Friday Night Lesson
I had dinner with a friend tonight. I had sizzling tuna. Over dinner we talked about our lives. I told her about friends who sometimes measure me by doing mental math on what I own, the position I have in the office, what I wear, where I spent my Holy Week vacation.
I have a very simple barometer.
I can afford to eat a whole fish now.
I can buy my brothers fish of their own.
I can afford a second helping of whatever I want.
Ice on my drink is natural, not a reason to celebrate.
I can buy books no matter how expensive, and consider it an investment.
Newspapers are no longer a luxury, but a part of the job.
I don't have to borrow clothes.
I can buy shoes, if I have the inclination.
But there are things that balance it off.
I still have to count it.
(A rich man once told me, when I asked him how rich he was that "If I still have to count it, I don't have it." I have very little to count to lose count.)
I have yet to build my dream house.
I have yet to travel the world.
I have yet to have a library where friends can find their most sought-after books.
Then there was one scene tonight that humbled me.
After I drove my friend home, I dropped by a convenience store to buy cigarets. As I parked Jiminy Da Cricket, my headlights shone on a man and a little boy sleeping on the curb. Their faces were greasy, and a bath seemed like a distant memory.
Homeless people. I still do not understand what brought you there. There are laws against you. But I will not write about you until I know, until I understand, what brought you there. You are a complex issue that an idiot like me should spend time to understand.
I know you are a result of our collective failure. That much I know. No one chooses to live the life you have.
To blame you and call you names is an injustice to your mother.
I hope the pack of bread solved a temporary problem.
I have a very simple barometer.
I can afford to eat a whole fish now.
I can buy my brothers fish of their own.
I can afford a second helping of whatever I want.
Ice on my drink is natural, not a reason to celebrate.
I can buy books no matter how expensive, and consider it an investment.
Newspapers are no longer a luxury, but a part of the job.
I don't have to borrow clothes.
I can buy shoes, if I have the inclination.
But there are things that balance it off.
I still have to count it.
(A rich man once told me, when I asked him how rich he was that "If I still have to count it, I don't have it." I have very little to count to lose count.)
I have yet to build my dream house.
I have yet to travel the world.
I have yet to have a library where friends can find their most sought-after books.
Then there was one scene tonight that humbled me.
After I drove my friend home, I dropped by a convenience store to buy cigarets. As I parked Jiminy Da Cricket, my headlights shone on a man and a little boy sleeping on the curb. Their faces were greasy, and a bath seemed like a distant memory.
Homeless people. I still do not understand what brought you there. There are laws against you. But I will not write about you until I know, until I understand, what brought you there. You are a complex issue that an idiot like me should spend time to understand.
I know you are a result of our collective failure. That much I know. No one chooses to live the life you have.
To blame you and call you names is an injustice to your mother.
I hope the pack of bread solved a temporary problem.
posted by atticus at
12:22 AM
12 Comments:
Awwww, I know it's an old cliche but, underneath that tough exterior lies a heart of gold. :-)
Dream house? Baka in a few year's time may mansion ka na, at hindi mo na kami kilala, hu hu hu. :-(
grabe, gurl. ako din, i happened to pass by a very small kid, sleeping in the middle of the overpass sa may shaw. as in tulog. i had to wake her up and brought her to mcdonalds and bought her something to eat. i also bought 5 burgers just in case she had brothers or sisters. i was crying the entire time hanggang sa pag-uwi. tapos, nag-thank you pa in a little voice. ayan napaiyak na naman ako at naalala ko.
i have to disagree that it is a collective failure. remember, it is the failure of the people who brought them in this world. second, its the failure of the government to create programs that would respond to the needs of the issues at hand (reproductive health programs, unemployment programs, or for the homeless). in a distant last, the people who do not know them who choose to not help and ignore. sigh.
you mentioned in your fita entry that you are from zambales? my father is from botolan with the crispin-daclison clan.
I hope the pack of bread solved a temporary problem.
Very well said :)
mareeeee!!! iniimbitahan kita sa aming 2nd anniversary...not to mention the release of my single. chos! hahahahaha! read and listen ka na lang...
SNUGLY, wala akong heart. but i am looking for gold. at pag may dream house ko na ako, sa probinsiya iyon. hehe.
JEROME, tahan na. may kasabihan na "it takes a village to raise a child." we are part of that village.
JEF, salamat. that's how i felt.
JEROME ulit, kelan iyan? dadalo ako. basta sabihin mo kung saan.
Such disparity in our status. I guess, this is just how the way our lives goes, some are rich and some are destined to live lives in the doldrums...Maybe, one more generation--and not more than that---can make our people rise up from this general misery that our nation is suffering.
major tom, the statistics are stacked against the poor. we are a nation where kids die of preventable diseases before they reach their first birthday. where only 2% have access to the internet.
unless we ALL act together and spend more brain cells in understanding and solving our0 problems, the next generation is doomed to duplicate our errors.
i once met two streetkids (a girl and her little brother) on my way to work. i was worried at that time because i have to eat only 'skyflakes' and not a full meal for breakfast. but when i saw them on my way to work, i immediately gave them all of my 2 packs of biscuits.
i felt guilty for at least two reasons:
(1) that i only gave a couple of crackers to them and
(2) that i was so preoccupied at that time with my small miseries that i forgot to count my daily blessings.
don't worry. that loaf of bread will go a long way :)
wala nang bubong yung oberpas sa philcoa. di ko na alam san na napunta ngayon yung batang maliit na nakita kong pinapaypayan yung natutulog nyang masmaliit na kapatid.
baktin, sana nga, medyo matagal nilang kakainin iyon. hmm. kung ikukuwento ko lahat ng encounter ko sa mga homeless, puwede nang libro. at mababaliw ang lahat ng magbabasa dahil sa kagagahan ko. haha!
chums, ang longkot naman niyan. naalala ko iyong kuwento ng "he ain't heavy. he's my brother."
minsan nakakalimutan lang natin kung gano pa tayo kapalad..
hindi ako naiingit sa mayayaman pero sana share naman nila minsan un binibigay sa kanila ni Boss-Chief-Amo na nasa taas..
nice one..
astig ka! :)
pilimon, i have learned that being rich does not end greed. some just turn filthy.
hindi ako astig. maganda ako! at humble. hehehehe!
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