Where’s the Pondok Indah Mola, mate? Of course you won’t find it in any atlas of Jakarta yet. Pondok Indah Mol? Nor that. Pondok Indah Mal? Some write it like that. Pondok Indah Mall? That would only make sense if you were speaking Englishdonesian.

Mol, mal or mall? Take your pick! Neither a servant nor a supervisor here could ever find a good reason to choose one over another because switching consistently from sounds to script based on instinct hasn’t filtered down to our collective subconscious yet.

Where did ‘mola’ come from? Well, it’s Ayatrohaedi’s idea. We’ve got ball and 'bola', so why not mall and 'mola'? Simple isn’t it? Let’s learn to develop rules for assimilating foreign loan words based on patterns. It’s called analogy. But analogy isn’t a free pass to incorporate all English words ending in ‘all’ by keeping the sound of the first letter and changing them into Indonesian words ending in ‘ola’. ‘Call’ doesn’t need to be adopted as ‘kola’, for example, because that particular noun has a very close friend that’s found in almost every language of the world.

To promote the late Ayat’s instinct-based idea, I use ‘mola’. Sounds weird? Yes, in the beginning it does, but after a while it’ll catch on. It’s just a matter of time. If time hasn’t smiled on Ayat yet, the closest assimilated form of mall should be ‘mol’ because lots of people pronounce it: m-o-l. The correct orthography based on how most of us pronounce the English word so far is certain to be ‘mol’.

On the northern and southern overbridges connecting the two separate ‘mola’s bisected by a road in the Pondok Indah district of Jakarta, a sign with huge blue letters defiantly proclaims: Pondok Indah Mall. That’s it. There’s nothing alongside it: not even Pondok Indah Mal, Pondok Indah Mol or Pondok Indah Mola. I’m confused. (Am I in Jakarta, or somewhere else?)

Hey, buddy. Where is Mola Pondok Indah? Of course, it is not on the map of Jakarta or anywhere yet. Mol Pondok Indah? Not really. Mal Pondok Indah? Some people spell it that way. Mall Pondok Indah? This is only understandable in Indonglish.

Mol, mal, or mall? Whatever! Both the rank and file and the high class here do not have good reasons for choosing one of them because they do not have adequate understanding of how to transform foreign sounds to Indonesian letters.

Where does 'mola' come from? Well, it is Ayatrohaedi's idea. If 'ball' transforms to 'bola,' then 'mall' should transform to 'mola.' Simple, isn't it? Let's try to develop rules of adopting absorbed foreign words based on pattern. This is called analogy. However, analogy is not the only way of transforming all English (x)all to Indonesian (x)ola. For example, 'call' does not transform to 'kola' because this noun has various equivalents to almost the entire languages of the world.

To promote the reasoning-based idea of the late Uncle Ayat, I adopt 'mola.' Awkward? Initially, yes, but it gets normal over time. Just wait and see. If the time is not in favour of his idea, the most proper transformation of 'mall' should be 'mol' for many people pronounce it 'm-o-l.' So far, according to most of us, the proper orthography of the English-originating word must be 'mol.'

At both the north and south sides of the crossing bridge that connects two malls separated by the street in Pondok Indah, Jakarta, there are two big bright blue notices that read 'Pondok Indah Mall.' That's all! There is no more version, let it be Mal Pondok Indah, Mol Pondok Indah, or Mola Pondok Indah. I'm rather confused. (I wonder where I am, in Jakarta or somewhere else?)

Where is Mola Pondok Indah, Mate? Definitely it is not included in the map of Jakarta yet. Mol Pondok Indah? Not there either. Mal Pondok Indah? Some people spell it that way. Mall Pondok Indah? It exists only in so-called Indolish (Indonesian-English).

Mol, mal or mall? Whatever! Here, neither common people nor leaders would be able to choose which, since logical consistency in transferring sound to orthography has not yet become part of our lives.

Where has mola come from then? It was the fruit of Mr Ayatrohaedi's ideas. Ball is translated as bola, so mall should become mola. Easy peasy. Let's now learn the pattern of adapting foreign words. It is what we call an analogy. However, analogies do not automatically provide a formula to adapt all (x)all English words to (x) ola in Indonesian. Call for example, would not be adapted as kola, since the word also refers to 'the thing' which we can find all over the world.

In the spirit of promoting the ideas of late Brother Ayat, I use the word mola. Awkward? Well, it was at the beginning, but over the time, I have become used to it. We just have to wait to see how it will develop. If the time does not take Brother Ayat's side, then the most plausible way to adopt mall into Indonesian is by spelling it as mol since many people pronounce it as: m-o-l. The correct orthography for the way we pronounce the English word of mall is mol.

Big blue bold sign writing is displayed on both north and south bridges connecting two malls that are separated by a road in the Pondok Indah area, Jakarta: Pondok Indah Mall. That's it! There is no argument to that, there is no writing saying Mal Pondok Indah, or Mol Pondok Indah, or Mola Pondok Indah. I am confused now. (I am so confused I don't know any more where am I, in Jakarta? Or where?)