EXCLUSIVE: ‘HABAGAT’ BREAKS SILENCE

Reblogged from The Professional Heckler:

FOR ALMOST THREE DAYS, the metro and several Luzon provinces reeled from heavy downpour. The flooding submerged 60 percent of Metro Manila. By Friday noon, the death toll would reach 60.

What hit us was not even a typhoon. It didn’t have a name. On Twitter, I wrote:

Weather experts described it as southwest monsoon rains. A monsoon is a wind system that brings heavy rainfall. Locally, we call it ‘habagat.’

Earlier today, ‘Habagat’ chatted with this blogger. Here’s the transcript of that exclusive interview.

Kumusta ka na Habagat?

Ok naman. Medyo nilalamig pa rin. Ikaw, kayo ‘musta?

Ay, salamat naman sa concern. Heto, may mahigit animnapung kababayan ang namatay at 850,000 ang na-displace; may sampung lungsod at munisipalidad sa Metro Manila, at anim na lalawigan ang nasa ilalim ng state of calamity, at more than 150 million pesos ang halaga ng nasirang pananim. Mabuting-mabuti naman!

Hindi ka pa galit n’yan?

Ay hindi. Ang bait-bait nga namin sa ‘yo eh. ‘Kita mo naman, all smiles pa rin kami kahit binugbog na ng dala mong ulan, baha, hangin at kung anu-ano pa. Sino ka ba talaga? Kung nagpapapansin ka, well, congrats! Tagumpay ka. Pero sana, naging ganap na bagyo ka na lang para madaling makilala.

Excuse me, hindi ako nagpapapansin. In fact, malamig ang pakikitungo ko sa inyo. But in fairness to some of your kababayan, sobrang hospitable nila sa akin.

Wehhh? Inis nga sa ‘yo ang marami eh.

I said some, not majority. Why did I say hospitable? Lunes ng hapon, grabe na ang aking ulan. Sinabihan na silang lumikas. Pero anong sagot nila, “Mababa pa naman ang tubig. Baka titila rin.” Boom! Ako naman, hala, sige, ulan. Moment ko ‘to so go lang. The rest, as the cliché goes, is history. ‘Tapos ako pa ang sisisihin ngayon?

Sige, ikaw na ang magaling. Ikaw na ang walang kasalanan.

Thank you. Pero hanga ako sa government n’yo huh. Alerto! Kahit medyo sumablay ang PAGASA sa pagbasa sa galaw ko, naitawid n’yo pa rin ang week na ‘to na walang sinisibak ang inyong Pangulo. At may Project Noah pa kayo. Impressive.

Speaking of Noah, alam mo bang kumalat sa social networking sites na may kuneksyon ka raw sa Genesis? Noong kasagsagan kasi ng ulan mo, ang petsa ay 8/7/2012. Eh ‘yong tungkol sa Noah’s Ark, mababasa raw sa Genesis 8:7-12. Anong masasabi mo?

Hiyang-hiya naman ako sa creativity n’yo… mga ulol! Kung sino mang nagpasimuno n’yan at nag-aksaya ng oras to retweet o repost, I’ll give them an A for effort – na manakot. Pero nililinaw ko, walang kakune-kuneksyon kay Noah ang aking pagdating. Mas may kunek pa ako kay Gener.

Salamat sa paglilinaw. Heto pa: dahil daw sa pending RH Bill kaya bumabaha at umuulan nang walang tigil. Is this true?

Ang tatanga! Naturingang 86.567 percent ang functional literacy rate, ‘tapos ang bobobo. Nakakainis! Ayaw ko nang mag-elaborate. Baka ma-excommunicate ako.

Hanging habagat? Mai-excommunicate? Pa’no kaya ‘yon!?

Hoy! Si Lito Lapid nga naging senador! ‘Tapos si Anne Curtis, nagkaroon ng album at nag-platinum pa! Wala nang imposible sa mundo natin ngayon!

Bahala ka na nga! Anyway, nakita mo ba ang aming Pangulo sa Muntinlupa last Wednesday sa relief operations?

Relief operations ba ‘yon? Akala ko first day ng campaign ng Liberal Party for the midterm elections.

Sobra ka naman. Lahat na lang binigyan mo ng kulay.

So fault ko? Fault kong makitang kumakaway ang napakagandang si Ms Rissa Hontiveros, ang Customs Commissioner na si Ruffy Biazon, ang dashing congressman na si Sonny Angara at ang direktor ng Tesda na si Joel Villanueva? Fault ko?

Sinabi ko bang fault mo?

Para kasing pinapalabas mong ang dumi-dumi ng utak ko. Sige, sige. Ako na ang madumi. Sige. Sabihin na nating nagkataon lang na silang apat ay kasama sa senatorial slate ng Liberal Party. Kunwari, hindi natin alam na eleksyon next year. Ok. Fine. I salute them. I admire their selflessness and their genuine desire to help the downtrodden. They are role models. Humahanga ako sa kanila!

Ang plastic mo!

Ulan, gusto mo?

Gago. Tama na. ‘Kita mo ngang ‘di pa kami nakakabangon.

Eh kasi naman nakakaduda eh. Lubog sa baha ang barangay, kasama mo ang head ng Tesda?!? Ano ‘yon, mamimigay ng scholarship? Magpa-facilitate ng training? May libreng haircut?

Again, huwag tayong manghusga. Ang importante, tumutulong sila sa mga nangangailangan.

Ang plastic mo!

Pakyu ka! Maiba ako, I’m sure nasaksihan mo ang pagbisita ng aming Pangulo sa Valenzuela.

Oo naman. Andun ulit si Joel Villanueva.

Hindi ka pa rin nakaka-move on kay Mr. Tesda?

Hahaha. May bago kasing tawag sa kanya sa Twitter eh. Presidential Shadow. O, hindi ako ang nagsabi n’yan huh. Nabasa ko lang sa Twitter.

Hanging Habagat? May Twitter?!!!??

Bakit? Si Erap nga taga-Maynila na eh. ‘Tapos si GMA, nakalaya. Wala nang imposible ngayon.

Fine! Moving on… kinilig ka ba nang batiin ni President Noy si Councilor Shalani Soledad nang magkita sila sa relief operations the other day?

Hanging habagat kinikilig? Weird.

Tarantado. Kunwari lang! ‘To naman o! Ang hirap kayang tapusin ng blog post na ‘to! Sumagot ka na lang. Please.

Ahm, let’s say, mas na-excite ang mga taong nando’n. Sigawan nga sila eh. Kilig na kilig ang mga pucha. Kakapanood ng PBB Teens, akala yata sixteen years old ang pangulo nila.

Ano sa palagay mo ang naramdaman ng dalawa?

Seriously? Well, parang ako lang. Malamig.

Sanga pala, kasabay ng pananalasa mo sa Luzon at NCR, nagtaas naman ng presyo ng kanilang mga produkto ang mga kompanya ng langis. Sa tingin mo, alin ang mas destructive? Ikaw o sila?

Helllloooo! Minamaliit mo ako?!? Kesyo nameless ako? Kesyo hindi ako naging ganap na bagyo?!? Siyempre, sila!

May mensahe ka ba sa mga biktima mo sa Pilipinas?

Nawalan lang ng tirahan, biktima na agad? ‘Di ba pwedeng ‘they had me coming’ muna? Illegal logging. Clogged drainage. Truck-truck na basurang kung saan-saan ‘tinatapon. Illegal settlers sa mga mapanganib na lugar. Kayo rin ang problema eh. Habagat pa lang ako huh. Just imagine kung naging ganap na bagyo ako.

Nagbabanta ka?

#justsaying.

Wow! Hanging habagat, huma-hashtag??!?

Magtanong ka na lang! Umaaraw na. Paalis na ako.

Ok, last. ‘Yong chopper na sinasakyan ni Pangulong Aquino patungong Central Luzon kanina, nag-emergency landing daw sa SCTEX. Any thoughts?

Alam mo, nasa Bible ’yan eh. Ang mababa ay itataas at ang mataas ay ibababa.

Gano’n? So, may kuneksyon talaga sa Bible ang chopper ng Presidente?!?

Meron.

Owwws?

Oo naman! Bakit? Sino bang kasama ng Pangulo papuntang Central Luzon kanina? ‘Yong head ng Tesda, si Joel Villanueva! May kunek ‘yon sa Bible!

Oo nga ‘noh! Ang utak mo talaga!

Hanging habagat, may utak? Kelan pa?

Ulol!

The Story of ROLDAN JIMENEZ PINEDA

This is a re-post from Facebook coming from a friend.. I didn't edit anything with respect to the original post. Please share..

I am just sharing this picture of a very humble guy named ROLDAN JIMENEZ PINEDA, 63yrs old, from Kawayan, Isabela. You don’t need to read everything if you feel lazy, but all I need to ask you is pray for his safety. I am not a writer, but I will try to tell you the story.




Here's what happened:

Just this windy and rainy morning, I was in my friend's canteen. It is just beside the subdivision where I live. I was chatting with my friend's dad about some business. This humble guy came in front caught my attention. He was not asking for money nor anything. Instead, he ordered P5 worth of rice. He cannot even look directly because he feels so shy.He said, "Maaari po bang bumili ng limang pisong kanin?" His hair is so wet that's why he covered it with a small towel. His clothes are kinda wet too. When I heard his shaking voice, I can feel that he is tired, cold, and starving. He has a green backpack and a sack with old boxes and plastic bottles. I suddenly felt sorry about him, that my heart was telling me that I need to do something. Instead of me just sitting on my chair, I decided to stand up and tried talking to him. I asked him if that small amount of rice would satisfy him. He said that he was planning to eat some of it and save some, then continue walking til he reach Nueva Ecija which is more than a hundred miles I think. His destination would be Kawayan, Isabela, where he lives. He asked if he can fill his bottle with some water. I said, sure. While I was putting water in his used old bottle, I told him to order some more food so he can eat. Told him not to worry because I will pay it for him. Mang Roldan never asks for money. He earns his own by selling bottles at the junk shops. His eyes turned red, while he was trying to hold his tears. He said that he can’t thank me enough.

MANG ROLDAN: Nahihiya po ako kasi ganito lang suot ko.(- I feel shy because of what I am wearing.)

ME: Akong bahala po sa inyo. Ano pong gusto nyong kainin? (- That is ok. Do not worry. What do you wanna eat?)

MANG ROLDAN: Wala po ako sa posisyon para pumili. Kahit gulay lang po o yung pinakamura. (- I am not in the position to choose. I can have vegetables or the cheapest food would be fine.)

ME: Kailangan nyo pong kumain. Order po kayo kahit ano, yung siguradong mabubusog kayo. (- You need to eat, and make sure to satisfy yourself.)

I took his hand so he can walk beside the stand where he can choose. While they were giving him his food, I told him that I need to go home and get some money so I can pay his bill. At home, I grabbed my old camouflage jacket which I gave him.

We talked about his tragic story and his plans. Years ago, he needed to sell their house and lot because his wife had a bone disease. Sadly, everything was spent but his wife didn’t make it. He had 3 children. The first born were twins, died because of bronchopneumonia. While the youngest was ran over by a bus. He tried putting a small business by selling fishballs in Manila, but in the time of Bayani Fernando, MMDA took his carts and destroyed them. Mang Roldan and his family are church people. You can tell with the way he speaks. He visited Pampanga to see his sister/brother. Too bad he wasn’t able to meet the only family that he knows. Hearing his story broke my heart.

I also noticed that he cannot walk straight because of his swollen left leg. “Lumipad yung bato na nadaanan nung gulong ng jeep, tumama sa paa ko” he said. (A rock smaller than my fist was the reason) He thanked me for the food and jacket. I handed him some money so he can ride the bus and buy food. He said that he cannot give me anything in return. Seeing him wipe his tears made me feel super sad that it made me cry too. I was speechless. I shaked his hand and told him that his story was enough for me to learn things, and I was happy that I was able to help him. I gave him my umbrella so he will not get wet on his journey. He didn’t want to take it, but I insisted. (I hope my mom won’t notice that her umbrella is missing)

While Mang Roldan was crossing the street I was looking at him. I noticed that he was walking towards a corner. He saw a beggar on the side. You know what he did? He did not share the food that he had, HE GAVE EVERYTHING! Rice, bread, and water. That’s it! That was priceless! I knew that this man is special. He touched my heart. I realized that what I gave him is not even enough. Salt water fell from my eyes. (even while I’m typing now). I decided to go to him when I noticed that busses and jeepneys were not stopping because of discrimination. So we waited for a bus and I took his picture. He smiled and said, “half-body lang ha, nakakahiya may dala akong sako. Hehehe!” What a guy! He can still smile after all the things that he went through. Finally, a bus stopped. I told him to act as if he is my uncle. Before he stepped on the bus, he thanked me again. I waved goodbye and said “Ingat Tito, text mo ko kaagad.” I said it loud so the conductor will hear me and pretend that Mang Roldan has a cellphone.

I don’t know, but he was like an angel that was sent to teach me and realize lots of things. That is why I decided to put it on FB, hoping that you will learn from it. If only I am wealthy enough, I would love to do more things just to help more needy, homeless, poor, deserving people. I have been planning to create my own Foundation since I was young. Well, God has plans for all of us. Maybe someday I will. I also hope I could meet Mang Roldan again, and give him a fishball business or have him help me helping others.

I remember a book written by Father Jerry Orbos, that we should not be just good Samaritans but we need to be Better Samaritans.

You can share this if you want. If not, just please pray that God bless the people like Mang Roldan. May God Bless you too =)