Free Spirit?

I HOPE it’s not indicative of what’s in store for us this year. But with all the noise about a global crisis, financial meltdown, Ponzi schemes and scams, etc., one tends to be a bit paranoid when things unusual occur.

Recently, I was stranded in Cagayan de Oro because of the bad weather. It rained, not hard, but long. The river swelled mightily. The current went mad, thundering and gurgling its way to the sea. I saw people on top of their houses that were in the riverbank. I think it’s what you call a state of calamity.

In the airport that day, the terminal became a veritable ocean of passengers, their faces alternating between hope and gloominess. Thankfully, there was no anger outburst. Everyone understood we’re all the in the same boat, and so we tried to behave as best as we could.

I came early just to make sure I got my flight to Cebu. Four hours later, we were told the flight was cancelled. I immediately considered my options. Conclusion: I still had to take the plane at the next earliest date.

Upon rebooking my ticket, I was told I could fly two days later yet, and not directly to Cebu, but via Manila. Oh, that means, I had to do some laundering. It’s been a while since I last touched a detergent. I decided to be game with the idea, because getting cross just because of it would not be worthwhile.

In a situation like that, one has to do his best to survive the barrage of negative thoughts, insights and feelings. The spirit wants to be freed from them all, but the effort needed can be herculean.

It was dark outside the terminal, the clouds bent on clamping us down. I prayed hoping to lift them, but there was no way. In the meantime, more and more passengers in all shapes and sizes came, quickly filling the seats, and then they started to fill even the floor space.

The place was bursting at the seams. We were sardined. I understood that a new, bigger airport just got started to be made, and so the present one was left without any improvement. I began to perspire, and prayed we would not produce such natural gas as to cause an explosion.

With my PDA, I managed to pray my breviary, and to read some books. With my MP3, I also prayed rosaries, and listened to some music. But the waiting still stretched. I was approaching my wit’s end. Boredom was setting in.

I already offered my seat to a young mother with healthy squirming twins in her arms. My legs started to tire. To lighten up, I decided to make eye-contact to as many people as possible and to flash a smile, and they also smiled back. It’s what I call the mirror trick, and it never fails. It’s my way of recovering strength and composure.

For a while I amused myself watching two little boys, between 3 and 5 years of age, enjoying each other by running all over the place before their space was eaten up by the people. I was sure they didn’t even bother to know their names. They just met there and became instant friends and playmates. They only knew one language—play.

They reminded me of one aspect of freedom, that of being totally carefree while using all one’s energy to pursue what he likes. This thought saved the day for me. While watching those tykes, I managed to weave a sizable fabric of intriguing and enlightening thoughts.

I know that that freedom of those two kids is not the essential part of freedom. It’s the dispensable and waivable type, otherwise their mothers would not have been following them, worry writ large on their faces.

The kids might have looked like free spirits, but it’s the bonus-type of freedom that they have. Welcome it and be thankful, if by luck you can have it. Otherwise, just go on with what you have to do, even if pain and sacrifice accompany it.

A true spirit is when one is willfully engaged with God’s will, doing good to others no matter what it costs. In this life, genuine freedom almost invariably involves self-denial, but its unmistakable essence and meaning cannot be missed. It’s this freedom that can give one a true high, always new and fresh!