Tuesday, March 29, 2005

Wedding Moments

My cousin got married last Sunday. He surprised his bride with red roses’ petals spread all over the altar, covering all the floor space, where they would take their vows. Isn’t that so romantic?! To think that I fondly remember Ryan as the little tot who runs around with my little brother way back when, and now he’s all grown up with the girl of his dreams finally becoming his wife. *sniff* How I love that kid.

I enjoyed the part when the audience were asked to hold triangle-shaped pieces of paper. We were instructed to open them while the bride is marching down the aisle. Pretty soon, about a hundred butterflies were taking flight all over the church! Another nice touch to the already romantic atmosphere.

I just wished my hubby was there with me. It always makes me feel a little nostalgic whenever I attend a wedding without him. But, *sigh* he had to go to work that day and I totally understand why he can’t accompany me. It’s just that I like having him beside me, the two of us holding hands and smiling those knowing smiles while the bride and groom promise each other everlasting love.

Funny how members of our clan only get to reunite during grand occasions such as this (yes, including funerals). Five of my cousins, three aunts and an uncle came home from abroad to witness the event. I have missed them and it was so good being with them again. Seeing my father’s siblings made me wish that he could be there too. But I’m sure he and my grandma were there in spirit rejoicing at seeing us all so happy.

Thursday, March 17, 2005

A Matter of Perspective

In my work as a freelance writer, I encounter different kinds of people when I need to interview experts and even laymen for different topics. I have met very nice doctors, professors, housewives, salesmen etc. before but also had my share of the undesirable ones. I particularly hate it when secretaries give me the runaround and have me wait on the line for five minutes or more (when I am calling long distance!) or have me call back (again and again) before they connect me to their bosses.

Two weeks ago, I had one of my worst experiences in dealing with a resource person. I won’t go into details but can say that her actions were spiteful without due merit despite my polite explanation and offer of reparation. Needless to say, that incident brought on some heartaches. I really dislike it when some people become so illogical that they close their minds to reason. I shared the experience with some writer friends and they gave me sound advice (plus much needed consolation) on how to deal with something like that if I encounter it again in the future.

A few days after the bad event, I went to see another resource person to interview for another article. She was one of the nicest persons I got to talk to! With her pretty face, jovial nature and genuine willingness to share her knowledge, this doctor came out tops in my list of good people.

And I came full circle. Because I was again reminded that not all people will act the way we expect or want them to. We just have to take things as they come, good or bad, and have that resilience to move on. And I did.

Wednesday, March 16, 2005

A Matter of Perspective

In my work as a freelance writer, I encounter different kinds of people when I need to interview experts and even laymen for different topics. I have met very nice doctors, professors, housewives, salesmen etc. before but also had my share of the undesirable ones. I particularly hate it when secretaries give me the runaround and have me wait on the line for five minutes or more (when I am calling long distance!) or have me call back (again and again) before they connect me to their bosses.

Two weeks ago, I had one of my worst experiences in dealing with a resource person. I won’t go into details but can say that her actions were spiteful without due merit despite my polite explanation and offer of reparation. Needless to say, that incident brought on some heartaches. I really dislike it when some people become so illogical that they close their minds to reason. I shared the experience with some writer friends and they gave me sound advice (plus much needed consolation) on how to deal with something like that if I encounter it again in the future.

A few days after the bad event, I went to see another resource person to interview for another article. She was one of the nicest persons I got to talk to! With her pretty face, jovial nature and genuine willingness to share her knowledge, this doctor came out tops in my list of good people.

And I came full circle. Because I was again reminded that not all people will act the way we expect or want them to. We just have to take things as they come, good or bad, and have that resilience to move on. And I did.

Tuesday, March 01, 2005

Something New

I read in one of Leo Buscaglia’s books that when he was small, his father would always ask him and his siblings “What new thing did you learn today?” every night before they leave the dinner table.

Buscaglia wrote that before dinner starts, he and his sisters would dash to the encyclopedia and flip to something like “The population of Iran is one million.” They would sit down to dinner and by the time their Papa asks, they can recite “The population of Iran is ….” And their father would turn to their mother and say “Rosa, did you know that?” And she would reply an impressed “No.” The kids then thought their parents were crazy.

In his adult years, Buscaglia admits “But I’ll tell you a secret. Even now, going to bed at night, as exhausted as I often am, I still lie back and say to myself ‘Felice, old boy, what did you learn new today?’ And if I can’t think of anything, I’ve got to get a book and flip to something before I can get to sleep.”

Now isn’t that a nice story? After I read about that, I try to emulate Buscaglia’s secret to learning and ask myself what new thing I learned for the day as much as possible. Being the forgetful person that I am, I miss sometimes. But I’m determined to put this into practice even with my kids.

To make it easier, we watch the National Geographic channel at least an hour a day and we have learned so much already! Did you know that the tallest building in the world is no longer the Petronas Towers but Taipei 101? Or that the black mamba snake is called such, not because its scales are black but the inside of its mouth is?

How about you? What did you learn new today?