Lilies and Lullabies

Years have passed but the memories lingering in their minds is still vivid like a film that they have recorded. The life after Emiko tasted the freedom she had been dreaming of is not as beautiful as before for Dane Silas. Everyone's moving forward except the man who has left behind. He's still waiting as if he didn't say goodbye before. 

Mariana is now part of the business that Daze owns. They became partners with the business. Mirae is now almost graduating from senior high school. During the first month after Emiko died, Mirae seems clueless with the fact that her sister wasn't there beside them. Mariana tried to focus on her youngest while working— overworking herself to avoid thinking her lacking in her first born. 

Daze has been courting Miah. The man fell in love when they first met. Daze, at first, was denial. He couldn't accept the fact that he fell in love other than coffee and his pastries. Walang-wala kay Dane nang agad tinanggap na minahal niya si Emiko. Just by looking at them, you can tell that they're just waiting for each other: Miah is waiting for him to ask her, while Daze is waiting until Miah is ready to commit. Love can really make you fool and stupidly in love, isn't it? 

Miracle and Liam are already engaged. The preparation is almost ready. Ang nakatakdang oras na lang ang hinihintay. Mira cried on that day after Liam proposed to her, a mixture of happiness and pain is visible in their smile. Liam can understand that the absence of Emiko in Mira's life is like a damn hole in the ground. In Miracle's head, she's saying that Emiko should be here beside her, but she knows she'll always be there for them. Sa ulap. Sa dagat. Sa alaala. And Emiko will always be there to cheer them up and she'll be the happiest for Mira. 

And for Silas? 

He's still in the places where he could see her. Sa dagat. Sa tulay. Sa parke. Sa lahat ng lugar kung saan pinuno nila ng alaala. 

Silas bought the park using his hard earned money when it almost became an abandoned place due to legal reasons. He bought it and saved the place for the sake of his memories here with Emiko. After months of being a messy and dense place, he started to reconstruct the whole park while preserving its original form. He maintained the pathway where they used to walk and ride a bike together. 

The man-made pond became clearer, the fence is no longer there, instead it was changed into a fine ground with bermuda grass where the visitors could place a picnic mat. May mga gansa at kuneho sa paligid na para bang pagmamay-ari rin nila ang lugar na ‘yon. On the left side of the park, there was a field of tulips— the colorful flowers made it more beautiful and peaceful. 

Sa mismong pond ay may wooden bridge na kulay asul, may mga makukulay na water lilies din sa tubig na mas pinatingkad ang ganda ng paligid. The wooden bridge is connected with a tunnel that starts from the ark that says ‘Lullabies’, and that tunnel is locked. However, people are still open to going to the bridge because it has another path that allows them to see the beauty of the pond. On the ark of the bridge, there was a written word that said ‘Lilies’. 

November 25th is the only day that the tunnel is open for the visitors, some can't understand that… little they didn't know, it was the day when she was born and also the day she became an angel. 

Near that bridge is an open hut, there were mesh curtains hanging on each side of the hut. Ngunit kagaya ng tunnel ay sarado iyon para sa mga tao. Kung titignan ay para iyong sagradong lugar para sa may-ari. 

Ang buong park ay maaliwalas at bawat sulok ay payapa. Something that reminds him of her. 

Dane Silas is currently sitting on the edge of the bridge, swinging his feet while watching how the water keeps the water lilies alive. Those flowers are all about her, the only difference now is that Emiko is no longer considered as the loneliest flower, but a beautiful angel. 

Silas strummed his guitar and sang the song she made two years ago. Emiko scheduled an email to him, it was a file of her singing the song she made for him. It was another version of Lilies and Lullabies. And that song made Silas move a bit, that's when he realized he needs to live and not drown. Emiko would not like it if he let himself get drowned. 

“Sir, ibubukas na po ba ang tunnel?” tanong ng isang caretaker kay Dane na sinadya siya sa tulay. 

“Sige po, Kuya Poy. Paki-check na lang din po si Luna at Tala. Ako na po bahala sa mga tao.” sagot ng lalaki bago tumayo.

Tumungo siya sa kubo at doon inilapag ang gitara bago tumuloy sa tunnel. Maliit lang ‘yon at malinis. He specifically designed this tunnel for Emiko. 

The astonishment of the people who visited the park are visible. You can hear the gasps and exclamations about the beauty of this tunnel. 

“Look, Love, everyone loves your arts.” Silas muttered, he kept on watching the tourists to admire the beauty of Emiko's paintings.

Yes, the tunnel is like a mini-museum where Silas displayed all her paintings and poems. Naroon ang painting ni Emiko kung saan dagat, paru-paro, ulap, musika, at si Silas ang sinasaad. The poems that are displayed are the messy handwriting of his girlfriend. Ang mga kabataang nakakita ay hindi na napigilan ang paghagikgik dahil sa sulat ng babae, it was a beautiful poem but the rough draft says how frustrated the writer was. 

Even the candid photographs of Emiko are there, captured by him. Lahat ng litrato ay si Emiko ang lakambini. Some are really curious but never said a word to question the place, except one person. The boy who's in his teens asked the owner, si Silas. Ayon sa mga bata ay isa silang manunulat sa kanilang paaralan, isa sa takdang-aralin nila ay alamin ang kwento ng lugar na ito. 

“Sir, why do you call this place ‘lullabies’?” 

Napangiti ang lalaki, “Because the one who painted and wrote those masterpieces is the one who sings me a lullaby at night.”

“How about the bridge po?” another one asked a question. 

“That's her. That's the meaning of her name.” Silas sighed as he smiled upon remembering her smiles again.

“Is that why you named this place ‘Lilies and Lullabies?” 

Silas nodded as he stared at the displayed photo in the side. It was Emiko who's watching as the tulips swayed because of the wind. It was just a picture, but the image of it in his mind is vividly showing how she dances together with the flowers. 

“Lilies and Lullabies is all about her.” tumango ang lalaki at piniling magkuwento sa mga batang gusto makinig.

“Lilies means loneliest flower, that's her name… but it also means smile. Her presence heals me and she makes smile even in my loneliest days…” he said as if everything happened just yesterday. 

“She became my lullaby, she calmed me down. And you know what, her beauty became my melody. Hanggang ngayon, siya at siya pa rin ang musika ko.” dagdag ng lalaki. 

Napaangat ng tingin ang mga tao sa loob ng tunnel nang tumugtog sa buong parke ang hindi pamilyar na kanta. Hindi nilabas sa publiko ang nasabing kanta; ang kanta na ginawa ni Dane Silas para kay Emiko. Ang kanta kung saan handang isuko ng lalaki ang lahat para sa babaeng minamahal.

Lilies and Lullabies is a park where Silas parked his memories with her, a place where they left all the memories they have and also the place where Silas would run into when he misses her. 

Lilies refers to the flowers that live in the water. Lullabies refers to the music that calms us down… but for Emiko and Silas, it is a combination of their lives. Malungkot. Malawak. Malalim. Ngunit gaya ng dagat, nakahahalina… gaya ng musikang nagmumula sa gitara ng alaala.

The meaning of the ‘lilies and lullabies’ is a collocation of two contradicting words. Lilies is known as the loneliest flower but its meaning are smile and purity. Emiko is a lonely flower in the vast ocean but she brought a smile on Silas’ painful life. On the other hand, the lullaby means a calming music sung by a mother to hush a kid, but its meaning is mostly sad. Lullaby means calmness in the pain. And Silas calms Emiko and mends the pain in her life. Both of them embody the meaning of the lilies and lullabies.