Pahabol sa VD

Akala ko,
kailangan ng isang epikong
siksik sa mga dula,
at makukulay na kabanata
twists and turns
cast of million
kuhang panorama
mga daring stunts
at operatic scores
sa mga whirlwind affairs
at knight-in-shining armor
na kukuha sa akin
mula sa wicked sorcerer.
Akala ko lang...
para masabing masaya.

Akala ko,
kailangang sakay ako ng kabayo
riding out in the sunset...
o sumasayaw sa ulan
kahit hindi slow-mo...
o nagtitirik ng bandila
sa tuktok ng burol
at isinisigaw ang saloobin
para lang masabing
kuha ko ang happy ending.

Mali ako.
Ang totoo,
sa maliliit na kwento ako
umapaw sa saya.
Ang bigla mo na lang
akong yayaing mag-bike
kahit madaling araw at madilim pa
at dalhin sa U.P.
at doon, kung saan sabi mong
dati kayong naghihintay
ng babagsak na bulalakaw,
ay kumain tayo ng breakfast
take-out mula sa Rodick's
pinahiga ang mga bisikleta
at sumalampak sa damuhan
habang binubugaw si Muning.

At mula sa ating meteor garden
ay umuwi tayo sa Sta. Ana,
at sa pagod nakatulog
gumising kang may topak,
nag-trip ka ng pritong Maling
at ako naman ay bumili kay Akik
ng isang bandehadong pancit.

Ang turuan mo akong
mag-ukay-ukay sa hilltop sa Baguio
at habulin ang pagbagsak ng presyo,
bumili ng mga damit
na walang subok-subok
at pag-uwi sa bahay
ay ikaw din naman lahat ang magsusuot
kasi walang magkasya sa akin.

Ang gusto ko lang naman
sabihin, maligayang maligaya ako
sa ating maliliit na eksena
nagtatampisaw akong sobra
may sayaw at himig sa akin
wagayway ng iba't ibang kulay
sakay sa ulap sa saliw ng hangin
at marami pang kakaibang damdamin
At gusto ko ring sabihin
sana wala itong ending.

Strawberry Fields Forever

Let me take you down
cos I'm going to strawberry fields
nothing is real
and nothing to get hung about
strawberry fields forever.

Living is easy with eyes closed
misunderstanding all you see
it's getting hard to be someone
but it all works out
it doesn't matter much to me.

No one I think is in my tree
I mean it must be high or low
that is you can't you know tune in but it's all right
that is I think it's not too bad.

Always, no sometimes, think it's me
but you know I know when it's a dream
I think I know I mean a "Yes" but it's all wrong
that is I think I disagree.

(Lennon-McCartney)

Some songs are utterly senseless, like this one. (Don't get me wrong, I'm a Beatle fan.) But sometimes it's a thin line between inanity and profundity, I guess. It all depends on the experience or the moment when the song comes to mind. I came to La Trinidad Valley and left singing this song. Believe it or not, it was my first time in the country's famed strawberry fields!

Bike for Hope

We joined the 7th Bike for Hope, held this time in the Bicol region. Bike for Hope is an advocacy ride for health and the environment that is led (or rather, left behind) by Senator Pia Cayetano. (No joke, the Senator can pedal really fast.)

I joined the 6th Bike for Hope last year from Sta. Rosa to Sta. Cruz, Laguna. My friends and I were the last to arrive. I crashed on my way home and had bursitis in my left knee, which took my doctor three months to cure. It was not exactly a wonderful experience, this so-called Bike for Hope, but what the heck . Who can resist Mount Mayon?

Besides, I offered Mango this ride as peace offering for my shortcomings, that we get to bike together in her hometown.

So we packed the bikes and took the executive coach to Legazpi City. We arrived on Friday, got to rest before the main event, although at first we couldn't re-assemble the bikes in their original efficiency.

The ride was on Saturday - it was a gruelling 100-kilometer tour of winding and undulating road from Naga City to Legazpi City. We were coming from Camalig, Albay - 82 kilometers away from the starting line and around 18 kilometers away from the finish line - approximately a two-hour-drive to Naga City. We left Camalig at 4:00 am.

There were only a handful of participants when we arrived in Naga City, mostly hardcore cyclists, and we were the first women to register. Jitters, jitters, jitters! Later, another woman besides us, a foreigner, signed up, then two others - one who looked like a man and another who did not promise to finish. Then the other big boost to my confidence was when our friend, Mike Ac-Ac, Senator Pia's media officer, announced that the good Senator was not really feeling well, and might rest and stop often along the way. Yahoo! I was feeling lucky!

But then again, the real confidence booster was when Senator Pia, before take-off, shook my hand and posed with Mango and me for the media.

So there we were, at 20 kph, but only for the first three kilometers, then slowing down to 18, 15, 12, 10...until the atmosphere turned from energetic to solemn to solitary and until the only guys left in our pack were two old men in their 60s and five foreigners (the foreign sister among them) who simply wanted to enjoy the view.

Then our pack went on conversation pace. "We were just doing ulay-ulay (Bicol of small talk) about ourselves, then madam passed away," the old man was saying in comic English, referring to his little chat with our English-speaking participant.

The ride was not easy, I have to admit for the nth time. My thighs cramped rock-hard, my butt hurt, my shoulders stiffened, my chest ached. The sun was reluctant to come out, which would have been a welcome thing for a long ride, but the draft was terrible (especially as we passed by rice fields) and it would rain every now and then. The old men dropped out in the town of Pulangi. In Ligao City, Mango and I decided to go straight home when we reached Camalig. Upon reaching Guinobatan, the town before Camalig, our foreign sister was trying to convince us to take the jeepney to Legazpi City. We declined since we were dropping out in the next town anyway.



Me and Mayon. Well, yeah, you can't make me out, but you can't make out Mayon either. The volcano was elusive the whole time.

Our self-defined finish line. Upon reaching almost 80 kilometers and five hours later, admittedly our glycogen stores had been fully depleted.

We never really got to see Senator Pia again after the take-off. She didn't stop to rest after all. We heard later from Mike that the adrenalin from the ride made her well. (It was diarrhea by the way.)

We also heard from Mike that they had a good program in Legazpi City. The local organizations got the chance to talk about the devastation of Rapu-Rapu Island because of mining acitivities by Lafayette Corporation and about the lack of hospitals in the region.

We will always be taunted by our families and friends for not finishing the century, but it was fulfilling to know that the real issues were discussed.