day 692 - i left my heart right beside manila bay

woke up this morning to the beep of my cellphone. a text arrived, greeting me happy new year. and suddenly the yearning became out of control. i cried because i know i left my heart, this time, permanently. my body and soul might be here, but my heart is so many miles away, 13 hours ahead of this time zone.

he once told me that if we're meant to be, we would still be together even in our old age. it is that hope that keeps the love alive. it may be a hopeless aspiration, and we both have a healthy realization that we shall never be, unless a thermonuclear explosion happens, but we can dream, can't we?

i took this photo one morning we met up to jog. in fact, he was the one who pointed the boater to me and chuckled at the 'purple' colour of the boat. i call this 'our purple boat', captured forever. i miss him. and i miss the heat in manila.

day 661 - mother and child

jogged at the seaside this morning, taking in the warm breeze of manila bay. ben and i went past this lady and i told him that would make a beautiful portrait. about three metres after we passed the lady, i told him, "i want to take a photo" and i jogged backwards.

"excuse me, ma'am," i said. "may i take a photo of you and your baby?"

she gave me a polite smile, then said, "may i ask, ma'am, what it is for?"

i was at a loss for words. should i have told her i was going to post it on the internet? no, bad idea. haven't done the 'thinking on my feet fast' in a long time so i came up with: "it just reminded me of how my mother used to sun my younger siblings." brilliant idea, i told myself.

the lady hesitated, looked at her child, then smiled back at me.

"okay, but please, no usog."

usog meaning no 'spell'.

for a while there i thought she was going to make me wipe saliva on her baby's tummy or foot.

ben, all this while, was just watching me "in action", amused at my 'boldness' as he called it.

but i got my photo!