Give the Day a Chance to Start

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

"mean-girl" (v)

If you haven't been kept in isolation these past few years, then you should be familiar with the chick-flick/teen-movie Mean Girls. The movie was a hit, and correct me if I'm wrong but it wasn't just entertainment for the girly girls. People who didn't fall under that category appreciated the film probably because at some point, everyone could relate with the characters there.

I was once "mean-girled" (verb) way back during my schooldays. But I can't be a hypocrite and say that I never "mean-girled" an innocent person in the past. I inadvertently did my share of it, but I'd like to think we all grow out of it. At least I hope I did.

I know, I know... It's kinda lame of me to coin a term and make those two words a predicate, but it's one of my marielle-isms. Somehow, no English word can capture the essense of how chicks back-bite, gossip, and eventually end up in little (or earth-shaking) catfights.

Funny how it's as real in the office as it was in high school.

I guess everywhere you go, you can always find high school "plastiks", workplace "back-biters", and the typical nosy neighborhood "gossip".

People just can't grow up sometimes.

So, have you ever been mean-girled? Or was it you mean-girling others?

Saturday, October 14, 2006

More than just stats

For the most part of the whole year I've been working, I had inadvertently regarded the people/applicants I came across as mere statistics that either hurt or help my performance rating. Numbers count in my line of work, especially since hiring in the call center industry is pretty much a 24/7 deal. But I recently realized how I often failed to keep in mind that people I come across are more than just stats. They are human beings with souls and lives, which affect yet even more souls and lives as many of them have families and mouths to feed. It's no wonder I easily got bored and burnt out with my job when all I cared about were the numbers.

However, since the recent change in my job description, I've had more opportunities to interact with people, old and new, who work in the company. The reality of having an impact on lives hit me hard. Realizing that the influence I had on people, however small, put the "daily grind" I called my job in a whole new light. Suddenly, what I did was important. It had some meaning not just as I worked for the company as an employee, but more so, as I helped people and reached out to them.

I was having a tough weekend since my lolo passed away. How timely it was when one of our new employees insisted on introducing me to her husband and kids last Monday. I felt so touched by how much she appreciated the chance I'd given her to work, considering she was one of those delinquent applicants I personally handled. As her three little children looked up at me, I felt honored that the task of interviewing and choosing people to hire had such a substantial effect that branched out to so many other lives. It's almost a sin that it took me this long to realize that, don't you think?

That's just one out of the countless instances that have served to remind me that people are never ever mere statistics.

Saturday, October 07, 2006

My lolo the soldier

Yesterday, at 12:07 am, my grandfather passed away after 86 full years in this world. I'm devastated that he's gone, yet I can rest assured he's now enjoying eternal life with his Father in Heaven.

He fought a good fight, not just as a death march survivor, but more so as a man whose example of perseverance, kindness, and generosity I will always look up to. He gave and gave and gave even when it already hurt. Even in his last years, it was like he was fighting death in order to stay longer on this earth and keep giving. He always put others first. He never witheld any good thing to keep for himself. He had a good heart. He was a good man.

He was indeed a soldier, willing and unafraid to sacrifice unconditionally for the benefit of others. I cannot even begin to describe this great man who lived a simple life. There are no words to express how proud I am to have had him as my lolo. He has left a legacy not just in my life but in the lives of countless individuals; people I know I'll never get to meet but will forever have the same love and respect I have for the soldier.

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." 2 Timothy 4:7

Sunday, October 01, 2006

Apathetic?

It's funny. I don't think I've ever seen the gym as empty as this.

I feel a tinge of guilt that amidst all the chaos brought about by the recent typhoon, I still managed to workout, do my routine, and go about my days completely oblivious to the devastation outside. As the storm hit the metro, I was safely tucked away inside my airconditioned office, phone and internet lines intact, and also blessed enough to go home to electricity and cable TV. It's only when I was able to really get out this weekend that I realized the extent of the damage caused by Milenyo. Seeing all those fallen branches, uprooted trees, damaged structures, and torn billboards (not to mention hearing about the suffering and losses it's caused other people) made me realize how apathetic I can get.

It hit me how I tend to detach myself from other people's plights just because I lead a relatively comfortable life. Shouldn't I have the burden to extend God's blessings with those in need? Shouldn't it come from me to get actively involved in outreaches? Or shouldn't I at least start by being sincerly concerned and in the know about what goes on outside my world, which now feels too small, too secure, and too isolated quite frankly.

Or is this just my savior complex acting up again?