“Contentment is not always the fulfillment of what you want; it’s the realization of how blessed you are for what you already have.”

It was the middle of the vacation yet I still woke up early to go to school. I was about to try a one-in-a-million chance. I know that I have no chances of succeeding. I even think that the luckiest person alive would face immediate failure. But if your dream is at stake, you’ll do anything just to be lucky enough to succeed. I want to be a Certified Public Accountant, and I’ll do anything just to be one.

I prepared a reconsideration letter containing the most polite words that I could think of. This sheet of paper would be my ladder to success or my snake to failure so I had it printed on a high quality white paper.

Then I arrived at the gates. When I entered, the first place I went to is the School Chapel. Most Filipinos, I included, are fond of visiting God during the time when they need Him the most. I met up with some of my fellow unfortunate classmates not so long after.

I find comfort in knowing that I’m not alone. Some of my classmates also suffered the same fate: being given a low grade in College Algebra (we all love our professor), being ineligible to continue as a BS Accountancy student, and being sad, wasted and miserable because you lost your dream. In addition to our suffering, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM), our university, implemented a No Reconsideration Policy starting the school year we enrolled. So, unless we want to say “Good bye, PLM”, we have no option but to take the course which the university has chosen for us. In other words, I have to forget about BS Accountancy and accept BS Chemistry with open arms.

But, despite the policy, we tried our lucks anyway. We joined a small crowd of students assembled outside the college office. They were lined properly holding a brown folder (with the reconsideration letter inside), a ballpen and their own lucky items. I was just approaching the line when a girl asked me:

“Kuya, wala ka rin bang course?”

“Meron. Bakit? Kaso ayoko nu’ng napunta sa’kin eh.” I answered.

“Ah ganu’n ba? Ano ba ‘yung course na napunta sa’yo?” She asked.

“BS Chem eh. Kaso BS Acctg. ‘yung gusto ko. Magpapalipat sana ako.” I said.

“Nagkamali ka ata ng pila. Kami kasi dito ‘yung mga wala pang course. ‘Di kasi nag-qualify ‘yung mga grades namin sa kahit na anong course dito. Mabuti pa nga kayo eh, may course kahit ayaw niyo. Kami wala. Sana lang di pa kami matanggal sa PLM..” She said sadly.

“Uhmmm. Sige, salamat. Good luck sa’tin.” I replied with a quick smile.

We entered the correct office but as we expected, we’re rejected. We have no other option but to take our assigned course. For a moment, I’m sad. Very sad and miserable, indeed. But when I remembered my little conversation with a school mate, my lips curved into a small smile. Then I suddenly realized that I’m still lucky. Very lucky indeed.

After a few weeks of sadness, I finally accepted the truth. I never had what I want but I achieved what I have. Maybe, just maybe, God is using His invisible hands to place me where I should be and working His plans out for me. Probably, I’m just to blind to see it. Or I’m just too weak to accept it. But now, I can proudly say that I moved on. After all, I still have big dreams for my self.

Good bye Atty. Rob Jeremiah G. Nuguid, CPA.

Hello Dr. Rob Jeremiah G. Nuguid, RCh, M.D..

P.S. This is Part III of my untitled posts. The other two are:

• Untitled (July 21, 2008)
• Untitled Part II (August 14, 2008)

It has not been our family’s tradition to celebrate Mother’s Day during the second sunday of May even before I came to existence. Instead, we prefer to celebrate it during a birthday. Since my mother has three sons (I, included), she celebrates her day thrice, on May 9 (Rosjon’s birthday), July 25 (my birthday) and November 21 (Ronn’s birthday). My grandmother told us that our great-great-grandparents believe that during your birthday, thanksgiving should be offered to the woman who had nearly risked her life just to put you into existence and become your “mother”. They got a point, didn’t they?

Since it’s my brother’s birthday yesterday, I’d like to give thanks to my mother by writing this post:

My childhood has been marked with I having a great hatred for my mother. It’s because of the following:

• She’s resourceful. This is the primary and most dominant trait of my mother. She can use all things at hand to do something she wants. In fact, she uses virtually anything, and all things unimaginable - hangers, belts, slippers, brooms, wood sticks - to hit us when we have done something wrong.
• She loves to have us by her side. When we heard “Anak!” coming from her, we rush up to her. She wants us near her so that we could assisst her in light and heavy household chores.
• She wants the best for us. She always explains that education is important and she and my father are working hard just to send us to a good school so we must study very hard. When she said very hard, she meant having medals and awards after the school year. She would be very disappointed if we haven’t had any of those.

But when I started to grow, and develop a sense of maturity, I started to realize that I must not hate my mother. Instead, I must love her because of the following reasons:

• She’s stupid. When I was still an infant, I won’t drink her milk no matter what. But then she insisted to, at least, give me her colostrum before I was bottle-fed. Because of her effort, I was able to receive at least some of the nutrients that breast-fed babies have.
• She wants to get anything she wants instantly. I had a fever when I was one year old. She was so nervous that she decided to bring me to a pediatrician. Night fell and my fever’s not getting any better. She decided to dial my doctor at the middle of night just for me. The doctor scolded her but then she’s happy because I was cured.
• She is over-acting. She acts as my leader, setting examples that I should follow to become independent when the future comes. She acts as my friend, comforting me when I have problems and helping me get out of them. She acts as my teacher, teaching me the theories and putting them into practice. She acts as my savior, protecting me from any harm. And most of all, she acts as my mother, loving me and helping me face no matter what the odds are.

Words are not enough to thank you for what you have done for me. But anyway, I want to tell you that you’re greater than the greatest mom on the planet. I love you.

P.S. Happy Mother’s Day to all of your moms!

/05.10.09/