The Recognition Day II – The Three-Hour Twist

“This practice was very tiring, and I got to go home now. The time now is 12:30 pm, and we need to get back to this very room at 2:00 pm, in our school uniforms.”

That was the plan, but I didn’t follow it. After my hands relentlessly beat the metallic pieces of the xylophone rhythmically, I deserve a reward for myself, and that is –EAT! I persuaded Charlene to treat me, and we both settled to the agreement that she pays half of my lunch. :D

We ate at KFC, and it was a meal slowly eaten. Of course, in every meal by III-Gold, chatting is inevitable. And that’s what we did, we chatted the whole time we ate. We just can’t stop our mouths from doing it. That made us slow, and the time now was 1:20pm, 40 minutes from the time Kuya Canono marked.

Well, that 40 minutes is so, so, so SHORT! the average commuting time from main gate to Clark is 12 minutes, not mentioning the newly-erected traffic light on the SCTex South Interchange. If unfortunate, that average travel time may grow to 15 minutes, if the jeepney has passengers on the far outreach of Gil Puyat Avenue, the Texas Instrument billion-dollar construction project and the Luentai Annex at Sampo. Multiplying it by 2, I will get the product of 30 minutes, which is the commuting time back and forth Clark’s Main Gate.

I will ride two jeepneys before I get home. First is the Checkpoint – Holy – Highway route, then the Main Gate – Gil Puyat Avenue – Air Force City Route. The Checkpoint travel time, is by my calculations, at least 5 minutes in average. Mulitplying it by 2, because I’m travelling back and forth, gives me the answer of 10 minutes.

Let’s do more math. 30 plus 10 is equal to 40 minutes. Exact, right? I’m in the nick of time! Nah.. I have more minutes to spend before I get back on time. First, the stationary times. Waiting for a jeepney to be filled in the rarely ridden Main Gate terminal takes 5 minutes, on normal school days during afternoon, when students are coming home. At lunch time ‘til 3pm, the passenger rate plummets deep; and the jeepneys fill at an average of 20 minutes. I will be lucky if I will see the jeep full, but totally unlucky if the slow barker is already giving the total collection of the passengers’ fare to the driver.

And that was the case. I went to the terminal with the slow barker giving the total collection to the greedy driver. I could have ridden in the front, but I was with one of my classmate and I could not leave her. So, there was no choice but to wait for the next slow jeepney to line up. I also don’t know to the drivers on why they line up so slowly. Know why? Because here is what they are doing. All of the jeepneys are parked on a fenced vacant lot behind the sparsely passed through road on which they line up. The barker will effortfully scream their plate numbers from a list of three-digit orders written in a small blackboard. Now, if they know that their turn is near, why wouldn’t they already line up, or why will the barker call for the next jeepney after the previous jeepney had left. That situation cost me five minutes.

The jeepney ride was dull as the smoke it releases was polluting. I feel mute for I feel stressed from all the time management I need to carry out. Unfortunately for me, the jeepney passed through different sections of is routes, almost all the possible places it can go through. The ill-fated situation of passing through Texas Instruments that I am telling you earlier became my destiny, making it the worst timing for me ever!

At last, I got home, and the time is 2 pm, maybe by now, Chica and Danielle are now on the Drum and Lyre room, and I am still walking the road to my humble home.

I pushed the screened door, went straight to the sofas, and lied down. I removed my shoes, and my socks releasing the stench stress of my sockets to spread in the room, hoping that the odor is not too strong to suffocate my family. I lied for five minutes on the sofa, relaxing my body with every second of it. Time management flew out of my mind, because all I have in my mind is rest.

After my brief relaxation period, I stood up, reached out for my speech and made some editions to it. When we practiced our recognition rites, I noticed that my speech was too long, for everyone was so quiet. There are too possible answers on why there are so quiet, maybe they are interested on my speech, or maybe the speech is too long. Since high school students are rarely interested in speeches, probably, they find my long speech so boring. So, I shortened it up, made some style corrections and rephrased some of the words. What was a two-page speech, became a 1 and ¼ page talk.

After the short editing session, I dressed up, brushed my teeth, sought for the invitation, pocketed the awardee ribbon, asked for some money, wore my unshined shoes, and went away. And grrrrrr…. After the ticks and the tocks of the tiny clocks, the passing-by of the clouds on the sky, the glimpses of my neighbors, there I was standing, standing for almost 30 minutes and no jeepney was at sight.

To my dismay, I saw my mother and my sister, also walking to wait for a jeepney. They are going with me, but the original plan is that I go first, for I am needed urgently. But geez, the slow circulation of the jeepneys in this seemingly remote and uncivilized area gave me gigantic time problems! The time now is 3pm, and not only did I exceed the call time for the Windchime, but I am also passing through the benchmark for the awardees! The third year level coordinator reminded us to be on the Multi-Purpose Hall by 3pm, and computing it with the commuting time, it’s confirmed, I will be late!

More minutes float away, and after 20 minutes, a jeepney appeared. Whoooh! What a spark of hope! But in another twist, the jeepney was full, and it cannot accommodate another passenger.

The ceremonies will start at 4pm, and as of now, I am on critical level! I have no time to lose! As the minute hand of the clock turns more and more clockwise, my sister finally thought of calling someone for some transportation. (I don’t know how she does that) In five minutes, service came at last, and we can now all go to the Hall. We will be getting there on time, but not for me! :D

Finally, we were dropped in front of Robinsons Place Angeles, and my mother said that I run now and they will just follow. I didn’t run. I just walked fast, there is no need to rush, for I will be getting there on time!

I entered the High School Department, and I felt so nervous that the processional might have already started, I will be sitting at the back then if that happens. I am listening for any tunes of Aida March, or the voice of Chica or Ma’am Quillao on the microphone. I hear nothing. I saw Sir Agustin, and he was screaming at my direction, “Hoy, dalian mo na! Ikaw na lang ang hinihintay!” And until now, I don’t know if he was talking to me or to someone at my back.

I was not late. :D Thank God! whhoooooohhhh…. :D