June

Buwan ng Hunyo nang una akong makipagsapalaran sa Maynila. Trese anyos lang ako noon. Naglakas-loob akong lumuwas ng Maynila dahil nanghihinayang ako sa isang magandang opurtunidad. My uncle had offered to help out with my schooling. In return, I was expected to help with the household chores. Naging katulong ako ng kanilang kasambahay sa paglilinis, paglalaba, pag-aalaga ng bata at pamamalantsa, at kasama-kasama ako ng auntie ko sa pamamalengke. Bale, all-around ako hehehe, maliban sa pagluluto.

Life away from home was hard, especially that I was only thirteen. I was living with relatives but it felt like I was living on my own. Ang mag-asawang tinirhan ko kasi ay hindi katulad ng nakasanayan kong nanay at tatay na pwede mong kausapin tungkol sa lahat ng bagay, Most of the time, they were stiff and strict. I can not remember being asked, even once, how my day in school was. Bagay na madalas kong ma-miss kina Nanay at Tatay. Madalas kasi sa probinsya, tuwing pagkakatapos ng hapunan, ay tinatanong kami nina Nanay at Tatay kung kumusta sa school, kung meron bang lesson na nahihirapan kami. Pagkatapos nun, tuturuan na nila kami sa mga assignment namin.

Pagtuntong ko ng Maynila ay walang ganun: walang nangungumusta sa akin, walang nagtuturo sa assignment ko, walang nagtuturo sa mahirap na lesson. Ako lahat ang gumagawa para sa sarili ko.

Dalawang aspeto ng buhay ko ang nangailangan ng major adjustment: sa school at sa bahay.

Sa school, araw-araw ay nakikibaka ako sa mga classmate kong kung hindi valedictorian ay salutatorian o kaya naman ay accelerated sa elementary. Natanggap ako sa isa sa mga public school sa Manila na may malaking populasyon. Noong unang araw ng pasukan ay nagimbal ako sa dami ng mga estudyante. Ang first year ay umabot ng section 33 at bawat section ay may average na 50 students. Sa first year pa lang ay umabot na kami ng mahigit 1,650 na estudyante. Sa pagdaan ng mga taon, unti-unti itong nabawasan.

Pinalad akong mag-qualify sa tinawag nilang star section o Section One. Sa probinsya kasi, wala kaming star section noon sa eskwelahan namin, sapagkat iisa lang naman ang section sa bawat grade level. Haluhalo ang miyembro ng klase namin noon sa probinsya. Magkakasama ang slow learner at fast learner. Magkakasama ang mga nasa tamang gulang at mga 16 at 17 gulang na ngunit nasa Grade 6 pa lang. Ang iba nga sa kanila, pagka-graduate ng elementary ay agad nang nag-asawa.

Balik tayo sa mga kaklase ko dito sa Maynila. Lahat sila ay marurunong. Lahat yata ay gustong mapunta sa honor roll, parang mga kandidatong nag-aagawan sa pwesto. Ako’y madalas tahimik lang sa klase. Ito ay sa dahilang madalas nila akong bansagang promdi at bisaya. Palibhasa’y bata pa noon kaya kahit paano ay dinamdam ko ang ganung mga panunukso. Ngunit nang lumaon ay hindi ko na rin ito pinansin. Ang tanging nasa isip ko lang ay makatapos ng high school. Unti-unti rin namang nag-mature ang mga kaklase ko at hindi na lang puro honor ang iniisip nila.

Nasa high school ako nang pumutok ang Mt. Pinatubo (O, wag ka ng magkwenta ng edad ko. Alam ko nag-Google ka agad kung kelan pumutok at Mt. Pinatubo hahaha ). Nasa high school din ako nang maganap ang pinakaseryoso at huling coup d’etat laban sa Aquino administration na pinangunahan ng Reform the Armed Forces Movement o RAM (O, sinabi nang wag mag-Google eh!) At the time, hindi pa uso ang celphone. Walang landline sa bahay. The fastest way you could communicate with people far away from you was through telegram. Letters from Manila took 2 to 3 weeks to arrive in Samar. And letters from Samar took the same length of time to arrive in Manila. Madalas, kapag may problema ako sa school o sa tinutuluyan kong bahay, sa simbahan ang takbo ko. Doon ako iiyak, nang iiyak, nang iiyak at magdadasal, magdadasal, at magdadasal. Kung ikaw ay taga-Maynila at mapapadaan ka sa simbahan ng Sto. Niño sa Pandacan, ingiti mo ako sa simbahang iyan na naging kanlungan ko sa loob ng maraming taon.

Sa high school ko natutuhang makibaka sa buhay. Sa high school ako maraming beses na sinubok ng tadhana. Sa high school din ako natutong maging matatag. Sa high school, lalo kong pinagtibay sa sarili ko ang kagustuhan na makapagtapos ng pag-aaral para naman hindi mabalewala ang lahat.

Sa PICC ginanap ang graduation namin nung high school.Mula sa 33 sections noong first year ay naging 28 sections na lamang kami. Kasama ko sina Nanay at Tatay nang umakyat ako ng entablado. At sa araw na iyon ay tuwang-tuwa ako.

Ikinuwento ko ang episode na ito ng buhay ko para kapulutan ng kahit na munting aral, lalo’t kasisimula pa lang ng pasukan.

Una, sa mga magulang at mga taong nagpapaaral, I hope you will take time out para kumustahin ang mga estudyante ninyo after a day in school. I tell you, it matters A LOT to them. Sana’y wag kayong tumigil sa pagtaguyod ng inyong mga mag-aaral

Sa mga mag-aaral na hindi na kinakailangan pang mahiwalay sa pamilya para lang makapag-aral, I hope you’ll feel grateful for that. Hindi madali ang mawalay sa pamilya.

Sa mga mag-aaral naman na katulad kong nawalay sa pamilya, sana’y matutuhan ninyo ang patuloy na pagtitiis at pagpapasensya. Patuloy kayong magsikap.

Alam kong may magtatanong kung nandyan ako sa picture, opo, nandyan ako, pakihanap na lang. Ang makakahanap ay may premyong trip to Boracay Davao Palawan Jerusalem hehehe.

Silent Days, Silent Nights

Let’s sit a while in the park and imagine some things. Imagine seeing the trees dance to the breeze. Imagine seeing lots of birds on tree branches. Imagine seeing a dog barking at the birds up the tree.

Now, imagine that the world around you is mute—you’re seeing the trees dance but you can’t hear the sound of the breeze, you’re seeing lots of birds but you can’t hear them sing, you’re seeing a dog looking at the birds up the tree but you can’t actually hear it bark.

Such is the world of deaf or hard of hearing people. They do not hear anything or if they do, they only hear teeny-weenie fuzzy vibrations of sounds. One time, I just sat in a corner watching them, contemplating on how blessed they are in their silent world, for they can not hear the rattles of the earth nor the cries and the sighs of the hearing world.

But how silent really is their world?

They may not hear with their ears but they do with their eyes. They can see colors, movements, and feelings. For almost every sound that they can not hear, they can see or feel something associated to the sound.

They may not speak with their lips but their facial expression and body language say as much as the human voice. And when they speak with their hands, they do it beautifully. Every time I see them sign, I see rhythm, I see patterns. I see fluid movements. I see beauty. I even see the elements of dance. Wait, did I just write ‘dance’? Oh yes, they do dance. They can dance! Even to the music that they can’t hear.

They may not hear with their ears but I’m sure they can clearly hear sounds with their heart —sounds that are even better than that of an orchestra. These are the sounds of friendship, love, and concern. These are the sounds of hearts beating for them—hearts of their family and friends, hearts of those who do not judge them, hearts of those who support their cause, and hearts of smiling strangers they meet as they journey in life every single day.

I hope we’ll all find in our hearts a sincere appreciation of our brothers and sisters who are hearing impaired.

(My gratitude to the Hands for Praise community for the experience. Congratulations on your 10th anniversary. Congratulations, too, to the graduates! Keep signing and keep serving. Keep supporting deaf awareness. For more pics, click here.)

For Father’s Day

As the world celebrates Father’s Day, I am sharing with you this video. Sana’y maging paalala ito ng sakripisyo ng ating mga ama.

For more about the father and son triathlon team, please click here.

Sa lahat po ng mga ama, Happy Father’s Day sa inyong lahat!

The Golden Hour

The place is called Mambajao, in Camiguin. I stood there recently one afternoon facing the sea.

“Wow! Nice!” my travel buddy exclaimed. We were on front row seats witnessing one magical show in the sky. Transfixed by the scene before me, I had almost forgotten that my camera was jammed in my face.

The horizon lighted up. Golden hues exploded and a kaleidoscope of light filled the skies.
The sun drenched the clouds, the heavens, in glorious orange and light and dark blue hues.

I saw scribbles of fire.
I saw webs of light.



I watched as the sun dropped inch by inch on its final descent as the open arms of the horizon eagerly waited to embrace it.

And as the sinking sun cast the last of its light on the earth on that late afternoon, it fed my hungry soul with majestic colors and left me eagerly waiting for yet another day of adventure in my own sweet little world.

(Sorry this had to be posted first before the last installment of the Coron trip simply because today I feel like sharing these sunset pics )

Coron: Siete Pecados

We started our second day in Coron with a hearty breakfast. Then we set out to Coron’s pier which is just beside the market. There were many boats waiting for passengers. The boat assigned to us had newly painted seats. It was clean. It was manned by two young men.

It was a sunny morning. I felt like bouncing upon the fluffy, white cotton ball-like clouds that gorgeously embellished the blue Coron skies. “Such a great day for island hopping,” I thought to myself.

Our first destination was Siete Pecados. It is just a few minutes away from the town proper. In fact, you can see some of the islets from the Maquinit Hot Spring.

The Siete Pecados is a cluster of 7 islets. It literally means “seven sins.” Kung bakit tinawag na ganun iyon ay hindi ko alam hehehe. According to one legend, there were seven sisters who went swimming against their mother’s wishes. Ang nangyari, they all drowned. Parusa raw sa kanila. Afterwards, seven small islands rose from the sea. Another legend tells of a kind-heartchieftain who asked God for something to honor his 7 daughters. And so seven islets sprouted from the sea.

The Siete Pecados is one of the best snorkeling spots in Coron. It is rich in marine life: corals and a wide variety of schools of fish. Be sure to bring some bread with you Some boatmen are thoughtful enough to bring ropes with them, so even those who cannot swim can hold on to the rope for dear life while snorkeling hehehe. Watch out, however, for some occasional strong undercurrents. Nung pumunta kami, malakas ang current. The boatmen had second thoughts letting us out into the water.

Next post, we will visit the Kayangan and Barracuda Lakes.