Didn’t expect things to be easy neither did I expect them to be this hard.
“Punyenta! Wala ba kayong natutunan sa school? Ikaw! Hindi ba’t galing kang Maynila?”
Halos araw-araw na lang may sigawan sa loob ng hangar. Napayuko ako nang lapitan ako ni Sir Tope, Mechanic namin.
“AAUP tama ba? Anong natutunan mo roon ay mukhang wala ka nang ginawang matino rito?”
Napakuyom ang kamao ko.
“Hindi po ako ang nag-iwan ng tools doon, Sir.” Deritsong sagot ko.
“Ano pala ang nangyari? Lumipad na lang bigla ang tools doon sa loob ng makina?”
Napatingin ako sa mga kasamahan ko. I swear to whoever it is, wala akong kinalaman sa binibintang ng Mechanic namin. Sabay-sabay silang nag-iwas ng tingin sa’kin. Tangina!
“Isang katangahan mo pa. Ako mismo ang magpapaalis sa’yo rito.” Matigas na usal ni Sir Tope saka ako tinalikuran.
Kaagad kong nilapitan ang mga kasamahan ko.
“Alam niyong hini ako ang nag-iwan doon. Bakit wala kayong sinabi? Plano niyo ba ‘to?” Tinignan ko sila ng masama. Simula pa lang ng training ko rito ay lagi na nilang pinapamukha sa’kin na ayaw nila sa’kin.
“Unsa? Dili man kami kasabot sa imong ginasulti uy.” Tawa ni Jill, na may parehong kurso sa’kin. Dalawa lang kami ang babae rito, tapos tatlong lalaki na BS. AMT.
Language Barrier, isa sa mga problema na lalong nagpapahirap sa’kin dito.
“Unya, mag work na lang kag tarong.”
Sabay-sabay nila akong tinalikuran. Naririnig ko pa ang tawa nila kahit sa malayuan. Dali-dali akong pumasok sa banyo para ilabas ang sama ng loob. Ngayon lang ako nakatanggap ng ganung klaseng insulto.
“Oh? Alam mo ba kung para saan ‘yan?” I was busy organizing the tools when our Mechanic went to me.
“Safety wiring po, Plier twister.” I answered.
“Akala ko kasi tatanga-tanga ka na naman.” He then laughed sarcastically.
There was this one time na papasok pa lang ako sa hangar nang marinig ang usapan ng Mechanic at Pilot namin.
“Avionics nga wala namang alam ‘yan.” Wika ng piloto namin. I stopped on my tracks to hear their conversation.
“Malapit narin namang matapos siya dito, Capt. Hanap na lang ulit ako ng siguradong maaasahan.”
I had to look up to stop my tears from falling.
“Hindi man lang nagbabasa ng manual yan siguro, alam lang maglinis ng eroplano eh.”
Ofcourse I read manuals, may mga bagay lang talaga na mahirap intindihin at kailangan mo ng guidance para doon. But they expect me to be a pro despite the fact that I am just a beginner. There are things I don’t know about, there are things I need to repeat and repeat for them to instill my mind. Being a beginner doesn’t make us stupid.
I endured every single day hearing insults, working my ass off without salary, training over time, cleaning the aircrafts and all.
I almost gave up on Aviation.
“Tagalog! Tawag ka ni Chief.” It was my co-ojt calling me while I’m in the middle of cleaning the windshield of the Helicopter. I fixed the slideslip indicator before going inside the lounge.
“Chief? Tawag niyo raw ho ako?”
Chief Allen stopped typing on his laptop and gave me a glance.
YOU ARE READING
Navigating Hearts ( Aviation College Series #1)
RomanceGrowing up, Liharra Maru Velasco an epitome of determination always believes that there's no such thing as 'no choice' because we all have the power to make our choices. That's why she's always eager to take all the risk along her way. Shaped hersel...
