I've been trying to recall where I was or what I was doing the day people "woke up" and decided they had had enough of the Marcos dictatorship. It's been 25 years since that fateful day. If any of you have noticed, I was also recently a HS Silver Jubilarian.
1986 was the year I almost didn't get to march on that stage to receive my high school diploma. Only about a month before graduation, the EDSA Revolution took place. The country was in turmoil and nobody knew how things would turn out. I remember thinking, "Oh no! Do we have to move to another country?!" I remember seeing my Mom going over our passports to make sure they were within reach. She went through each of our US visas to check if everything was in order. I had a creepy feeling in my gut. Here I was, about to reach an important milestone in my academic life and we were on the verge of packing our bags???
Because I was a normal teenager then, my thoughts were mostly selfish. I had been living a very sheltered life, not caring much about the country's future. I was more concerned about not being able to experience attending my Senior Graduation Ball. Seriously.
25 years later, the country remembers everything that took place on the streets of EDSA, as we witnessed the end of a dictatorship and the birth of democracy, thanks to our first lady President, Cory Aquino. Sadly, I have no stories to tell my kids. All I can remember is that no matter how many times I asked if I could go to EDSA, my parents denied me the opportunity. I saw all those historical events unfold on TV, in the comforts of my home.
Oh...but I wore yellow. That much I know.
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