My childhood days, a reminiscence.......

Gazing at rainbows, catching colored butterflies , chasing fireflies at moonlit nights........ remind me of my family and my childhood here in Masara, high up in the rugged and western flank of Davao del Norte , Philippines , where the sun seemed to rise rather late , and the sounds of birds named "Kalaw" reminding me of the sun almost settling down . I could hear my father say "it's 5 p.m." when these birds sounded "Kaw kaw kaw". As a little girl growing up with two brothers and 2 sisters, daytime was the most enjoyable building toycars and small toytrucks out of tiny, raw avocado fruits , picking up wild strawberries and edible ferns and climbing up trees (the tallest climb I made was a lanzones tree fronting our house, the most challenging one was a kalamansi tree with all its thorny and slippery branches) . I remember picking up kalamansi fruits and sell them once a basket was full . My siblings and I somehow learned the idea of selling at a very young age from tomatoes, fried camotes, ice candies , banana barbecues, hotcakes for merienda, and delivering door- to door-newspapers and magazines to my father's co-workers in the mining site. Piles and piles of Tagalog comics I would first enjoy reading while enriching my vocabulary as a first grader.

Early morning breakfast with native ricecakes and "suman" wrapped in banana leaves reminded me of my mother, an optimist who would rather tell us "the pail is almost full" while it never will. I couldn't imagine the source of her power and strength rearing a big family of five children. A childhood life full of prayers , joys and excitements. Imagine this kind of life without a mother!

A great tutor, that was my father, imbuing us the value of education, teaching us the 3 R's before the age of 6, envisioning us to be professionals supporting us while earning only a meager income as a construction worker. Imagine another childhood life without a father!

Ahh, my childhood days....... so nice to remember!