My Sindayen Moment

My Nelly moment came in Clark many years ago when UPS opened its hub there. International business reporters were invited and I was in a group of Singaporean journalists who were talking about Singlish and how they were proud of it. In other words, it was an irritating moment. Then I spied Nelly by the bar. She was a sort of an idol because she was in Time after all. I introduced myself and joined her. There were US GIs in the bar as well. There was a piano and Nelly seemed to be waiting for the pianist to arrive. He never did. So we made small talk, the point of entry, of course, is the "Are you a relative of Gen. Cimatu?"
Nelly said that she was actually from the area but she doesn't like covering the war in Mindanao at all. "When I go home, I just wanted to swim," she said.
She told me about the importance of drinking in the bar to cultivate your sources. She said that the people you meet here would be more open than those you meet in press conferences and meetings. "And more especially when they sing," she added. "Most especially when they can't sing at all but they think they do."
Nelly Sindayen died last April 4.