When Back In Time

'I DIDN'T know that it's not easy to go back,' she thought to herself.

Her fingers grew tired from diligently turning the second, minute and hour hands clockwise. Every time she stopped from turning the watch's crown, time moved faster towards the future. The sky changed its sky blue dr.a.p.ed into black and then to sky blue. The surrounding changed rapidly. Day to noon, afternoon then night and then daybreak.

But… after a lot of efforts to turn the time, it would only lead her 2 or 3 days ahead from the past.

She let out a cursed. Even if she laboriously turned the hands of the watch, she'll only turn it a few hours ahead.

It was like resetting the time on your wristwatch. It's like this scenario. When you found out that your wristwatch's battery was drain and you need to change it. Afterward, you set the time. Your wristwatch showed 12:02 and you needed to set it to 5:30. Then you started to turn the crown and the hands of the watch started to move. The second hand moved faster and always passed the minute hand. The minute hand moved slower than the second but faster than the hour hand. Then the hour would only move after the second's hand had fulfilled ticking for 3,600 seconds and the minute hand had fulfilled moving sixty times.

In short, it's not really easy.

After Esperanza asked someone what date it was now, she was surprised to learn it was already August 27, 1892. But, she's was still in the same year, 1892.

She took out a paper, a feather pen, and an ink. She started calculating.

If she's stuck in 1892 and needed to go back in 2019, it will take her 127 years to get there. Then if in every year there are 365 days then multiply this to 127 years, and then multiply it to 24 hours and multiply it again with 60 minutes.

"Argh! This is blowing my mind. This is driving me nuts!" she let out a cursed as she realized she needed to turn the hour's hand 1 million times in order to get back to her time.

She had to endure turning the hour's hand one million times or more. This is impossible!

But she had to do it. She's very determined to go back to her time.

She had to do it.

She spent days and sleepless nights turning the wristwatch's crown clockwise. Her fingers were getting tired from the labor. Her mind ridiculously thinking that soon her fingers would have muscles and abs from its excessive work.

She lost track of time.

She would only stop to look up in the sky and slowly falling to sleep. And when she woke up, she would continue her never-ending work.

She ate and slept less.

She turned it once, twice, thrice, many times until she lost track of counting. Her back ached from slouching, her hands ached from moving, and her eyes ached from watching as the hands turned.

When she looked up, she would let out, "Not yet."

She's losing her energy as well as her faith, as days moved slowly, she feared she would be long gone before she returns back in the future.

"This is tiring! This is becoming useless! This is hopeless!" this once occurred in her mind.

"What if I stop and go back to the time when I left Pepe," she thought, very reluctant. "I should not give up completing my mission."

Yet….

Deep inside, something sparked. A fire lit up. It's burning and burning wilder.

"Must I waver now?"

She frowned her eyebrows, "Must I give up now? Right now? I decided to do this. I must complete what I've started. I want to go home right? Then, I must have some faith in myself if I wanted to go home. Turning these watch's hands should be nothing as long as I can go back home."

Determination swells up inside of her as she continued her labor.

Little by little, her surrounding changed. The building's architecture changed. People's clothing changed.

Now she saw the Philippines was introduced more to advance technology. The Spanish Regime ended with a lot of bloodsheds. American came and became the second colonizer of the Philippines. She watched the period changed into another period.

Now she saw many Filipinos and Americans suffered under the war against the Japanese. Different weapon was fired. Canons here, canons everywhere were fired.

Cries could be heard.

"I wanted this to stop!" she said to herself as she tried to turn it over and over again.

"Not here. Not yet! I must be near," she mumbled.

She slammed herself on the ground in exhaustion.

"I really give up. My energy is wearing off. My fingers are giving up. My hands are hurting. My body wants me to stop. My heart is giving up!"

She closed her eyes and mumbled, "Nah. I'm not giving up! I've got this far, I must not falter. I'm just getting some rest. Right, I'm just... resting. And someday all my efforts will be worth it. Yes, someday…."

And then she dozed off.

The next day, she continued the monotonous and exhausting routine. And then continued and continued.

Days became week. Weeks became a month. Months became a year.

"AM I STILL NOT THERE YET?" she exclaimed in frustration.

She became thin, pale and lifeless because of fatigue.

She did not know what year is it, months or day or even time.

"Why am I doing this?" she once asked as she started to forget and grew tired day by day.

"Why am I turning this thing? What for?" she vaguely remembered anything, "Why am I wasting my time with this thing? What is this anyway? This is rubbish."

She threw the wristwatch and stood up. She went outside the cave she was in. She looked in awe as she saw huge trees and animals. It's been a while since she got herself outside the cave and saw the world.

Her legs were happy to serve there purpose as Esperanza started walking and running. She grabbed her long skirt and begun spinning and spinning and laughed in bliss.

Falling down on the ground, she heaved a sigh.

She asked herself, not knowing anymore, "What am I doing?"

Far from where she was, she heard loud bustling. Sitting up, she looked behind her. She could see far ahead a civilization.

It's a town with lots of concrete buildings and concrete roads. People wore colorful loose shirts and baggy jeans. Women's hair was worn in a weird way. Vehicles made of metal moved its way on the road.

She could see not far from where she sat, technology such as telephones and computer were junked on the ground like trash.

Telephones? Computers?

Her mouth gaped. 'What am I doing?'

She turned her back and started heading towards the cave. She looked around the cave and finally saw it, yes, the wristwatch.

'What am I doing?'

She started turning the crown of the wristwatch clockwise.

"What am I doing?"

Her heart raced in excitement.

"What am I doing, I ask?"

She did not care anymore if her fingers wanted to give up. She kept moving. Because by only moving forward, she'll achieve what she wants. It took her time---- a long time turning the hands. And then she saw the cave now was demolished and was built into another building.

One more. One more time.

And then she stopped.

She was panting in excitement.

She looked around and saw people passing her. They had mobile phones on their hand, air pods on their ears, they wore modern clothing. They looked at Esperanza, who looked oddly with her appearance (dirty 1890's dress, unruly hair and filthy face)  but the latter did not care.

"What am I doing?" she asked herself. A beam slipped in her face, "I'm going back home. Home. Nah. I'm finally home."