The Art of Becoming

Instant Entry #2: The Spell

Sountrack: First Breath After Coma by Explosions in the Sky

Sometimes, memories just come at me quite unexpectedly. While on my way to work this morning, I remembered a bit of my childhood and how I started my love for music.

I was 9 then and we’ve just moved from the busy streets of Manila to the green fields of the south. The quiet of the midday was both calming and overwhelming. It required some getting used to. 

Even our maids were slightly perplexed by it. They turn up the TV to drown out the loud silence with noise from a noontime show. At this time of the day, heat has pierced through the whitewashed walls and, I can only guess, has gotten into their heads for they pause to take a break and huddle in front of the TV.

Noise. That’s one thing I can’t stand. I leave them be and march up the stairs, all the way to the living room. 

There, sits an old mahogany desk which belonged to my grandparents. Both were already dead by then and my father took it for it held bits of their family history. On that desk is this brand new radio. Funny, I don’t think anyone would buy a radio these days.

How I loved that radio. I was it’s hungry child. I’d switch it on and turn the knob to search for sound. Every now and then, I’d hear laughter from below.

Right beside the old desk, I’d lie on the floor. It was cold but it felt good against my skin. I’d place my trembling hands on the speakers and feel the sound push against me. And I’d just stay there, listening, devouring the music until it’s all I could hear. It was a dreamlike spell and it felt like forever.