Kabanata 28

Maximaze Park

Bumuntonghininga siya at tumingin sa kaliwa, kung saan makikita ang imaheng aking ipinaguhit. Ang imahe ni Ina kasama ako. Akin iyon ipinagawa nang sa gayon ay palagi ko siyang maalala. “Children lost their parents, parents lost their children . . . “ Malungkot niyang tiningnan ang imahe at para bang may inaalala ito. “ . . . Madreign destroyed everything—friendship, family, dreams, trust, and peace. They even took our freedom.”   Ako'y kaniyang nilingon at malamig na tiningnan. Tumingin naman siya sa taas kung saan makikita ang makulay na larawan. “What they did in the past two decades is worse than what they did more than 400 years ago, wherein they discriminated, tortured, and slaughtered our ancestors before trapping them under Mount Colossus.”   Pilit niyang pinapakalma ang sarili. Huminga ito nang malalim at kalmado akong tiningnan.

“What will you feel if you lost your parents? What