a peace of life...

each day, going to work, i pass through a little community
of informal settlers...
there are are many of them here in Manila...
this is the life they live.

little children play in the space
that is theirs...milk cans become toy cars,
tattered clothes become kings' and queens'
costumes, sticks become magic wands...
all sorts of ways, they help themselves
all kinds of things they sell...




i occasionally buy their cold drinks...
buko (young coconut) juice, pineapple,
sago and gulaman (a concoction of flavored
gelatin)...my walk invites thirst...and a
little help for the old lady...

life may be tough and difficultbut
there are no beggars
all are working it looks like...
and well-organized.

today they have organized the
basketball team, the skateboard team,
and the volleyball team...there are
sponsors who lent out their balls,
and skateboards...




everyone is busy in this
community.
no one is idle, it looks like...
at the end of the day in the office,
i smell the aroma of garlic and onions
sauteeing in some of the houses...
i wonder what food is cooking...

there is wisdom here...but...
i still wonder at this peace of life...

(thanks to Al, for the "ambulant vendor" photo)