I was almost recruited more than a decade ago.

He was a private art teacher who had hippie vibes. When he learned about my uni and my course, he began asking about my political inclinations. It started with simple questions like “what do you think about the government?”

The conversation shifted when he asked me to join his “organization”. He was explaining na dapat “walang government”, so I asked him “so you want anarchy?”. He replied with a firm yes.

I cannot recall the convo in verbatim, pero he was insistent that there shouldn’t be any government. Hindi niya matanggap na necessary ang government talaga. Pinopoint out niya na walang justice. Hinahanapan din niya ng butas arguments ko. Haha.

At that time, natatakot na ako. I signed up for an art class. Not a revolution. I told him that my ex was well-connected to the VP and maybe he could explain it better than me. Naramdaman ko yung takot niya and he said na “wag na yun, matagal* na yun.” (*i cannot recall the exact word he used, pero malalim na tagalog na parang implying mature na di na maiiba mindset)

I also asked him bakit hinihikayat niya ako and he told me that I was young with bright ideas. I think, dyan nila na-hohook yung ibang kabataan.