A NIGHT TO REMEMBER

Mariana watched the first death anniversary of her late Aunt Sally online organized by her relatives back home. That night she can't get her sleep. She is thinking about the kindness she extended to her when she is going to take her course in college. Her aunt lived in the capital city of her province. Mariana has no other choice but to go and lived with her. Her mother asked her aunt if Mariana can stay with her and her aunt agreed. Her mother couldn't afford to support her struggling to provide the necessities of her younger brothers and sisters to feed, to send them to high school of two siblings at the rural high school and the other two in the elementary elementary grades. Her Aunt Sally has five children. Two of them are professionals a lawyer and an engineer. Seldom they come home to visit their parents and their two brothers and a sister. They are now residing in the most populous urban city in the island of Luzon, Philippines. It will take them a whole day to travel to reach their place which is the northern tip of Luzon. When they were still students their parents would provide their allowances and tuition fees by selling sacks of corn that has been already paid loading into a rented truck. The money is what Benny and Tim would pick up then go back to the city. Within a few years they were able to finish their courses. Their younger brothers and a sister didn't know why they are not as ambitious as their two brothers being left in their hometown. to help their parents tend to their livestock and farm the land. Their father spent his whole life farming with callous hands and thickened sole feet. walking barefoot. tilling their vegetable plantation. Life is quite hard and difficult when the harvest is lean. The animals are fed coming from their own corn plantation. The feed is mix with rice bran bought from the rice mill. It is some kind of wonder when people seem to be content of their economic situation . Their city is progressive. Neighboring towns come to the city market every weekend to sell their products. Many vendors display their wares including newly catched fish, crabs, shrimps and other seafood items. Mariana and her Aunt Sally go to the city market to sell chickens, eggs and their slaughtered pig. they use a horse drawn carriage called calesa. After emptying the carriage, the driver her aunt's brother, also her uncle continues his day to take passengers from the market. Going back to the market again to drop off passengers from their village. Mariana and her aunt buy goods they needed for the week then ride at their horse drawn carriage back home. Soon Mariana is finishing her course. Her Aunt Sally seemed to let her stay with her. She tried to match her with a man of her choice. Mariana has no plan at all to have a boyfriend. She always think of her parents who expected her to help them after she finish her teaching course. The man her aunt has chosen for her is gainfully employed working at the provincial city hall holding an official position at the governor's office. Mariana didn't think about him at all. She is determined to go back home to her parents. No one will help them but her. To practice what she has finished is her ultimate goal. She is also thankful to her cousin who was encouraged to take teaching like her eventually she could help her mother Sally the aunt of Mariana. Her cousin also like Bert to be Mariana's boyfriend. Bert usually send goodies to them like rice cakes. Still Mariana is not convinced. She is committed to help her parents. Her Aunt Sally and her cousin convinced Bert to visit Mariana at her place. By all means. they are able to set up a date to go with Mariana. Mariana is forced to say yes to Bert. On the day of the trip, Mariana went home ahead of the time they would see each other at the bus terminal. This maybe the last time Bert and Mariana meet again. Time will tell. Mariana is able to graduate , her mother attended her graduation ceremony. After graduation Mariana fell sick. Her parents tried to look for her cure. It is taking her parents too much worry. Her father brought her to Aunt Sally's place to see if there is a doctor to look after her. Her mother thinks Mariana is heartbroken. This time Bert could have visited Mariana if he really loved her. No shadow or news he has visited her. Aunt Sally offered many prayers and invited church members to pray for her Mariana may have shown signs of desperation complaining her lack of sleep. No one can explain why. Then his father thought of bringing her to the City of Manila. They stayed at his sister's place. His father brought her to the hospital and meet a neurologist who is able to prescribed the right medication to make her well. Mariana took the Teacher's Entrance Examination where she topped the test with flying colors. Her parents are very proud realizing she is the first to become a teacher in their village. Much more to their delight when she is given a permanent teaching position right away. Her parents felt so much relief. They know Mariana is going to help them. At her assigned place there is no school building. It is a temporary place for her to teach her pupils The building is used as a church on Christmas Day and Easter Sunday. The village captain is able to convinced the District Supervisor to have all the supplies needed in a multigrade classroom setting. Mariana is now the Teacher-in-Charge of a one teacher school handling a multigrade class, Grades I,II,III and IV. Mariana is committed to do her duties as a classroom teacher. Being a teacher to her pupils ranging from Grade I to Grade IV, how big is that task be? A new teacher to face it. How challenging it would be? Her parents wondered why they assigned her to a remote place when she topped the School Division Entrance Test being number one in their school district. One time the District Supervisor who assigned her visited her announcing at the District Teacher's Meeting. there is a teacher in her district who is messy in her class preparation. Mariana is quiet. Silently she can't admit her accusation. If she knows she no longer go home on weekends, staying with the people to supervise the building of a two classroom school building to house her pupils she might think twice. The villagers are giving their time, their efforts their harvest to finance the costs. The Barangay Chairman is inspired Mariana is there to help who also asked the Municipal Health Officer to install water sealed toilets to all households in the community. and organized community projects with the Municipal Agriculturist to distribute free vegetable seeds for their Backyard Garden. The community became busy to do all these projects with Mariana leading them. Before the end of the schoolyear a Division School Supervisor visited her. Mariana told her she no longer like to teach. Her volume of work is enormous not only inside the classroom it went beyond the four corners of her classroom. The Division Supervisor told her," Don't be silly, where will you get your money?" Mariana is inspired with her words mentioning her valuable accomplishments helping the people in the community in many ways. The school building is completed at the end of the schoolyear. It is the Division Superintendent who came to inspect what Mariana has accomplished. He instructed the District Supervisor to assign Mariana at her own village. Her elementary grades teachers became her co-teachers. Mariana is very thankful to be with her parents. She is able to build a house for them. The wood came from their own homestead located on the slopes of Apayao, Mountain Province. It is made of natural stones mixed with cement and glass windows. His brothers and sister has gone their own way except the youngest whom Mariana supported untii she finished her degree in Nursing. After graduation her sister took her Board Examination in Nursing. After a short stint working at a private hospital she applied to work as a nurse in London, England. The nurse didn't forget the support Mariana extended to her. She sponsored her to go to England to work as a Teacher Assistant in which she has been qualified. Mariana didn't meet anyone after Bert. She was really committed to her profession. One day Mariana received a call , her Aunt Sally has died. Mariana and her sister went home to attend the funeral. Bert is there. Mariana tried to avoid, not to talk to him. She is still thinking he didn't visit her when she was sick. Besides he is already a family man. There's nothing to talk about. The night after the first anniversary of her Aunt Sally's death ,Mariana woke up at the middle of the night to remember the beautiful memories about her.GP