It started raining in the metro a few days ago. And like the coming of the storm the first sign of the rain are dragonflies and ants that fly. I’m not familiar with the English name but here in the Philippines we call these things gamu-gamo. Their lives are short-lived, spanning only a few hours for most and they hover around light bulbs busy dancing around in circles as if they were worshiping the light that radiates within it. Then comes the rain, in small batches and sometimes in a torrent. How strange that these days people associate torrents as something downloadable. Ahh, the wonders of language. How I miss just trying to grapple the definition of words.

Speaking of words, a friend of mine will come over this coming saturday. She asked me to teach her how to cook tuna pasta. Wow! First time anybody actually asked for my recipe! I asked her if it’s okay to invite other friends as well. So this Saturday we’re going to have a cook fest at home! What was interesting is that she asked me for directions to my house. I used the word “perpendicular” to describe a street that is near my house which is near a major highway. I find this amazing because I don’t think I use this word regularly, not even in giving directions. In fact, from what I remember it has been five years since I used this word.

So the rain is here again and there are puddles of mud all over the place. In some areas of Makati, the rain causes a miniature flood which reminds me of Noah’s ark as one waits for a taxi or other vehicle that would traverse such murky waters that mix the dirt, grime and whatever else one could come up with that spill over from the hidden recesses of drainage pipes. Ah, I wonder how other cities in the world fare against Manila in light of this? For now though, I would either need to embrace the rains or fight against it. And yet at the end of the day, I remain…. and I will continue to go where the rain stops … a place where one is not just on higher ground,  but I think there are moments when time just stands still in that place of calm.