cabbies

morning commute to work is either on a taxi or an fx then a taxi.
and drivers are as varied as the cloud formations that day.
some are slow drivers, fast talkers.
others are speed maniacs and nontalkers.

today, manong cabbie lectured on why we should be taking edsa and not q. ave.
and for every traffic light we passed, he never missed the chance to tell us why.
for every car that blocked his way, he honked so hard and swerved so enthusiastically,
my head throbbed violently with my heart.

i would have appreciated it if he had given us a quieter ride.
["parang awa nyo na manong, ang aga aga pa e!", was on the tip of my tongue throughout.]
but arriving in one piece, i am thankful -
they fight hard battles every single day, still they deliver me safe and sound.