I always find myself in trouble when I don’t listen to Kap’s wise advise. Ewan ko ba kung bakit napakatigas ng ulo ko. I know he means well, it’s just that I have a mind of my own & I more often than not exercise it without caution, hay. Yan tuloy, lagi akong napapahamak. Kagagawan ko talaga ano mang sakit ng ulo ang dumarating sa buhay ko! :'(

Ephesians 5:22-24

²² Wives, obey your husbands as you obey the Lord. ²³ The husband is the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the church people. The church is his body and he saved it. ²⁴ Wives should obey their husbands in everything, just as the church people obey Christ.

Exactly on my Babyson’s birthday a couple of weeks ago, TEN policemen came to my house around 10 in the morning with a warrant of arrest to pick me up. Fortunately (or unfortunately ?) I was out with my Bae & the 2 girls to buy supplies & what not for the coming birthday party.

Kap called me in a panic.. “Sweetheart wag ka munang uuwi. Hintayin mo ang tawag ko, jan ka lang muna.” Yun nga TEN police, FOUR barangay guards, & some media people were outside our house para damputin ako.

Why, you ask? It’s for a simple SSS case. They were able to unearth a missed payment from the family company back in 1986 & they traced it to me as the latest Corporate Secretary. The amount was only around 100k, but it has escalated to almost 2M because of the accumulated interest through the years. Fact check lang & I have the receipts to prove it, updated ang bayad namin by the time I left the company 3 years ago, and our employees have always been able to claim their benefits from the SSS.

—

—

First of all, I was only 16 at the time, kaya utang na loob wala akong kinalaman jan. Hindi pa ako part ng kumpanya! Secondly, this was what, 33 years ago? May habol pa ba kayo yang lagay na yan? Bakit hindi kayo naningil earlier ganyang meron palang utang? Pangatlo, the demand letters this government agency gave was sent to a former address, so no action was taken. Consequently, a warrant was issued. We only found out that I had a warrant when several policemen were pointed in another business establishment’s direction where my Mom hangs out. They issued a warning to post bail immediately.

I didn’t take heed coz pride & reasoning got in the way. I thought.. Ayan naman pala, kaya nyo naman palang malaman ang tamang address namin, bakit hindi nyo jan pinadala yung sulat mula nung umpisa para sana na-aksyonan agad at nagawan ng paraan diba??

Kap advised me, “Sweetheart, wag mo na palakihin. Mag-bail ka nalang muna para matapos na yan.” He even got me a team of lawyers who were ready to assist me & make things less traumatic this second time around. (REMEMBER THIS?). But I resisted. You see, I may have acted bravely the first time for appearance’s sake, but in truth, I was really traumatized & it wasn’t something I’d like to repeat. And so, I let it stew.

Almost one year has passed, I really thought I was off the hook. But then, on the exact day of my Babyson’s birthday when we were supposed to celebrate with a dinner at Yurakuen, I was picked up like a common criminal & detained overnight! Apparently, they hid & waited after I got back in the afternoon thinking I was in the clear.

The team that picked me up at 2PM was a special operation unit, yun bang tipong mga drug addict, mamamatay tao, and big fish ang mga hinuhuli. My God, this was just a simple SSS case, kailangan ba talaga SAMPU pa yung pupunta sa bahay along with some MEDIA who took videos of the kaganapan (CNN was one of them, grabe lang)? Add to that FOUR barangay guards pa just to escort me out of the village! @_@ Sobrang eskandalo as the helpers of our neighbors watched & speculated.. “Hala sya, ano kaya ang malaking kasalanan ni madam??”

They didn’t let me out of their sight & had me ride in the van with them. Walk in my shoes guys, can you imagine being taken out from the safety of your home unceremoniously, shoved in a van with TEN policemen, not knowing where they are taking you & what is happening? I thank God that Kap was home when they picked me up so he was able to follow right behind me. He kept in contact, consoled & assured me the whole way to Camp Bagong Diwa. He also made sure our lawyers were there to get me out on bail as soon as possible.

Because of the heavy traffic along Bicutan, we reached the camp at around 4 pm na, meaning I wouldn’t be able to make bail on time huhu. This was the long process towards freedom: Interview, thumbprint, mugshot, medico legal at a nearby government hospital (to prove I wasn’t hurt in their custody), provide legal documents, pay bail at the Makati City Hall, have the judge sign my clearance, get a sheriff to take my clearance to the Makati Police, then finally spring me out of jail. Yes, it’s a lengthy process that would definitely NOT take an hour to finish. And so, I was resigned to spend the night in jail. My heart broke, not for me, but for my Babyson who was supposed to be having a happy birthday. Instead, he was crying because his mother was in jail. Anong regalo ba yang binigay ko dahil lang napakatigas ng ulo ko! :'((

The police told me “Ma’am, kung kaninang umaga eh sumama na kayo sa amin, sana tapos na kayo ma-process at makakauwi na kayo ngayon.” I looked at Kap dispiritedly and his eyes said it all: “Sweetheart, kung nakinig ka lang sa akin at nag-post tayo ng bail dati pa, di sana wala ka sa kulungan ngayon!” I know, this is all my fault & it’s another lesson learned the hard way. My poor family having to endure this, especially Kap na talagang aligaga in my behalf huhu.

Kap wasn’t allowed to stay with me but he insisted & wouldn’t leave my side come what may. Thank God the jail cells were filled with the recent 180 pax Chinese contingent na kakahuli din lang from their illegal gambling den, so I was put in a separate holding cell & Kap was allowed to stay with me to monitor my health, with me being hypertensive, diabetic, asthmatic & all.

Don’t get me wrong, the police (save for one who was out to get me talaga & hated me with a vengeance for special favors) were really nice & treated me with compassion & respect. Nakita naman nila yung nakalagay sa warrant, I am not a hardened criminal. Besides, they were just doing their job. It’s just that when you’re used to certain comforts in life, being in jail (no matter if it’s not REALLY a jail but a holding cell, aka office) it’s still a rude awakening.

Imagine having made to wear a used, dirty, smelly & unwashed yellow DETAINEE shirt for the processing. Imagine being watched by other detainees as you get fingerprinted & mugshot, thinking the worst of you when you’re in fact innocent & just a pawn in this game of life. Imagine having to use & share ONE toilet with 150 other detainees (coz 30 were men & thank goodness they had a separate toilet in their cell). Imagine having to stay in a tight 2×2 meter area with an office desk & a pair of monoblock chairs where you have to sit your ass for 24 hours & sleep in a sitting position.

I know I’ve had it easy, and I really have no right to complain, but still. 😛

One thing I found out lol, ang tagal pala ng oras pagka ganyan. In between talking/entertaining each other & trying to take naps, Kap & I would look at the clock.. Me: Honey anong oras na? Kap: 1:15 try mo matulog Sweetheart para may lakas ka. After a nap, Me: Honey anong oras na? Kap: 1:25 Sweetheart matagal pa, tulog ka uli.”

The whole time, my Kap was so kind & patient with me. He fanned me when I was sweating heavily because the spiteful butch turned off the aircon in the office at wala kaming ka-hangin-hangin. He put Off lotion on me when the spiteful butch made us go outside & sit in a kubo to be feasted on by the mosquitoes. He made seat covers into blankets to cover us when we were finally allowed back into the holding room. He got several basahan from the car to make me a “pillow” just so I can rest my head on the table. I truly cried, not because I was in jail, but because of what this poor guy had to endure as well because of me.

—

I forced him to go home upon learning that I will have to stay the night, assuring him that I’ll be okay. But he said, “kung nasaan ka Sweetheart, nandun ako,” He literally took our vows “sa hirap at ginhawa” to heart. I don’t know what I did to deserve my husband, but I am just so so thankful for him. Time & again, he has proven how much he loves & adores me, so who am I to complain of life’s little idiosyncrasies when I have a superhero for a husband? Lahat kakayanin kasi meron akong gabay. #suboknamatibay #suboknamatatag

The police were baffled why my husband chose to stay sequestered with me when he was free to leave any time. Ako lang daw ang may boluntaryong sinamahan ng asawa in the history of mankind! Yung iba nga ni hindi na sumasama at pinababayaan nalang daw ang mga jowa nilang mabulok sa kulungan. #luckymewifey

The next day, I was finally processed. Nung nakauwi na kami bandang hapon at nakahiga na sa kama, papikit & ready to take a long nap, tanong ba naman sa akin ni Kap, “Ano Sweetheart, naalis na sa bucket list mo yung makulong?” Spent a day in jail, CHECK! 😛 Imbes na patulog na sana, nagtawanan pa tuloy kami ng wala sa oras. Finally, na-release na rin ang malaking #stresssachest !

Hay buhay! I truly thank God for you my Honey. You make trials seem so easy to overcome. Thank you for being my forever HERO. <3 And thank you kids for the emotional support you have given me throughout. Come what may I am still blessed beyond belief.

PS: Thank you Ate for buying us McDo that lasted dinner-breakfast-and-lunch! We would have starved had you not the foresight of buying food for us & bringing a phone charger on your way home from school!

Thank you too, Meni, for going out & buying dinner just so Kuya can have some semblance of a birthday celebration.

And last but not the least, thank you my babylove KTcakes for making up for my shortcomings & giving Jonah a birthday surprise even though you were equally indisposed that day! <3 Salamuch dabarkads for the emotional support you gave my Babyson. It really meant a lot to him that you came to see him, especially GUCCI who came back & forth from Taft just so he can console the birthday boy. I am forever in your debt guys! :-*

—

Again, I’m so so very sorry anak that I gave you the worse birthday celebration ever. </3 I just pray that I have a long lifetime to make up for it. I love you so much!