Last Saturday afternoon, we had a visitor. Coicoi came, with his mom and aunt. Instantly, the house was full of fun. Coicoi being Ilongo is malambing. Last year when he was here, he could not pronounce my name but this time, aside from correctly pronouncing our names, he can also name and identify all parts of his body, pronouncing his fs correctly (face, fingers) and enunciating his soft th (teeth) in a cute manner.
I couldn't understand most of what he says (not a single Tagalog). He would often repeat himself in order to get across, until he was fed up and said, "Ay ambot sa imo". Sensitive and intelligent, Coicoi likes to hum and sing the songs he often hears complete with a swaying of the head and a holding of his right fist up to his lips as if it were a microphone. (The current favorite is "We are the world, we are the children...., which he accidentally discovered via You Tube when his aunt took him with her in an internet cafe because she couldn't find a substitute who would look after him.)
While here, he didn't watch the cartoon network, but he carried a DVD tape of superman and had a long tantrum when he couldn't watch it. (Last year, he watched Shrek over and over again, and before Shrek, he often mimicked the poster pose of Spiderman). He was frustrated that I didn't have a DVD that would allow him to watch the current favorite superhero.
Coicoi ate very little. He liked taho and preferred sandwich over rice. He could finish to the last noodle a Jolibee spaghetti (and only that, never a Mcdonald spaghetti or any homemade one). He likes oranges and can finish two big ones in one eating. He would eat rice only if a favorite sabaw is poured over it generously. His table manners are impeccable, not at all messy for a three year old, he was always wiping his mouth and never spat his food. He ate with a spoon and fork. Yakult is a favorite drink. Everytime he got hold of this beverage, he would instantly dip his forefinger and taste it before drinking yakult straight. This was like a routine, he did this consistently.
For three days, he ran around and about. He liked going up and down our narrow stairs and often reminded himself to 'take care' and to 'hold tight'. We had fun chasing each other around the house. At one time he rolled in laughter on the floor as we hit each other with throw pillows. Another time, I sat him on my lap on my computer chair and we whirled around and around. He liked this so much, that he laughed so loud. We stopped when we were both dizzy, but he wanted another round.
I showed him my watercolors and he doodled and painted not only on paper but also on his hands and body. He showed us his creation afterwards (he knew every color) and then he posted his "painting" on the refrigerator using a magnet .
He placed trash on the trash can, said sorry and please, and automatically took off his shoes and socks every time he entered a room. He liked it whenever we took his picture although he pretended to not look.
He would run to the phone when it rang, and then he would say, "Hello, mommy???"
On Sunday night, he got fed up talking on the cell phone with his cousin in Bacolod, Igi boy, and he impatiently handed the phone to me with that fed up look that seemed to say "Ok, you talk to this guy, I'm fed up with him." We were all laughing at the stressed out expression. He was talking on the phone, in Ilongo, trying to enumerate who was with him at the moment: me, and lola, and mommy and aunt. It seemed that he had to repeat himself, and so he got fed up and just hang up on the poor child on the other line.
Coicoi has a sweet husky voice and whenever he called me -- it's a very gentle kind of calling -- he would always request for colors. He pressed all the green and red and blue and yellow tubes empty, that his mom felt she had to replace my watercolor and bought me another set.
This afternoon, holding an umbrella under heavy rain, I kissed my nephew a temporary goodbye. He will be flying to Bacolod early morning on Thursday, and hopefully, we will see him again after six months during the two-month vacation of his mother from her job as a nurse on a cruise ship. I put Coicoi with his mom and aunt in a tricycle which took us to the bus terminal going to Manila. Once seated on the bus, Coicoi said a very sweet goodbye and gave me a flying kiss.
I'd like to remember him like this forever, his face framed on a bus window, that sweet, untainted, energetic, healthy, loving, expression of a child. I felt sad that his mom and dad are on separate postings overseas as nurses. I imagine him running to the phone every time it rings, and him jumping and smiling upon recognition of his parent's voices. Maybe, for the time being, their voices are enough to hold on to some precious memories.
In the meantime, he clung to his mom as if completely aware that in less than thirty days, she will be gone again to work abroad. He looks at the picture of his Dad and says, "My daddy is on a boat." He loves playing the physical games, as sons do with their fathers. Hopefully, all the affection his father showered on him when they were together will not fade away from his memory. Hopefully, he will remember his mom's hugs and kisses even as he goes to prep school. In spite of the absence of both his parents, I pray that he will grow up to become this godly, compassionate, brave and well-rounded human being. See you in six months sweet Coicoi.
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