i miss you here....

I long to write you a letter but I know you will laugh out loud so I won’t send this to you personally

but I will let the world know.

It’s been three months since the last time I see you coming in the front door of our office. And that was long. You almost enter at the exit but suddenly you realized it’s the exit and you turn your back, then step your feet on the entrance because you were eager to get in. You were so happy that day and ask me how we have been. And you check everything on our wall posting and write down all our task to be accomplish this year. Although you used to call us and text us and say hi and hello’s still we missed your presence in the office. It’s different if you are there. We feel incomplete when you’re not around because the office can’t be an office if there aren’t any boss and all. That’s what I have learned from you. That’s why I used to ask when are you coming back. But you used to say, you don’t even know when and you just smile. Although I didn’t say more infront of you but I guess you know in my gesture how much I care about you.  

  

For the last five long years you’re the only boss I have. You invest so much for me and trusted me well. You gave me all the latest fastest trending gadgets I need in the office. You never failed to check on me every time I am in school for my modular programs in which you required me to be or when I just having fun with my classmates. You are always there for me when I need you as what you always said you are just a call away. That I think I have two best moms in the world and that makes me lucky. And I thank you for giving me such wonderful opportunity. To experience things those of my other co-workers never experienced with.  And in that long five years much that I have learned from you is that I have learned to be just like you. You taught me to be humble most of the time. You taught me to have my feet always in the ground. You taught me to give respect to where it is due. To be polite and to be kind. You are part of my development. It was you who taught me to be prim and proper and crazy! To stay positive and never lose hope. You always fix everything for me. You taught me to fight for what is right and what I believe in. You taught me well how to defend and stand on my ground. You always give me the assurance that everything is okay even if I can’t do math and write on pen and paper.
    
I miss you in the office. I miss you say things I need to know. I miss to see you set in your office table full of files and bills and all. I miss our face to face conversation and the never ending laugh when its 8 in the evening and we haven’t finish all the presentations we need the very next day and I really miss how you smile over my little wrong doings.    

You taught me really well. From the simple garbage segregation that you personally trained me everyday for the last three years until I learnt it, to use the back of the paper when printing draft and never crumpled it that I think has gone you mad up to my grammar corrections. I never saw you whinge when you see things they aren’t supposed to be and you never get mad at me when I still didn’t follow your orders to print the back of the paper when we are printing in draft. You just smile and tap my head and you never lose your temper over me when I said why should I be doing that? You never failed to say hello to me even if you’re sick and all. You may never know that in times I had my headphone with me, it’s not that I don’t want to listen to you but it’s just that I have to listen to all you’re instructions for me so that all the task you want me to accomplish will be done perfectly. That in times we don’t say a word it’s just that were busy reading and reviewing our entire task, for you are the most perfectionist boss we have learned to love and respect. You always want things to be perfect and all. In our office there are no rooms for glitch and errors.    

I treat you as my own mom and my mom knows that too. And in times like I don’t like the whole wide world you were there to comfort me. I wasn’t even afraid of tito ed because I know you will defend me to him. That’s why I seldom make mistakes and never did I fail you on everything. Because I am much afraid of you.     

Although what you said to me last week was breaking my heart and make me sobbed I want you to know that I will follow whatever you want me to do, cooperate, do the best I can and give my trust to anyone you wants me to be with. I will be forever grateful for all the things and the love you gave me.     

Smile, send us text, call our office phone, give us instructions, rephrase the paragraph, sign our accomplishments, comments to all our good and wrong doings and give us hope. That’s all we ever wanted. Three months is long and done and all our listed tasked has long been completed, we need you in the office. Please come and write on the wall our next responsibilities.     

We are all waiting for your return.  We know you can make it like you always do!  

Down South Mindanao

If it weren’t for the job i am into I wouldn’t be able to explore the beauty of Butuan City. Bounded by a connecting flight from naga city to manila here I am waiting for my next flight to Butuan City Agusan Del Norte Philippines. I am travelling together with Mayor Yu and Mayor Embot to attend the 7^th South South Academy called by RED CROSS and CARE Nederland. This NGO help our municipality a lot. From them I learned all the things with regards to disaster risk management and survival in times of disaster.

I wake up late today but I was able to catch my flight. I live far from the airport good thing we have a very resourceful and fast driver. He took us to the airport in time for our flight. Since my flight will be an hour for now we will have our lunch first before we boarded for our next flight and who would want to travel with an empty stomach. I will be in Butuan City for the next seven days and it will be long and the flight will last for two hours more. Its so nice to travel with two lovely mayors everybody seems so nice and smiling and we are always in the front row and I love the VVIP treatment but even so I do have to follow strict airport rules from our luggage down to the backpack I am carrying. Its nice to be with them most of the time. By the way mayor embot is the town mayor adjacent to our municipality and mayor yu is her very best friend.  

According to my briefing documents which I get from the organizer mayor yu will present the Calabanga’s Experience on Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Adaptation the day after tomorrow but since we are traveling for free and all-expense paid we grab the opportunity to get there ahead of time not to stroll around but to observe since the 7^th South South will be participated by the different Asian nationalities and leaders. It will be fun and I am pretty sure joining in every session will enhance our knowledge more. And we will not get there empty handed I too and mayor yu did prepare all the things we needed for the said presentation. We practiced for two days. It is the expertise and preparedness of our municipality that we are to show case this time and not alone that it is also our chance to invite them and gain partnership as well. And since Mayor Yu is one of the DRR practitioners it is our very big chance to gain for our municipality’s accord and we need to impress them very much.

Off to lunch….

And so here I am inside the plane waiting for it to touch down the city of Butuan Agusan Del Norte Mindanao.

…….

To our surprise we travel along with the CARE Nederland Representative Celso Dulce inside the plane. Tito Oslec as I called him is a very kind, handsome, generous calabangueno. He never misses any chance to give Calabanga anything he can afford. It was him who bring to Calabanga all the blessings a local government cant afford for the partnership and collaboration from an international NGO funded by the European Commission.

We stayed at Hotel Balangay. It’s a beautiful hotel situated in the heart of Butuan. The walls and floors are made up of narra tree. It is very clean, well-polished and smells really good. They also displayed artefacts of the Philippine history way back from our forefathers in their lobby.

 The first thing I get to see is Pam! Pam is there too! Im so happy to see pam because I miss her very much! The hotel staffs take us to the hotel room. I get to change my clothes and freshen up then headed to the conference room. My day 1 ended up listening to all the success stories from the different part of Asia. I feel so tired but it all worth it. I got the chance to meet all the DRR practitioners, shared my stories, exchange emails and make more friends.

Day 2

I was thrilled to visit st. joseph’s church in the city of Butuan. I went along with maam mijares for this early trip because she will catch her flight to Malaysia. We went to the City Park and city hall too. Its so nice and I feel safe the people are all polite.

We spent all day listening to all success stories and visit every kiosk decorated by the participants from the Asian country. Good thing I was an early riser and early riser usually gets plenty of rewards. My boss will surely feel glad bringing this stuff home.

So excited on her very big day mayor yu told me to sleep early so that tomorrow I will have all the energy I needed for the success of our presentation and I obeyed her.

Day 3

Day start the big day and this is it. All I can say is that the amount of clap we received while doing it speaks of how good and successful we are during the presentation. Mayor yu did a very great job. Shes a great speaker and I bow her for that.

We get the chance to visit  mayor yu’s distant relative in the city. They are doctors here. And lucky to have meet their family. They are so kind to us.

On Day 4

Today we are going to explore the hidden beauty and all of Butuan. The convoy take us 3 hours to get to this place.

meet my new friend!

They said that having a lot of friends is good. Having a trusted friend is far good and having beautiful friends that had the traits of what you’re looking for people makes the life worth living.

Seldom did I try to be friend with people who are far richer than me. Seldom did I befriended with people who are much prettier than me but today wasn't that any ordinary day…my seldom status did change and i think I  have found a new friend whom I consider as one of the best thing since peanut butter….her name is miel.

I didn’t know we will be friends since we don’t have a lot of common and I don’t share my life in the world. It was just recently when I learned for her family name since I saw it in her ID. She was wearing an ID of all people!

I have known her since July 15. But other than her name is miel that’s the only thing ate lala, me and roxy knows about her. As you know that ever since we don’t engage much on people and we don’t make friends to everybody. Just simple hi’s and hellos do…What we are eager to know in the office is what is yahoo’s trending issue and the word we need to know for the day. Other than writing and consolidating reports, coding, responds to queries and some other important matters we tend to, we don’t engage in gossip and we don’t have much time talking. We consume the entire day to be productive. We equipped ourselves with headphones and that makes us alive. We just listen to music. We ensure that every day we tend to all the queries. So that each time our boss asks for our accomplishments we can reply back in a minute. That’s how simple our office life is.

I was afraid of her from the very first time and even roxy too. She looks like Miss Minchin! Our boss said “tito ed will have his own private secretary on Monday and I expect you to cooperate with her” that’s my boss instruction before she left us. Well my boss happened to be the wife of tito ed. In short my boss can be a mayor too! I remember we asked our boss if that Ms. Minchin is kind or is she strict? Our boss said why don’t you go and ask her…and told us to behave. Then she went to our office wearing an executive look she’s so beautiful as what ate lala had said and we found her cool. Yes indeed she’s pretty and she rocks!

Days passed and we begin to like her. She is so nice to me, to ate lala and to roxy! She used to smile back and that makes her more beautiful!

What we like about her is that she’s smart, crazy and intelligent, traits that we prefer for a friend. She’s very fun to be with. She’s not that soft spoken but when you talk to her you will easily like her like we do. There wasn’t any dull moments with ate miel. That our boss was suddenly mad at us after his presentation during the regional fora at the hotel. We didn’t behave as what he expected us to be. We didn’t take our sets and we talk nonsense and then the boss happened to pass us by and he heard what we’re talking and that was it the boss has gone mad on us. But we did both say sorry because that’s what we are supposed to be and that’s what we should be.

We walk for about 3 km and the trek was strenuous but unlike any other office girl we didn’t hear her whining even her feet was full of mud.

Hilarious but in their office when the boss rings his bell ate miel will run even without slippers. Seriously! What is in that bell that makes her move like superman? She’s an angel to tito ed. She fixes everything including tito ed speech! Things my boss can’t do due to her poor health condition. Lucky is tito ed for having her as her trusted secretary.

I wonder how she managed her time to her family and the office. She used to get home late. As late as 9:00 pm and went to the office at 8:00 am. I wonder if she ever sleeps well too…the last time I texted her was 12:30 in the morning and yet she was able to text me back.

What makes me sad is when I learned from her and tito ramon that they are mimicking all her actions, the way she answer the phone, the way she talk, the way she run, the way she make coffee. And I guess that’s explained why she isn't friend with all in their office. I think that’s filipinism, the very bad side of Filipino co-workers. They try to hold you tight no matter how much you tried to move forward. And that’s what I don’t understand. It doesn't matter how well you perform. It doesn’t matter how good you are in everything you do. Their eyes have long been closed before it even opened. What a pity! Knowing so made me realized that in this government institution you just can trust everybody. They treat you as their first line enemy. Envy can kill a mocking bird too!

I wonder what will she said to me if she read this. She might beat me to death if I tell the world that she used to have a vaporizing rub in her bag! And she wasn't that organize! Her office table sucks!

But would you believe she cried over little things but I guess that makes her normal.

What makes her above all is that she knows how to listen, she knows how to say sorry and admit her faults. She knows where to stand and defend her ground. And that makes her perfect!

Maybe one day I will be able to tell her the words I used to tell my big sisters--- but for now I thank her for being so good to us and for the friendship she gave us all.

She is so accommodating. She is helpful. She is kind.

That I think I should stop here because her ears might just clap!