14-year-old boy crosses dilapidated bridge daily to fulfill dreams of becoming a pilot

Fourteen-year-old Arcel Brenio is an optimist. If he sees something bad, he just opts to look at its good side. For instance, he’s not afraid to cross through their community’s deteriorating hanging bridge despite its creaking portions. He says that he just refuses to look at its broken parts instead.



“Kasi kung titignan mo ‘yan, matatakot [ka],” says Arcel. “Doon ako nakatingin sa mga hindi nasisira.”

Arcel is a tough kid. He doesn’t want others to feel sorry him. As a matter of fact, he holds his pair of slippers as dear to him. He reasons, “Kasi mahihiya ka lang [kapag] wala kang tsinelas. ‘Yung mga kaklase mo, may tsinelas. Tapos ikaw, wala?"

But Arcel, most importantly, is a dreamer. It’s clear to him what he wants. “Gusto kong maging piloto. Gusto kong makarating sa iba’t ibang lugar, sa bayan, sa Amerika,” he quips.

The future pilot’s challenges

Life, however, is not easy for Arcel. He doesn’t have the luxury to be a carefree kid. If he stops being tough and ambitious, he’ll probably end up just like the rest from his community.

Arcel lives in the poorest town in the province of Aklan. In every 10 Grade 1 students in Barangay Panipiason in Madalag, Aklan, only seven finish grade school and only four go to high school. Of these four students, only two go to college, but none of them graduates.

It’s a good thing that Arcel dreams big, and he believes that being hopeful can make all the difference. “Gusto kong magtapos [ng pag-aaral]. Gusto kong kumita para matugunan ‘yung aking mga magulang tsaka kapatid,” he shares.



His dreams of becoming a pilot was put to test, however, when super-typhoon Yolanda ravaged the central Philippines on November 8, 2013, destroying not just the communities in the affected regions but also the hopes and dreams of the residents.

Today, upon entering Arcel’s home, you would see some of his medals and plaques. He shares though that these are incomplete as some of them were washed away by Yolanda’s wrath.

Along with his proof of honors, it seems like even his father’s high ambitions for his child had been washed off, too.

“Naisip ko, parang kagaya rin sa akin siguro ‘tong kinabukasan [ng anak ko],” Arcel’s father, Edmon, admits. “Gusto ko man siyang pag-aralin, hindi ko rin kayang tustusan. Kaya sabi ko, ‘Bahala na.’”

Threats of the bridge

Perhaps the most important infrastructure in the community is the bridge that connects Sitio Madalag together, given that the area is separated by a river in between. This is the same bridge that Arcel crosses through on his way to school.

People from his part of the community cross through a bridge that is in the verge of breakage any time. Death is a possibility when you cross it, but the residents have no choice but to face this risk daily.

“Importante ‘yan kasi ‘yan ‘yung dinadaanan namin. Halos lahat, diyan dumadaan,” school teacher Fe Marie admits.

Once this bridge collapses, there would be no other way for the residents to get past through the angry river.

Not backing off

Arcel, however, is far from being a coward. He helps his family by harvesting abaca in their community. This is a very hard job, he admits, most especially if you have a skinny, 14-year-old body frame.



“Kung hindi ka [makakakuha] ng abaca, wala kang ibebenta. Wala akong baon. Gusto kong mag-abaca. Gusto kong magkapera,” shares Arcel, who earns P46.00 for a kilo of abaca.

He chooses work over play. And he doesn’t regret it. “Ayaw kong maglaro,” he says. “Kung maglalaro ka lang, wala kang pera, wala kang pagkain. Samantalang kung naga-abaca ka, may pera ka rin, may pagkain ka rin.”

However, Arcel’s way to a better life is getting bleak. As days pass by, the condition of the bridge worsens.

But there are ongoing humble efforts by the townsmen to improve the bridge, but these aren’t going too fast due to limited means.

Arcel’s father, Edmon, says that he’s really trying his best to help in strengthening the bridge because he knows how important it is for the community and, also, to his son’s dreams of becoming a pilot.



“Dito nakasalalay ‘yung pag-aaral ng mga bata eh,” he says. “Kahit kung sa akin, okay lang kahit hindi na ako makapunta doon [sa kabilang parte ng bayan]. Eh sila, [kailangan nilang makatawid para makapunta sila sa eskuwelahan].”

Arcel recognizes his father’s efforts. He says he’s no longer scared anymore of not fulfilling his dreams now that his father and other townsmen are trying their best to fix the bridge.

“Hindi na po ako natatakot kasi alam kong matibay ang tulay. Kami pong lahat, nagtutulong-tulong para maging matibay ‘to,” says Arcel. “Sabi nga po, ‘One for all, all for one.’”



He adds, “Basta’t nandyan ang tulay makakatawid ako. Tatawid ako.”—Juju Z. Baluyot/BMS, GMA Public Affairs