memories on a wall

Ephiphany

1. I am a decrepit man of 94. Sitting down here on this ram-shackled bench that had seen history, I sit here on this humid Thursday afternoon. My watery eyes can't see clearly anymore. I am holding my cane as I watch the kids frolic along the streets, chasing their playmates. My mind wanders as I recalled scenes, as though my life was a panorama in front of me. What would have happened if I weren't born here? What would my life had been had I not met her?

2. It is that barren wall that had been the witness to everything my life had seen. Probably, if it were to talk, it could recount all that had happened in the past centuries. Of course, I wasn't born during the Spanish Regime, but I bet you everything that my people had experienced was written down that old wall. Decades had passed, and yet the same old wall stood the test of time. It was still sturdy, a feat accomplished despite the fact that the Japanese had bombarded the islands during the war, and the fact that earthquakes come occasionally.

3. My first encounter with the wall was when my mother was still pregnant with me. She was going to church to hear Mass. Suddenly, the contractions came hard unexpectedly, and she fell to her knees. She was near the wall when that happened, and she leaned on the wall for fear of collapsing entirely to the ground. Onlookers saw her and came to her aid. They ushered her to the home of the local midwife, Manang Isang. I was born that early part of the year when the farmers start to plant their crops. A bouncing baby boy I was, they decided to call me Anastacio.

4. My father was a fisherman. He was selling his fish to the market vendors when he heard the news. Leaving what little catch he had, he didn't hesitate to run to the midwife's house, albeit he still smells of fish. He was very happy that day. There were already seven children ahead of me, all girls. And my father had been hoping that the last one would be a boy. He immediately knelt to the ground, raised his hands, and praised God for hearing his prayers.

5. I don't know why my parents chose to build the house near that wall. I was as if our house depended on it. But you see, the wall had been built as a guard against sea pirates that had been threatening our town long before the present time came. I don't know the present use of that wall anymore. Maybe it was just so to protect our shores against the waves of the sea during strong typhoons.

6. When I started to gain consciousness, my sisters and I used to play hide and seek against that wall. And we would hide every time the tall Americans and their tall horses would pass by. They, however, would smile back at us and give us some treats. My two elder sisters, Manang Pacita and Manang Francia, were already in school. So it was to their delight when they answer the Americans according to the normal standard greeting. "Good morning. How do you do?" they'd ask. One of the officers, Sgt. Christopher Rogers, a man of about 32, would smile down and answer, "I'm fine, thank you." Being a soldier that he was, he was also a school teacher. This is why my sisters were so amiable to him because they were his students.

7. I went to school when I was seven years old. As much as the wall had bothered me to the point of annoyance, that was where I first saw the cruel reality that the world is not fair. My neighbor, Tomas, was bullied by the Agapito, Mayor Yu's son. Agapito and his friends were trying to get money from my poor friend. "I don't have money," says Tomas. "Sure you do! You are just too stingy!" Gregorio said as he shoved Tomas to the wall. The others started to search my friend. In my anger, I shouted at them to come face me instead of my friend. "Well, well, who do we have here?" Agapito sneered. "If you want to fight against someone, pick your own size!" I called out to them. And so, the rowdy bunch headed towards me. "Tacio, no!" Tomas pleaded as he braced against the wall as he watched me exchanging fists and kicks against my opponents. As much as I was very much outnumbered, I was able to take them down. My huge structure made Gregorio and Elias shrink in fear. But Agapito was furious. I fought with me. And as he was about to give a huge beating on me, my elder sister, Manang Tatiana, saw the fight and came to my aid. She scolded us and, holding us by the ears, dragged us to school.