Dawn Dusk Leia

Part 5

"Tiya, could I ask a favor? Can you help me adjust my uniform? It's a bit too loose." I bravely asked Aunt Esmeralda for help. She said she thought I wouldn't ask her for help. She was just waiting for me to say something. I handed over all three of my uniforms to her, the ones I alternately wear and wash every day. This was practically the first real conversation we had since I started living with her. I was a bit wary of her because of her age, thinking she might be the type to easily notice any mistakes.

Every day I've been here, I haven't needed her to wake me up. I've gotten used to taking care of myself. Breakfast is always ready in the morning, and even though I want to wake up earlier to cook rice, I just can't manage to beat her to it. Instead, I make up for it after school. I wash the dishes, and the day I came back from tryouts, I even managed to cook rice. Aunt talks to me, but it's mostly about small things, just instructions or reminders. She only took me to school once, and I quickly got the hang of it. The first time, we took a tricycle, but after that, I realized it was just walking distance. I was excited to go to school those days. I thought it was just an ordinary school, but it turned out to be much bigger than I imagined.

Since that day, Aunt and I started talking more often. She would ask if I was okay in my new school and if I had any problems. I didn't mention the bullies, just my tryouts. Aunt also reminded me about cleaning my body, fasting, and my vows. I hadn't forgotten those and hadn't missed a single time since Dad taught me. I started last year when we were in the province, and I was almost eleven years old. Dad convinced me to do it once a week. First, I had to clean my body thoroughly by bathing. Whenever possible, I used 'gugo' or herbal soap for my hair and body, and my rinse water came from boiled guava and sambong leaves. I prepared all of this myself. I did this every Friday at three in the afternoon, and from that time until three the next day, I would fast. I wouldn't eat anything, and only lukewarm water could quench my hunger.

At night, I would have bad dreams, and I tried to get rid of them when I woke up the next day. Upon waking, I would clean my mouth with saltwater. I still wouldn't eat and would immediately start cleaning my mind. Mom and Dad knew this routine, so they would get up and stay in the kitchen, leaving me to use the room. I would prepare a mirror facing me, a white candle, and incense, and I would dress in all white. I would meditate and try to remove all negative thoughts, replacing them with good ones. I wouldn't eat, and I would repeatedly return to the mirror, meditating until my mind was clean. If I managed to do this before three in the afternoon, Dad would come to me and whisper a prayer. Sometimes, I would faint if I couldn't handle the vow, and Dad would come to my rescue.

My little ritual thingy, with Dad's guidance, has done wonders for me! I feel like a superhero! I haven't gotten sick, no fevers, no coughing, not even a sniffle. Dad says it's because we can't avoid eating all these artificial foods anymore. Natural food is close to nature, he says. No need to add all sorts of weird flavors. Just grill it with salt and pepper, or boil it. He even suggests fasting once a week to get rid of yucky stuff in our bodies. Oh, and we don't do sugar, and we rarely drink cold water.

Maybe that's why I'm kinda like a mini-Hulk compared to my friends. I'm super agile and can move without a care. I've noticed I can even compete with the boys! We used to race before the bell rang every morning back in the province. Even if I was 'it,' I'd quickly turn the tables. I'd climb trees in the school yard and leap from the second floor of the school building without a second thought. At home, I'd gather fruits and plants tirelessly. I could lift logs that were way too big and heavy for me. So yeah, I never gave up on my little ritual.

And get this, just like Mom, Dad gave me a tattoo. Mom's is on her chest, and it looks like a warrior with a sword and shield, with some words around it that I can't understand. Dad says it's in Latin. My tattoo is on my back, done by Dad when I was just two weeks old. It's almost the same as Mom's.

Even now, living with Auntie, I still do my thing. She knows that Fridays and Saturdays are my special days, so she stays downstairs while I take over the whole second floor for my ritual. I haul up water for my bath, and we've always got herbal stuff like gugo at home. Auntie has a garden in the big yard of this old house. She has her own room downstairs, says it's more comfortable and she doesn't have to go up and down. So we've got our own rooms and bathrooms, and we clean and organize them ourselves. I once offered to clean her room and bathroom and do her laundry, but she said no. She told me to focus on my own stuff because, like me, she has her own rituals. It's not just about the body and mind, but also cleanliness and surroundings. That's when I remembered that Dad and Auntie are siblings. Dad's 79 now and still strong. Auntie's older, and I was shocked to learn she's 107! She's still lively and sharp as a tack.

Just then, Auntie told me to eat and skip fasting for now because we had something to discuss.