda menyuruhnya menghadapkan pintu tendanya ke arah pepohonan. Ia menyuruhnya menaruh sepatu di luar dan jangan sekali-kali menaruh kompor di dalam. Lalu Wilf menjatuhkan kantong tiang ke sungai. Wanda tertawa begitu keras sampai harus memegangi pergelangan tangannya.

"I'm sorry," she says between breaths. "It's not funny."

"Maaf," katanya di sela napas. "Ini tidak lucu."

"It's a little funny."

"Sedikit lucu."

"It's a lot funny."

"Lucu sekali."

He fishes the bag out with a stick and shakes it dry. She makes a small noise of approval, like a teacher with a good student.

Wilf memancing kantong itu dengan sebatang ranting dan mengibaskannya sampai kering. Wanda mengeluarkan suara kecil tanda setuju, seperti guru pada murid yang pintar.

When both tents stand side by side, Wanda stays in her chair a moment longer. Then she opens a small tin from her bag and holds it out. Inside are two thick biscuits, wrapped in paper.

Ketika kedua tenda sudah berdiri berdampingan, Wanda tetap duduk di kursinya sebentar lagi. Lalu ia membuka sebuah kaleng kecil dari tasnya dan mengulurkannya. Di dalamnya ada dua biskuit tebal yang dibungkus kertas.

"My emergency supply," she says. "I only share it with people who rescue me."

"Persediaan daruratku," katanya. "Aku hanya membaginya dengan orang yang menyelamatkanku."

"I didn't rescue you. I lifted some poles."

"Aku tidak menyelamatkanmu. Aku cuma mengangkat beberapa tiang."

"You gave me back my weekend. That counts."

"Kamu mengembalikan akhir pekanku. Itu sudah termasuk."

They eat the biscuits by the water. The river moves slowly past, brown and shining, and a pair of ducks drifts by without a sound. For a while, neither of them says anything, and it feels completely comfortable.

Mereka memakan biskuit itu di tepi air. Sungai mengalir pelan, cokelat dan berkilau, dan sepasang bebek hanyut lewat tanpa suara. Beberapa saat tak seorang pun berkata apa-apa, dan rasanya sangat nyaman.

Then Wanda takes a marker from her pocket. She peels the sticker off her shirt and turns it over. On the back, she writes in big letters. WANDA. NOT A BEGINNER. She presses it carefully back onto her chest.

Lalu Wanda mengambil spidol dari sakunya. Ia mengelupas stiker dari bajunya dan membaliknya. Di baliknya, ia menulis dengan huruf besar. WANDA. BUKAN PEMULA. Ia menempelkannya kembali dengan hati-hati ke dadanya.

"Give me yours," she says.

"Berikan punyamu," katanya.

Wilf peels off his sticker and hands it to her. She writes under the word WOLF, stops, crosses it out, and writes again. She hands it back.

Wilf mengelupas stikernya dan menyerahkannya. Wanda menulis di bawah kata WOLF, berhenti, mencoretnya, lalu menulis lagi. Ia menyerahkannya kembali.

He reads it aloud. "WILF. NOT A WOLF."

Wilf membacanya dengan suara keras. "WILF. BUKAN SERIGALA."

"Now everyone will know."

"Sekarang semua orang akan tahu."

"I think I preferred the old one," he says. "The children seemed to like it."

"Kurasa aku lebih suka yang lama," katanya. "Anak-anak sepertinya menyukainya."

As if they heard him, three small voices rise from the hill behind the trees. A long, wobbly howl rolls across the campsite and out over the river.

Seakan mendengarnya, tiga suara kecil terdengar dari bukit di balik pepohonan. Lolongan panjang yang goyah bergulir di sepanjang area perkemahan dan melayang ke atas sungai.

Wilf looks at Wanda. Wanda looks at Wilf.

Wilf menatap Wanda. Wanda menatap Wilf.

Then he stands, lifts his chin toward the sky, and howls back.

Lalu ia berdiri, mengangkat dagunya ke langit, dan melolong membalas.