Some days when I’m away from my desktop, the impulse to write rushes in especially when things didn’t turn as expected. First, the trip to Davao was not supposed to have happened on the 6th but the day before. So I was reassured that it was going to be postponed. Goodbye to Davao and all that. But on the afternoon of the 5th, a call comes telling me if I was still interested in the conference. The ticket could be arranged at noontime the next day. Of course, I said yes. After all, free plane tickets rarely come my way these days. The email with the ticket came at almost 5:00 that afternoon.
The plane ride to Davao was unexciting. No air turbulence or sudden plane jolts, fine sunny weather, visibility was 100 percent, not a cloud in the sky, a smooth landing. I was coming to the conference in one piece, but my tummy was grumbling. It was already 2:00. The workshop was going on. I was not disturbed on my lunch of meat, chicken, and meat. The fruits were gone. Davao was supposed to be fruit country, but where was that famed yellow banana? They should tell caterers to serve healthier, more digestible food.
At our advanced age, meat gets more and more difficult to digest. One has to drink something else – alcohol or acid – to aid in the digestion. That came in a sexy, 8 ounce bottle of coke, another dangerous food for oldies like us. Sometimes, I am tempted to think that this drink was designed precisely for that – to help in the extermination of the human race. At any rate, such bad thoughts come only in moments of solitude. In a crowd of strangers, solitude is easy to get. Just stay at the edge of a table and talk to no one. Don’t say ‘hi’ to strangers, and they’ll leave you alone. Well, for the most part, yes.
Finally, I saw my friends from Leyte and Samar, aging activists, balding, with strands of white hair here and there, the inevitable glasses clinging precipitously at the tip of their noses, and the perpetual knowing smile of men tempered by experience. I was in my comfort zone. The night promised a journey to the past. (To be continued)
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