7- Tomato Red

Tomato Red

Everyone has that moment where people – be it someone you know or not – would most likely be remember by his or her acts. The three most common reasons are the following: 

1.       Something you did right;

2.       A bad act; or

3.       An embarrassing event

Every individual has a story to narrate, and this is my story to tell.

This story of mine is not worth remembering on my part because thinking about it makes me want to cover myself in shame.This event happened during summer, while I was on a vacation on my father’s side. As I recall, I was still in Grade Six at that time. My cousin had a school event – recognition day, specifically – and she offered me to come along. I accepted the offer since I had nothing to do. The venue wasn’t that grand as I hoped it would be. The place was boring as all I could see was only shades of grey – monoblock chairs, concrete roads (the event was hosted in an open area), and gravel. I was expecting something that would match the vibe like a grass field, garlands, or banners. All I saw was an outdoor gym with its minimal decorations. 

My cousin assisted me to sit on the front row and there was at least four rows behind me. The event started with the usual. Opening speech, national anthem, speech, intermission, and so on. Halfway during the event, I felt like I wanted to at least eat (or have a breather). Fortunately, there’s a sari-sari store located just across the street. To satisfy my hunger, I decided to go for it. As I was walking midway to my destination, I instinctively touched the small of my back and realized that my shirt was lifted up. But that’s not all! I felt the strap of my T-back (“Curiosity killed the cat”) all the way to my waist which was exposed to the visible eye! The realization dawned on me that I just flashed it to the people who were facing my back. My assumption was I might have been fidgeting frequently on my chair out of boredom but I don’t know how my underwear went ‘that’ far.

With that said, I bet you could imagine my walk of shame as I made my way back. This is one story out of seven billion. How about you? What’s your story?