an islander's outlook

untangling a 50meter-long fish net looks complicated to me but not for manong Bert. he does this every morning before setting out to the sea. we woke up at 5:00am to capture the sunrise from the beach but it didn't show much as the sky was cloudy. we then decided to walk along the beach front to observe the people's activities in the island. while we were strolling and going farther, we noticed several fishermen preparing to set-off to the sea. that's when we met manong Bert, who grew up in the island of Bantayan. he has seen how the island has evolved from an island that was merely ordinary to them to becoming a beach haven. he is now married and has two children. "growing up in the island was simple" he said. "you wake up in the morning, our mother prepares our food, we go to school while our father sets out to fish". on a weekend they join their father as a time for them to learn the basics of fishing. at the age of 5 he already mastered the maneuvering of a fishing boat. they were not so worried with the economy then. politics was less important and people in their area knows one another. years after that, the island became busier as resorts were being built. transporting people coming in and out of the island became a business. pier expansion led to a busy trading. fishing boats are now motorized and they started to earn more but this time they became affected by the surging gas prices. i asked how much one fishing boat can costs. he said "it can costs around P14,000 (estimated $320) without the motor as you buy it separately" then he showed us the motor and continued "this costs around P5,000 (estimated $113)". but he was blessed enough to have inherited a fishing boat from his father. the crisis doesn't affect them much as they generally get their food from their own catch.few minutes more, his wife arrived and introduced her to us. his wife assisted him. she showed us how important it is to support his husband and we can simply imagine how blessed their kids are to have such good parents.i asked if he has a plan to go and work in the city but he said he has none. but he has good plans for his children. he sees the urban life as a complicated life for a person like him, who is now used to this kind of living. he is is already happy and contented. he enjoys the simple life of an islander.

to brycebugz, thank you for including me on your personal list of Top Ten Emerging Influential Blogs in 2008. i appreciate that.