Our Trip to Camiguin

May 22, 2010

My dad picked me up from my dormitory at around 7PM last Saturday, since our flight at 4:25PM the next day. This is a good thing for me since sleeping at the dorm was equal to falling asleep in a sauna! It was so hot! That was the first time I have ever woken up with a wet shirt and bed sheet from sweating the whole night. The fan didn't help at all! It just made the situation unbearable by blowing warm air into my face. Sleeping outside was tempting.

My dad and I had to share the bed, which was a problem for me since I move a lot. To make matters worse he positioned himself at the foot of the bed, within my kicking range. I thought he was going to move to another spot after the movie. Surprised was I when I heard someone snoring. He fell asleep. Ah well. Not my fault he would end up on the floor later.

May 23, 2010

Thankfully... he didn't! I woke up to the news reporter's voice in the television. It was 8AM, the room didn't make it look like it was. It's Sunday today, eight hours from now I'll be back in Cagayan de Oro. I was... excited. I wanted to see what changed and what stayed just the way they were since the last time I went back. I know it was only four months ago, but changes are inevitable. They come and when you least expect them to. Sometimes you have to make them happen.

I have to say coming back to Cagayan de Oro was a bit strange. As the plane lifted off its 'wheels' (for the lack of a better term) from the runway of NAIA Terminal 3, it was like a part of me was yanked out of my system. "Gah! My bladder!" would be the expression befitting to express what I felt at the moment. "The doctor really took it out... cool." was all I could say as we approach our destination.

The last time I went home for the break was last December 27, no wonder I felt that something went wrong as we left Manila. Perhaps I've stayed here for too long that it has become rather unhealthy (unhealthy to a point that I didn't want to go home).

The thing about coming back after such a long time, it's easier for one to point out the differences. There were more subdivisions being put up near the airport, replacing the previous several hectares of farmland which used to be a pleasing sight when people pass by. The green was covered by gray and brown, as the workers dug into the soil to put in foundations.

The thing about modernization, which I find quite annoying, is that it never stops. There are just some things in life that are better left alone. If it would make life easier, go with it. But be sure that the benefits of such a discovery outweigh the consequences brought about by the change. I would go for sticking with the farmland than building a subdivision next to two others. Might as well situate it somewhere else.

The cab turned right down a familiar curb, and I could see the guardhouse from a distance. The place where I usually wait for my dad to pick me up; whenever it was raining and it was late at night or I had a lot of things to carry. The on of the guards on duty that time was a friend of mine, unfortunately he wasn't the one who went up the driver's side to get the driver's ID. After telling the guard, whom I figured was new, who we were, we were allowed in.

Three more houses were constructed in the neighborhood, as we passed by them along the way to our house. There were some guys playing basketball at the court on the field and two girls barreling down the sidewalk on our right with their bicycles. The sun was setting, and the tint of pink-orange-red spread itself on the horizon, glowing magnificently as if it were coming from a newly snapped glow stick. I always take this path home when I was still in high school. It would usually take me ten to fifteen minutes to get home, and within those minutes my mind is completely blank. "How melancholic." you might say. Well... if you were in that stage in life where raging hormones is not the only thing taking its toll on your body, then walking and thinking about absolutely nothing is very much welcome. With the breathtaking view and the cool breeze blowing... it was the perfect breather.

"Left." My dad directed the man to our house. "That park in front of that blue house over there." I was glad that no other house nearby was painted the same shade of blue with the same blue roof as our house. That would make the color an eyesore... the cab pulled up in front of the house. I could see smoke coming from the side of the house. Mama was still cooking tonight's dinner.

"YEL!" my ten-year old brother ran towards me. I didn't let him hug me immediately, I had him chase me first! I laughed, he did to, I stopped, and he knocked the wind out of me as he collided with my gut.

"Ow." I laughed and hugged him just as tight.

"I miss you Yel!" he told me, giving me a toothy grin.

"Miss you too!" I rubbed his semi-kal head. The other bro came rushing down the garage ramp. "YEL!" his voice had gone down a pitch, but it was still the same booming voice that resembled my tatay's. He was taller than me now! He wound his arms around my neck and gave me a squeeze. "How's your trip?"

"It was okay," I smiled up at him. He IS tall. "Come on. Let's put these bags inside." he helped me with my luggage, tugging the stroller with him.

"Yel, your mom's calling you." my dad called from the patio. I left Gavin to deal with the bag, seeing that he can handle it by himself. When did he get so strong? "Coming!" I replied, rushing to the other side of the house. "Hi ma!"

My mom was wearing a green formal blouse, I quirked my eyebrows. "Why are you wearing that?" she was cooking pork belly on the makeshift grill my dad made using a large clay pot that used to hold one of the small trees planted on our front yard.

She laughed. "I asked Gabo to fetch me a blouse. He gave me this." I shook my head. Typical Gabo: if it looks like a blouse and it was the first thing he saw, then that's good enough. I walked towards my mom and hugged her. She kissed me on the cheek. My dad, with a smile on his face, approached us from the front, carrying a camera.

The rest of the evening went by as if I have never went to Manila and stayed there for several months. It was like any other night on the table. Gabo complaining that the meat was too tough (when it wasn't), my dad complimenting my mom's cooking with a grunt or two of approval or exclamations of utter satisfaction, and Gavin staying silent at his side of the table as he mercilessly attacks the meat on his plate. Yep. I'm glad there are some things that NEVER changed.