Back To Where Ones Placenta Was Burried

"She wants to go back to where her umbilical cord was burried," said the lady while exiting the jeepney.

It's been three months that is when we moved in. The old house, occupied and inherited by our eldest and her family is where we grew up. Whilst the house we are staying was built when we're young. It is through the sacrifices of our parents that they were able to build a new one though earning money those days is harder than today.

Moving from one place to another is quite hard especially for the kids although where we stayed before is just in another sitio. It's just some 10-15 minutes walk for an adult but with kids, it would take 30-40 minutes.

Before we moved in we stayed at our parents place in town during the school vacation. And even before that, we, except for the two older school kids and their father, stayed in town so that I may be able to do transactions on my small buy-and-sell venture easier.

On our first few weeks here, the kids experienced being homesick and separation anxiety. They kept asking their friends. They said they didn't want to study here but at their old school. They badly wanted to see our house which is why I had to make explanations they easily can understand without hurting their feelings.

The kids easily get along with the other kids here aside from their cousins although I can sense that my daughter is a bit shy.

I can't help but compare our current place to my husband's. I think it is a normal thing. I have listed some which I observed the most.

Along the highway vs. down the road

I have to keep reminding my kids when walking along the road and crossing the street to and from school. The two older kids are aware of cars passing by and thankfully there are policemen stationed at the junction just near the school where they can guide the school children in crossing the street.

We are currently near the highway, unlike our old place that we need to walk some distance up to the street whenever we go to town. For one with a baby and a toddler in tow, you ended up all sweat, tired and thirsty when you reach the road.

However staying near the highway also has its cons. My toddler of three went walking with another kid who said they will go see his aunt but they ended up to the bridge which is a far distance. Thankfully, the other kid's granddad was able to follow them after making rounds in the community and asking about but he saw them nowhere. Eventually he decided to go to Maggang bridge where he saw them poking their heads out the bridge and gleefully enjoying the view of the river below.

Excellent network connection vs poor

Most often, if you have noticed that I only get to check on your articles two to three times a week and got to post one article in a week. It is due to the very poor network connection that we have here. Neither globe nor smart network is good enough to cater my needs in online selling and accesing readcash. I am using PLDT wifi but it's just the same and I can only afford 50 pesos a week for my wifi which is only good for three days.

My data connection in our old place is even better compared to using a wifi here. And 70 pesos for my data connection is good for seven days time.

It's really a pain in the *ss since I can't interact whenever I wanted too.

More spacious vs two rooms

I must admit that our old place has only two rooms though the lot the house is standing will make for a bigger one. The bathroom/comfort room is however separated.

The house we currently are in has 3 bedrooms upstairs. That's why the kids has their own room but they prefer to sleep with us especially this cold season. They have more space to play downstairs although it is where the living room is. That's why it's very unorganize and toys are everywhere everytime someone drops our house.

Well, these are the ones on top of my list because it's just the same barangay but only a different sitio.

Additionally, the daycare center in our old place is just some couples of meters away from our house that's why my two older kids who attended it went to school without being accompanied.

On the contrary, the daycare center here is currently located in one room of the elementary school which is more or less 70 meters away from our house. And that I had to accompany my toddler in going to and pick him up after especially that they had to walk in the street.

Back with the title, it only mean going back to one's birth place. It's an idiomatic expression here in our place. It's actually "where his/her umbilical cord was buried". However, umbilical cord and the placenta go together so it's just the same.

I was inspired to write this one because of the conversation that took place when one time I went to town for some errands. Because our previous place is just on the other side of the barangay thus passengers from both sides ride the same jeepneys. So chismis will spread like wildfire inside the jeepney which sometimes I don't like because as if the person concerned is not present or is it the social status of a person concerned in their chismis is not someone they can show respect to that they weren't able to shut their rude mouth? I wasn't wearing a facemask that time to atleast hide the redness of my face from shame that I was the center of conversation.

That idiom at the introduction was told by a lady whose cut of tongue I really don't like that she even spew it in a sarcastic tone. However, it didn't bother me much but I just don't like the way she told it.

Nonetheless, with people like me transferring from one address to the other, surely, you can't help but compare the place and people. At the end of the day, we have to adjust and fit in to the new one.

11-6-22

Z_Graeden