BUNOT

Summer is almost over. Kids will go back to school soon. This lazy Saturday, Ted and I had a good laugh about elementary years. The experience he shared below is something, I know, that everyone can relate if their school is still in the slow-moving category.

When we were in Grade IV, I almost came to a fistfight with a bully classmate.  Do you know what he did?
He cracked the underside of my favorite Bunot!  Bunot is that coconut husk that we use to polish the floor.  It is made by cutting the mature coconut fruit into two with the use of a saw.  It is used as a polisher by stepping on it and pushing it with a back and forth movement with your leg.

Each of us were made to bring our own bunot.  Mine was the biggest.  Tatay fashioned it out of a coconut fruit that was given by his friend from Tigbauan.  It was as big as a bandihado (serving platter).  After our lessons have ended at 4 in the afternoon each weekday, we would race to the aparador where our coconut floor polishers were kept.  Cleaning time was also playing time for us kids bur I never allowed others to use my bunot.  I had it kept inside my desk.

One day, many of my classmates complained that their coconut husks broke apart.  Somebody was destroying them by breaking and removing its hard inner part.  As you know, it is the inner part that keeps the husk intact as it serves as the skeleton upon which the other parts attach.  Removing or breaking the hard shell inside would make the entire thing break apart.  I was glad I kept mine away from the others.  Every time after the cleaning hour, I would write my name on its inner shell using a piece of chalk.  Everyone looked out for the culprit who destroyed our coconut husks.

One Monday morning, I happened to come to school very early.  As I was entering the room, I saw our bully classmate hurriedly go out of our room.  He came from the direction of the desk where I sat.  And so I inspected my desk and all.  I saw that a piece of rock nearby.  Near them were bits of coconut shells.  Instinctively I reached inside my desk and got my bunot.  Its inner shell was broken and it had a big hole in the middle.  He must have been the one … my bully classmate, I said to myself.

I ran after him and confronted him of what he had just done.  I showed him all the broken innards of my bunot and threw them at him.  He was hit in the face.  Instead of hitting back at me, he ran to the jetmatic water pump nearby and profusely washed his face.  He showed no anger towards me though.  I expected him to hit back at me.  He did not.  Instead, he grabbed my hand, pulled it towards the pump nozzle, and told me to wash it.  

It was not until our reunion many many years later that I learned why Mr. Bully destroyed my bunot.  One day, he and four other boys were requested by our teacher to scrub the floor and clean our room for the next day’s visit by the division superintendent to our school.  They were expected to come around 1:00 pm as our teacher then had told them to come tapus igma (after lunch).  They came before 12 noon.  When they barged into the room, they were shouted at by Ma’am to step out because she was not done yet doing something.  So they stepped out.  After about 10 minutes, they were told that they can come in. 

As they were scrubbing the floor, Mr Bully noticed that his bunot were making the wooden floor dull instead of making it shine.  He noticed something in the coconut husk—it was wet.  He tried to take a closer look—it smelled of fresh urine!

We are thankful that the Dep-Ed now is pushing for a rest room in every classroom.  Back then, the Education Department never cared about sanitation.  They never cared about teachers (especially women) without sanitary restrooms to urinate.

GAD! That’s simply a Gender Advocacy issue some say. Trivia says, “Whatever… we all deserve a restroom to ventilate pent up emotions you know. We don’t want a damage kidney and who cares about coconut husks?” Hahaha!