Wednesday, August 09, 2006
The Ride Home
“Buti bumisita ka.”
“Oo nga po, eh. Parang dinala lang ako ng mga paa ko rito.”
It’s almost midnight and I just came from a 20-minute bike trip from my parents’ home. Throughout the 7-kilometer ride home I was again reminded of how most of the most crucial turns in my life where serendipitous. Parang dinala lang ako ng mga paa ko sa landas na dapat kong tahakin.
Joining the UP Mountaineers which eventually led to an active lifestyle, joining the Broadcasting Association back in college which led me to a fulfilling a career and to my dearest of friends, just blurting out one gimik night that I wanted to move out to a friend who happen to know a vacant space and a week later I’m living on my own were all crucial junctions in my life that though there were some sort of pre-meditation, the actual execution just did not require thorough thought. Things just fell into place. This is probably why I could easily quell my fears and self-doubts that I’m not doing enough to pursue a most cherished ambition: because I know that I would be led to it one way or another. If not, it’s not what I’m supposed to do with my life anyway.
After several weeks na-miss ko na ang mountain bike kong pinahiram ko kay Haydee. Ewan ko, feeling ko buhay ‘yung bike ko at nagwo-worry ako na iniisip niya na inabandona ko na siya while parked in that strange house (in fairness, sa sala siya pinarada ni Haydee pero nagagalit na raw ang mom niya so lalo akong na-guilty dahil pakiramdam ng bike ko inaapi pa siya sa bago niyang tirahan). Besides, I felt I have to train despite the full training sched yesterday which left me sleepy the whole time today (nag-nap pa’ko habang nagmi-meeting ng SFiles).
Inisip ko pagkakuha ng bike pupunta akong UP at iikut-ikot lang du’n (mga 930PM na’to). Pero nanibago ako sa mountain bike since I’ve been riding my newly acquired road bike for a few weeks now. Nagpaikut-ikt na lang ako sa Santolan then nu’ng nasa Marcos Highway na’ko, instead of turning right to Ligaya, dumerederecho na’ko papunta sa bahay namin sa Marikina. Parang dinala lang ako ng mga paa ko.
Tulog na ang mga pamangkin kong sina Darryn, Dave-Dave at DJ pagdating ko. Iniwan ko na lang ‘yung pasalubong kong chocolates sa tabi nila para paggising nila akalain nilang dinalaw sila ni Santa Claus hehe. Pero nanood pa ng TV ang mommy’t daddy ko sa sala. I love it kapag nakakasama ko ang mga parents ko especially after I moved out kasi parang they ‘ve started to see me as a real adult at lalong lumalim ang mga conversations namin. My dad goes, “Buti pumunta ka…Ikaw na lang kasi ang hindi ko nasasabihan ng plano ko.” They will go back to the US in a few months. As immigrants they are given only a year to stay outside America – and for them, that expires October. “Dito komportable ako. I can write my books. I can paint. These are things that I enjoy pero tapos na’ko rito. My life has ended. Sa America may mga difficulties, may mga problema pero at least hangga’t kaya ko pa, may challenges pa.” Between the two of them, it is my mom who is more reluctant to leave his children and apos once again but as she told my dad oh-so-sweetly, “Alam mo naman ako, where you go I go.”
My dad’s in his mid-60’s, retired and fulfilled. But he just wouldn’t be “stuck in a chair infront of the TV.” He wants to go to the US where life would be tougher. He craves the challenge. Now I really wanna grow up to be like my dad!
“Oo nga po, eh. Parang dinala lang ako ng mga paa ko rito.”
It’s almost midnight and I just came from a 20-minute bike trip from my parents’ home. Throughout the 7-kilometer ride home I was again reminded of how most of the most crucial turns in my life where serendipitous. Parang dinala lang ako ng mga paa ko sa landas na dapat kong tahakin.
Joining the UP Mountaineers which eventually led to an active lifestyle, joining the Broadcasting Association back in college which led me to a fulfilling a career and to my dearest of friends, just blurting out one gimik night that I wanted to move out to a friend who happen to know a vacant space and a week later I’m living on my own were all crucial junctions in my life that though there were some sort of pre-meditation, the actual execution just did not require thorough thought. Things just fell into place. This is probably why I could easily quell my fears and self-doubts that I’m not doing enough to pursue a most cherished ambition: because I know that I would be led to it one way or another. If not, it’s not what I’m supposed to do with my life anyway.
After several weeks na-miss ko na ang mountain bike kong pinahiram ko kay Haydee. Ewan ko, feeling ko buhay ‘yung bike ko at nagwo-worry ako na iniisip niya na inabandona ko na siya while parked in that strange house (in fairness, sa sala siya pinarada ni Haydee pero nagagalit na raw ang mom niya so lalo akong na-guilty dahil pakiramdam ng bike ko inaapi pa siya sa bago niyang tirahan). Besides, I felt I have to train despite the full training sched yesterday which left me sleepy the whole time today (nag-nap pa’ko habang nagmi-meeting ng SFiles).
Inisip ko pagkakuha ng bike pupunta akong UP at iikut-ikot lang du’n (mga 930PM na’to). Pero nanibago ako sa mountain bike since I’ve been riding my newly acquired road bike for a few weeks now. Nagpaikut-ikt na lang ako sa Santolan then nu’ng nasa Marcos Highway na’ko, instead of turning right to Ligaya, dumerederecho na’ko papunta sa bahay namin sa Marikina. Parang dinala lang ako ng mga paa ko.
Tulog na ang mga pamangkin kong sina Darryn, Dave-Dave at DJ pagdating ko. Iniwan ko na lang ‘yung pasalubong kong chocolates sa tabi nila para paggising nila akalain nilang dinalaw sila ni Santa Claus hehe. Pero nanood pa ng TV ang mommy’t daddy ko sa sala. I love it kapag nakakasama ko ang mga parents ko especially after I moved out kasi parang they ‘ve started to see me as a real adult at lalong lumalim ang mga conversations namin. My dad goes, “Buti pumunta ka…Ikaw na lang kasi ang hindi ko nasasabihan ng plano ko.” They will go back to the US in a few months. As immigrants they are given only a year to stay outside America – and for them, that expires October. “Dito komportable ako. I can write my books. I can paint. These are things that I enjoy pero tapos na’ko rito. My life has ended. Sa America may mga difficulties, may mga problema pero at least hangga’t kaya ko pa, may challenges pa.” Between the two of them, it is my mom who is more reluctant to leave his children and apos once again but as she told my dad oh-so-sweetly, “Alam mo naman ako, where you go I go.”
My dad’s in his mid-60’s, retired and fulfilled. But he just wouldn’t be “stuck in a chair infront of the TV.” He wants to go to the US where life would be tougher. He craves the challenge. Now I really wanna grow up to be like my dad!
# posted by rey agapay @ 12:30 AM 
