Ang Pahigmata (The Awakening)

Marcel  Navarra
 
The carabao was still resting when I reached the kamugaw tree, I immediately spread a sack on
his back and untied the tether from the tree.  I mounted him, but he refused to rise. Tsk, tsk, tsk,
tsk.
 
At the boundary between our maguey field and that of lyo Anoy Daginot, Diyak Arsenio was
already waiting, side-saddled on his carabao.  The animal was nibbling on the sparse cogon grass
that grew by the wayside. A while ago, as I was eating champorado by our kitchen window
shelf, Diyak Arsenio's whistle pierced my ears and awakened my sleepy bones. Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk.
My carabao finally got up and moved, stopping to nibble at some herb plants. With the tip of the
rope, I whipped his rump three more times. 
 
“My goodness, Diyak, what took you so long?” asked Diyak Arsenio.  
 
"I didn't take long. I'm still early, Diyak." I replied.
 
"Early!? I've been waiting here for sometime even before sunrise.”
 
"Actually,  Diyak,  it  was  because champorado took a while to cook,"
 
"Lucky you for having champorado. Me, nothing,"
 
"Why didn't you eat, even just a little?"
 
"I would have wanted to,  had there been something to eat."
 
"Why didn't you cook lugaw"? 
 
"Good if we had rice. Lugaw would have been easy to make. But all we had was firewood."
 
"So your firewood went to waste."
 
"Waste? Why?"
 
"Aw, sorry. How could it have gone to waste when you had nothing to cook? But don't tell me
you  didn't even have tughong[1] left over from supper.”
 
“You know, Nanay cooked our rice so well last night that even the burnt part looked so good, we
ate all of it. Why Diyak, don't you like burnt rice?”
 
"Of course, I do, Tsk, tsk. tsk, hii! Look how greedy this carabao is. Even the mayana plant
which is only used as medicine, it eats too."
 
"Where will we let our carabaos graze today, Diyak?" asked Diyak Arsenio,
 
"It's up to you, Diyak,"  I answered.
 
"Why not on the moon?” he kidded.
 
“Ah, I know, Let's just go towards  the cliff, the place of lska. Let our carabaos nibble on ipil-
ipil.  But  we   have  to   hurry   because  my  father said he needs the carabao right away to
transport his sacks of coconuts,” I said, remembering my father's orders  when  I  had finished
eating my champorado.
 
Diyak Arsenio straightened himself  and no longer rode side-saddle when we reached a narrow
and rocky trail. To our right was a vast maguey field, its rows of maguey plants reaching the
edge of the cliff.  This was where the daughters of the couple Mingo and Julia gathered maguey.
I did not know what working arrangement they had with the owners, for as far as I knew, Mingo
and Julia were not its owners.  But  their  daughters  -  Paniya,  Leona, Fortuna and Segunda -
who were all strong and healthy looking, were the ones I always saw cutting and stripping the
plants, shredding the fibers, immersing these in water for fifteen days in order to soften them,
then washing and drying these before finally gathering them in bales to be weighed by their usual
buyers.
 
 
To our left,  behind  the  only row of coconut trees, was a meadow where the grass grew sparsely
not because the owner frequently weeded it, but because the land was usually barren during the
dry season.
 
“Diyak Lino," called Diyak Arsenio who was riding side-saddle again on his carabao. He turned
to me and continued, “We might as well let our carabaos loose on Simon and Amon's maguey
field where there's plenty of cogon.”
 
“No, Diyak.  Simon might catch us,”  I warned.
 
“So what if he catches us?”
 
“He might get mad at us, Tekya has already warned  us never to bring our carabaos there lest
the maguey leaves get ruined, especially if the ropes get snagged on them.”
 
“Bah, and you believe what Tekya says, Diyak?  Just look at the face of that harelip! That girl
can't be trusted. If what she says is true, then why did I see her bringing her bull to graze in
Simon and Amon’s field?”
 
"Really, Diyak, Tekya said she'd tell on whoever pastures there. Simon himself has said that he'd
drag any carabao he caught in his field to the barrio lieutenant and sue its owner."
 
"And you believe Tekya, Diyak? She just wants to scare us so she could have the field all to
herself and fatten her bull with all that cogon growing there."
 
"But what if what she says is true, Diyak? Simon is so fierce. He may not be a braggart, but once
he gets angry, according to Diyo Otik, there's no one he fears."
 
"Why are you so scared, Diyak? Simon will not catch us. He seldom visits his field. If we catch
Tekya squealing on us, we'll give it to her. Her harelip will be ripped badly the moment my fist
lands on her face."
 
"But should we get caught, remember, Diyak, I have nothing to do with this."
 
"All right.  What a coward you are!"
 
He said I was such a coward. But how does he know? Diyak Arsenio and I have never had a
fistfight. We have never even quarreled, If ever there was a time our minds did not meet, it never
resulted in a heated argument or a shouting match or an exchange of fists. Either one of us – it
may happen to be him, it may happen to be me – would just bow his head and remain quiet.
Among all the children in that corner of Carcar called Tuyom, we – Diyak Arsenio and Diyak
Lino (that's what they call me) – were inseparable as playmates. But of course, it was not
everyday we could play, I was separated from him during schooldays for I had to
leave Tuyom for the city where I went to school. I had already finished elementary. But during
vacation, we were constant companions. Diyak Arsenio, unfortunately, was still in the third grade.  We were of the
same age, almost thirteen years old. He was shorter than I, but more robust in built, whereas I was thin.
 
Upon reaching the first rows of maguey plants in the field of the couple Simon and Amon, Diyak
Arsenio immediately alighted from his carabao which was heavy with milk. He had dragged
down with him the sack he was sitting on. He then tied the tether around the horns of his
carabao. Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, hii! and he let loose the animal among the plants.
 
"Get down, Diyak!" he called while looking at me.
 
I then leaped down and also tied the rope around the horns of my carabao. We did this to
prevent the ropes from being dragged by the animals and getting caught among the thorny
maguey plants. Should this happen, the carabaos would struggle to free themselves and, in the
process, might ruin the plants.
 
"Let's go, Diyak," said Diyak Arsenio,
 
"Where to, Diyak?"
 
"To Gavino's place to pick sineguelas. Last week, I saw many fruits about to ripen. I'm sure
they're ready to be eaten by now."
 
"But what if Gavino catches us, Diyak? He'll surely be mad at us."
 
"Gavino is not there, Diyak, He's out in the sea.  I'm sure he's out in the sea. If he's not gathering
clams, he's catching jellyfish, If not, he's catching small octopus. Or else, he's fish trolling. How
can I be mistaken?”
 
We followed a narrow trail that ended on the doorstep of Gavino's hut. From afar, Gavino's hut
looked like a pile of dried coconut leaves. Actually, the dried leaves were made to lean on a
bamboo pole, both ends of which were tied to two coconut trees - and this was how Gavino's hut
was built.  Here he spent the whole day, here he cooked his meals, here he rested during midday
after gathering tuba from three coconut trees. Only in the evening did Gavino leave the hut to
sleep in the house of a niece who was married to a tuba trader.
 
We slowly opened the matted coconut leaves which served as a door. 
 
Piled up inside the hut were bamboo tubes used as tuba containers. On top of a legless bamboo
bed were a chipped cooking pot and a plate on which some malunggay leaves had stuck. Diyak
Arsenio said that just as he had suspected, Gavino was not in his hut.
 
Leaving Gavino's hut, we slowly inched our way through two rows of maguey plants that had not
yet been cut, though the time was right for cutting, We carefully parted the thorny thick  leaves
that obstructed the way. Ahead, near the edge of the cliff, stood the sineguelas tree protected by
the branches of a large balete tree.
 
Diyak Arsenio was the first to climb up the sineguelas tree and I followed. As Diyak Arsenio
was balancing himself on a branch that pointed to the sea, the very first ripe fruit he saw
immediately found  its way into his eager mouth.
 
"Hey, Diyak," I called to him, "You haven't even had breakfast yet, and you're already eating
sineguelas."
 
"So what if I haven't had breakfast?”
 
"You might have a stomach ache."
 
"What stomach ache?"
 
I didn't say another word for I was already enjoying picking sineguelas and putting them
straight into my mouth.  All of a sudden, we heard someone shouting in a voice so thick, that
there were two carabaos grazing in the field of Simon and Amon.
 
"See Diyak? We've been caught by Tekya, For sure that's Tekya shouting," I said nervously,
 
"Let's go, Diyak. Let's confront Tekya,"  Diyak Arsenio said as he hurriedly climbed down the
tree.
 
"That girl will get it from me."
 
With no time left to regret the many ripe sineguelas we had to leave behind, I followed my
friend. We did not waste time parting the thorny thick leaves of the maguey that had not been
tended by the owner. I did not even pause to think why the owner had not yet cut the leaves. The
moment we got out of the thick growth of maguey, we ran fast, with me trailing behind Diyak
Arsenio.
 
"Better watch out, boys. Why did you allow your carabaos to graze here? I'll tell Simon you were
here. You, Elino, didn't I warn you never to bring your carabao here? Why didn't you listen?
Watch out for Simon," Tekya said with a nasal twang, a speech defect caused by a congenital
deformity.
 
“Squeal and you'll be sorry, Tekya,"  warned Diyak Arsenio.
 
“Do you think I'm scared of you? You want to fight?”
 
Diyak Arsenio immediately took off his shirt and readied himself.  I could not move. All I could
do was look at them. Without hesitating, Tekya lunged forward, eager to knock her opponent
down. Though Tekya still played with the other children, she was really much bigger than us,
being much older. As she moved forward, Diyak Arsenio's small right fist landed on her face,
forcing her to retreat one step, but undaunted, she dashed forward again, ignoring Diyak
Arsenio's succession of punches. Finally, she was able to grab her enemy's neck, She refused to
let go and a struggle ensued. Diyak Arsenio wanted to be the first to knock down Tekya, but she
proved too strong for him. Tekya then gathered all her strength and flung Diyak Arsenio to the
ground. But my friend's foot got entangled with Tekya's so the two fell. Climbing on top of him,
Tekya pressed all her weight against Diyak Arsenio.  No matter how hard he tried, Diyak
Arsenio could not free himself from under. I wanted to help, but could not budge from where I
stood. I was too wrapt up in my own excitement.
 
"You still want to fight?"  asked the harelip, panting.
 
Diyak Arsenio could not answer.  His heavy breathing was all I heard. "Enough, Tekya.  Why
not fight me this time?"  I challenged, instead of just knocking her down without any warning in
order to aid my friend.
 
Tekya loosened her grip on Diyak Arsenio. She stood up to face me. Because of the suddenness
of the movement, I failed to notice Diyak Arsenio rise and sneak behind Tekya. He landed a
resounding blow on her back and ran away as fast as he could alongside the first row of Simon
and Amon’s maguey plants.
 
Tekya wanted to chase him, but changed her mind and confronted me instead. Unlike Diyak
Arsenio, I did not take on the stance of a boxer about to face his adversary. Tekya took
advantage of the situation. She held me by the neck and tried to topple me over. But she tripped,
and it was she instead who first landed on the ground. Immediately, I pressed her down and
chained her arms to the ground with my tight grip, To my astonishment, she did not  struggle.
Was it because she was too tired? I noticed she had no intention of fighting back, for she did not
kick her legs, nor did the veins of her neck show.  I loosened my grip on her. She remained
motionless.       
 
Without my intending to, one of my hands brushed against her left breast, my fingers lingering
on its tip.  I felt her body quiver, but it was not to protest, as I first thought. Instead, a smile
surfaced on the harelip's face. I could not have been mistaken that it was a smile I saw, for her
lips moved and curled out, and her eyes gave out a rare sparkle.  And...
 
Like the soft tap of my mother awakening me from sleep, I was brought back to my senses. I
quickly rose to my feet and ran away as fast as I could. As I ran, the sweet notes of a song
seemed to flow into my ears, a beautiful vision seemed to appear before my eyes. But I
continued to run, unmindful of Tekya calling out to me in that harelip tone of hers, "Lino, wait
for me... I promise not to tell Simon that you were in his field with your carabao."
 
I found my carabao already outside the property of Simon and Amon, contentedly nibbling on
dried grass.  Diyak Arsenio was nowhere in sight. I hurriedly spread the sack on the animal's
back, unwound the rope from his horns, fixed it, then quickly mounted him.
 
Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk!
 
(1939)

[1] Tughong - burnt rice that is boiled and sweetened with sugar.