How the Sun Shines

Five Minutes

The light from the sun was gently streaming through the windows while I was having a leisure brunch around ten in the morning.  My phone rang all of a sudden, so I took a peek at who was calling.

I was in for a nice surprise.

It was Spice.

He asked if I was doing anything. I teasingly replied that he only calls me if he needs something. He laughed boisterously.

(I can picture how his laugh brings out his dimples.)

I told him, "Nandito ka sa Manila ano?"

"Oo. Eternal Wanderer, kung wala kang ginagawa, gala naman tayo," he sheepishly said.

It has been a while since I last saw him. I heard he was working out. I was curious how he looked like now. I was also looking for a reason to get out of the house.

I probably could have come up with a thousand and one more excuses to justify my meeting up with Spice. Perhaps, if I just acknowledged one thing, just one thing, then I would not have gone through all the trouble rationalizing my decision.

And that one thing was that I did want to meet up with Spice.

So I said yes.

-----

It was a bright afternoon while I was waiting in the car for Spice to arrive; a far cry from the dismal weather the city has been experiencing of late.

Then I saw him. He was down the street, walking towards the car from a short distance. The sun  was basking him in the light, making his dark blue jeans and light blue shirt take on a fair hue.

"He still cuts a dapper figure. And yes, he is still manages to take my breath away," I mused to myself.

The mellowness of a memory past rippled through the surface of my thoughts.  At first, I couldn't articulate the dim reflections in my mind.  My brows gathered as I tried to grab at the meanderings. All I knew that the scene playing right before me had a tone that was amicably familiar.

At that instant, I relaxed and smiled.

I smiled because I remembered.

I remembered as only one can when sun gently shines on the heart; as only one can when the mind's skies are overcast no more.

(I couldn't help but smile.  For it was a good memory after all.)

-----

We spent most part of the afternoon in a mall doing nothing and everything.  He needed a haircut. I needed to run some errands for my father. He also badgered me for some driving lessons, and I obliged willingly.  We wound up in U.P.; and soon enough, he was able to master the intricate balance of clutch and gas in the first gear.

I had a good time.  I really did.  And before sleep overtook me in bed that night, I realized why I enjoyed every moment of it.

It is because the day is beautiful when the skies are already clear and the rains are no more.

It is because now, I can truly see how the sun shines, warm and bright in my life.