count up

he remembers may 30, 2002. he remember that the sun has just set, and the energetic glow of the sasa pier greeted our faces as the three of them emerged with packs full of stuff that they should be needing in 10 months. he knows that he would not be able to carry everything in his 45liter backpack. but his heart was full and ready to set on the adventure of a lifetime.

the smile on his lips was wide. the past seems a bit blurry now. his eyebrows were trying to form one straight line, his eyes straining to look forward. but all he can see are the backs of the heads, rushing to get back to the coziness of a bed. after three days at sea, the body feels like a terrific knot of muscles that needs a little bit of touch to straigten up.

he was tired but, he is hopeful. he is imagining the wondeful adventures that would be offered to him. a fresh orchard of rambutan seems in bloom, like those trees on the sides of the road going to kabacan. they appear most enticing in july and august. their heavy, hairy, red fruits dangling from the ends of branches. the wind carrying a waft of flavor in the air. each fruit seems like a different experience, a different sensation, a new discovery. and he cannot wait in reaching out and tasting one.

before he slept that night. he looked at the mirror and smiled his boyish smile, and said more to himself than to his reflection - "this is going to be one helluva ride..."

he woke up this morning before the sun smiled. as consciousness trickles in his brain, he feels his limbs starting to feel sensation. it is cold outside his malong, and his eyes strained to go back to sleep.

his sore back reminded him of the bus trip he took last night from cagayan de oro city. while it was a quick one, it felt like a thousand little kittens have stepped on his back. as light as they were, at one point the back would feel the pain of the pinkish pads of these cute little babies.

he was tired.

this morning seems different. it does not produce the same smile as before. it feels like a deep breath, buntong hininga. it reminds him that this is probably one of the last magnificent davao mornings he would find himself waking up to.

slowly, his senses continue to wake up. light creeping from outside starts to give his room for two years a nice glow. he grabbed his cellphone and took note of the time, and for the first time the date. august 10.

today sounds like a good day to say goodbye.

a goodbye that is sounds more of "so long" or "see you again." five years in davao is not an easy thing to forget. but five years in davao also lends a feeling of security. somehow he knows, the five years he spent in davao would still somehow beckon him to return.

one of these days. or in a few years.

he picked up his malong as he skipped out of bed. stretched his arms, and told himself, 'welcome to another adventure.' pretty soon, this would only be a memory. but he was glad to have lived through this memory, and all of those little and big memories that has shaped the life between that night in sasa, 5 years ago, and this morning, in his room, at 6.29am.

another day awaits. another tick in his calendar in his mind.