We celebrated the Insurance
Commission’s 70th Anniversary last January with a bang, but much as
it was a celebration of new hopes and beginnings, it also signalled inevitable
endings.
Fast forward six months
later, we have said “thank you for being a part of our lives” to too many
colleagues. Much too many.
Most of the “pillars” (as
Comm. Funa called them) are all but gone. Some are permanently lost. Majority
have opted to open a new chapter in their lives.
These goodbyes are too
heavy. But truth be told, they don’t feel real. Not yet.
How can it be real?
I joined IC when I was in
my mid-twenties. It was here I discovered that not all government offices
employ grumpy employees. In my early days there, I didn’t like my work – but I
loved the people and how they were not “Ma’am” and “Sir” but “Ate and “Kuya”. I
loved that they were so simple and caring and easy to talk to. I loved that the
office felt like a home and everyone was family.
Time passed. I got married.
I had a hard time conceiving. Eventually we had a baby. The baby grew and
became feisty but was everyone’s darling. Then she grew up some more and did
not want to go with me to the office anymore.
It’s crazy that all those
things happened and I didn’t give much thought that I was surrounded by friends
whose lives were also fast passing by.
The “ates” and “kuyas” who
were already there when I joined in – I didn’t really realize that they were
ahead of me in years. I mean, not really.
Maybe because they didn’t
really age. Darn, I look at them and still see the faces I looked up to all
those years ago! Parang hindi naman sila
nagbago. Medyo bumilog lang,
nabawasan ang buhok, naging mayamanin. But the smiles and laughters are the
same. The camaraderie is the same.
However, because I didn’t
notice the changes, I took it for granted that things will just go on as always….
But it turns out hindi pala ganon. Time is real. Life is real.
The “ates” and “kuyas” are ripe
for new beginnings. They crave for a more relaxed life, more time for family,
more time to enjoy the bounties of this world.
I am reeling from the
changes. Nakakalungkot, nakakaiyak.
Nakakainggit.
Goodbyes are sad. But the
“ates and “kuyas” deserve what they crave for. Kaya sige po, go and enjoy life. Salamat sa mga aral at magagandang halimbawa. Tatanawin namin kayo.