Ang baha sa Maynila

Akala ko set ng Walking Dead

Magsusulat sana ako tungkol sa mga nangyari (o kakulangan ng pangyayari) nitong nakalipas na dalawang araw - noong kasukdulan ng unos. Irereklamo ko sana na, dahil lakas ng ulan at ankle-deep na bahang namuo sa bungad ng pension house, dalawang araw din akong stranded sa dormitoryo. Inip na inip, tila walang magawa kundi magbasa na libro (eh natapos ko na nga mula Chapter 4 ang Gerald's Game), dalawang araw kong hiniling na matapos na ang ulan at nang makapag-SM Manila na ako, o di kaya'y makauwi na. Pero wala. Dalawang araw at walang pinagbago ang panahon.

Sa labas ng dormitoryo

Nilisan ko ang dormitoryo kaninang umaga nang medyo tumila na ang ulan. Ang yabang ko pa maglakad kasi medyo nawala rin ang baha sa labas. Balak pang mag-underpass upang makabili doon ng mumurahing libro. Tuloy tanggi pa sa mga pedicab; akala ko kasi, kaya ko naman ang "baha". Bigla kong nakita ang malalang bahagi ng Maynila; ang daan na dapat ay tatahakin ko.

Kinilabutan ako. Pramis, tumayo ang mga balahibo sa katawan ko. Sa may underpass nagsimula ang baha. At hindi lang baha kundi dagat. Kung ankle-deep lamang kagabi ang baha sa labas ng dormitoryo, abot na tuhod hanggang balakang na ang baha sa parteng ito ng Maynila. Hindi ko malaman kung totoo. Dapat ba akong matawa o maiyak?

Aba'y ang sarap pa ng swimming ni kuya

Nakatayo sa mismong upuan ng pedicab upang hindi mabasa ang mga paa, umaalingawngaw sa isipan ang kanta ng Jukebox the Ghost, "It's the end of the world,  la da di da da da da da...". Nakakatakot. Naging tourist attraction ang Maynila - puwede nang dikitan ng "It's more fun in the Philippines". Pakiramdam ko'y nasa Baguio ulit ako, nakasakay sa bangka. O 'di kaya'y sa mga ferry ng Puerta Galera. "... I'm innocent, keep me out of this."

Sa SM Manila

Agad kong binura mula sa camera ko ang lahat ng walang kuwentang bagay na na-pikturan ko sa loob ng dormitoryo, iyong mga dapat na irereklamo ko ngayon. Ano namang karapatan ko, 'di ba, kung  ligtas na ligtas naman pala ako sa third floor ng pensiyon house samantalang nandito itong mga taong ito. Habang ganoon ang sitwasyon. Parang ang lungkot-lungkot ko noong nakita ko iyon, lalo na noong pumasok sa isipan ko na nararanasan ko na iyon mismo.

Noon, akala ko hindi naman ako aabutan ng ganitong pangyayari. Akala ko, lagi akong nasa timing, o di kaya'y advantage ang paninirahan sa urban na lupalop ng Pilipinas. Alam kong maaari pang magbago ang mga pananaw ko sapagkat unang beses ko pa lamang ito naranasan. Pero, totoo, hindi lang ang mga bata, ang mga tao, o ang driver ang kaaawaan mo. Pati sarili mo mismo, bilang Pilipino. At kahit sumilong ka pa sa ilalim ng isang bubong habang kumakain ng pancake, o nakasakay sa punong LRT, bitbit mo iyon. Ang saklap, lalo na ngayong naiisip ko ulit.

Nakakapagpabagabag.

As fireworks burst over the land

I could've sworn I felt the influence of an unseen hand

the ghost of someone else's dream

a forgotten god stopping by to survey the scene

And the lights were complicated and so we all just

prayed to the spirits above and below

that the water would never reach us in time

but I had a feeling that we'd never get to 2009

Didn't want a wave but a wave was coming, yeah

we didn't want to swim but the cities were sinking

and though we wanted to react we were too busy sleeping through

the ground that was shaking and the bass was thumping

There's a tidal wave coming so you'd better start learning to swim

and now's as good as any as a time and place to begin

On TV, they said the storms wouldn't last

but their answers didn't correlate to the questions we'd asked

They said a spark that's gone is not a spark to mourn

you can't resuscitate a person who was never born

So I climbed to the tallest building in town

to see the rain rushing in, to feel my heart breaking down

and as the blue sheen drew nearer I saw a window to another world

strange fish I'd never seen, and in that moment I realized

Didn't want a wave but a wave was coming

we didn't want to swim but the cities were sinking

and though we wanted to react we were too busy sleeping through

the ground that was shaking and the bass was thumping

There's a tidal wave coming so you'd better start learning to swim

and now's as good as any as a time and place to begin

I should have known this was coming, yeah

it could not have been more obvious

Like the flood that Noah dreamed about

except bigger and more ominous

I should have known this was unfolding, yeah

it could not have been more obvious

Like the flood that Noah dreamed about

except bigger and more ominous

Every moment lost someone else has won

every time you breathe there's another gone

Every passing second is a minute late

Every breath can escalate a hurricane

And do you think we'd realize just what we'd done

tore down the canvas that held up the sun

We ripped down the canvas hung up above

but what if we were created to gaze at the stars up above

Didn't want a wave but a wave was coming, yeah

we didn't want to swim but the cities were sinking

and though we wanted to react we were too busy sleeping through

the ground that was shaking and the bass was thumping