The Night I Felt Like A Criminal

Paalala: Sa ilalim ng ating Saligang Batas, ikaw ay may karapatang magbigay o hindi magbigay ng ano mang salaysay, manatiling tahimik/magsawalang kibo kaugnay ng pagsisiyasat na ito, ikaw ay may karapatang sumangguni na naaayon sa sarili mong piling abogado upang ikaw ay gabayan sa lahat ng sasabihin mo dahilan sa ang lahat ng ito ay maaaring maging panig o laban sa iyo sa alin mang hukuman dito sa Pilipinas.

After fully reading and understanding that statement, I wrote down my own claim at the Police Station, with hands freezing cold and knuckles trembling, and half my conscience telling me that I was at fault.

What took me to the station was an event that I'd never forget for my entire life. It was last night at around 8pm, on my family's way home from Pangasinan. I was driving our van, which is obviously too big for me, when the first shock of my driving life happened. A blue Toyota Corola drove past my front into the U-turn slot, hitting me (or I hitting them) on the side bumper. Thank God it was nothing serious. Nobody was killed nor bloody. Both parties just went home with damaged vehicles.

However, it was the damage to myself that was serious. I felt like a criminal, most especially when two menacing figures came down from the other car. A lawyer in his 60's and the driver - his son in his late 20's, both looked like they were ready to sue me for the wreckage.

Luckily, I was allowed to remain inside the van to recover from the trauma. My dad did all the talking and debating. He defended me despite our petty fight a few seconds before the accident occured. The annoying this was, despite the negligible damages, we still went through a tedious process before finally being allowed to go home. Police took pictures of the scene and pictures of the van with me inside, as if we were to be reported on tv. And at the police station, I was asked to answer a list of never-ending questions and to sign a document certifying that I was willing to "continue the fight". What the heck, I thought. Why opt for a battle when it could be settled peacefully? Where's the spirit of Christmas and New Year there?

In the end, we all gave up. My mom used her ad misericordiam skills in talking the lawyer into a friendly agreement. He must have pitied my crying sister so he agreed to let it all pass.

In the end, the lawyer and my dad turned out to be from the same province. And his son, just like me, has never been into a dilemma before.

In the end, I realized that my dad was teaching me a lesson. He was teaching me not to become the weakling that I am. He was teaching me to overcome my very emotional attitude with confidence and strength of spirit. Specifically, he was teaching me to push back my tears into their glands because they weren't needed at that moment. He was teaching me not to feel like a criminal despite all the police intervention that was going on. He was teaching me that it's all right to commit mistakes, as long as you use all these to help you become a better person.

But most of all, he was teaching me that to teach my future children, I need not nag or scold them or punish them for their errors. Words teach little, but examples teach the most.