Balikbayan by Annika Aguila

We walk along uncharted roads, I promise an adventure. He returns my exhilarated eyes with a hesitant smile, his eyes dart to the shanty houses left and right. The cracks that the concrete of the houses match the lines on my father’s tired forehead. The sewer smell beneath repulses him, but I’m unbothered. An askal paws at my feet, I bend down to pet it–

he stops me.

Unhygienic.

I ask him if he wants to share suman. He counters with the possibility of food poisoning.

I shrug and ask the woman seated on a stone in front of me,

“magkano ‘to, ate?”

how much is this, miss

The woman raises her only bill, twenty pesos. He hands her a one hundred and we walk away, no suman in hand. I say, “that was nice of you”.

He replies, “I didn't want you to get food poisoning.” I decided not to say anything. Your presence is enough. The smell of the Pasig river seems to irritate you, pungent smells–

something I’ve grown to ignore.

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Annika is a junior at an International School in the Philippines. She loves the beach, dogs and Sunday in the park with her grandparents. She would like to make an impact on writers in the poetry community by expressing vivid images through words.

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Website: https://annikaaguila.wixsite.com//filmphotography

Annika Aguila