Serendipity

by Mary Gelyn Cardeño

          Amidst the buoyant crowd of people who attended the last mass in Cathedral, a pair of dejected eyes was fixated on a boy who is selling sampaguita garlands outside the church. Jack took notice of the boy because of his stricken condition where the child has an enlarged head and was bound in a wheelchair yet still striving to make a living. His heart went to the poor boy`s condition and did not realize that he has been watching him for quite a while. For no reason at all, he was unable to take his eyes off the boy who was now busy offering the last group of sampaguita garlands on his hands to an elderly couple. He noticed that even though the boy is having a hard time, he still carries a smile on his face and a radiant look in his eyes; in contrast to what he feels at the moment.  

         Jack was feeling depressed and exhausted after failing to accomplish the goal that he planned. He was on a mission to find the girl whom he got pregnant when he was a teenager. He was so irresponsible and afraid back then that he left to New York without saying goodbye. After 7 years, he is back in town to find the girl and their child. He was an aspiring photographer in New York but lately, he can`t focus on his work because he was bothered by his conscience when he received a picture of his son and the mother of his child on his 24th birthday from a friend. The picture reminded him how evil he was and how hard he was trying to appease himself that he did the right thing. Deep down, he knew he was wrong. For the last few months, he can`t even take a peek on the lens of his camera because he can only see the face of the girl whom he jilted and the baby that he forsaken. The guilt of abandoning them took its toll on him that he can`t work any longer because their faces haunted him even in his sleep. So, he decided to make amends on his past and make things right. Now, after a week in Lipa, Jack learned that the girl he was looking for died, weeks after giving birth to their child. He discovered that she entrusted their child to a close friend. He immediately started searching for her friend who was also their classmate in high school. After four days, Jack found their former classmate in the slums of Tondo in Manila. The life there is very poor that he can`t imagine his child growing up in such wretched place. After asking around, he found Shahan who he was looking for. Sadly, their former classmate just delivered tragic news. Jack learned that she left his child to an orphanage in their hometown. She apologized for sending his son to such place but explained that she has done what was best for his child for she was incapable of providing the needs of the baby. During her spiel, she handed him a picture of his child who was smiling brightly. The photo was taken when his child was two years old and he noticed that his son inherited most of his facial features: deep-set eyes, crooked nose, firm lips and even the distinctive heart-shaped birthmark on his right hand. The picture of his child just inflamed the desire of Jack to find him. He gets all the information that he needed from Shahan in order to find the location of the orphanage where she sent his child. After gathering all the information that he needs to know, he returned to Lipa.

  

        Days have passed and Jack has not yet found even a single hair strand of his child. The address of the orphanage that was given to him had closed long ago and he learned that the children that were in the orphanage were transferred to other orphanages in the city. Jack did not waste any time and took the quest of finding his child by inquiring in every existing orphanage in town. This day, he just got a call from the last orphanage that he had asked. His heart flickered with hope when the director told him that they had in custody a boy named Harrison Ford. The director told him how brilliant and kind his son is. Unfortunately, he ran away a year ago because he thought he was just a nuisance to others due to his illness. The

director has no idea where his son was at the moment and continued to tell him stories about Harrison but Jack did not hear the other things that the director was saying because he abruptly burst in tears. The thought that his child has nowhere to go, having an illness and all, made him worry all the more. He blamed himself for that. If he just learned to muster some courage to face Cecil before, their son would not experience such hardship now.  

            Filled with thoughts of his son in mind, Jack did not realize that he had reached the Cathedral. When he noticed where he was, he felt the need to kneel and pray but his heart is filled with misery that he just stared blankly at the cross, tears flowing from his eyes. He kept asking questions in his head, pondering on things that he did and did not do. When the cold breeze of the night wind embrace him, Jack decided to go outside the church to wander.  He saw children of different ages, playing along with their friends and their parents. His heart ached. How he wished his son was with him that moment! As he continued to watch people come and go in the church, his noticed a young boy`s arrival. The boy, confined in a wheelchair, is forcing himself to go through the rush of people who wants to hear the mass. He heard the other vendors called the boy Harry and greeted him. The young boy smiled back and prepared a bunch of sampaguita garlands on his lap and arranged them carefully. After that, he started selling it to people who passes his way. 

     

       Harry needed to make a living to save him some dignity. Other than alms, he wanted to have another source of income to fill his grumbling stomach each day. He could not afford to depend on people who give him money especially nowadays that he`s undergoing medication. He found a way to earn money by selling sampaguita garlands where most of his costumers do not bother to get the change from their payment. It was like hitting two birds in one stone; he can make a living and collect some alms at the same time. What he need to do now is to sell the last group of garlands for him to get home. He went closer to an elderly couple and offered the last group of sampaguita garlands to them. 

       

     Jack smiled gently. He admired how the boy does such work with his condition. The last mass has ended and he noticed that the boy still have flower garlands on his hand. He approached Harry from behind and heard how he offers his product to the elders which the latter declined. He can see that the boy was letting out heavy sighs as he looked for other costumers. He tapped his shoulder and held his hand to get the remaining garlands on his hand when he was taken aback by what he saw. The young boy has the same heart-shaped birthmark that he has on his right hand! Is that a coincidence or what? Jack intently examines the face of the young boy. Deep-set eyes, crooked nose, firm lips...Is the boy whom he think he is? He asked for the boy`s name and he said Harry. He was not contented with that so he asked him again but his full name this time. His answer? Harrison Ford.

    

        Jack could not contain his happiness. He hugged his son tightly and cried on his shoulders. Harry was surprised on the actions of the man whom he just met but Jack explained in haste who he was and their relationship. He even showed his baby picture. Harry was still in awe and could not believe what he just heard. He didn`t expect to meet his father at all because he thought that he was already dead like his mother. The boy was still processing was he just learned when he felt that Jack was pushing his wheelchair toward the church. Harry gave a quizzical look to the short man who presents himself as his father. Jack gently smiled and told Harry that they need to thank God because He is the one who brought them back together. 

   

        Inside the church beside Harry, Jack kneels and praises the goodness of the Lord for He lead him to where he could find his son.