Day 10
My dad and my mom were avid bowlers (tenpin). Trophies crowd the top display shelf in the living room. I thought it would be a great idea for us to go bowling, my mom, and my niece took me to Southmall for that. My mom forgot to take her ball but brought her own shoes (of course she had her own custom ball and shoes), so she had to make do with the house balls. Meanwhile my niece and I has the house shoes and ball. I merely took that as my mom playing against us with a handicap. I came out guns blazing, with a score of 124 on the first game, but I only managed a 99 and 102 on the next two. It was heartwarming for me to watch my 86 year old mom still beat me on the third game, she took two games to warm up after years of not having hit the lanes.
Day 11
We went to visit my dad's grave in Parañaque. I haven't been since his funeral seven years ago. I like browsing through the other graves and tried to imagine the lives that were lived by its occupants and the implied stories behind some of them like a husband and wife who died only 7 days apart -the wife only lasted a week without her partner. Some plots had family members dying on the same date suggesting some sort of accident or calamity had claimed their lives on that fateful day. Most notable however, were the number of fresh gravestones for those who had perished between 2020 and 2022, a poignant testament of the devastation wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Rich or poor, young or old, few families were exempt from this global calamity.
. . .
By evening, the temperatures have cooled down a bit, also partially due to rains brought about by a typhoon passing through the north of the country. I went for a bicycle ride around the old neighbourhood as I once did when I was a child. This unleashed a flood of childhood memories. I rode past homes of old friends and crushes that have long changed hands and / or been renovated or knocked down and rebuilt with bigger and more modern designs. Trees that were mere saplings back then have matured and their roots cracked walls and paved sidewalks. Once when I was eleven, a dog chasing me caused me to fall over and graze my knees. However, I wasn't too concerned tonight when two dogs started chasing my bike, if it comes to it, I'd use the bicycle as both a shield and a weapon. Besides, they weren't too serious and gave up as soon as I was outside their territory. My ride lasted all of 25 minutes, and I had gone down every street of phase one of our subdivision -Amelita to Imelda, Lovely to Friendly and everything in between. I got home with a smile on my face, who knows when I might be able to do this again.
Day 12
The week since I got here, I've been following two local news stories. They are both about off-duty law enforcers pulling out their firearms during a road rage incident. In both cases, the offenders were trying to assert their authority against the object of their rage. And in both cases a passing motorist had pulled out their smart phones and recorded video of the altercations. Both videos have gone viral and there was understandably public outcry against the blatant abuse of power. In the past, all this would have just been quietly swept under the rug, and their law enforcement brothers would have helped with the cover up. That's no longer possible in today's world of social media because the evidence is now in the public sphere and the public expect consequences. The newspaper today reports that in both incidents, the offenders have lost their jobs and their right to carry firearms. They were clearly not the guys you want roaming the streets armed. Even more satisfying is that the investigating cops who were allegedly willing to let them get away with it are also facing consequences. Well done Filipinos, I am heartened by the progress of this society who are now excercising their power to hold these abusers and enablers of abuse accountable. They are finding out that the dildo of consequences arrives unlubricated.
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