Page 1 of 10: Newbie
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Dear Calliope,
Just write.
That was your answer when I had the courage to ask you this question on twitter:
“How to be a good writer?”
That was way back November, year 2017. Probably, hindi mo na rin tanda. Sa dami ba naman ng fans at followers mo, malabo na ngang maalala mo pa.
Honestly, I did it not just to ask that question but also, hopefully, to gain your attention. Kahit alam kong malabo na mapansin mo ang tweet ko, sinubukan ko pa rin. But it worked! I got your attention as well as your response. Since then, I started writing random stories about love and life and everything in between.
Aren’t you curious on how I found and read your stories, and eventually become your true reader? Isn’t weird that I am asking that question to someone who does not even know my existence? Probably, yes. Pero malay natin, mabasa mo rin ‘to someday.
Maybe, one day.
Basically, it all started with a curiosity that led me to read your stories. I was in my junior year in high school back then when that curiosity struck up. Halos lahat yata ng mga kaklase ko ay walang ibang bukang-bibig kung ‘di e-book. See? Tito na rin ako ng Wattpad community.
“Ano ‘yong e-book?” out of the blue, bigla ko na lang naitanong kay Ellie, seatmate ko, habang ina-arrange ang chairs sa column namin. Tuesday ngayon at kasali kami sa list ng cleaners.
“Ah, gusto mo rin bang magbasa?” she asked while arranging the assigned seats for her. Napansin niya sigurong nagkasalubong ang dalawang kilay ko kaya nag-explain pa siya. “Ah, ano. Doon kami nagbabasa ng stories. Instead na bumili or humiram pa kami ng pocket books, sa phone na lang kami nagbabasa.”
She went to her seat and get something from her bag. It was her phone. “Gusto mo rin magbasa?” she asked again for the second time, walking back to where I was standing.
Saktong sasagot na sana ako nang biglang magsalita si Christian, class president namin.
“Ano? Diyan na kayo matutulog? Ila-lock ko na ‘to,” sigaw ni Christian mula sa pintuan habang iwinawagayway nito ang susi ng classroom namin.
“Huy, gago! Sandali,” biglang sigaw ko at kinuha agad ang bag ko. Gano’n din ang ginawa ni Ellie at sabay na kaming lumabas. But my energy got drained as I stepped out from that room. Nasa labas pala ng classroom si Ally, best friend ni Ellie.
Ally has feeling for me. That was according to Joshua, my best buddy. The truth was, I already like someone else at ‘yon ay ang best friend niya, si Ellie. Natotorpe lang akong aminin dahil bukod sa masasaktan ko si Ally, may gusto rin si Joshua kay Ellie.
Too complicated, right?
The following days, gano’n pa rin ang bukang-bibig ng mga kaklase ko. But this time, they were doing some moves, like what a cheering squad do, while enchanting some words that were probably from the dialogue of the story they had read.
“Go! Go, sexy! Go, sexy love!”
Dahil nakakabingi na rin sila sa loob ng classroom, I went to the library since recess time pa naman. Ang hirap kaya maging out-of-place sa classroom at ayoko namang tumambay sa ibang classroom because it’s not my thing.
Pagdating ko sa library, I marched towards my favorite spot but to my surprise, Ellie was sitting there while reading something on her phone, an e-book story probably.
“Magbasa ka na rin kasi,” she stated out of the blue but it sounded like a command to my ears.
“Nakakaabala ba ako?” I asked in return, clearing my throat. Saktong aalis na sana ako nang bigla siyang magsalita.
“Baliw, hindi,” sagot niya habang nakatuon pa rin ang kanyang tingin sa kanyang binabasa. “Maingay sa classroom, ‘no?” dagdag pa niya but this time, nakatingin na siya sa akin at ako naman ang hindi makatingin sa kanya.
“Sinabi mo pa.”
Yun na lamang ang tanging nasabi ko dahil ang putik lang, natatameme ako kapag kausap ko ang babaeng ‘yon.
That day, bago kami umuwi, tinanong ko siya kung paano gamitin ang e-book. Curious na rin kasi talaga ako kung ano ang meron doon. She sent some files to me through Bluetooth. Oo, through Bluetooth at hindi share it or kahit anong app.
Sa batch kasi namin, bibihira lang ang mayroong smartphone. Kapag naka-touch screen ka, sikat ka. I mean, ang cool lang dahil bibihira nga lang ang may gano’n sa school. Kahit nga mga teacher namin, naka-keypad din ang phone.
Pagdating ko sa bahay, I opened one of the files na sinend sa akin ni Ellie kanina. Hindi ko in-expect na makukuha ko rin ang contact number niya dahil lang sa sitwasyon na ‘to.
According to her, kung may tanong raw ako or baka gusto ko pa raw ng ibang stories, i-text or tawagan ko na lang daw siya. But why? Pwede ko namang itanong sa kanya in person, ‘di ba?
Girls are, and will always be, weird and complicated on their own ways.
Actually, hindi ko naman talaga hilig magbasa. Sa lessons ko pa lang, tinatamad na ako. But there’s always a first time for everything. And I never expected na halos mamatay ako sa katatawa, malulungkot, maiiyak at kikiligin nang husto dahil lang sa pagbabasa ng e-book stories.
“Ma, nasisiraan na yata ng bait ang bunso mo!” rinig kong sigaw ni Ate mula sa sala.
Madalas, late na ako nakakatulog at napapaglitan ako ni Mama dahil doon. Minsan nga, confiscated pa ang phone ko dahil napapabayaan ko na raw ang studies at health ko. Paano kasi, kapag napapasarap ang pagbabasa ko, nakakalimutan kong maligo at kumain minsan.
But with the guidance of Ellie at ni Mama, pati na rin si Ate, kontrolado ko na kahit papaano ang sarili ko. Nagagawa ko na rin kumain at maligo on time. I just realized na gano’n na pala kalala ang naging epekto sa akin ng e-book.
At some point, nagsisisi ako na nagsimula akong magbasa ng stories sa e-book but most of the time, mas pinipili kong maging thankful. Why? Because there are things I have learned from reading stories. At some circumstances in life, I applied most of them.
As a reader, I become thankful because there were people who taught me different things in life but never existed. They just live in our minds. They never existed in reality but they were alive and still living in our imagination. At alam ko, sa paglipas ng panahon, mananatili silang totoo sa aming mga isipan.
The following weeks become more meaningful. After reading several stories, mas lumawak ang kaalaman at pang-una ko sa mga taong nakapaligid sa akin at maging sa mundo kahit madalas ay magulo.
Simula noong nahilig ako sa e-book stories, may English words at phrases din akong natutunan katulad na lang ng ‘silhouette’ at ‘peripheral vision’ at marami pang iba.
Halos sa tuwing vacant time namin, karamihan sa amin ay nagbabasa ng stories kung walang quiz or recitation. Majority sa section namin na nagbabasa ay mga babae. Iilan lang kaming mga lalaki ang nagbabasa. ‘Yong iba nga, ibang genres ang gustong basahin. Ako naman, kung ano ang recommended stories ni Ellie, ‘yon lang ang binabasa ko. Mas mabuti na rin ‘yong mayroong reference. Nakakatawa nga dahil ini-imagine ko minsan kami ‘yong main characters sa story.
Baliw na yata ako, calliope.
Since I started reading stories, mas naging malapit ang loob namin ni Ellie sa isa’t-isa. At some point, mas naiintindihan ko rin kung paano kinikilig ang mga babae at kung bakit bigla-bigla rin silang naiinis nang hindi mo alam ang totoong dahilan.
Kapag tinanong mo kung anong problema, ang isasagot, “wala”.
Kapag kinamusta mo naman, ang sasabihin, “ayos lang”.
‘Yon ba ‘yong mood swing na sinasabi nila? Isang malaking question mark talaga ang mga babae. And I guess, that was my starting point.
In order for me to understand her better, I need to read her actions and hidden thoughts through reading stories.
Through reading your stories.
After all, I am just a newbie here . . . both in reading and on this thing called, perhaps, love?
See you on the next page, calliope!
Smiling from ear to ear,
U.
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