Musings on my childhood by Zai

 

I had a great childhood. I had fun and freedom to explore the world around me. And even though we did not have everything in life, we still enjoyed life the best of what we had. Davao and Tagum were beautiful homes for us. The rural life in Tagum was special and it helped us appreciate the beauty of living a simple life. It gave us wonderful memories which I treasure.

I had memories of my childhood in Bajada, Davao. It was there where we played under the Mansanitas tree just in front of the rented house, we would play on Zamel’s toy car. The car was big enough for us that we could ride it. When I was little, I used to think the tree was so big. Everything looked so big when you are a child. When I see a Mansanitas tree now, I realise that it is not that big after all. I vaguely remember playing near the neighbors house where I would jump over the canal. It must have been a small canal but it seemed like a fun thing to do when you are young. I must have been under five years old then. I also have memories of going to the neighbors house to play.

We may have visited Lola Sayong in Magallanes all the time because I remember the water pump in front of the house where Lola would wash clothes with one hand because her other hand was injured due to her diabetes,  I suppose. I have some memories of eating candied Eba which Lola made. She was a  great cook and how I wish I learned from her.  And when we go out and pass by the sari- sari store that she used to rent, it felt sad that we missed the time when she had a shop there. Also, I may have  memories of Lola’s foot that apparently was bitten by a rat or mice. I don't know if this is a memory or just my imagination.

Then mama and papa decided to move to Tagum.

When we arrived in Tagum, the house was not completely finished. I still remember the open floors, open walls and exposed beams which remain to this day.

And we did not have many neighbours. We would play a lot and when we need to come home, mama would whistle. We would use gasoline to make lamps. There was no electricity yet.  We had a water pump and it was there that I injured my forehead. My hands must have been slippery and the pump kicked back and hit my head. We would help with all the chores. Mama would work hard to make ends meet.

It wasn't long after we arrived in Tagum that I had to start going to school. I went to Briz Elementary School and my first teacher was Mrs. Baba. I remember learning to read a little bit in Grade 1. We would sit on this desk that also had a chair. I can still hear the echos of reciting the Babebibobu.

We had to walk to school every day.  We may have to make our food when we go to school but I am not sure if this is correct. I don't remember much in Grade 1, but I sort of remember Ate Zaida telling her classmates that she knew Karate and trued to fight with them. What a joke!

When Lola Sayong would visit Tagum, I remember that we would sleep on top of her, cover her with blankets and pillows because she would feel cold.

I remember stories of mama using a bolo or was it a spear against Eva.  Maybe it is an actual memory,  but those were turbulent times. I remember when Rommel came to stay for a bit with his brother and sister.

I remember Uncle Jun Catiben visiting. I knew they stayed in Tipaz.  We were on our best behavior when he was around.

Then in Grade 2, Ate Zaida and I were sent to Davao to study. Lola must have been still alive then because that would have been 1982 and she passed in 1983, but I only remember Aunty Nene being in the house. I used to be able to squeeze through the wooden window grills to get inside the house when we dont have the key to get inside. The Magallanes house seemed big and it had a lot of nooks, crannies and treasures which we were not allowed to touch.

My second grade teacher was Mrs Sarsozo. She must have been a great teacher because I remember how she taught us to memorize a poem. She wrote the whole poem on the board then line by line erasing as we recited and eventually we memorized the poem.

Then in Grade 3, we moved back to Tagum. The Grade 3 teacher was Mrs Tio. In Grade 3, I remember being given by Evelyn Pena with a yema. I must have been looking longingly at the yema while she was selling it. It is amazing how we remember such simple acts of kindness. It was also in Grade 3 that I became good friends with M and M. We would go to my house and their house, and it seems like we had a great time playing all the time. But then, one afternoon, we were playing with a hair brush. I looped my hair in the brush and was able to remove it with no issue. But when I lopped M’s hair in the brush, it got stuck and would not loosen. She went home crying. Their parents must have told them to no longer play with me because I was abandoned after that incident. We had a very good summer of friendship, and then that one incident changed everything. That was my first abandonment, and it must have taught me a hard lesson as a kid not to rely too much on others.

In Grade 4, my teacher was Mrs. It was during this grade that I was sent to compete in a Mathematics competition. I may have been okay as a student but Math is not my strongest subjects. 

Grade 5, my teacher was Mrs. Tamayo. She was the one who told us that if we can’t pay some school fee, that we should not go to school or something. This resorted for mama to storm to school to have words with her. Ma'am Tamayo of course denied.

I remember the girl scouting event during this time where we went to sleep at the schoolroom. I slept in the corner near the toilet which was an uncomfortable spot. I felt my poverty then. And it made me feel sad and it made me realise how sad it is to be poor. Or maybe because I was so shy and quiet that I felt oppressed and this is not a happy memory.

In Grade 6, I was under Maam Silagan. It was also around these times that there was an unfortunate incident with our neigbour friends.  We used to walk home together. I remember playing and just goofing around with the vines on the road trying to trip our friends. Then our neighbour who had a physical problem became a victim of my foolish games, and she indeed got tripped. She would not stop crying.  And because of this incident, her father made her stop going to school. I felt very guilty. But at a young age, we didn't know the effects of our actions. I could only wish that they just punished me instead of making her stop going to school. I could not do anything else.

I wanted to graduate with a medal. I thought that I could only achieve this by joining the Drum and Bugle Corps. So in Grade 6, I was a marjorette. And of course, when the year ended, I graduated with a medal. One of my good memories in our graduation was that I was tasked to be the conductor of one of our graduation songs.

During the summer vacations, we would have the best of times playing all over Daneco village and Tipaz. We would gather firewood all around our house, then on one occasion went all the way to Tipas by the river. We would swim in the canals to catch Gurami, swim in the septic tanks, we would climb trees, we would play syatong, takyan, tarak tarak, and play balay-balay and so much more. Summer vacations were just the best!

 

I don't know how old we were, but one time we had a puppy which we liked so much. We did not want to give it away. When someone came to collect the puppy, Ate Zaida tried to hide it in the chicken cage. Papa used to put electric wires to prevent thieves. And when Ate Zaida tried to hide the puppy, she got electrocuted because we forgot to turn off the electricity. She said she saw a white tunnel when she got electrocuted. She could have or may have died.

We knew that we were not rich because there were some kids around us who seemed to have more than us. We could not afford a lot of things, and we usually did not own new stuff. But we still had good fun. What we lacked in one thing,  we were rich in another because we always had each other. We would enjoy going to Davao during All Souls' Day, it was a time to meet Mama’s family and to celebrate one of our traditions.

Christmas and New Year were always special. We enjoyed what little we could have. It seemed like we could have a great feast, then after the New Year, it was back to normal of not having good food to eat. It seems like that every year. 

We experienced eating lupak, rice with coffee, rice with oil and salt, stretching fried fish for a week so much so that it will have moldy  smell. We ate a lot of bulad, a lot of pirit is my favourite, and vegetables that we can gather around the house. Having cookies, bread, milk were a real treat. We learned to share what little we had and not waste anything since we barely had enough. This taught us to work hard ourselves and to thank God for all the blessings we received .

I will always be grateful for the simple life. Sometimes we may wish for more, but I know that my childhood made me a stronger person.