Jebon

JEBON was something yang applied by my beloved aunties and uncles to stop adik and i from pursuing something yang boleh mendatangkan mudarat or mengganggu ketenangan - when we were very much younger. The lines wud be "ha! pi la tang tu - nanti jebon mai ambik, baghru tau!" or "ha! krghieyau kuat-kuat, nanti jebon dengark - dia mai ....". The jebon-ism worked - at least for a couple of years before we got use to it and realised that we never did see one anyway. So.

Never asked what jebon really is but imagined it's a kind of binatang. The pronunciation 'jay-bon' as applied - sounded macam gah and menakutkan. And since dipakai-guna untuk menakutkan - i assumed - it must be something pretty brutal and scary. It's been a long time since i heard it used on anyone kids (don't think it wud work with the current generation, anyway) - until today.

Adik and family drove from hometown to spend the weekend with me. 3 year old T'ah - my one and only niece was sitting on my lap when she innocently and sweetly asked in her pelat "Mom, dad mana dad?". Baru otak nak swing - macamana nak explain to this little angel - adik saved me timely. He said "Dad dah kena makan dengan Jebon besark." T'ah didn't show any reaction and kept quiet. But the rest of us adults were grinning and tried hard not to laugh..

Later in the evening - T'ah was sitting close to me. Saje nak test so i asked "dad mana t'ah?". She actually whispered "Jebon-dah-makan", squirked her nose and smiled widely to me.

Sungguh bahagia hidup ini... :)
Nur Fatihah