By Jan Vicente B. Pekas
Just as smog is ingrained in the identity of major cities, people at the back and top of jeepneys are just as an obvious tell you’re in the countryside. Minors being abnormally potent in driving motorcycles and vegetables bundled in packs are among what makes the countryside a very unique wonderland. Smoke has the freedom to reach for the skies and the aromas of different dishes of different household sweeps you from underneath. Though, not every smoke comes from the freshly chopped wood and the product of outdoor cooking.
To breath will not be an effort, as houses are placed introvertly. No need for others to hear of our secrets, joys, and pleasure. As man and woman have the right to their privacy, the right to breathe and to savor all that virgin air is a right to all.
The languages they speak may be different, their customs and traditions odd, just as the Spaniards thought when they first landed here. Yet, their beautiful brown skin betrays our own distant attitudes. “Bayanihan” does not come from colors nor race and it does not come from certain peoples. Unique traditions may further embolden the divide yet it further magnifies the beauty of the people of this country.
And beauty should not promote disdain or any of its relatives. As beauty invites love, then wonder and appreciation should not be set aside.
As progress spreads through our country, that green and fresh view of the countryside are pushed back further. Where air had freedom, nature and humans living harmoniously are becoming a thing of the past. The concrete jungle spreads its threads bit by bit, and as carelessness is spilled, then so too will the poison drip.
But, that fresh and natural painting of a countryside remains. Acting like a bastion against the further expansion of the being that intends to destroy the painting. And just like the product of a master painter, the final product only grows in beauty as time goes along. And when it is properly appreciated by the present viewers, when it is protected and taken care of, then it will surely reward us back with something marvelous.
A simple painting can teach us many lessons. And a masterful painting come to life will never run out of lessons to give out.
As we are today and perhaps forevermore, lessons will always be needed. When we stray from our path or walk unto a thorny road, the road back home will never be the wrong one.
Where life can be simple again and all the worries can be blown away, the country side is filled with love from the grandmas and grandpas whose sons and daughters embarked on to the world. Allured by their dreams and for the pursuit of happiness, a son or daughter will always have something to miss from loving homes.
For them, life may not get easier. Yet the simplicity of a probinsya will always be vital in a world that has so much to offer.**
