REGAN GANG WARS

we're not the gangs of new york nor the west side story.

but we did have gang wars, though not a bloody one. they were slingshot wars with bullets fashioned out from the stems of the leavers of the malobago trees or better still from "balagons". "ra-lastikuhan" we called these wars. young boys from other blocks would invade us on a pre-arranged date and we would be waiting. at other times, it would be our turn to do so. it hurted when your are hit by these stems or stalks but nothing more than that afterwards.

sometimes, tired of slingshots we resorted to being roman soldiers or greek soldiers besieging the next block. armed with wooden swords and lances some of us dreamt of being the 300 spartans defending against the persians. it would always be this block versus another.

or else, since we lived in a military reservation we aped our fathers. we had mock wars and sham battles.

life then was based on bravado and grit, never on drugs. our wars were a rite of passage not fought in protest or teenage rebellion. after the wars, we held no grudge against another.

we always end in peace, to meet again another day.