Rooted on My Mind

After my Tawi-Tawi trip, I was able to enjoy a week-long stay in Manila. Afterwards, it was off to Marawi City. At first, we planned on staying longer as we expected a lot of work. However, due to the forthcoming Ramadan, we decided on a one-week stay only. 

Adjusting to the Maranao culture, compared to Tausug, seemed to be more challenging for me. However, with the help of our coordinator, we had won the trust of the key leaders by the end of our stay and got to understand the context. After the immersion, we made plans to go back for a series of trainings.

We stayed in this beautiful, tribal-inspired Ayala Resort near the Mindanao State University which overlooks the great Lanao Lake. The cold weather in Marawi was made even frostier by the presence of big, ancient tress that towered over the resort's cottages. I was given an amazing T'boli cottage during my whole stay. A few feet away from the veranda was a century-old Balete tree. At night, I would invite my companions for coffee on the porch while watching the fireflies turn my Balete into one giant Christmas tree.

(No, this story does not end with just a magical description of Belete trees and fireflies. Not yet.)

After one week in Marawi City, my colleague and I found ourselves heading back to Cagayan De Oro (CDO) City, from where we would be taking our flights to Manila the following day.

(Now, this is where the story gets more exciting.)

Prior to leaving Marawi, Gerry and I had been exchanging texts. I learned that he was in Davao at that time and also had plans to drop by at CDO for a business meeting. So, we agreed to meet that night upon our individual arrival in CDO. After dinner, we went club-hopping and conversed like good old friends.

Upon calling it a night, I offered to drop him off at his hotel. While inside the cab, I found myself wondering at the irony of things. Our paths (as ex-partners) had converged once again, this time in a strange city (and a lonely night, at that). At times, the apparent convenience of things seemed too tempting, but I was also appalled and suspicious of its nature.

Gerry mentioned something about coffee as we were approaching his place. If I head back to my hotel, I said to myself, I might as well be ready to face a sleepless night. Right now, fate was offering some kind of a playful irony. Indeed, it sometimes grants wishes and can even personify a towering Balete tree straight from the backyard of one's mind.

The suspicious side of me, however, said otherwise. Despite Gerry's permanence in myself, it  always wanted to end any story in reality.