Traffic Jam Moment

I was doing some gift wrapping in the living room this morning when my nephew appeared in front of me. In his hands were toy vehicles he took out from the toy box. My nephew carefully arranged the toys on the coffee table to simulate a rush hour traffic. A truck and a bus, longer than his arm lead the queue while plastic cars smaller than his fist line behind. The other half of the table is

Slice Of Life

The third week of October will likely be remembered for certain things - like the permanent transfer to the morning shift, and the string of tardiness that would shock even the most reasonable of superiors; the nights of wild abandon, whose libation flow brought my feet to Trip's pad in Mandaluyong, then to Malate and Timog the next night; and the solemn observation of days, that mark my 

For The Future

Previously on SouljackerThe trend is to lay claim to the overhead cabinets, before they too fall victim to the hoarders looking for space to dump their keepsakes. These wooden storage boxes, while already being used as repository of useless things, don't make the most of the available space. Given proper attention, the old stuff they hold can be thrown away, allowing the essentials littering the

Little Stories From The Jungle Gym

Salcedo Park PlaygroundIA kid from the Middle East, about the same age as the 18-month old boy I babysit, pedaled his baby blue bike away, bawling, after Baby Lenin pointed at his toy ball at the back of his bike. My nephew merely said the word "ball," but apparently the other kid already got tired of our insolence. Earlier, Baby Lenin wobbled towards the bike after seeing a toy truck on its

The Babysitter

Ten in the morning and I was still up. It is as if karma had decided to pay a visit. And as punishment for being super grumpy the night before, I was only given less than five hours of sleep.But karma wasn't done yet. Before it left, the cosmic thought toyed with my biggest fear when my laptop's firewall suddenly got disabled. The system error slowed my operating system to a standstill.And I woke

Baby Lenin Moments

Just last week:"Alam mo ba yang si Baby Lenin, nakikitawag sayo nung tinatawag kita."My mom said."Sabi ko, 'Jaaaay!  Jaaaaaaay!' Siya naman 'Eeeehhhh,  Eeeeeeeehhhhh'"Just before he goes to sleep, tonight."Ano nga ulit pangalan ko?""Eehh?"  My 8-month old nephew seems doubtful of his answer. Just the same, the acknowledgement has put a smile on my face.Many parents claim that their first born's

World Spins Madly On

If we take the word of Harold Camping and believe in his predicted rapture, the end times happen in a few hours. The chosen ones, they say, will disappear on earth and will be taken up to heaven. While those left behind are doomed to eternal damnation as the Armageddon goes into full swing.I do not know what these doomsayers are up to, but it seems everyone is simply caught up with the Apocalypse

Hele | Duyan

Ang  dapat sanang muling  pagpikit ng aking mga mata ay paulit-ulit na napuputol dahil sa manaka-nakang pag-iyak ni Baby Lenin sa katapat na kuwarto. Inihabilin kasi siya  upang alagaan ng kanyang lola habang  ang mama nito ay nakiki-rally sa Mendiola. Pinuntahan ko ang mag-lola upang tingnan kung paano makakatulong. Nalaman ko na pinapatulog pala ang bata pero ayaw nitong dapuan ng

Fairie Godmother

And I said,  "Lord, just give me enough time to serve my mom."   The supplicated words used to be my prayer.  "After her,  I am ready to go."   With no dreams to call my own, no plans in sight, my lifetime will be about taking care of my mother.  Nothing more.Then Baby Lenin was born.It was never my desire to be his ninong, but protocols of the blood calls for higher purpose. My utol clarified a

Uncle Baabaa

Wait until Lenin gets his hands on theseHindi  matatapos ang isang linggo na hindi ako nakakadalaw sa Toy Kingdom. At katulad  ng nakasulat sa huling entry, sinamahan nga ako ni Baabaa sa paghahanap ng laruan para sa aking pamangkin.  Habang nakapila ako sa cashier ay biglang nawala ang binata.  Akala ko noong una ay lumabas ito para makapag-register at maka-avail ng free Wi-Fi sa loob ng mall.

Bundle of Joy

If insomniacs are shaped by the people around them, then I am certain that my nephew will become one when he grows up. At three months old, Lenin's bedtime is usually at past midnight.  He even cries when his lola tries to put him to sleep because he knows, the adults will stay up.  The favorite aunt would get mad if she learns about this, but in the company of vampires (where even the yayas

Full of Grace

Baby Lenin returns home after being confined in the hospital. He stayed for four days, and the round the clock vigil had robbed his parents of sleep. His urine samples showed infection. Someone was careless to let piss and feces collect in his diapers. On his first night, the baby's fever soared to 41 centigrade. The news worried the matriarch so bad, she asked me to inform the favorite aunt of

Pedia Ward

Slowly, my mother's wheelchair rolled towards the emergency room. We had just left the admission department after securing our private room, when we heard an infant cry.The shrill of his voice bounced across the room. Gut instincts told me who it was, my mom thought otherwise."Teka, si Lenin yun ah!" Lenin is my 2-month old nephew"Hindi ha!" While the matriarch was arguing with me, I pushed her