Forgotten and Lost 3

The drive to the airport was long. He never traveled this way when he first came here; it was through the ports. As the convoy drove through the night, memories went through the man's brain.

It was not easy to get to Cagayan de Oro; but it was easy to get a job when they got there. Adjusting, however, was tough. As people from Manila, they had been brainwashed by the media into thinking the provincianos were nothing more than ignorant country bumpkins. But now that they were here, the illusion had evaporated. The Kagay-anons were sophisticated and better-educated. Life here moved at a faster pace and although they could speak Tagalog, it became clear that that language was not what was needed to get around. In the Visayas and Mindanao, with the exception of the ARMM, the monopoly of control of Imperial Manila had been broken after the Takeover. They had to learn to speak Visayan, since it wasn't just the local tongue, but the first in order of priority of usage.

The peoples outside Luzon spoke at least three or four languages: Visayan, English, Ilonggo and Chinese. Everybody could speak Visayan and English while Ilonggo was spoken in the Ilonggo-speaking areas. Chinese, once confined only to the ethnic Chinese community, was now spoken out of necessity as a medium of commerce; the Taipan, Eric Ong himself, was Chinese. There was also Korean because Koreans had settled there and, in some places, Japanese.

They had to borrow money again. First, their father went off. He found a job as a janitor -not the EGOC security forces- and gradually sent money to his family. Months later, they were able to pay their debts. By the end of the year, they found themselves at the port of Cagayan de Oro... impressive and intimidating.

His mother also found work as a housekeeper and she was allowed to bring her children to her master's house on work days. Although her employers were kind, it was apparent that she couldn't depend on her salary alone. This new environment was different from Manila. Then it was his turn to work... but he couldn't find any. After all, what could a boy who didn't finish grade school be able to achieve?