Every time he reads seriously, his hands shake. His English reading is also hesitant and broken. However, one thing makes him strong: his learning spirit never fades. He loves to play, but whenever the teacher calls him to read, he willingly leaves all his activities. He is A. Abizar Mappajaji, a boy who loves to be taught directly by his teacher.
In the classroom, only one or two girls want to pair up with Abizar for speaking practice. He does not care. For him, having a partner is enough. The most important thing is that he actively completes his assignments and work with great enthusiasm.
Outside the classroom, his name is called most often. “His name is not Abizar, Mister. It’s Azibar,” said one child. “Yes, Azibar,” another chimed in. Shouldn’t we avoid changing people’s names as we please? Abizar is aware of this, but he does not protest and takes it as a joke. The name ‘Azibar’ is heard most often during playtime. The children say it with a cheerful and happy heart.
Recently, Abizar took a random tenses writing exercise. His mind still struggled to understand the changes of tenses in sentences. He always sat patiently, waiting until his teacher was no longer busy answering other students’ questions. When the room grew quiet, Abizar said, “Please, show me how!.” The teacher, who pays great attention to Abizar, immediately guided him until all the question sheets were answered. He never argued with anything his teacher asked him to do.
A major challenge Abizar faces is his handwriting, which still has many corrections. He does not rush to ask for a new sheet of paper; he chooses a harder challenge instead. “Abizar, do you want to continue or tidy up your writing?” the teacher asked. “I want to tidy it up first, Mister,” he answered firmly. A new piece of paper was given to him to rewrite the correct answers nicely.
In the writer’s view, Abizar holds the signs of success. If we divide students into two sides, many smart children often take their lessons for granted and stop paying close attention. As a result, they only know bits and pieces and do not understand the lesson fully. Abizar is the opposite. He learns little by little and does it continuously. Like a marathon, the human learning journey is very long: elementary school, middle school, high school, university, and non-formal environments. With his dedication to learning, Abizar’s knowledge will likely grow as high as a mountain. This makes perfect sense. Time will prove this thought right.
On the other hand, there are also many smart children who are diligent, humble, and understand their lessons completely. Reality is not just black and white.
Who could predict that Abizar would become a great person? Jalaluddin Rakhmat (Kang Jalal) once told a story about a young man studying at a pesantren (Islamic boarding school) in Bangkalan, Madura. His knowledge was ordinary compared to his peers. Many students had memorized a lot of the Al-Qur’an. This young man had not memorized the Al-Qur’an, but he had one thing: devotion (khidmah) to his teacher. His task, which he did sincerely, was taking care of his teacher’s horses—feeding them and cleaning the stables belonging to Kiai Syaikhona Kholil. Who would have thought that in the future, this young man would be known as the founder of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the largest Islamic organization in the world. He is K.H. Hasyim Asy’ari.
In the tradition of Islamic education, especially in pesantrens, Intelligence Quotient is not everything. The blessing of knowledge comes from a clean heart and sincerity in serving (khidmah) the teacher. Imam Ali bin Abi Thalib said, “Knowledge is light, and light is given to those who clean their hearts.” Of course, developing the brain must also keep moving forward.
This connects back to Abizar’s story, as he does not take shortcuts and focuses on the learning process. He is a nine-year-old boy who, in his daily life, is humble, not arrogant, and fully focused on his learning journey. “When he was very small, Abizar learned to read at the Rumah Belajar Bersama (RBB).” After he became fluent, he graduated and chose to learn English. In this class, Abizar’s mind and heart are shaped to be stronger in facing the ocean of life as he grows into a teenager and an adult.
Zulkarnain Patwa
Bulukumba, Thursday, September 10, 2026
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