Sunday, July 22, 2007

THE APPLE OF MY EYE - Conclusion (Women in Love and in Trouble - 2)

by: Lilian (as told to Annamanila)

Didn’t I tell you about Ding’s string of girl friends? There were so many I couldn’t any more distinguish one from the other. But there were two whom I’ll never forget.

Eva was a girl from his office. She’s small, cute, brown, sexy. Well, to make a long story short, I was able to track down Eva and she turned out to be really nice as well. She promised to forget Ding. And she also asked me to bring her home “... so I can see Ding’s children ... so I can prop up my decision to break up with him.”

Taking a crowded bus, we were hanging by the estribo all the way. When we alighted, Eva said: “You could have pushed me from the bus, you know.”

Ding came home very early ... which I did not expect. He saw the visitor right away and was about to backtrack. I called him back and Eva saw him and he did not have a choice but to stay. We talked awhile, the three of us. Finally, Eva told him: “Sana naman, matauhan na tayo,” to which he answered curtly: “Ikaw lang.”

When Eva took her leave, Ding said he’d take her to the bus stop. No, I said firmly, I’ll take her. Before climbing the bus that would take her home, she asked me to forgive her.

Ding was cold and scornful after that. One night, I noticed him tossing in bed. When I looked at him, his face was glistening with tears. I asked him: “Why do you weep? Don’t you love me anymore?” He dd not answer but turned his back to me.
There must be a place, a place where love has gone.
- from the song
I found out later that Eva was sacked from work and away from Ding. He was crying because of her.

There had been many Evas in Ding's life. But this Eva stood out because she was a good girl, who could have been a friend.


Sarah

Sarah was not a good girl, I think. She had no compunction about breaking up a family. She broke ours quickly.

When Ding met Sarah, the toast of a karaoke bar in Ermita, he threw all caution to the wind. He used to be reasonably discreet about his other affairs. The affair with Sarah he openly flaunted as if taunting me to do the worst I could.

She’d call our home and ask for Ding even if I was the one who answered the phone. When I badmouthed her, she badmouthed me back. One time, she insisted that Ding told me in my face that he loved her more than me. And what do you know – Ding did as told. “She’s drunk,” Ding explained simply.

When Sarah’s mother was hospitalized, he took a week’s leave from work to be their all around macho man and errand boy.

He came home infrequently. Before Christmas two years ago, he came home to ask for his freedom, as though marriage to me was prison.

For months, I held back. I’d never let him go, I said.

Going to church daily gave me hope. My friends rallied around me. They’d call up Sarah at my bidding. Through them, I learned when the affair was at high gear. Sarah had quit working at the bar, so Ding would quit being jealous of other men hovering around her.

I tried to end it all. But then, maybe I didn’t really want to. I attempted to drown myself – in, of all things – a bucket of tap water. I only succeeded in giving myself a bad case of sinusitis and colds. But that was enough to alarm my mother-in-law who in turn alerted my mother. My family came in full force to take me home. Already tired, I let them take away my things, my children, my self – away from the apple of my eye.

Away from Ding, I healed fast. I reviewed our life together – and found little that was worth salvaging. I guess I couldn’t love him enough for the both of us.

Karma

Karma, my friends called it. If it was, it came quickly for Ding.

Less than a year after we parted, Ding had a second coronary attack that was far more serious than the first. He was in coma at a hospital’s intensive care unit.

It took two days and all entreaties of my family and in-laws for me to visit Ding. You’ll never forgive yourself if he died and you didn’t see him, my Ate said.

Looking at him on his hospital bed with all the life support systems wired to him, the tears did not come anymore. “Take good care of him,” I asked the red-eyed Sarah who stood guard.

Ding came out of the coma eventually. He’s young and he’ll bounce back. Already, he’s on his feet, although still a bit wobbly, after a few months of therapy. He comes to visit me and the children every other day. He is wooing me again, after a fashion. He drops hints of a reconciliation. I laugh them away. Sometimes, when he becomes insistent, I answer with sarcasm. The tenderest thing I can feel for him now is pity.

There is very little in the apple that has not been eaten away by worms. I’ve thrown it away.





Now you say you love me
And just to prove you do ...
Come on, cry me a river
I cried a river over you.
- Barbra Streissand in Cry Me a River





38 comments:

Hootin Anni said...

Hi!! Thanks for the interest in being added to the Over 50 Bloggers blogroll.

If you go back here, and copy the javascript and add it to your sidebar I will add your blog's name. The script is found near the bottom of the page.

Just copy and paste. And if you don't want the huge list on your sidebar, you have two other options...either make a new page then, add a link to it from your sidebar, or you can go out to Flooble.com and get the drop down [expandable] script. If you do this last one, you need to make sure that the blogroll is initally hidden when you edit the colors and such.

Heart of Rachel said...

I like this conclusion. I'm happy for Lilian. It's good that she has learned to pick up the pieces of her life and move on. It seems she came out of the situation with her chin held high. Triumph is always sweet. I hope that she will find the happiness she truly deserves.

Thanks for sharing her moving story.

Gina said...

Mabuti nalang, nagising si Lilian. I liked the way her story ended.

Wenchie said...

Good for Lilian, she didnt get back to her "apple"...Hope she'll find the right man at the right time. Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

I am glad sarah was able to see the part of the apple not eaten by the worms. but then she has to make a step and leap to another pedestal. she is a fast learner.

Anonymous said...

converted believers are the most pious, or so they say...

i've seen cases where women forgive and it works out fine. i don't know, i just feel it is worth the second try.

cacofonix said...

hmmmmm...Can't blame the lady, the heart can only take so much beating...

The story was sad from beginning to end - everyone involved ended up in brokenness. Very well-written though, thanks for sharing Anna!:)

P.S. On the other hand, I also agree with Pepe...:).

ScroochChronicles said...

Great ending!! Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned..in other words..buti nga sa kanya!!

Anonymous said...

hay salamat lilian. about time. wag mong sagutin, baka walang trabaho kaya ka nililigawan uli.

harinawang wag ako i-feature ni AM now or in the future so help me God!

Anonymous said...

Buti naman natauhan si Lilian.

Anonymous said...

Ha ha, finally, she realized kung bakit she can see through. Ang dami na kasing butas ng apple. he he he.

Kung maggot cheese kaya, itatapon pa rin kaya nya. LOL

please watch THIS.

Anonymous said...

Oh well, no one eats worm-infested Washington apples anyway. So off to the garbage dump he goes...

Good thing she's not the "martir" type who eventually comes back for more...

Anonymous said...

hayyy, ganyan talaga ang nangyayari sa mga lalakeng masyadong feeling. cheers to lillian! =) (yung story nya halos kapareho dun sa isang novel ni danielle steel, answered prayers)

Anonymous said...

I liked the ending too. Lilian is a strong woman. Love blinds us sometimes but in the end, we either get a better prescription for the eyes to see clearly.

exskindiver said...

i could feel lillian going through various stages before she came to where she is now.
i understood her, and not once was i frustrated with her character.
your writing style made this possible.
nicely done.

Hootin Anni said...

I see the button for Over 50 & Bloggin'

Your blog has been added to the blogroll. [You may want to link the sidebar button you chose with this url so you can click on it to visit others who are over 50!!]

http://bloggerover50.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

Whew, good for Lillian! But my heart goes out to her, it must have been so difficult for her undying love to go unreciprocated. It took a while, but i am glad she was shaken out of it.

So very well written, anna. I look forward to the next story.

Anonymous said...

in the end she did the right thing, she definitely deserves better... down with the rotten men!

Gypsy said...

Well, if he has left this Sarah then maybe he is sincere about coming back...you don't really know what happens when people get into near death experiences...sana Lilian would take him back (that is, after evidences prove his sincerity)...maybe then we will all have our happy ending! :)

auee said...

Lilian is vindicated & I'm happy that she's found herself again. But at the same time I feel sad that they can no longer work it out.

Jigs said...

What a sad, heartbreaking story... Sometimes you wonder if everything was really worth it, in the end you're just happy you still have yourself.

Elmer said...

lilian is strong from the beginning...taking Eva home and told your partner love somebody else...wow.

Anonymous said...

Oooo! What a story! Ding is more like a rotten apple than an apple. I guess some men are like that... when they lose someone, then they try to woo them back. Then, the vicious circle begins all over again. Sana di na ulit magpadala si Lilian. I don't believe that getting pregnant or having sex (whether real or assumed) is a reason to get married, especially if the couple are very young.

Anonymous said...

Another story well told of loving too much and not too wisely. But Lilian woke up in time before she swallowed the worms.

I also would like to know what happened to Sarah. Did she abandon the macho man?

Anonymous said...

Good for Lilian! For tossing that bad apple finally before the worms of destruction further damage. Not that she has or maybe I do, feel happy about what happened to Ding, still he didn't treat her well.

Thanks for sharing this story, AM. Mabuhay ka Lilian!

vernaloo said...

Oh well...getting married at 19? Even 30 something people can't come up with a mature decision, what can you expect from teens?

Good thing Lillian was able to bounce back. Ding wooing her again? BIg deal! Ding is a jerk so she shouldn't accept him again.

Anonymous said...

loved the last line. Great writing as usual AnnaManila!

Anonymous said...

I'm usually not drawn to stories like these, but you told it so interestingly. Very well written, miss anna. :)

And yes, good for Lillian. Love is really blind, especially to the young. But it's a good thing that she smartened up after many years of the ex's infidelity.

Anonymous said...

i love how the story turned out. lillian finally came to her senses. what took her so long?

it would be a good revenge if lillian finds a loving and faithful husband.

Anonymous said...

the ending is quite opposite to the other story previously posted. One took her erring husband back, while the other is adamant and unrelenting.

But I guess this is not yet the end of their stories. I just hope for their happiness.

Anonymous said...

a lesson learned for parents not to make decisions for their children esp. regarding marriage if they're not ready. even if the woman is pregnant, it's not a reason to get married unless they truly love each other.

looking at the guy's side, maybe he didn't really want to be in that relationship. i think he intentionally wanted his wife to know and see his extra marital affairs because it is his way to escape from the marriage he did not want in the first place.

looking at the wife's side, she is such a martyr. she is indeed in love with her husband. if i was her, i could have not endured all the pain.

the mistake started when they got married when both were not ready.

i am happy that she eventually managed to set herself free. it wasn't really ding who found freedom - it was lilian.

Anonymous said...

i have always wanted to think that im strong. but then again, i guess we all have weak spots. as for me, i guess its wiv men. lol. we can only do so much, even in the name of love.

Mitch said...

Wala na bang bagong story? :p

Forever59er said...

Just an epilogue to the story for those feeling "bitin:"

Ding didn't really fully recover to his full functionality. Sarah and he parted ways before long. He still visits his children .. but that's all. Lilian has raised them almost singly. She is happy .. at least thats the way she looks to me when I meet her. :)

Forever59er said...

Mitch!

Gimme a break. LOL I don't wanna be known as a heartbreak bear. But there are a few more stories. Will post in a few, okay? Ty for reading. :)

Anonymous said...

so sad...can't judge

come to think of it, even in the very beginning ding did not love lilian. in fact, it seems like it was just really friendship he wanted. and lilia knew that.

devil's advocate, am i? i would like to think, again--of prince charles and lady di, then camilla.

am glad lilian is at peace now, at the same time, i hope ding will find his peace, too.

Anonymous said...

Ay di pwede yang break break! Post na ng bago, now na!

Joke lang hehehehe!

Heart of Rachel said...

I'm glad to hear that Lilian has successfully raised her children. I hope she will always stay happy.

I like the photos you added. Nice touch.

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