konting basketball at prom

Natatandaan ko pa ang seksing basketball shorts na ito ng Narra. Pati itong T-shirt. Ginamit natin ito nuong Senior’s Week sports fest. Subalit hindi ko matandaan kung nakapaglaro ba ako nun. Malamang ay hindi dahil bano akong maglaro ng basketball. Mahilig, oo; marunong, hindi. Sayang lang ang pagde-day dreaming ko na kasing galing ako ni Dondon Ampalayo ng Ginebra habang nanunuod si Romina.

Sa practice games ng Narra, nakalaro ako nun. Syempre, practice lang naman pero natatandaan ko nun, sinisigawan ako ni Roehl na takbo lang daw ako ng takbo at walang ginagawang iba. Eh coach, gusto ko lang naman magpapawis hehe…

Natatandaan ko pa, nakasama ako ni Trebet at Edge na maglaro sa court malapit sa Morong church, sa tabi ng palayan malapit sa gate ng RTPI. Nung uwian na, tumuwad kami sa gitna ng palayan… este— tumawid pala at naglaro ng pustahan kalaban ang ilang taga-RTPI din na nandun na. Nanalo kami nun gawa ko… o ha.. my misis, hanga ka ba? Madami akong na-score nun dahil lagi lang akong napapasahan nila Trebet sa may side at swertehang napapa-board ko naman, sabay takbong-ULTRA papunta sa kabilang court para magdepensa. Isa ata ito sa tatlong highlight games ng aking basketball career. Pag-uwi, naiwan ko pa ang polong uniform ko. Pakers.

Sa RTPI ako unang nakakita at nakalaro sa isang basketball court na hardwood at fiberglass ang board. Ako’y hanga. Dito din sa gym tayo nag Senior’s Prom. Hindi rin ako marunong magsayaw kaya nanunuod lang ako. Pero bago matapos ang gabi, isinayaw ko ng isang slow dance si Meg.

Di ko alam kung papano tatapusin ang isinusulat kong ito, kung ganito na lang kaya...

Stop.

sex, lives and someone's pda scandals

I can’t help but smile when I read about a classmate's supposed “PDA scandal” on the Narra yahoogroup thread, although admittedly, I don’t know the details of that tryst. It may not be as scandalous as what most of us wanted it to be (hell, from what I read, it might not have happened at all) but there’s a reason why a mischievous smile is on my face for that “mischievous act”.

Sino yun girl na katabi ni adonis? Si Rhoda ba yun tinitingnan ni Filoy? At bakit sila nagtitinginan? Nagtatanong lang naman hehe

The reason being I still can’t face the reality that my classmates are all grown-up, adult people doing adult stuff. Although I myself may (note the word “may”) have done stuff at par or worse (or better, depending on how one sees it) as what this someone allegedly did, I still can’t look at a classmate’s picture without asking questions I couldn’t/wouldn’t/shouldn’t ask them face to face.

Like what?

Well, like I wonder who among us was the first to lose one’s virginity. Hmmmnnn… sino nga kaya? Who among us was the first to reach “third base”. Who hit the homerun first? Who have done it in public, in a car, in a pool, in someone else’s bed? Who was the first to give and/or receive oral sex? Who are the married people who are having or have had affairs? I know these are questions I wouldn’t know the answer to but hey, they’re fun to think about, no?

But not to sound like my mind is preoccupied with sex, I also wonder who among us was the most successful in life, “successful” in all its definition, not just financially. Who have hit rock bottom? Who is the happiest? Who has the most regret in life? Who fulfilled the promise that they’ve showed back in high school? Who exceeded what is expected of them? Who became what most of us thought what they would be? Who became what they are now that most of us didn’t think they would be?

If those are hard questions, sort of like asking what the true meaning of life is, I also tend to think of trivial matters. Like who married first? Who are still single? And why? Who are now separated? Single parents? Multiple offspring from different partners?

I guess my point is we are all normal people who have done and still doing what normal people do, may they be something one can be proud of or things better left locked inside one’s closet, together with his/her other skeletons tucked away.

My memories of my classmates may be as innocent, naïve as a memory could ever be, but I know we ourselves won’t be like that, as we travel from point A to point B in our life journey, with a little detour here and there perhaps.

Here’s hoping I get to see anyone of you some time, somewhere, when I myself make a little pit stop in my journey. When I do, bet your closets I’m gonna ask you a question or two. What questions?

Read my mischievous lips :D

* photographs grabbed from the Narra Friendster account.

kras

May umamin na.

Subalit hindi naman nagpakilala. Crush nya daw si Monalisa. Malamang si Monalisa Dionisio na taga Cardona ang kanyang tinutukoy, our one time kaklase. Eh sino nga bang hindi may crush kay Mona? Malamang karamihan sa atin, during the time of our adolescence when we first learned to notice the opposite sex, about love, puppy love, about the birds and the bees.

Si Monalisa ang isa sa mga una kong napansin na gurlllll. Maganda sya, mahaba ang buhok, maputi. Instant crush ko sya nun. Subalit matatapos na ang school year, di ko man lang sya nakakausap kahit saglit. Isang araw, walang teacher, magulo sa room. Nakaupo ako sa bandang hulihan ng klase, nakatingin sa buhok ni Mona na nakaupo nun ilang silya ang layo sa akin sa harapan. Maingay sa room subalit halos hindi ko mapansin ang paligid dahil nakatingin lang ako nun sa kanya.

Parang slow mo, tumingin sya sa likuran. Nakatingin sya sa may direksyon ko, bumuka ang kanyang magandang mga labi.

“Jayson! Jayson!” tawag ni Mona.

Nakatingin ako sa kanya habang pinapakinggan ang pagtawag nya sa pangalan ni Jayson. Nagtataka naman ako kung bakit di sumasagot si Jayson, ganung kanina pa siya tinatawag. Kung ako ang tinatawag ni Monalisa, naiisip ko nung mga sandaling iyon, panigurado ay nasa tabi nya agad ako upang tanungin kung anong kailangan nya.

“Huy, Jayson!”

Ang ganda talaga niya. Nakatingin ako nun sa kanyang mukha, sa kanyang labi, sa kanyang mga mata…

…na nakatingin din sa akin!

“Jayson!!!”

“Uhhh… a-ako ba?” alanganin kong tanong.

“Oo, di mo ba ko naririnig?”

“H-hindi ako si Jayson…”

Toingks!

Shieeettt! Di pa pala nya ako kilala.

Epilogue : Yun ata ang una at huling pagkakataon kong nakausap si Monalisa. Di nagtagal, nag-migrate sila ng US (I think). Nagpunta pa nga tayo nun sa bahay nila bago sila umalis. Ilang taon din nuon ang lumipas na lagi akong napapatingin sa dati nilang bahay kapag napapadaan ako ng Cardona.

Asan na kaya siya ngayon? Ano na kayang nangyari sa kanya?

Rico, pasok.

may 31 GTG. morong rizal

*sinulat ni reta para sa narra yahoogroup, re-posted here without permission hehe

first off, let me just say "NAKNANGPOTA! !!"

i said that not because im angry but because i promised to say that in my first email after the GTG. no big deal so dont make a fuss out of it.

here's a long summary (conflicting words:) for your reference:

the GTG was not so grand if we talk about attendance, there were about 10 (myself, gemma, jude, lota, lisette, gladys, don, jayson, joan, jean) of us who went to paseo rizal, at various times if i may add. jude and I were the earliest to checkin at 4PM. i guess we were just excited since this is supposed to be the grandest of the grand. oh, we did see malen and jeje at kamalig later in the evening. so that makes it 12 (20%).

but just because the numbers didnt work for us, doesnt mean we didnt have a good time. i think everyone left paseo happy and satisfied.

here are some observations on the "newbies":

on gemma
- madaldal pala si gemma which prompted me to say i like her personality. didnt know that during highschool since we didnt talk to each other too much. i guess i was intimidated by her mestiza beauty back then so i wasnt able to muster a decent conversation. she gained some weight but she still looks fine. actually, the weight isnt bothersome at all. nadadaan na nya sa smart dressing.

on lisette
- still sexy.i guess her frame and height helps a lot. she's sporting a short do. medyo problematic sya because of health concerns sa parents nya and in fact she had to be in the hospital to watch over her folks. i guess nakatulong naman yung gtg kahit papaano para makalimutan nya yung problems nya. at least napasaya natin sya kahit saglit.

on lota
- she still looks the same, matangkad na slim. madaldal din pala si lota, dun ko din lang nalaman. at eto, mataray din pala etong kapatid natin. i guess she is not afraid to speak her mind. she's into tall, blue-eyed guys. i speculate this is because of her exposure to european culture (sana yung asawa ko pagbalik ay di maghanap ng tall and blue-eyed guy kasi bagsak ako sa tall at sa blue-eyed:). so philip (and the other singles out there), buy blue contacts and wear elevator shoes:)

on gladys
- gladys, gladys, gladys...well, i categorically denied that i had a crush on her when we were in highschool and i shamelessly said that right in front of her. ofcourse, i was just making her laugh, kasi we were discussing it openly later on. also, everybody knows thats not true and in fact, she even knows it. its an anecdote we can openly share. since past is past, napagusapan na din namin yung mga crush crush na yan pero i will not divulge anything else na napagusapan dun other than those involving myself. so i guess you have to be in the next one para malaman nyo. para din syang hindi tumanda, at yung frame nya ganun pa din. may nunal pa din sya:)

for those who were not able to attend, i have no ill feelings toward you guys. im disappointed, true, but not with you. like i always say, matatanda na tayo and madami na rin tayong responsibilities. ganyan talaga, shit happens. narra91 doesnt have to be first priority, or even 2nd or 3rd. live your life and make your decisions according to your rules. and guys, i find it crappy when we say that freakin cliche (kung ayaw may dahilan, kung gusto may paraan). life is not like that. lets not be jealous kung pinili nila na gawin yung ibang bagay. while "i love my wife and she is my best friend" sounds oh so cheezy, its also oh so true. sa totoo lang, narra91 is best positioned at the background, no more, no less. its a drop of spice, a jolt of energy---not something you live on everyday.

as for future GTGs, well here's hoping more of us will come. i find it hard to fathom seeing all 60 of us sharing the same table in the foreseeable future,but at least those who will come are guaranteed of having a grand time. di ko alam kung kelan uli mangyayari ang gtg pero sana more will happen, kahit once a year or twice a year or whatever.

so for narra91, i offer a toast. here's to 1991---a year when every girl graduated with curly hair (i still dont understand why kelangan magpakulot ang mga babae nung graduation)



sa uulitin,
reta


PS
salamat to jayson and jean for the text messages. yes, i got home safely.

more importantly, thanks to jude for his patience. pasensya na tol, ginawa kitang tsuper pero i really appreciate what you have done for me. salamat, salamat.