"MY MAN IS A NICOLAUS COPERNICUS' DESCENDANT."
"So class, who's the first man to set foot on the Moon on 20th of July 1969, famously describing the event as 'one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind'?" My eyes darted seriously at my Science teacher because of her sudden question.
I'm was baring my mind to recall the name when one of my classmates shot her hand upward.
"Yes, Miss Equipado?"
Tumingala muna si Chlaire na mukhang ngayon pa lang nag-iisip ng sagot. "Uhmm, I think it's... Uh, Apolinario Mabini?" The whole class roared with laughter because of that.
The jeering continues as it seems like she sincerely answered the question.
Napahalukipkip naman si ma'am habang napapailing. "Sinong teacher mo sa Science last year? Iyan ba ang itinuro sa inyo? Pambihira ka Ms. Equipado, sit down!"
Ilang segundo pa kaming hindi maka-move-on sa eksena ni Chlaire nang maghanap muli si ma'am ng sasagot. "You, Miss Mangundayao?" Kabado akong tumayo agad nang tawagin niya 'ko.
Wrong timing, I didn't even remember the name. Nasa dulo na siya ng dila ko pero mukhang hindi talaga nakikisama ang mga brain cells ko. "Uhmm, wait ma'am, give me enough time please..."
"FASTER!" A surge from nowhere jolted me enough to panic. "NEIL ALDEN ARMSTRONG!" I answered hysterically.
Tumango-tango naman siya sa isinagot ko na tsinambahan ko lang.
"Psh, overacting." May kung sinong bumulong sa likuran ko't napagtantong si Kepler 'yon na walang kagana-ganang nakikinig sa discussion.
"At least nagpa-participate, kaysa naman sa'yo... Panay init lang ng pwet sa upuan."
He smirked. "What's the sense of asking me when they're already aware that I'm going to ace every common questions?"
Pinaka-diinan niya pa ang "common" na isang patunay ng kaniyang kayabangan.
"As what I have said, I'm a descendant of Nicolas Copernicus. I've studied almost three-fourths of Science History, Laws of Physics, Theories, Branches, Space-Time..."
I turned my back to him, can't digest what he just said. But a part of me agrees with him. Matalino siya, nasobrahan lang sa yabang.
***
"Miss Mangundayao, thank you for coming here... we're asking you if you're interested in the upcoming extensive Vanda International Science Competition na gaganapin sa Poland. We noticed your exceptional potential for the said event," bungad sa'kin ni Dean Bacalzo pagka-dating ko rito sa opisina niya.
Ilang beses pa akong napalunok nang dire-diretso siyang nagpaliwanag.
"You look astounded Genelene. Don't worry may training naman. Kung magiging participant ka, sa tingin ko maraming mag-o-offer na exclusive schools sa'yo for admission next year."
Hindi pa rin ako makaimik, paano kasi hindi naman ako katalinuhan, sa pagbabasa ko lang naman naiipon lahat ng mga natututunan ko, pero wala naman sigurong masama kung susubukan ko.
"Ahmm, sige po sir try ko na lang. Pwede po bang malaman kung sino-sino yung kalaban?"
***
"Why don't you scan your books to learn something new? Kaysa naman kumain ka lang ng kumain jan," bulyaw ko kay Kepler habang nagbubuklat ng sandamakmak na libro.
"I'm not used to stress myself. Alam ko na lahat 'yan bakit ko pa babasahin? Ite-train lang kita, kaya ikaw ang dapat mag-focus." prente niyang pangangatuwiran.
Trainor ba talaga 'to?
Matiim ko siyang tiningnan, hindi maitatangging may hitsura siya. He has blonde hair, snowy face, high cheekbone and sharp noses that clearly resembled his half-Polish blood.
He likes to play football as well, ex-captain siya ng varsity last year pero bigla siyang umalis sa team. I think may iba raw na pagkaka-abalahan.
Before he caught me gawking freely upon his face, I approached him again.
"Kung gano'n edi turuan mo na 'ko." He paused from what he was doing for a while, gray eyes staring intently at me.
Ano bang mali sa sinabi ko? Weirdo.
"Nagbabasa ka na tuturuan pa kita?" bahagya siyang napatawa sa sinabi ko kanina. Wala ba talaga siyang manners? Kung sa ibang lalaki ako nagpapaturo, papayag na rin sila agad.
Hindi ba siya aware sa pagiging "gentleman?"
"Hey, may tanong ako," nasabi ko na lang dala ng kuryosidad. "What again?"
"Are you really a descendant of Copernicus? Ang hirap mong basahin hindi ko alam kung seryoso ka ba sa sinasabi mo o ano," nangunot ang noo niya. "So, you're interested to me, then?" Nanlaki agad ang mga mata ko sa sinabi niya.
"Hindi naman sa gano'n, ang hirap pala talagang makipag-kwentuhan kapag matalino yung kausap."
"Gano'n ba 'ko kahirap paniwalaan? If you took an effort to research about ancient DNAs and remains of that famous astronomer, I think you can pick uncertain pieces of my puzzle."
"Sabihin na nating na-research ko na siya. E paano naman yung tungkol sa'yo? Sumasakit yung ulo ko."
Nicolaus Copernicus was a mathematician and astronomer who proposed that the sun was stationary in the center of the universe and the earth revolved around it.
It was known that Copernicus lies somewhere in the crypt of the cathedral in Frombork, Poland, where he lived for most of his life.
Anthropologists had performed digital facial reconstruction on many of the crypt’s skulls, in hopes that one might bear a distinct resemblance to paintings of Copernicus.
"This is where ancient DNA analysis comes in. Even though DNA begins degrading immediately following death, the genetic material is often preserved in the teeth for hundreds or thousands of years," mahabang paliwanag ni Kepler habang naririto kaming dalawa sa computer lab ng campus.
Kuryoso akong nakatitig lang sa screen. "So if that's the case, where do they have to compare the DNA?"
"They found that sample in a seemingly unlikely place, housed inside a copy of the 16th century astronomy reference book "Calendarium Romanum Magnum." That was a personal copy of Copernicus himself. May mga buhok na nakaipit sa librong 'yon na nag-match sa naunang DNA sample," he clicked something.
"He has165,889 descendants according to the Poland government's data base. My dad joined authentic trials, and it's too good to be true that his DNA sample matched from that of Copernicus."
***
"Kepler, kinakabahan ako..." bulong ko sa lalaking nasa aking tabi dito sa loob ng Convention Hall ng Nicolaus Copernicus University.
Poland has beautiful nature, especially mountains and forests, and there are numbers of national parks across the city. Hapyaw lang ng paligid ang namasdan ko dahil agad kaming sumakay sa kotse pagkababa ng airport.
Medyo marami-rami nang tao sa loob, mga nasa 30+ kaming mga contestants. May nakita pa nga 'kong poging koryano pero okay na 'ko sa katabi ko 'no.
"From whom the hell are you staring at?" Nagitla naman ako sa biglaang puna sa'kin ni Kepler habang nakahulkipkip na niyang pinanonood ang pagpasok ng mga competition officials.
"Ang pogi pala nung kalaban ko Kepler oh, huwag ka ngang panira ng mood. Nagmumura ka pa."
"You must focus on the competition, not with the competitor." I don't know if I'm just overreacting or what. I noticed some changes of his behavior tuwing makakakita ako ng mga gwapong lalaki sa paligid.
"Why you look so mad? Gwapo naman talaga e, don't tell me crush mo rin sila kaya nagagalit ka?"
"Okay."
***
"Why do astronauts can't cry in space?" the proctor asked for question number one. Pipindutin ko na sana yung buzzer nang mauna yung contestant from Singapore. "Beacuse it's impossible for tears to flow without gravity."
"Correct! One point for Singapore."
"How do astronomers gather important data about Earth's atmosphere?" Mabilis kong pinindot ang buzzer kahit hindi ko pa alam ang sagot.
Kailangan kong makapuntos.
"Faster Phili-"
"WAIT!...T-They gather important datas by studying Earth's shadow on the moon during
a l-lunar eclipse." Agad na naghiyawan ang mga professors na kasama ko nang masagot ko ito ng tama.
Grabe, puro situational ang mga tanong. Hinanap ng mga mata ko si Kepler ngunit nakita ko siyang papaalis mula sa audience.
20 contestants were down...
5 more...
I don't know if I really deserved being one of the last three remaining contestants.
Isa sa aming tatlo ang sasabak pa sa last round ng patimpalak na ito, kanina pa 'kong binabalot ng kaba, mahirap ma'y pinipilit ko na lang na pakalmahin ang sarili para mag-uwi ng karangalan sa bansa.
"It is a ring of ice and rock that orbits the Sun beyond the Planet Neptune." Nanatiling tahimik ang lahat matapos ang ilang segundo. Tila malalim na nag-iisip ang dalawang lalaking contestant mula sa South Korea at Thailand.
Medyo na-distract pa 'ko dahil kamukha ni Bright yung Thai pero hindi pa rin ako nagpaawat hanggang sa maunahan ko sila sa buzzer.
"K-Kuiper Belt..."
Halos mangatog ang mga tuhod ko dahil hindi pa rin kinukumpirma ng proctor ang aking sagot.
"Kuiper Belt is... correct! Congratulations Philippines you're moving forward to the last level." Napasuntok na lang ako sa ere dahil sa tuwa.
Ang sarap pala lumampaso ng mga kalaban.
"May we call on our three-time defending Champion from the last edition of our competition and the known descendant of Nicolaus Copernicus..." Naputol ang seremonya ko nang tawagin yung 'Defending Champion' kuno raw na magpaparusa sa'kin. Paano ko 'yon tatalunin?"
Nag-angat ako ng paningin hanggang sa makalapit na mula sa backstage ang huli kong makakalaban... Hanggang sa nag-iba ang timpla ko.
WHAT THE HELL?
"Anong palabas 'to Kepler!" bulong ko habang ini-interview siya ng mga proctor.
Pinagshe-shake hands pa nila kaming dalawa kaya't umiikot ang mga mata kong binalingan siya ng tingin. "What's the meaning of this? Trainor lang kita 'di ba?" inis kong sabi sa isiping kung siya lang rin pala ang makakalaban ko sa huli, hindi na sana ako sumali.
Me vs. Him?! Really?!
May kung ano silang nilabas na transparent bowl na naglalaman ng dalawang pirasong papel na siyang ipinabunot sa'min.
Parang gusto ko nang umiyak, gusto ko nang umuwi but there's something inside that pushes me to fight.
Kepler smiled at me when I already picked mine. There's something from his smile, it's rare, it seems like you gonna wait centuries again to see it.
Bihira siyang ngumiti, hindi ko alam pero sa ginawa niyang 'yon unti-unting kumalma ang sistema ko.
"PTOLEMY" was written on mine, while "COPERNICUS" was imprinted on his.
Cameras are everywhere, it seems like the world's watching us. I prayed for a moment, that no matter what happens, I'm still lucky to be here, to create an everlasting memory that I will keep in my heart forever.
"You have to defend the astronomer assigned to you from how their model of universe brought legacy in our planetary and space discoveries on this 21st century. 45 seconds were given to you to present facts and ideas and another 20 seconds for each rebuttal..."
Huminga ako nang malalim, medyo mahihirapan ako kay Ptolemy dahil maraming butas ang Model of Universe na naisagawa niya kumpara kay Copernicus.
"If Copernicus proposed the heliocentric model in which the SUN is assumed to lie at or near a central point of the universe while the earth and other bodies revolve around it, Ptolemy on the other hand, believed that the EARTH was the center of the Universe...." panimula ko.
"The word for earth in Greek is geo, so we call this idea a "geocentric" theory. Even starting with this incorrect theory, he was able to combine what he saw of the stars' movements with mathematics, especially geometry, to predict the movements of the planets. His famous work was called the Almagesti. In order to-"
That forty-five seconds finished me off.
Kalmado namang tumingin sa audience si Kepler, patunay na sanay na sanay siya sa ganitong set-up.
"None of Ptolemy's ideas were true but it made the math work for his predictions. This flawed view of the Universe was accepted for many centuries... Then there's Nicolaus Copernicus came up with a radical way of looking at the Universe. His heliocentric model put the Sun at the center of our system..." Mahaba pa ang oras ngunit agad siyang tumigil sa pagsasalita.
Nagbubulung-bulungan ang mga tao sa paligid dahil nanatili siyang tahimik.
"C-Can I conclude that the both of them was wrong from their theories?" Nanlaki ang mga mata ko sa sinabi niyang 'yon.
How dare he had the guts to do that. There's a lot of people who were watching us. Maging ang mga staff sa entablado'y gulat sa narinig.
"It's somehow ironic for me to stand for Copernicus' theory when I believed that the center of the universe is her..." Umakyat ang kaba ko patungo sa aking sentido nang itinuro niya bigla ako.
"Kepler..." wala sa sarili kong bulong.
Naghiyawan ang lahat ng mapagtanto kung anong ibig niyang sabihin.
"Kepler!" sinugod ko siya nang makapunta kami ng backstage, mabuti na lang at medyo madilim ang paligid, walang mang-uusisang iba.
"Pinagti-tripan mo ba 'ko? Hindi ka ba nag-iisip?! Ang daming nanonood! Wala akong alam sa mga plano mo! Ano ba talagang gusto mong mangyari? Ha?!" tanging inis lang ang nararamdaman ko.
Napakarami niyang galaw na hindi ko maintindihan.
"You already won, can't you just celebrate it for now?"
"Malamang mananalo ako, mali yung sinabi mo. Nasa contest tayo Kepler."
"There's nothing wrong with my answer. I'm just being true. Was that really hard to understand?" nawawalan nang pag-asa niyang sabi.
I'm was taken aback from his insight.
"C'mon, matalino ka. Alam kong kahit papaano naiintindihan mo 'ko. O baka hindi mo lang matanggap? I don't know, I just felt it pero huwag mo naman sanang i-consider na maliit na bagay lang 'tong nararamdaman ko."
Years passed, after the competition we flew back to Manila but Kepler decided to stay in Poland. I thought it was just temporary, pero sa paglipas ng panahon doon ko naramdaman na parang may kulang.
His confession bursted in a flash from thousands of news articles. Naging maingay ang pangalan naming dalawa, ng hindi kami magkasama.
Then there's another side of the story na kaya raw nagpa-iwan si Kepler ay dahil tinurn down ko rin mismo nang araw na iyon.
But destiny played a trick between us.
"Mommy! Is it true? Dad planned to create a theory that you're the center of the universe? Cringe!" salubong sa'kin ni Chloie pagkasundo sa kaniya ni Kepler.
"Hindi ba pwedeng vocal lang?" He said in a while. "Nasobrahan sa pagiging vocal si Daddy mo eh," nasabi ko na lang habang nagluluto ng hapunan.
"Nga pala Dad may assignment kami, sino po ba yung kauna-unahang nakatapak sa Moon?"
"Si Apolinario Mabini anak." Napahalakhak na lang kaming dalawa sa naalala.
"Did you know that your Mom before was asked with the same question? Kung nakita mo lang kung paano 'yan sumagot, mas malakas pa sa boses ng teacher. Taga-bundok." Maging ako'y natawa sa inasal ko.
I just can't imagine having a family with him. He proved his theory, that I'm not just the center of the universe but the center of his life too.
When I look at him, it seems like all of the old days keeps flashing on my mind.
He's Kepler Everley, my man.
A Nicolaus Copernicus' Descendant.
PLAGIARISM IS A CRIME.
@jay.destro
Photo credits to the real owner.