The Perfect Catch

Today, my family decided to fish because according to the caretaker of the pond, it is the best time to fish. So, we hurriedly packed our fishing rods and picnic basket. We arrived at the pond and started to unload our stuff. Our excitement suddenly died down when we found ourselves stuck in a foot-deep clay as we walk towards the edge of the pond. We finally reached the water after 20 minutes of skirmish with the thick heavy mud.

We began to cast our fishing poles in the water and waited for a fish to take a bite of the bait. Dum di dum di doo... nothing....dum di dum di doo...still no fish...dum di dum...we got tired of waiting and just decided to eat. Apparently, the water is too deep for fishing and the fishes are at the bottom of the pond. My mom wanted to hit the caretaker with her muddy slippers after she walked on thick mud for nothing.  She was quickly pacified.

 As we were eating, one of my uncles started to talk about why I am a good catch. Oh dear. Why should choosing a wife and fishing be metaphorically related?

"Basti here, has a good future ahead. Any parent would be thrilled to have a doctor as a son-in-law  who can also cook for their daughters. And with those chinito looks, you're definitely a good catch," he told everyone in the table.

My mom suddenly butted in, "I want my daughter-in-law to be a doctor..and she must be a good cook too! I don't want my son to go hungry!" She was hitting the table with a closed fist, making it more of a demand rather than just a statement. "...and please choose a fertile woman. I want an apo!" she continued. Everybody laughed.

"How about a son-in-law who is a doctor and who cooks well? He's fertile but we can't make a child of our own. We could adopt though to give you an apo." That was running in my mind as I gave them a sneaky smile.

I shoud still consider myself lucky for not being forced into fixed marriage. We are just part Chinese and I was raised with predominantly Filipino culture and traditions. However, my aunts and uncles sometimes play matchmaking with their friends. My sister had been to several dates set up by the family after graduating from post-grad school. I am expecting myself to receive a dose of this matchmaking game two years from now too. That is the tinge of Chinese tradition in our family.

But yeah, lately, I am starting to consider marrying a woman and having a family after seeing my dad again after 7 years (I'll write about that in another post). But who? Isabela is the only girl I've fallen in love with...and yeah... she turned out to be a lesbo. And if I do find a girl, would it be just like casting a bait in the water? Upon taking a bite of my charming lure, she'll realize that everything is merely a deceit

photo from here

An Elegy to thy Memory, Father

This poem is inspired by the story of my father and I. He is now 81 and has Alzheimer's disease.

An Elegy to thy Memory, Father

In thy existence, a man He bestows,
An invincible figure, as mighty as bellows,
Endowed with prudence, wisdom and astuteness,
Bequeathed to steer thy path towards uprightness.

There was a moment, the gift faltered,
Breaking the chain, left wrecked and shattered,
Every link besieged with immense animosity,
Living stones, cold, bitter, numbed by enmity.

In the midst of achieving epiphany,
There’s no room for absolution and clemency,
For now, as thou rest on that elaborate lumber,
No kind of memoir could make thee remember.

For thy health has turned against thee, as well,
Subtly stealing thy reminiscence, as thou fell,
As I sit with thee, for thee, I am a stranger,
But a voice inside wishes that thou would remember,
That I am thy son and thou art my father.

photo from here

Going Back to the Political Scene

It's a big come back for our family in the local politics. After my great grandfather,the first Filipino mayor of our town, died in office, and my other grandfathers and grandmothers served in various municipal and district positions, political blood has slept for a long time in our family until my uncle ran for barangay office more than a decade ago. Now, he's running for a higher office, bringing back the family name in the local political scene.

Well, this political comeback was not warmly welcomed by the family. For years, our family has been living a peaceful life until we got involved in politics again. It drains every ounce of peace in the family...creating false issues, threatening everyone's safety and revealing the real identity of "family friends".

You know politics in the province...or should I say, in the whole Philippines, people think that candidates would be extra helpful during this season and they really take advantage of this. We cannot blame the people, because this practice has been tolerated by politicians for several generations. This is the reason why every morning, my mom wakes me up to answer the needs of a long cue of sick and "sick" people in our garage. The sick is expecting for cure while the "sick" wants financial aid, and spend this to gamble or buy alcohol. That's why as much as possible, we don't give them financial help. Instead, we give them the remaining drugs from our yearly medical mission. Sometimes, my mom wakes me up in the middle of the night to attend to someone who was cut with a saw after being picked up on by a gang. After applying first aid, I have to rush him to the nearest hospital..and I was just wearing a robe and boxer shorts.

Aside from the the daily "medical mission" I do in our house, my tito also brings me along to his campaign rallies. BP check up is really a powerful magnet that attracts people to the rally. People really love having their bp checked. Well, it does not really do anything to their health. They either feel ecstatic when they know that their BP is within the normal range or rationalize and justify why their BP is high, and convince themselves that it is just a temporary elevation of their BP.

Well, that experience opened my eyes to my life ahead, as a part of a known family in my town--- Chrsitian, traditional and conservative. Even with my young age, people begin to look up to me and treat me with respect, like my ancestors who once governed our town. That's why I have to live up to the public's expectations and being exposed to the public pushed me further into my closet.