Dear Hi-way Supermart,
You were the first department store I had been to, the biggest one I knew at an early age of four or five. Mama would take me to you and buy me ice cream, with a strong reminder not to tell my siblings when we got home that I had ice cream or else they’d get jealous and cry. (Although we knew that was Mama’s style.)
In the third grade, I would cut class and go to you. I’d buy a water gun, which was only P5 at that time, a coloring book of Mickey and Minnie Mouse (I forgot how much), or a box of Curly Tops.
In my first year in high school, I bought my very first cassette tape, an album of Alanis Morissette’s “Jagged Little Pill,” at Hi-way Supermart. And many other things.
And then “Yolanda/Haiyan” happened. I’m sorry but it was with desperation that I went to you to seek help. This time, however, I knew we were not welcome. You had no electricity, no lights (the whole city, too), no welcoming security guards to greet us—and the storm surge left your floors caked with thick black mud. It smelled like a sewer inside.
It was also pitch black. My buddy, Jan2x/Kawayan Diaz, held my hand so I wouldn’t slip or lose my way. A friendly reminder to everyone: If you intend to borrow/loot, be ready. Bring a flashlight (I had none), a backpack (wa ko gihapon), and many bags (duroy kay waray ko talaga dara!). Do not loot other looters or you’ll get stabbed. Manners pa rin pag meron. If you’re courteous enough, other looters will help you.
Hi-way Supermart, the looters who came first practically stripped you down to nothing. We were left with almost nothing. I checked some of the shelves by touch, and found them all empty. But the next shelf was full of goodies. In the faint light from the main entry, I saw what I was holding: nata de coco! It being a case of no choice, I picked six small jars of nata de coco, in different colors! Red, green and white nata de coco! We thought that we might get other stuff, and fruit salad with nata might be okay. Positive thinking!
I almost tripped after climbing up the scattered, trodden shelves, and saw cans of food on the floor swimming in the mud! An old fellow with a big flashlight came our way. He had light, we had no light, so we followed him. “Pork and beans!” said Jan2x. I picked it up. “Sardines!” I picked it up. It was like an app or a game of brand recognition. Oh, the poor fellow with the flashlight couldn’t recognize the cans; he became irritated and stopped sharing his light with us. But we still managed to get some spaghetti sauce.
“Ok, that’s enough!” said Jan2x. This time, the fellow with the flashlight shared his light for us to arrange our “borrowed” goods inside Jan2x’s backpack.
I’m sorry for what happened to you, Hi-way Supermart, and I’m sorry I did what I needed to do. Survival. That was the only thing I had in mind at that time.
These were what we “borrowed”:
• Six small jars of nata de coco.
• Two cans of spaghetti sauce with meatballs.
• Eight cans of sardines (different brands).
• Two cans of pork and beans.
I don’t know the prices of those items. And is there a discount? I got the dented and muddy cans.
Thank you for keeping us alive with the few cans we got. They were a lifesaver. I’m really going back to you and pay for what I “borrowed”…
FYI. We weren’t the ones who stole Monterey’s freezer. We only “borrowed” food.
Sincerely,
Tata
Tata Dela Cruz, 25, is a member of Kulahig Band of Tacloban City.