Dampa sa kapirasong lupa

NAG-ALOK ang isang katotong nakatalaga sa Basa Air Base, Lipa City na sa mga kanugnog na lunan bumili ng masisinop na lupa—mga P250 por metro kuwadrado lang, baratilyo pa ang presyo.

Maiisip ang anak na arkitekto na mamamasukan sa Aramco sa Saudi Arabia—dalawang taon ang kontrata, $800 sambuwan ang sahod.

Kayang-kaya nang patulan ang alok na lupa sa Batangas—mataas na lugar, mataas ang elevation tulad sa Tagaytay, malamig din tulad sa Tagaytay. Mabilis ang biyahe’t madaling makarating sa Metro Manila dahil nakatuhog na hanggang Batangas ang South Luzon Expressway.

Umaayon agad sa pangunahing kailangan sa negosyo—lokasyon, lokasyon, lokasyon.

Paglulupa ang maimumungkahing negosyo sa anak. Masinop at matinong paglulupa.

Nakaabang na ang bibili sa nasinop na lupa. Mga retirado. Aalukin natin ng retirement haven na matutupad ang kanilang kinikimkim na marubdob na pangarap. We sell ‘em their cherished dreams, we ply an emotional bait, which is what killer marketing boils down to.

Every retiree-to-be pines to become a noble savage in the mold of a Dr. Jose P. Rizal-- a gentleman farmer. And we know they’re neither. They have oodles of cash. They don’t have the skills to start up an orchard and do a decent lay-out for that using principles of landscape architecture. Look at what Marikina’s honchos did to its river bank—cold-blooded structures galore without fusing nature into the lay-out.

So we’ll buy modest tracts of raw land. We’ll put up a spread of compact farm-orchards with a modest chalet-type house thrown in. It’s a ready package for enjoyment. All a retiree does is to water, diddle or dump mulch on his stand of Davao pomelo, kaffir lime and cocoa trees or revel among black pepper bushes and passion fruit vines. A patch of sweet-smelling herbs beside the house won’t hurt.

It’s not a farm-and-house package we’re putting up for sale. It’s lots of value generated and plunked down on the land. It is a cherished dream come true, something of a throwback to Eden where the human rises to his true height and hearkens to the echoing call of his heart.

We’re going into the build-and-sell business with a view to making a killing. A few millions won’t be much of a burden on our bulging bank accounts.

But we go into such daring ventures without the promptings of profits to be raked in.

My kid loves design challenges that unleash creative juices—he remains a fan of structural engineer-architect Frank Lloyd Wright whose works fuse sparing structure with lush nature. And I love working with the soil which throbs of the soul.

It’s about infecting whatever one does with an outpouring of passion—you make love, you make sense, you make money. Lots and lots of such.

And not necessarily in that order. Love isn’t divided. It multiplies.

Kaya ipon lang sa sahod, hane, at matindi itong gagawin nating pakana. Kikita kanita dito—mahina ang 500% margin na matatabo sa paglulupa. Kaya marahil pati ang Gat Andres Bonifacio ay napapatula:

“Aling pag-ibig pa ang hihigit kaya
Sa pagkadalisay at pagkadakila
Kundi ang pag-ibig sa tinubuang lupa
Aling pag-ibig pa? Wala na nga wala.”

Malinaw naman ang pagbanggit sa tinubuang lupa. Marami ang ibig noon at matindi kasi ang tubo doon.