Isang Milagro sa Pasko ng Pagbabahagi It’s nothing short of a wonder that the simplest of things we do are seen as miracles for many. And the most incredible thing about it is that they silently unfold right next to us, and they’re done in an instant before we even realize they did. Such is the story of Aling Milagro on the fortunate day of December 11, 2012 during FEUTamaraw Volunteers Pasko ng Pagbabahagi Project in Brgy. Calawis, Antipolo, Rizal. Aling Milagro, a 71-year old grandmother of two and a widow of 18 years, lives alone. She trudged down the muddy and slippery road from her house in Sitio Paglitao to Calawis Elementary School despite the early morning darkness and the inclement weather. Great expectations “para mamasko,” she said, was her motivation. As an elderly woman, her face is etched with wrinkles – life’s way of marking her with age, worry, and all her other experiences combined. Her eyes were struggling
to shine, her arms trembling, and voice sounding something close to a whisper. I first got a chance to speak to her after she approached me, asking for a small plastic bag. Eventually we got to talking and I know her strength hides beneath her words, especially when she began telling me about seemingly random things. Giving her the requested plastic bag, I observed as she put the boiled egg and bread the volunteers had distributed for breakfast. She plans to save them for her granddaughters, she told me, even though she had not a single bite since 5 a.m. For an old woman who lives alone, it’s obvious that she cares deeply about her grandchildren and she is determined to be able to offer them something when she gets back, even though those children live with their parents away from her. While a lot of fun was being had around us, we sat down for the most of two hours like this – me listening to her, and her sharing whatever thoughts came to mind. And share she did. She told me how she was also a part of last year’s Pasko ng Pagbabahagi, and how she opened her house to people, welcoming volunteers into her home for a few days during a storm. I can hear the soft ride in her tone as she spoke on how she was able to volunteer her help for the volunteers themselves. She was smiling, chuckling a little too, at the irony of her story. When I asked her for her plans for Christmas and Noche Buena, her laugh cracked, the smile that graced her lips only moments ago fell, and her shoulders resignedly shrugged as she plainly told me “wala.” Nothing special planned, just like her every single day.
Aling Milagro did not bother to avail of the free medical and dental attention P6 would’ve been happy to provide for her. She was there to participate at the Christmas activity FEU has prepared for the community. “Mamamasko” goes her simple answer to my question. And that’s when she told me that her sense of hearing is beginning to fail. I offered to take her to one of the volunteer doctors to at least get her checked up but she refused saying she wanted to be around for the program and the gift-giving – to hear the Likha scholars singing or simply the merriment and commotion around us. And so we sat. Minutes of silence hung between us while noise wrapped itself around us. Moments later, as if by some sort of a miracle, I felt her beam up with excitement, and that’s when I realized that her ticket number was called. She won a spaghetti package – an answer to her dilemma earlier dubbed as ‘Noche Buena.’ It was as if she was bouncing with gratefulness as she returned with her prize in hand. She was really happy. A hundred-watt smile was gracing her lips and she told me that she was lucky that she won. “Meron na kaming pangNoche Buena,” she added. She plans to invite her family to spend Christmas Eve with her and share the prize. Aling Milagro called it luck, but I prefer to call it a miracle, her name to be exact, for it was indeed a miracle I was beyond pleased to have witnessed. And that’s how I justify my first statement true – that out of our efforts to help and bring smiles to the Dumagats grow miracles. By Francesca Lim, for The Altruist