April: summer's gateway

April 1, 2022

Wonderful day friends! How's your Friday going so far? Have you published your April Fool's entry yet? I have read a few and I must say a lot of us have acquainted ourselves with this practice. As a kid, I never grow up observing April 1 as April Fools Day. For me, it is just a part of the two-month vacation. Back in the day, April and May spelled Summer Vacation. I remember how excited I am to spend some time with my cousins from my mom's side. Our vacation was never grand then but it is something I look forward to. I remember the days were spent lying in one room together with my aunts and cousins. My mom and her sisters would look back on the memorable days and share a laugh at the priceless experience they had before. Then, their topic would be diverted to their kids. Our aunts would go on praising our cousins who live in Bohol. They are pretty and they have fair skin. They speak in a very soft manner. It seems like their words are delicate.

Another thing that I look forward to every summer is the fiesta. It happens on the last Wednesday and Thursday of May. Though our family doesn't really celebrate the occasion, I still look forward to it because of the many activities that it brings. I especially missed the days when the streets were hard to pass because of the huge crowd. My grandma's house is just two blocks away from the basketball court and from there we can hear the loud noise every night for one week. Our barangay officials would prepare activities every day and night. Back then, every night we would hear vibrations from grandma's cupboard due to the loud noise from the court. The young people and the young at heart would spend the night drinking and dancing. I love those days because my cousins from away places would come home and also there will be lots of good-looking men that would visit the barangay for them to join in the basketball league. Good-looking guys back then for me are vitamins for my eyes.

The last thing that I look forward before during summer vacations is the afternoon spent on the street. I remember my neighbors would play different games every day and no matter how I badly want to join them, they can't let me because I'm weak. I don't run fast and I will just be a burden to the group. I was never the sporty- type of kid. I was never good at running, jumping rope, and even in Chinese garter. Maybe when God made me, the sporty ingredient was out of stock.

It really feels good to look back on the things that excite us before. Those days were carefree and stress-free. We still don't stress about work and we don't worry much about tomorrow. A part of us wanted to go back to the good old days but it would be useless and we don't have a choice but to march forward. Things may not be the way they seemed. We may have gone through a lot of changes. We may be afraid of the unknown and worrisome about tomorrow but the thing that we ought to do is to face it. A different set of things can excite us now. We have grown up. This is what we longed for and wished for before, right? No, there is no turning back. We have to march and move on. The things from the past will only be remembered as an inspiration. We no longer live there. Here is our present and we gotta live now while we march forward for the future.

Thanks for your time. Until the next read!

*Lead Image is from Unsplash.com