'LL-para-I'
Like a cauldron of happy memories, UP Los Baños prepared us for a flavorful stew of friendship. To this day, we remember the garnishings — with laughter as the prime ingredient of the camaraderie we shared. The sweet and savory relationship we built in the past is always remembered with our favorite expression — LL-para-I!
After 20 years, we found ourselves using that expression again when we recently held our Christmas party at the cozy home of Arlene Arcillas-Nazareno, now mayor of Sta. Rosa City. In this heartwarming reunion, our celebration is punctuated with our memories of LL-para-I among other beautiful things we shared in college.
That expression is the abridged version of “pa-lonely-lonely para ibigin.” Roughly translated, it refers to someone who exhibits a sad, wimpy demeanor as if in a desperate attempt to be noticed, to be loved. In other words, LL-para-I is the mode and mood of people who are lonely, who want to be in their own world of isolation and, perhaps, desolation. Thankfully, however, we didn’t have that much problem when we were younger so LL-para-I simply remained just like that — an expression.
In our group — collectively called Ilag’s Boys and Girls because we were living in a compound inside the UPLB called Ilag’s — loners are shot with watchful eyes and disarmed with loving thoughts, thereby leaving them rejuvenated with ounce and ounce of laughter afterwards. Since loners became the butt of jokes, nobody wanted to become lonely anymore. Besides, the Ilag’s Boys were — to this day they still are — a wacky bunch. They were trained for banterings, the way military men are trained for assault operations. They were the big brothers of the girls — protective and all. In effect, long before the construction of the reality TV show Pinoy Big Brother house, there already existed Big Brotherhood and Sisterhood in UP Los Baños, at Ilag’s compound.
In our recent get-together, the Ilag’s Boys and Girls — Pam Perez-Dacanay, Noli Lorenzana, Sta. Rosa City Mayor Arlene Arcillas-Nazareno, Glenn Añasco, Dr. Ging Javier, Jay Capiral, Patrick and Dr. Lenlen Leonardo, Raqs Yabyabin, Gilbert Foliente, Russell Molina, Edwin Bacani, Ronron Flores, Mike Chebat and I — ruminated on the past. Of course, the past is a staple in reunions. We didn’t care much about now. In between bites of lechon and lengua estofado, laughter permeated, piercing the night up until the wee hours. Then we realized that “nothing” much has really changed. Sure some gained a pound and a pouch but physical changes become arbitrary in a company of well-meaning friends.
Funny how the jokes we told before in LB in the late ’80s were the same jokes we brought to that dinner get-together. Funnier to note was how we still laughed at jokes whose punch lines we already knew. It was wonderful to realize how one friend started telling a joke with the ending being continued by another one. Each one had a funny recollection to share; it was crazy to note that long before the execution of the punch line, everybody was already in stitches. The funny anecdotes about our college life — from falling in love to falling out of love to finding a new love — were remembered, given a new twist, interpreted anew. All were done in the spirit of fun. Then everything resulted in a spontaneous combustive laughter! Oh, if it were true that laughter could make one remain young, then we, LL-para-I busters, are assured that in our friendship we have stumbled upon the fountain of youth.
I risk repeating myself: the most important thing is that nothing has changed the way we regard each other. The beauty of reunions is that, we relive the prime of our youth, making our friendship timeless, and friends, ageless. Simply being in the company of true friends — who have been with us through the many seasons of our lives — reminds us of who we are, where we came from, how we evolved to be. We are allowed the opportunity to get a “grasp of our bearings” so to speak. Reunions remind us of the many wonderful “anchors” in our lives who helped us weather storms and sail through travails yet emerge victorious and whole.
For a few seconds, in the middle of our merrymaking, I stepped back as though in an effort to pause the happy LL-para-I film being viewed. I carefully observed each and every character in the loving mis-en-scene. From a little distance, I watched them all and thanked The Guy Up There for such priceless treasures.
We met in college in the prime of our youth — when all we had in mind was to build a dream, to conquer tomorrow. The future we longed for then is now the present. Now, we still build new dreams as we get ready again for the infinite future. We’re more than ready for the challenges. After all, with good old friends to share your life with, everything becomes a breeze.
(For your new beginnings, please e-mail me at bumbaki@yahoo.com or my.new.beginnings@gmail.com. You may also snail mail me at The Philippine Star, c/o Allure section, R. Oca cor. Railroad Streets, Port Area, Manila. Have a blessed Sunday!)
