More Than Just A Road Trip

When I was born my dad said he was the happiest father in the world. He always wanted a baby girl since the death of his little sister whom he loved so dearly. 

Rice fields in Abuyog, Leyte.

It always broke his heart when he had to leave home for work overseas, which would take him six months before he comes home again. But when he was around he made sure that he spent quality time with us.

Bil-at, on the border between Dulag and Tolosa, Leyte.

We grew farther apart while growing up. He still worked abroad while I was in high school and his time home became less and less. On my fourteenth birthday, I remembered him saying, "I wish you never grew up. I miss you as a little girl. Because I can't kiss you and carry you around like I used to." It broke my heart when he said that. But like any teenager, I, sort of, suffered a certain level of "emotional constipation". I totally just shrugged it off, despite the urge to reciprocate the emotion. And it went on until I finished high school.  

San Juanico Bridge, the longest bridge in Asia.

Until one day, we received bad news. He was no longer allowed by his agency to work because of health problems. He was devastated. He loved his job so much but he had to come home. Let alone stay home to recover. This may have been bad news but we never realized it would be for the good.

The Leyte Landing Monument in Palo, Leyte.

He stayed home but he was able to do all the things he had always wanted to do, like, do house repairs, look after mom's garden, take care of dogs, travel, cook, eat, play his guitar and sing his heart out!

Horse along the highway in MacArthur, Leyte.

When I turned twenty and lived away from my parent's house, he always sent me messages and called me to check how things were doing. And it's just then that I said "I love you" to him and mom again after about twenty years. But what's so sweet about it is, I mean it now more than I used to.

Santo Nino Shrine in Tacloban City, Leyte.

The last time I was home to celebrate my birthday, dad and I went on a road trip. Which was more than a road trip but a recollection of the times we spent together since I was born.

Dad's dirt bike.

It was a spontaneous decision as we rode his dirt bike and went places he always wanted me to see. And along the way we talked about me as a child and the funny stuff we did that upset mom.

It felt good to be with dad again and feeling like a child again.