Madrugada

My memory of early waking hours in my barrio is one of intermingling sounds and singsong voices filling the cool morning air. I hanker for such mornings when I awake and linger on in bed with eyes shut, ears opening to hear, and mind slowly becoming aware of the sheer variety of sounds occurring around me all at once or at random intervals.

First on my list are sounds caused by transports. We live in a barrio to the west coast of town and our house lies some fifty meters to the highway from where I can hear traffic sounds at the break of dawn. I imagine jeepneys with their load of vendors and cargoes of fresh farm produce on their way to the town’s public market. Further across the highway is the sea from where echoes the horn blasts of approaching ships as they make their way to the pier in the wee hours of the morning. And at daybreak comes the whirring sound of engines overhead as two or three airplanes arrive in succession, flying just high above the rooftops, ready for touchdown on the airport next to our barrio. Although this type of ambient sounds, never cause me enough disturbance, they come closest to my idea of noise.

Next are sounds that originate from our barrio’s religious milieu. Our barrio is home to peoples of different faiths and persuasions notably Muslims, Catholics and Protestants. It is not unusual to be awakened from your slumber by the early morning worship practices of these groups. These sounds are more welcomed to usher in the day.

Our house is just a stone’s throw away from a mosque so the Muslim’s dawn prayer, recited over a sound system, is familiar enough sound for me to recognize even when my mind is still fuzzy. Our house is also within sound of the Catholic Chapel bells. Sounds from their spiritual rituals are infrequently heard especially at dawn because there’s no resident vicar. On special occasions though, they are the most resonant. On the day of the barrio fiesta, I wake up with a jolt to hear the sound of trumpets blowing, cymbals clashing, snare drums rolling and bass booming as a phalanx of musicians march around the village at the crack of dawn. On certain occasions I am roused from my sleep by religious melodies from a procession or rosary prayed from speakers atop a jeep doing the rounds of the village. The Protestant Chapel is farther off from our house so only the muffled tone of their morning worship service with its characteristic organ playing and hymn singing is heard.   

Last in my category are other sounds occurring during waking hours. There is a military camp on the hilly side of our barrio opposite the waterfront so it is not unusual to hear the regimental bugle call at sunrise. I think it is pretty neat. Sometimes I am stirred from my sleep by dog barks but that is not a dawn phenomenon, they occur when incited by what dogs hear or see. However, rooster crows are. In a country where cockfighting is a major sport, most households have gamecocks under their care. This is true in my barrio and I wake up every morning to the roosters crowing at dawn. The twitters of yellow-breasted hummingbirds in the garden lend a glorious accompaniment to the chorus. I like the sounds of bird chirps and rooster crows but dog barks are annoying. Up with the lark or up with the bark, I love listening to the sounds of dawn.