Lunch

Sometimes, we spend a part of our hard-earned money in some restaurants in town. It’s our simple way of relaxation amidst the constant wave of pressures and stress.

One time, we decided to try a restaurant in Vigan City which prides itself as “a house that fried chicken built.”  Well, with that promotion statement, they must have the best chicken meals in town. So, we yielded to our cravings.

But as we approach the door of the restaurant, an OJT-looking waiter suddenly blocked our way. Forcing a smile, he asked us: “May I know what is the occasion? What’s the reason why you are dining here today? What’s the reason for the celebration?”

The questions made our jaws drop. At first, we thought it was an act of arrogance. But why should a young man destroy his job—probably his first—by intimidating customers with heart-stopping questions? Well, there must be a logical reason for the inquiry.

We wanted to make a flashy and intelligent response, but I was only able to mumble these words: “The occasion is that we can afford to eat in this place, sometimes.”

It was the waiter’s turn to jaw-drop. Open mouthed. Brows linked. He looked like a person stricken by a disease that put him into an open-eyed coma. While the waiter’s mind was floating, we took the chance to slip inside the restaurant for our chicken meal.

And yes, after another avalanche of questions, we have successfully placed our orders. At last! At long, long last!

While waiting for our orders to be served, we softly talked about the questions of the waiter at the door. We resolved that they were for gimmick purposes. Maybe, if we told him that it was our birthday, the restaurant would shower us with greetings capped with additional food and giveaways. Nice! However, we refused to think of their verification process on their customers’ birthdays.

Then we debated on the answer I mouthed. At first, we laughed at it. Either it was blatantly arrogant or simply dumb. But on the second thought, we agreed that it has an essence that goes beyond arrogance and dumbness.

Come to think of it, despite our hardships to make both ends meet, we can still afford to eat three square meals a day, at least. Sometimes, in a house that fried chicken built.

We didn’t have to browse the net to view images of poverty. We just reviewed in our minds the sketches of hunger here and around the world: children scraping leftovers in the garbage; outstretched hands pleading for mercy; infants starving to death; and families incarnating the pains of famine.

But poverty is not the sole cause of inability to eat. Disease, depression, disasters, wars, and yes, even corruption. They actively contribute to the leading causes of hunger. And of course, hunger kills—in millions.

In short, despite our own crosses, we can say that we are very lucky. No, we’re not just lucky, we’re blessed.

So, when our orders arrived after another round of interrogation, we enjoyed our food to the fullest—smacking our lips and licking every morsel with gusto.

Their chicken meal was flat and papery. It was far from the tastiness that their commercials are boasting on air and in print. But, hey! Deliciousness or not, what is important is that God gave us our ration of manna today—more than enough reason to celebrate.

And of course, our celebration was enveloped with thanksgiving to God and a prayer that all who hunger may be saved from further pangs of starvation.

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BARD NOTES: Happy bard-reading to Governor Imee Marcos, Laoag City Mayor Chevylle Farinas, Laoag City Vice Mayor Michael Farinas, Provincial Treasurer Josephine Calajate, Dr. Castor Bumanglag, Dr. Miramar Bumanglag and PNB Laoag Manager Metty Guerrero.

Happy reading also to the members of the Bad Circle Runners and to the employees of AMA Laoag, PNB Laoag, DEPED Laoag and Vertext.