Two children lead me by the hand through the narrow, muddy streets of Las Rieles, in Tanauan, on the outskirts of Manila.

They lead me through dark corridors. We run. Suddenly, the darkness becomes light. We end up here, in this open field. Palm trees. Garbage. Garbage. Hundreds of children playing, watching me closely, examining me, not caring. Dusk cuts through the fog and makes everything more sublime. I am in a dream.

I remember this moment as one of the most beautiful and powerful of my life. I understand the potential of time in its purest form: the present moment. To be a child again for an afternoon. We are alive, fully alive. Estamos vivos, completamente vivos.