MEMOIR (Required)

       Moment in the Dark

“Wag kayong maingay. Papatayin ko kayo!”

If I will die, I don’t like to experience the harsh way. I don’t like to feel the bitter way of losing life such as accident, serious illness, or to stab with a pointed weapon by someone else.

I will never forget my terrible moment. That was the moment I thought it’s the end of my life and I’ll be lost in this world. November 14, 2007, Wednesday evening, I was in a first year high school during that time and my second elder sister was in a fourth year high school. It happened in Infanta, Quezon while my mother was here in Marikina. Across our rented house was the school where I was studying. Beside it, there’s another room and only wall between our room and our neighbor because it was a boarding house.

The pouring rain was heavy. No other sound I could hear except the drops of rain sounded like a fall of water from a small water container. Yes, every drop of rain was falling on the roof as strong as a flow from a small water container. At ten o’clock in the evening, I already done with my homework and I reviewed my notes while my sister did not finish her writing a report on manila paper. Well, it felt so good to sleep while rains. In the mid relish sleep, I felt my sense or thought is awake although I was feeling drowsiness. I thought that there’s something unusual that night until I slightly opened my eyes. Then question entered to my mind, “why is it dark?” Since childhood, we’re not turning off the lights when we go to sleep because I’m afraid of the dark. My sister too can’t go to sleep if the light is off.

My mind said that there’s something wrong that night. A had a hunch that except my sister and me, there’s someone inside that house.  In darkness and as the beam of light from the other room enters our room, I saw the figure of man standing near our bed. I thought my mother arrived, but why is it dark? Why is the light off? Then I felt my sister woke up and suddenly rose. She uttered the two consecutive questions: “Sino ka? Anong ginagawa mo dito?” When I heard that questions, I immediately rose and started feeling nervous. The man pointed us a sharp thing and said “Wag kayong maingay. Papatayin ko kayo!” As I heard that threat, a very loud shout got out of my mouth.

A clamoring noise surrounded our room until I heard the voice of one of our neighbors in the other room. She’s uttering my name and my sister’s name. She’s asking what’s happening to us. The man hastily went to the kitchen. Perhaps, he scared and doubted to start doing something bad because he heard that our neighbor is still awake. We did not know how we get outside the mosquito net. The happening was swift. Also, we did not think the door to pass through it. My hands groped the thin plywood. I had torn the thin plywood with the help of my sister.  Yes, we did it. If you are in that kind of terrible moment, you don’t know what you can do and you can do the unexpected act. We passed through the broken partition. When I looked at the clock, it’s in between eleven and twelve. While we were crying, questions were still running on my mind. “Who’s that man? What’s his intention? Why?”

On the next morning, we found out that the wall in our kitchen was torn wherein the man passed to get inside and outside. He also loosened the light from its connection, that’s why the light was off. Well, I would say that it’s a good idea that we did not open the door to get outside of that room, because there’s a possibility that man is not alone in planning whatever his intention. If ever we opened the door, maybe there’s another man who would detain us on going outside.

My most shocking and frightful experience in the dark was done. That was my moment in the dark. The heavy rain from Wednesday night until Thursday morning was a reason of class suspension that day.  I felt how God works, how He loves me, how He protects us, and how He helps me to fight the fear. Now, I am strong and standing with God’s guidance. If it is your time, it will be your time. Wherever you are, God is always there to place you in a good and safe situation. 

Thank You God.