Most Memorable memories with my Grandparents

My childhood is not the best, I must say. I grew up taking care of my siblings most of the time, so I must be mature at an early age. Nevertheless, I still have wonderful and unforgettable memories as a child. Most of my unforgettable memories are made with my grandparents, who love me a lot. I may not have received so enough love from my own parents, but it was filled by my grandparents – my paternal grandparents. They supplied my emotional as well as spiritual needs that my parents could not give me.

When I was young, my mornings started by drinking a glass of milk. I particularly don’t like milk because it makes me puke, so I would secretly give it to my cousin who is younger than me, and as a result she’s bigger and fat though she’s younger. Before having our breakfast, we usually read a bible text together. Since I have other cousins in the care of my grandparents as well, one of us is scheduled to read the daily bible text and the corresponding comment about it. Sometimes, even though someone’s already scheduled to read, we would still compete as to who will get the textbook first, so we could show off our reading skills. Then we would discuss and give our personal insights on how we could apply it to our lives, my grandfather would commence it with a prayer, then we proceed to eat our breakfast. During school days or weekdays, we couldn’t do this every day because we usually wake up late, so this is done in the evening instead before we go to bed.

Going to bed is one of my favorite things to do because before we go to sleep, my cousins and I would usually talk about random stuffs while whispering, sometimes we don’t realize that our whispers are getting loud, and my grandma would here and hush us. Sometimes when we can’t be reprimanded at first try and still gets loud in the middle of the night, grandma would give us small pinches which totally hushed us off.

When my cousins and I got a little older, we became boisterous and naughty. We live in one compound which has 3 houses, my parent’s house, my grandfather’s house, and the big bungalow house where my grandmother stays. You see, my grandparents are not a sweet couple. They sleep separately and live in different houses, so they would avoid getting into arguments. But during meals, they still eat together. At night, my cousins and I would sneak out to watch television at our neighbor’s house which is located few meters away from our compound, we must cross a creek to get there. Since our grandmother does not allow us to go out at night, we just sneaked and once she noticed us missing, she would close and double lock the door to teach us a lesson. But we were smart kids, she didn't know that we had a secret tunnel to enter the house even though she double locked the door. There is a room in the house where they planned to put a new air conditioner, the box-like opening in the wall is ready but the aircon hasn't been installed yet, so they cover it with plywood first. Grandma didn’t know we secretly removed the lock. A grown-up would not fit in, so it is safe from thief, but since I am small, I can perfectly fit in. We usually go home at 10 p.m. when the television dramas are done. By that time, my grandma is already sound asleep. To sneak inside the house, my older cousins help me to climb up the tunnel, they would gently push me upward until I could get inside, and I would slowly pick up the key next to my grandma. That’s the most challenging part because she has all the keys in the house, and it would get noisy if I’m not careful.

 One time, my youngest cousin who is just 6 years old that time sneaked out first, so we played a prank on her. We decided not to watch drama, and we didn’t follow her. She probably enjoyed the dramas and forgot that we stayed at home. As usual, grandma closed the door, and we all went to sleep. My cousin slept at the small nipa hut next to my grandpa’s house. She stayed outside on a cold night with my older cousin’s shirt as her blanket. The next day, grandma beat her up with the broom to reprimand her. Since that day, she never dared going out at night without us.

I also loved it when it is time to harvest coconuts. My grandparents owned a big coconut plantation, so when it is time to sell the copra or dried coconut kernels, one of us accompanies grandma to the town where the copra is sold. That time, it is a happiness of a child to be able to go to town where I could see lots of products in the market, and we would eat out in one of the cafeterias at the market. When she’s in the mood, we would go to the bigger town where grandma’s favorite restaurant is located. There are no fast-food restaurants that time.

I was in second grade when my parents decided to went home and put up a business instead of working far away from home. My happiness became limited since then. Mom would always give me just enough money to buy a biscuit, which is Php.3 or merely $0.06. To have more pocket money for school, I would drop by at my grandpa’s house and act cute. Sometimes I volunteer to shave his beard for him, and in return he would give me cookies and money. His feet are paralyzed due to arthritis, so he can’t walk at all, and that is another opportunity for me to get more money from him lol. I would tell him to pay me 10 pesos or $0.20, and I would fetch water for him. Ten pesos is already a big amount that time, and it makes me really happy every time he gives me money.

When there are no classes, my cousins and I would usually hang out with grandpa. He would tell us stories about his adventures when he was younger, he would tell us how he obtained his so-called anting-anting or amulet and where he buried it because he no longer need it. He would tell us the story of his paninilbihan or service of courtship to marry my grandma, and his stories about how girls would swoon over him because he has a beautiful penmanship. When we get tired of his stories, he would give us riddles and lecture us about science and math which we find really boring, so we would ask him to play a music instead using his harmonica. Sometimes, instead of playing his harmonica, grandpa would sing us Spanish songs instead and sometimes songs in our native language which sounds funny to us then after that, he would feed us cookies and biscuits.

One of the days I looked forward to before is the day when my uncles goes home from abroad. That time, they would send letters to my grandparents stating the date of their arrival. My grandparents would be excited to see their sons again after years of not seeing each other, but my cousins and I are more excited about the thought of having lots of chocolates for pasalubong or presents. Aside from the sweets, we usually receive perfumes, clothes, bags, and shoes which we could show off at school. Looking back, I was such as show off as a child.

These are a few of the most unforgettable memories from my childhood, which makes me happy and nostalgic every time I look back on those days.

These are photos of me and my grandpa when I was just a one-year old baby and the 15-year old me during my graduation in high school.

These are my beloved grandparents. I call them nanay and tatay.

Lead image from lastly.com