Tit for thought
THE war of words that flared between one alias Boy Pick Up
and Palace-Bound Passenger came to either a dead halt or naught. Just when
their broadsides were throwing up meaty morsels for voters to chew the cud of,
there came sudden détente, or literally, the easing of tensions after both
sides have squeezed a few rounds of ammunition in the heat of engagement.
There was neither quotable quip nor picturesque portrayal to
be gleaned from the spittle battle that was more of a flip top rap duel. The
lines both sides spouted were so-so, as if thrown up from dialogues off soap
operas that rinse reason and every whit of sense in TV addicts.
A Miriam Defensor-Santiago caught in such a tussle would be
a whirlwind of barbed or bomb-laden verbiage. Too, a putdown off a Joker Arroyo
would have really been akin to a splinter jabbed smack into the mind’s eye: “I
do not argue with anyone below my level of intellect.”
Ages-old feng shui beliefs associate the western
parts, creativity, children and projects with the mouth. Mouth problems,
according to feng shui, point up inadequacies of self-expression, even
such malady as “halitosis of the brains.”
Even so, linguistic research assert that vocabulary make up
around 30 percent of human communication, why, up to 70 percent of
person-to-person communication can be expressed kinesthetically, that is, via
body language. Indeed, actions wax more eloquent than words.
It takes two to either tangle or tango—and neither Cabinet
member nor Senate lawmaker had the inclination to dance, or take a liking to
the current numero uno’s so passive a pastime to fry one’s brains,
probably DOTA on a play station portable.
They could have honored a cherished Filipino tradition (not
for the faint of heart or weak of will who rely on a retinue of bodyguards or barkada
to bully anyone who dares to fight solo) that goes by a quaint name—usapang
lalaki or a crossing of hands akin to the contemporary invitation, “Let’s
do this. Parking lot.”
A crossing of hands is more of a learning session—no
witnesses, no hecklers, kibitzers or cheering squad on the sidelines. Just the
parties at odds show up at appointed time and place to walk the talk.
A variant of usapang lalaki, called labanang hubo
practiced in secret in the paddies of Tagalog-speaking provinces has both
combatants fully stripped naked, just to ensure that none would suddenly whip
out a pistol or a bladed weapon to inflict grievous harm.
True, both parties can give and take a fistful. And get
bruised at the least in the flurry of swapped blows. Bloodied or black-eyed
after that earnest exchange, both parties often sit down together and swap
notes, pleasantries. Or even talk shop.
Apart from the physical injuries, mutual respect is gained
in that physical dialogue.
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