footprints in Richel's life

THE WADII RIVER
By: Richel N. Daonlay

Long time ago, in the Mountain ranges surrounding Mt. Kitanglad, there found a wide river. This river had been found mysterious among the people who pass over here because of the small voices of children can be heard while passing along the river. It has been believe that a Diwata the goddesses of children inhabits the mysterious river.
From this river was a small sityo of Maagnao, Cawayan ,Lantapan ,Bukidnon. It was here where a number of native people lived in. In one family there was a little girl named Wadii, who has five brothers. Four were older than her but one was still small. Wadii’s father was like most fathers .He showed his sons how to-do things. He was proud of his sons, on how they fished and hunt. But never told Wadii how he was proud of her. He didn’t noticed the bags that Wadii made. How she took good care of her brother. And even noticed how good she was in playing a flute.
Wadii’s mother was proud of her. At times she said, “You did well my Wadii ”.And Wadii replied, “thank you mother, how I wish father able also to see all the things I did here at home”.
The little girl wish only that somehow her father would learn also to appreciate her .She thought of doing something like what her brother does that will make her father proud of her. She plant beans and corn at their backyard. She dig the soil and planted the seeds alone. Each day she looked at the soil and thought about the seeds.”Are the seeds any good?”,”Did I planted them right?”, “will they grow?”.After a week, her father noticed that small plants growing at there backyard. He went there and found his daughter busy in cultivating the soil. “What are you growing?”, he said.”Beans and corn father”, Wadii answered. Upon hearing about the seeds, he asked.”And where did you get the beans seed? “ . At the kitchen father”, she answered. Father replied, “at the kitchen?” He continued, “Don’t tell me you’ve used the beans I intended for the coming planting”. Her father started to loud his voice. And she knows her father get mad at her .Her father continued, “How many times I’ve telling you don’t get anything without my permission”.”You’re so hard-headed “. “You always makes me mad at you”, father said.
She was hurt and cried of what her father told her. She get flute and run so fast going to the forest. All she wants is to get away from home. After and hour of running, she reached the wide river situated at coldest part of the forest. And she found a very strange feeling upon looking at the river.” What a magnificence creation there is”, she thought. She asked herself, “Did anybody had come this place and try to fish?”.
Wadii though have strange feeling, feel comforted as she found a resting place for her. She decided to seat in the big stone and started to play her flute. The music fills over the surroundings and the wind started to blow. As she close her eyes, she think about her family.”Are they searching for me this time?”.Or they wait me to come home?”Though my father is still angry at me this time?” she asked her self.
With those moment she recall all her memories she had, with her family and her father who never become proud of herein thinking those things, warm tears drops roll upon her cheek. Tears falls so fast that unintentionally, fill over the water surface. Then in a blink of an eye, the water started to wave and the skies fills its darkness and the earth shook. Wadii was astonished, frightened and shouted with fear.”Help! Help me mother! Help me father! Suddenly a beautiful Diwata appear and lays her hand to her.”Come, my dear child”, “Come before me”, she said. Then Wadii replied,” who are you?”The Diwata answered, I’m now your new parent and staring from now on, you would live in my kingdom forever.”No! No! No! “, Wadii shouted. Then a great flash of giant waves carried the little girl.
The next day, people wonder why there is a great flood when in fact there is an absence on rain. Many trees had been damaged. All the people in the sityo help to find Wadii. But they were not able to find her. They only found the flute of Wadii in that mysterious river. And the Datu knew that the Diwata of children who inhabiting the river is responsible for the loss of Wadii.
From that on, the river has been called the Wadii river. Since people who passed over that river would always hear a child cries and music of a flute which always reminds the people in that place of the lost little girl named Wadii. Presently, that mysterious river has been called the Wadii river.