I like watching the NatGeo channel especially the wildlife documentaries. One docu I liked was about the Pacific island of Galapagos where time had seemed to stand still. I especially like the giant turtles crawling over the rocks.
My place is no Galapagos. But there are also turtles, exactly 3, crawling over rocks outside my dining room window. They are native fresh water turtles called bao. I built them rock enclosures so they can not stray away, and a small pond where they can swim and catch guppies when I forget to feed them with bread, fruits, or left over meat.
I started with one turtle, courtesy of my 7yo nephew. His teacher asked him and his classmates to bring a small animal each so they can show everybody the different ways the animals move or walk. I was planning to ask my farmhand to catch some fleas from our resident askal. Or dig for some earthworms, or look for maggots or cockroaches because I know that the teacher would squirm and would just ran away from the class in fright. (I like my nephew to standout in his class. Normal kids don't bring earthworms and maggots to class for show-and-tell. And normal parents don't allow their kids to bring earthworms and maggots to their teachers. Or I have to rephrase that. Parents don't normally allow their kids to bring earthworms and maggots to their teachers. There. It sounds less of a mental retardation.) However, a turtle was given to my nephew as his pet. After the show-and-tell, I adopted the turtle so it can live a happy normal life in our garden.
Later, Tita Au gave me baoB so that baoA will have company. But they just ignored each other. So my farmhand gave me baoC, but still they ignored each other. I was hoping that they will turn our garden into their version of little paradise as they fall in love and produce little baos. But no. They just ignored each other. The little fights which I presumed as courtship dances were actually real fights. They fought over food and space and continued to ignore each other. I asked my kids to research via internet on how to tell the sexes of the turtles. So far, no result.
One time my sister shouted that there were snakes in the garden. She knew there were turtles. But seeing a turtle from the neck up, without seeing the body, it really looked like a snake. Or a specie of reptilia that is about to sow terror in your yard. So I cleared the garden of pots and big stones that may impede the view of the turtle's body.
Meantime, the turtles crawled over rocks outside my window. And I remembered Galapagos.
Friday, February 13, 2009
There's a turtle outside my window
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
From my Grade 2 textbook
Yari kita karon / mga malipayon / pakadto sa uma / mapahalab kita. / Si Lati pahalbon. / Si Tinday man dayon. / Sila ang tatapon / kay mabinuligon.
These lines were from my Grade 2 textbook. I still memorize these up to today. And many more passages and books from my childhood days.
Many times, out of the blue, the lines would just pop up in my mind. And scenes of those happy days cloud my memory. And I smile. I am a child again.@
Monday, December 1, 2008
DIRTY ICE CREAM
This one you will surely miss when you are abroad - the dirty ice cream.
When you hear the familiar sound of the bell, it's the dirty ice cream man! And children just can't resist the temptation to buy some.
I don't know why it is called dirty ice cream. For sure it is not because of the quality of the ice cream because from the time I was a kid up to now, I can't remember any instance when I had a problem with my stomach after eating it. Of late, I have read children and adults being hospitalized, and a few even died, because of other foods. But not the dirty ice cream.
Possibly dirty because the vendor just handles the cones directly with his bare hand. The cones are not wrapped with tissue. And, horrors, what he has handled minutes ago. But, then, sometimes we need some bad bacteria to enter our system, right? Our immune system needs to practice fighting so that we will be stong and healthy.
But, anyway, the ice cream is just so delicious. And only 5 pesos a scoop. If indeed, you'll experience stomach trouble later, what the heck. At least you have satisfied your craving.
Ti may dirty ice cream man sa abroad? Waay gid haay. @
Sunday, November 9, 2008
The classmate called Ish
Luis was a four-year-old boy in our neighborhood. He was cute and bubbly. My daughters, and his other playmates, fondly called him Ish.
But this post is not about him but about my farmhand Ramil and his classmate I called Luis.
Ramil came to me when he was sixteen years old and a second year high school student. He was reserved, dependable, and very industrious. His family lived in the mountains of Janiuay, Iloilo. I told his father that I would send Ramil to school in exchange for his help in the farm. He was a good helper. But as a student? Daw indi gid pang-Ten Outstanding Students of Iloilo (an award by the Outstanding Students Circle of Iloilo and DepEd - Bohringer).
One day I brought him a dictionary because Ramil had a school assignment. He started doing his assignment at 7:00pm after supper. At 9:00pm when we were about to sleep, he was still not finished. So I asked his older brother to help him. Then his brother started laughing. He laughed so loud that the neighbors woke up and switched on their lights. They thought a drunk strayed to our compound.
Ramil's assignment was to look for the meaning of the word ‘wife’ (wahyf). Ramil couldn't find the meaning even after 2 hours because he was looking for ‘wife’ under the letter 'Y' (wahy). So his brother laughed uncontrollably. I stifled my laugh so as not to embarrass Ramil. But while alone on my bed, I was laughing and laughing. In the morning I had bloated eyebags as I hardly slept the night before because even in my dreams I was laughing.
Ramil used brand names as generic representations. I asked him to buy Colgate and he replied 'Ano nga colgate? Close Up?'. Powder laundry soap was called Tide. When asked to buy softdrinks, he would asked 'Ano cooks? Ano nga cooks? Peepsi ukon sebeem ap? Ti pira ka kish?' Sometimes I corrected him, 'Ramil, ang tawag case, indi kish.' Astig gid.
When Ramil had activities in school, he brought to the farm some of his classmates who lived in far barangays. They slept in the farm because they would have a hard time going home. I welcomed the arrangement to help the students. Later, they were frequent fixtures in the farm and I already knew most of them. One of them was called Ish by Ramil.
One day, Ish was not with the group that accompanied Ramil. So I asked Ramil about Ish. ‘Where’s Luis?’. He asked back, ‘Sin-o si Luis?’. Then I told him that I meant Ish, and that I thought his name was Luis. He understood. He said Ish or Luis was sick that day. From that time on, I referred to Ish as Luis. And everybody, including Ish, understood.
After three years, Ramil graduated from high school. On graduation day, Ramil’s father and siblings came to the farm and prepared some food. Ramil’s classmates came for lunch. I asked them about their college plans. They answered with trepidation. I understood, as many of their parents were really hard up. Nevertheless, they were all very happy. As I was about to leave, Ish approached me. He asked me why I liked to call him Luis. I told him I thought his name was Luis. Then I told him the story of Luis, the cute boy who was the playmate of my kids. ‘Everybody called him Ish’ I added. Ish nodded. ‘But isn’t your name Luis because Ramil and others call you Ish?’, I asked.
He shook his head. According to him his name was not Luis. In front of everybody, he said that his real name was Ace.@
Ga-patad ka sa LOTTO? I-memorize ang numero nga ini....
