I never used to celebrate
birthdays—but increasingly, these years, I get a certain wish, a strong, quiet but maddening desire,
to be with myself on this day; to do nothing, to spend time with myself (of course,
with dear ones); but primarily, to see the beloved hermit in the form of an Old
Man with the Lamp on this very day, very far away from society. But normally, this
wish doesn’t usually happen to me. In 2007, I remember spending this day right
in a newsroom in Cebu, trying out a copy-editing job with friends and strangers
who never had an inkling it was my birthday. I read a lone greeting from a friend (it was from Ca) in Davao when I sneaked peek on my FB—or was it my email? They never
knew I was in Cebu, spending the graveyard hours copy-editing. In 2008, I was
inside a dorm in Quezon city’s barangay Loyola Heights,
battling with thick theoretical readings for our Media Ethics class at the
Asian Center for Journalism (ACFJ) at the Ateneo the following day. I was already
very drowsy because it was already deep in the night so I told Prateesh, my
pretty Nepali roommate, I can’t take it anymore, I got to sleep and leave my
readings in the morning; but Prateehba was so insistent that I should not
sleep. “No, no!" she said. "Do your readings now. You won’t be able to wake up in
the morning.” “I can wake up,” I said, confidently. “My
body has an inner clock that’s working perfectly.” Prateesh insisted that I
should not sleep so, I read a few more pages for a while and only went as far
as Herbert Marshall Mc Luhan and never got to John Rawls’ Theory of Justice,
which was my report the following day (how I figured out John Rawls’ theory of
justice the following day without reading him is another story) but on this
night of my birthday, I simply could not take all those readings anymore, I was
already very drowsy as I declared to Prateesh, “I’m not going to brush my teeth
tonight because it’s my birthday.” I can still see the shock and amusement on her face. She laughed so hard that she totally gave up making me read the rest of our readings. It was Bryant who discovered the following
day it was really my birthday (I think I had forgotten it) and he rushed to
join us with the Indonesian gang for some simple fun at the mall. The following years, my wish to be alone on
my birthday remains a wish that has never been completely fulfilled and
satisfied; and this year, this month, I’m afraid I’m going to spend my day
exploring a Unesco mountain. I only wish
I get to see the hermit. It will make up for everything. Sunday, July 13, 2014
Birthday Wishes
I never used to celebrate
birthdays—but increasingly, these years, I get a certain wish, a strong, quiet but maddening desire,
to be with myself on this day; to do nothing, to spend time with myself (of course,
with dear ones); but primarily, to see the beloved hermit in the form of an Old
Man with the Lamp on this very day, very far away from society. But normally, this
wish doesn’t usually happen to me. In 2007, I remember spending this day right
in a newsroom in Cebu, trying out a copy-editing job with friends and strangers
who never had an inkling it was my birthday. I read a lone greeting from a friend (it was from Ca) in Davao when I sneaked peek on my FB—or was it my email? They never
knew I was in Cebu, spending the graveyard hours copy-editing. In 2008, I was
inside a dorm in Quezon city’s barangay Loyola Heights,
battling with thick theoretical readings for our Media Ethics class at the
Asian Center for Journalism (ACFJ) at the Ateneo the following day. I was already
very drowsy because it was already deep in the night so I told Prateesh, my
pretty Nepali roommate, I can’t take it anymore, I got to sleep and leave my
readings in the morning; but Prateehba was so insistent that I should not
sleep. “No, no!" she said. "Do your readings now. You won’t be able to wake up in
the morning.” “I can wake up,” I said, confidently. “My
body has an inner clock that’s working perfectly.” Prateesh insisted that I
should not sleep so, I read a few more pages for a while and only went as far
as Herbert Marshall Mc Luhan and never got to John Rawls’ Theory of Justice,
which was my report the following day (how I figured out John Rawls’ theory of
justice the following day without reading him is another story) but on this
night of my birthday, I simply could not take all those readings anymore, I was
already very drowsy as I declared to Prateesh, “I’m not going to brush my teeth
tonight because it’s my birthday.” I can still see the shock and amusement on her face. She laughed so hard that she totally gave up making me read the rest of our readings. It was Bryant who discovered the following
day it was really my birthday (I think I had forgotten it) and he rushed to
join us with the Indonesian gang for some simple fun at the mall. The following years, my wish to be alone on
my birthday remains a wish that has never been completely fulfilled and
satisfied; and this year, this month, I’m afraid I’m going to spend my day
exploring a Unesco mountain. I only wish
I get to see the hermit. It will make up for everything. 
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I hope you had what you wished! :)
Mick
The Hermit did not appear, Mick, but the Teacher did! The kind who shows up when the Student is ready. But I seem to have forgotten what She said!~
i spent my birthdays alone. too. it's what i wish for every year, even though people forget to leave me alone, most of the time.
where you are looks beautiful. i wish i were your dorm-mate again.
i miss you.
these days, i spent my birthdays alone too. happy belated birthday. looks beautiful wherever it is you are these days. i miss you
You're forever my dorm-mate, Dreamwalker, no matter how many times you change your name, whereever in the world you are. :)
Post a Comment