orange flowers

I haven’t been out of Manila for quite a while. And seeing vast fields of green instead of buildings and traffic jams, is a welcome sight. It’s Jerry’s birthday on September 14 and together with Noemi’s family, we went to Puerto Galera last weekend (another entry). So we, eight adults and two kids, set out for Mindoro on a cloudy Saturday morning.

I rode at the back of the pick-up. The feeling of the wind against my face in a cold morning made me feel alive. Feeling the cold wind reminded me of my childhood. We used to travel really early in the morning to go to the city (so that we can get back home in time for dinner).

For long stretches, I would just see rice fields and rows of houses. Once in a while, I would see orange flowers that stand out by the roadside. That sight made me think of our own journey. We might be doing the same thing day in and day out. For several miles in our journey, we might see endless verdant fields that we get tired of them… But along the way, life surprises us with bright orange flowers. But in our state of jadedness, we lose our ability to appreciate those bright orange flowers along the way. Or worse we fail to see them altogether.