My unique journey

June 3, 2009

June 1, 2009.

“SM North / Trinoma / Proj. 6″

The signage of the jeep says. As a probable prospect, I got attracted by the signage that will eventually lead me two jeeps away from my home. I waved at the jeepney driver to signal my entry to his PUV. I first noticed that no one’s seating next to the driver but since the entry point of the jeep nearest to my location is at the back, I entered there with no questions asked.

When I sat down, I bumped my head on the ceiling of the jeep. Good thing it’s soft that’s why I had acquired no damage at all.

“Thank God” I said to myself. Funny thing is that I started bumping my head again to try if it is indeed soft and that I’m not dreaming. Alas, it’s real.

After a while, more and more passengers came in. I moved a little bit to give way to the coming passengers.

I picked up my nifty green coin purse inside my bag and digged a 20 peso bill to pay my fare from City Hall to Trinoma. I handed a 20 peso bill not because I don’t have coins, but because I don’t know the exact fare. HAHA. I know many of us does this. I handed it to the passenger next to me and she gave it to the driver. In return, the driver gave me 4 peso coins.

FIRE! RATATATATATAT!

The sound of the horn with the uncanny music filled my ears. We, the passengers noticed that its the jeep next to ours.

“We’re already being shot. I think we got to go now. HAHAHA” one passenger said.

And that guy I do not know made me smile for the idea he just shared.

As minutes went by, we’re still at the jeepney stop, waiting for some passengers to come and suddenly I realized there’s something wrong.

“Is it just me? Why is it that my legs seemed long now?”

And then, I heard the other passengers saying, “Why are the seats so low?” And some side comments here and there.

Oh. I see it now more clearly. The seats are so low and the only way to seat comfortably is to have your body on a side view OR sit properly and create a hunch in your back.

I first thought its complicated to sit in a situation like that. I thought it would give me so much pain in the back because I can’t sit comfortably and its giving me backaches even if the jeep is still like 1kilometer away from my starting point and it will take me 1 hour or so to be in my destination. 

“Goodluck to me!” I said to myself.

And as expected, the one hour journey has been very long, rough, uncomfortable and painful. I can’t stay in one position. I feel like I am starting to be a hunchback. 

At some point, I can’t get enough of looking at the passengers in front. I realized that if only I knew how hard the situation could be, I wish I chose to seat in front. I also entertain the idea of asking the driver whenever the people besidehim gets off the vehicle, that if I can go down and move to the front seat because of petty reasons like:

I’m so tired and dont want to feel another tiring moment now.

I don’t want to spend the next 59 minutes like a hunchback.

I have scoliosis so I need to stretch my back because a mountain behind my back is not good you know?

But, the courage inside me didn’t strike that moment. I thought that I am not just the only passenger in the vehicle having the feeling of that same situation. So, I just watch as the time pass us by and wished to be in my destination in the quickest time possible.

Along the journey, I look out and saw the Red Ribbon shop in Timog.

“I’m almost there. In minutes I’ll be in Trinoma. Patience my dear, patience.”

And then we took the U Turn going to West Ave. And then U Turn again in MRT going to North Edsa. 

“Ah! At long last. I can clearly see the view of SM North and Trinoma waving and saying ‘You’ve made it here!’ “

But, traffic comes along the way. There is a mini traffic in front of SM North. My actual destination is in front of Trinoma, in Veterans. There lies the jeep I need to get into on my way home. Still, at that short span of time, patience tested me again and luckily, I managed to used it.

When the jeep made the left turn on Visayas Ave., I asked the driver to stop but he seemed to not hear me. 3, 2, 1. I asked him to stop again and the other passengers helped me in saying it and so the union happened. The jeep stopped and finally, at long last, I came to walk and stretch my body and rode the next jeep again.

When I come home, all I can say to my Grandma is that I have some real hard backaches. She asks why and I started relating the story. She said I rode a military jeep. The ones that are then used for war but turned to be a jeep for public usage that is why its low. And eventually, like I earlier said, things got clearer and clearer as time pass by.

If I did not finished my journey or moved from back to front seat on that particular jeep, I would never knowhow the story will end. I’m glad I managed to know how the ending ended. At least, I earned an experience that may reflect life in general.