Confessions on City Life

#88 Tiano-Mabini Sts., Cagayan de Oro City.

I’ve been residing here at my place for more than 6 years now. We moved here from our house in Macabalan when I was still in my first year high school way back year 2003. Unlike others who transferred because of studies then renting a room, the reason is somewhat different and practical. It’s not like other students who wanted to study away from home and venture an independent life. In fact, I live with my parents and one younger brother. We reasoned to minimize the cost of renting a house, while renting an office space; thus we decided to live in the city proper, so we can manage our business 24-hours a day if needed. So we cost cut the 3k per month of housing rental, now then living in a commercial area.

Counting advantages versus disadvantages, the city proper is not a good place to live for. Aside from the unfriendly social surrounding, where you see GROs at night, gangsters passing by, no place where you can let loose yourself – things like that – I don’t feel the grasp of a healthy environment. I never realized it until I became conscious of my health and the world’s health.

At the time when we transferred, I only thought of the benefits: malls are near; hospitals for emergencies; access of facilities; and more. Most of all, school is not a problem. I finished my high school at MOGCHS; the nearest school few blocks from our house. I walked to school everyday to save from transportation fare; however crossing the busy street of Velez, inhaling the smokes of crazy jeepneys speeding the roadway are its counterpart. Often times I met beggars who pull my pants begging for peso to buy food. I got used to it. My favorite past time then were surfing the net and playing pc games which was common ever since. I have distant friends, just a street away with the same bad habit just like me. Do it everyday, so it became a vice. Every weekend, I spent minutes to travel to my childhood place to hangout for a day. The place was fresh then; friendly environment and good atmosphere – unlike where I live. But life gets busier when you grow up; when I was in my third year, I then got to visit them just sometimes.

Time passed by and I started to be aware of what are around me. Reports on environment opened my eyes to reality. It keyed the locked part of my consciousness. Then I started complaining to myself – what’s going on WORLD?! I realized the differences when I was still younger and playing “dakup-dakop”, “dampa”, “patentero” – games like these – compared to what I have seen everyday after we moved. It’s not because I have grown-up; the reason is, I see nowhere in the corners boys and girls playing like what I did. At most, I see youngsters playing pc games in a not air-conditioned café and get amazed there for hours; I know because I was also there, stuck in a place where there is no proper ventilation. That kind of environment led to development of lung problems and complications. I got a feeling that it weakened me; much of my energy went to waste. And my body build tells it all.

At present times.

Every night before I go to sleep, I complain because I’m feeling that I’m still full of energy needed to waste. Four to six hours vis-à-vis with a computer really drains energy not but enough to get me to sleep. I sleep late at night when my body is totally exhausted.

I complain everyday when I woke up, at most times late for school since nowhere I can hear roosters crowing; no sweet bird sounds tweeting; and no morning gossips and footsteps. What I always hear are honks of cars, sometimes big tracks; broom sticks sweeping of city “janitors”; and footsteps of busy people talking about daily numbers.

Huh! Good thing that every year, we had time to travel for a grand vacation; to experience the freshness of nature in other places. It always reminds me of Bukidnon. I love to drink carabaos milk and eat durian pies while inhaling the atmosphere, seeing green fields, trees and mountains. Then for the rest, goes back to hell.

I realized these things when I went boozed recently. Two times I’ve been drank and compared my experiences. First was in my small air-conditioned room. Second, with my classmates at Balulang, a cold place matched for residential area. The former, I got wasted, and vomited what I had put into mouth. I felt really dazzled. The latter, was a GOOD MORNING WORLD! I slept around 3am but managed to wake up at 7am. That time I experienced the morning atmosphere from an excellent rest. The freshness of the morning lighted the thing they call “hang-over”.

How I wish we can moved to a residential place sooner; and get out of this hell. That’s possible in only one way – transfer to Heaven - but when – I can’t wait. A good news from my parents clinked into my ears. Few months from now and we’ll start the construction of our first dream house. That’s nice; love it! It’s like getting out of this Hades, and saying hello to Heaven.