Seeing in darkness

Last day of summer

The people in our barrio knew that rain was coming even before the temperature dropped, the earth gave off a moist scent & the sky turned gray. They took their cue from the swelling of the creek earlier that morning.

It was during a song number on television that the rain began to pelt our iron roof. The first few drops were slow, like a polite announcement, but the next ones came pattering noisily thereafter. I couldn't hear the singing long haired man anymore.

There it was, after a long wait -- the first rain of May.

I looked out the window to see some kids taking shelter under the banana trees. Soon they surrendered to the whims of the rain & carried on with their business of running around & laughing out loud without any care.

An adult holding an umbrella came rushing to them & by the looks of it, started giving them a scolding. The children dispersed immediately but not without a trace of smile & a good time on their faces.

The pathway outside was now covered in puddles thanks to the numerous shallow potholes so forgotten that many of them grew a few rogue rice stalks or blooming makahiya. I imagined the rain continued feeding these tiny pools until they all merged into a single flood that would wreck havoc with the indiscriminate current, debris & disease that it could carry. Then the rain would turn into monsoons, disrupting school calendars, trips to Manila & a pair of perfectly polished leather shoes.

For now there is nothing else I could do, except to wait & see and maybe to live a little. What would happen next was neither for me to decide nor to tell.

But, why weep, asked the song. At ba't hihikbi? In this state of idleness where the devil liked to play, there was one more punishment I was willing to put myself through... it was to hope.

And so did I. I did hope in the most adamant, maddening & stubborn way that I could humanly muster.

The end.