On my way to UST and back to our office in Makati, I hired two taxis and made acquaintances with the drivers.
First is a former amateur boxer in GenSan. He said that when he was younger, he was a victor- winning all local boxing matches, especially during fiestas. He revealed that in Mindanaoan regions, anting-anting (amulet, charm) is commonly used to win or earn something in your favor. Allegedly, he, among Rolando Navarete and Manny Pacquaio have used such to knock down their foes.
Locals believed that during Navarete’s fame, he used a ‘kulintas’ (kwintas, necklace) as a secret ingredient. This has been stolen from their family and they never knew who the theft was or to whose hands it landed. Kuya said that maybe Pacquaio got it because Manny once saw a necklace floating in the sea.
Baka yun ang ginagamit niya. O baka nakatago dun sa kwintas niya kapag lalaban siya, referring to PacMan’s rosary as we see in all his fights.
Meanwhile, the second is married and a father of three. When we stopped at Petron, he asked me, bakla ka ba? Surprised, I answered, hindi po, bakit? He explained that he had encountered gay passengers who are Thomasians.Hindi ako tiga-UST at nagta-trabaho na po ako, was my immature defense.
He ranted as if we were two people sitting in a veranda, drinking beer with roasted peanuts, and he has just been dumped by a gay benefactor.
Mas madali maging lalaki di ba? (Opo) Kasi kahit pangit kang lalaki, basta may pera, gwapo ka na.
To be fair, I hope that he has heard of the saying, “Pag ang lalaki gipit, sa bakla kumakapit” so he could realized that no matter how ugly a gay is, as long as s/he could send a person to school, s/he, too, becomes a maiden in the eyes of his/her beneficiary.
May mga nasakay ako noon mga bakla, ang lalaki ng suso (chuckles), puro gawang Thailand (Kasi po tanggap na dun ang ganun)
Nakinig ka ba kila Korina dati? Sabi ng isang caller na bakla, tatanggapin pa rin daw sila sa langit pag namatay sila (laughs). Tangina! Pati ba naman sa langit tuturuan mo ng kabaklaan ang mga santo? (Tumawa rin ako)
When we were approaching TWC, I realized how surprised I was to hear the drivers’ stories. At least, they had the opportunity to talk to someone amidst the exhausting streets of Manila and Makati. And I thank them because they changed my mood. They inspired me to smile and to write.
I did not mind asking their names and whereabouts, just knowing them through stories is enough for a morning treat.
P.S. I did not like to mention Korina (Sanchez) because she has a reputation for being a b**ch, but since she was included in the storytelling, I have to.
No comments:
Post a Comment