a tribute to the faint-hearted
faint-hearted: lacking conviction or boldness or courage; "faint heart ne’er won fair lady"
but i’m not talking about that kind of faint hearts. i’m talking about the other kind.. the kind that drops "dead" just about anywhere they please.. i’ve been evolving, over the years, to become a faint heart. hehe…
i first fainted one late morning years ago. fresh from sleep, i was on an errand to the sari-sari store a block away, when, while waiting for the lady to attend to my purchase, i felt my world grow dark. i asked the lady to call our house for help. my grandmother (i think) and some cousins rushed to my aid. diagnosis: breakfast not yet taken.
next came a couple of faintings at church. the first time, my mother had time to take me home, but not before i lost consciousness while crossing the street… the next, i sensed that passing out was inevitable, so i rushed out of the church. outside, a small crowd looked on as they resuscitated me to consciousness. my family kid me that i’m "evil" for always fainting at church. sorry to disappoint the antichrist crusaders, but there’s a more logical explanation. our town church is old and beautiful. it’s unique, being one of the few churches in the philippines that faces the mountains. but it isn’t ventilation-friendly. the windows are set high up on the walls. the small electric fans barely make up for lost oxygen. diagnosis: church windows are faint-prone.
it seems my "faint heart" wanted to move to more exciting, more public locations. the store near our house and the town church were too boring, it seemed. so the next time i fainted, it was across san miguel corporation, along one of the busiest sections of the city highway. i was waiting for a jeepney when i felt the symptom: cold sweat on my forehead. i frantically searched for some helpful souls and found two - a couple selling bar-b-q in front of the scorpion bar. for lack of a better medication, she used the gas for the bar-b-q and applied in on my stomach and back. it was an old remedy, she said. it worked. diagnosis: lunch taken at 1030 am and missed afternoon snacks.
since then, i’ve been admonished to bring white flower always and to eat on time, and a lot. i’ve been free of faintings since - until two weeks ago.
on my way to school, on board a jeepney, i felt the sypmtom again (cold sweat on my forehead). i disembarked in wireless. stood along the street while waiting for wenbert to fetch me. puked along the street. and when i felt knees wobble and my sight grew dark, i asked for help inside a warehouse-like store selling rice and more. they were helpful but cautious. they wouldn’t let me in the office for fear that i was some "front act" for a robbery gang.
to all who are "not yet faint-hearted", it’s no fun at all. so learn from me and eat on time. remember, it’s no fun at all. unless, you faint in the arms of johnny depp …hehe:)
