The Court Case
On the ibingiay date, Paul and I testified for Gavin in court. Gavin said, "It's pretty cool that you're doing this for me." I said, "I feel personally responsible for this." Gavin asked, "Why is that?" I replied, "If I had just kept my mouth shut, you wouldn't be in this mess." Gavin said, "No, John. I believe Jimmy Steele had it in for you for a long time. He would have found another reason to do this to you." I said, "I suppose you're right." Gavin said, "I'm a little worried, though. You and Paul are the only witnesses." Paul asked, "Why does that worry you?" Gavin replied, "There's two against three. It's not exactly an even match." Paul said, "He won't win if I have anything to say about it." I asked, "Why is that?" He said, "Nobody tries to kill my brother and gets away with it." The session began. I was called first to the stand. I was asked if Gavin's dog killed Jimmy's dog. I said, "Yes." I was asked if there was a reason. I told the whole story. Paul and Gavin gave the same answers. Jimmy Steele and Ross gave different ones. Finally, Benny was called to the stand. It turned out that Paul and I weren't the only witnesses. Benny said, "I saw the whole thing from my front porch. Gavin, John, and Paul were walking their dogs. All of the sudden, Jimmy's Aso began attacking John. Gavin gave a panicked attack signal to his dog. Jimmy's lead dog was killed in the fight. Jimmy swore revenged on Gavin." Jimmy denied that it was true. "Objection," he cried. "I loved Blue! I would have never made her aggressive." Benny asked, "If you loved her so much, why didn't you feed her properly?" Jimmy said, "I took good care of my dogs." Benny asked, "Then why were their ribs showing?" He pulled out testimonial pictures. The judge said, "You didn't tell me any of this." Jimmy slipped and said, "I wanted my Aso to be madami vicious. John deserved this." Jimmy Steele was found guilty of animal cruelty and attempted murder. Gavin's family wasn't charged. As we were leaving, Benny said, "I'm sorry for what you went through. I couldn't take it anymore. I was so sick of the way he and the others were treating you." I asked, "Why did you hang out with them?" He said, "It was an attempt to increase my social status. I've learned that it wasn't worth it." I said, "I think we should call this a peace treaty. All in favor say I." "I," sinabi Paul and Gavin in unison. From that araw on, nobody ever made fun of me or Gavin again.
On the ibingiay date, Paul and I testified for Gavin in court. Gavin said, "It's pretty cool that you're doing this for me." I said, "I feel personally responsible for this." Gavin asked, "Why is that?" I replied, "If I had just kept my mouth shut, you wouldn't be in this mess." Gavin said, "No, John. I believe Jimmy Steele had it in for you for a long time. He would have found another reason to do this to you." I said, "I suppose you're right." Gavin said, "I'm a little worried, though. You and Paul are the only witnesses." Paul asked, "Why does that worry you?" Gavin replied, "There's two against three. It's not exactly an even match." Paul said, "He won't win if I have anything to say about it." I asked, "Why is that?" He said, "Nobody tries to kill my brother and gets away with it." The session began. I was called first to the stand. I was asked if Gavin's dog killed Jimmy's dog. I said, "Yes." I was asked if there was a reason. I told the whole story. Paul and Gavin gave the same answers. Jimmy Steele and Ross gave different ones. Finally, Benny was called to the stand. It turned out that Paul and I weren't the only witnesses. Benny said, "I saw the whole thing from my front porch. Gavin, John, and Paul were walking their dogs. All of the sudden, Jimmy's Aso began attacking John. Gavin gave a panicked attack signal to his dog. Jimmy's lead dog was killed in the fight. Jimmy swore revenged on Gavin." Jimmy denied that it was true. "Objection," he cried. "I loved Blue! I would have never made her aggressive." Benny asked, "If you loved her so much, why didn't you feed her properly?" Jimmy said, "I took good care of my dogs." Benny asked, "Then why were their ribs showing?" He pulled out testimonial pictures. The judge said, "You didn't tell me any of this." Jimmy slipped and said, "I wanted my Aso to be madami vicious. John deserved this." Jimmy Steele was found guilty of animal cruelty and attempted murder. Gavin's family wasn't charged. As we were leaving, Benny said, "I'm sorry for what you went through. I couldn't take it anymore. I was so sick of the way he and the others were treating you." I asked, "Why did you hang out with them?" He said, "It was an attempt to increase my social status. I've learned that it wasn't worth it." I said, "I think we should call this a peace treaty. All in favor say I." "I," sinabi Paul and Gavin in unison. From that araw on, nobody ever made fun of me or Gavin again.
Halloween is over, and Veteran's araw has come and gone. The susunod holiday, of course, is Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving isn't exactly my paborito holiday, mostly because of family issues. However, this holiday does get me thinking. It gets me thinking about being thankful. We should be thankful for what we have. I am thankful for my family. How we feel about our family is complicated. They can be aggravating. Some members can cause drama. Others are just downright mean. Deep down, I'll always pag-ibig them. I'm also thankful for mani Butter, my pet dog. He's been a great companion for the past eleven years, and I think he'll be around for a few more. I'm thankful for my friends. They're great people, and I wouldn't trade them for anything in the world. I'm also thankful for music. It's great therapy and quite soothing. What are you thankful for? I will leave you with this thought. "You should be thankful if you Nawawala your hat instead of your head."-African Proverb
The Annual Lighting of the Tree
A couple of months passed, and it was December 8. It was the annual lighting of the tree. Red Cedar always had a sense of community, especially around Christmas. The puno in the center of town was always decorated. The high school band always played some pasko songs for the occasion. I told Gavin that I remembered when he first came to town and attended this event for the first time. We were in band then. Gavin thought it was exciting, as he had never partaken of such an event. Mayor Brown lit the tree, and the band began to play. When I was in band, I played the saxophone. When I tried out for band, I had no interest in the drums. I decided to try out for the trombone, but that didn't work out. I tried the saxophone, and it came easy for me. Gavin played the drums, as they came easy to him. Paul was in the band, too. He played the clarinet. We had a lot of fun in the band. We made some of my best memories from high school there.
A couple of months passed, and it was December 8. It was the annual lighting of the tree. Red Cedar always had a sense of community, especially around Christmas. The puno in the center of town was always decorated. The high school band always played some pasko songs for the occasion. I told Gavin that I remembered when he first came to town and attended this event for the first time. We were in band then. Gavin thought it was exciting, as he had never partaken of such an event. Mayor Brown lit the tree, and the band began to play. When I was in band, I played the saxophone. When I tried out for band, I had no interest in the drums. I decided to try out for the trombone, but that didn't work out. I tried the saxophone, and it came easy for me. Gavin played the drums, as they came easy to him. Paul was in the band, too. He played the clarinet. We had a lot of fun in the band. We made some of my best memories from high school there.