Eidetic Memories

u NISHINA CATE M. CAGUICLA

It’s a Saturday evening, 10:55. You’re due with an article in a few days, but here you are— staring at a blank document with nothing running through your mind. The sounds of the 10-year-old electric fan blowing at full speed and the cats running and hissing on the rooftop filled your room. You then asked yourself, “What to do now?”

You started keying some words, such as the date today. You know you did that because you needed to motivate yourself to write something. However, as soon as you finished keying the date, you stopped. Your fingers just lie on the keyboard, anticipating that you will write something soon; but here you are—staring at a not-so-blank document now.

“I don’t know what to do,” you said to yourself, while also thinking about the song “Don’t Know What To Do” by BLACKPINK and is now currently playing in your mind. You started singing to its lyrics, even dancing a bit to it, but then you immediately stopped. “FOCUS!” you screamed to yourself. But just like earlier, you just happened to play the song “Focus” by Ariana Grande in your mind.

Irritated, you clenched your fists, got up, closed your laptop, and let in a deep breath. You looked at the clock. It registered 11:15. “I need fresh air,” you thought to yourself. With that, you changed clothes, put your sneakers on, and house keys in your pocket.

The sound of crickets welcomed you as you stepped out of your house. The cool breeze gently caressed your skin as you inhaled the smell of the evening. “This is what I just need. I need a break.”

Truly enough, you need the break.

In the past days, you’ve been working hard—finishing the Work Immersion portfolio, studying for the final examinations in General Chemistry, preparing for the oral defense for Research, and complying with the requirements of other subjects—that often times a two-hour sleep is already okay for you. You were very sleep deprived that you would even be thankful for a 15-minute nap. And then, you did them all. You have finished and submitted your Work Immersion portfolio, passed the final examination in General Chemistry, aced the oral defense, and complied with the requirements set by other subjects. You have smelled the scent of that Senior High School Diploma now that you have successfully submitted all the requirements in order to graduate.

Then you remembered that you still have a pending article to submit. With the remaining work juice from that week, you tried your best to squeeze every drop of it just to let yourself write an article. But there’s no more juice to be squeezed out. You’re drained—mentally and physically.

The sound of the dogs barking at the corner woke you up from that daydream you had. You stretched a little as you prepare yourself to walk around your neighborhood. As you walked, you noticed that there are banana shrubs growing on a vacant lot near your house, the potholes on the roads have gotten worse, cars were parked on the road making it difficult for vehicles to go around, and that the neighborhood isn’t as noisy as it was 12 years ago.

You then started to reminisce on the memories you had growing up in that neighborhood— the countless times you ran on those very streets while playing Tag! You’re It! with your friends, the house where you and your friends would frequently stay after classes to watch some cartoons, the dance practices and showdowns that were done on the streets, and the instances where you and your friends would tease the dogs and try to outrun them. “Such good old days,” you happily said to yourself while letting out a deep sigh.

You continued to walk, and now your three blocks away from home. You also realized that in a couple of weeks, you’ll be in college; and after 4 years, you’ll have your degree and will be working as a full-grown adult. You will then be an adult doing adult-related stuff (such as taxes and bills) and relying on your adult instincts to survive.

But you also realized that your parents are getting old, too; that they will be needing your help in taking care of themselves. As Taylor Swift puts it in her song “Never Grow Up”, “Take pictures in your mind of your childhood room; Memorize what it sounded like when your dad gets home; Remember the footsteps, remember the words said, And all your little brother’s favorite songs. I just realized everything I have is someday gonna be gone.”

You got teary-eyed as you walk back to your house, still thinking about the memories and of what’s going to be. You thought to yourself, “Growing up is such a crazy concept because a lot of times when you were younger you wish you were older.”

As you reached home, you went back to your room and opened your laptop. Here you are again, staring at a blank document. However, unlike earlier, you now have an idea on what you’re going to write about. You looked at the clock—it’s already 12:13. It’s already Sunday. You put your fingers once more on the keyboard, and started keying in “Eidetic Memories.”