Buhay at Trabaho

from Hidalgo del Arrabal

Hay naku! Lunes na naman... Trabaho na naman...

We usually hear these lines on Sunday evenings to early mornings of Mondays from people who had been working Mondays to Fridays or sometimes including Saturdays (and Sundays?). Do they sound bored? Or just plain tinatamad? O kaya, bitin lang sa weekend? Well, I don't know! I think all of the above.

So few are so lucky to be very excited for Mondays to come and its time for them to report for work again. So seldom that an employee is excited to face, again, the backlogs, the row of deadlines and the quota to meet. Eh, bakit pa sila nagwork? Eh, wala eh.. Kailangan.

Kailangan? It seems that working is the destiny of most of us if not all of us... Para bang nabuhay tayo dito sa mundo para lang magtrabaho... Ganyan ba talaga??? Ewan ko. sometimes I heard myself asking "do I live To work or do I work to live?" Sagot ng marami,"they work daw to live..." Eh bakit parang ang mga buhay ng karamihan just revolved around their work.

Gising ng madaling araw, ligo, bihis, nagmamadali para di matrapik, di na nakakain, sa office nalang ako kakain dear, mga anak? Bahala na si Yaya dyan. anak kiss daddy, kiss mommy. bye baby, Dad has to work... 8:00 to 5:00 working... Minsan hanggang 9:00 or 10:00 ng evening. Tapos uwian na. Pagdating ng bahay tulog na ang mga anak, katabi ang Yaya. Wala ng magawa dahil sa pagod tutulog ka na rin. The following morning ganoon ulit ang routine. Kailan matatapos 'to???

Who knows!!! Sa retirement siguro... At 65? Sigurado ka??? Akala ko ba you work to live? Are you sure you are having a life???

Work, probably yes, but again, are you having a life???

Yung isang kaibigan kong mag-asawa working in Manila almost had an identical routine sa nakasulat sa taas. One day, actually a Sunday, the couple was preparing to have their lunch at the famous Jollibee as requested by their elder daughter. The couple usually tries to maximize the time with their two kids, making up for the lost time they are supposed to spend from Monday to Saturday. Ngunit bago sila makaalis, kumulimlim na... parang uulan!... so nag-isip ang daddy... bago siya makapag-isip,
bigla nalang bumuhos ang malakas na ulan... cancelled ngayon ang most awaited trip to Jollibee ng mga bata... dahil nga umulan walang magawa...

Maya-mayang konti, biglang kumidlat at kumulog na halos sabay at napakalakas... Nagulat ngayon si daughter... Napatakbo... sa takot, umiyak, tumakbo at yumakap sa Yaya...

Yaya, Yaya takot ako, lakas kidlat...

Pinatahan ng Yaya dahil trabaho nya yun eh... Tumahan naman si daughter,after awhile, tulog na... (i-imagine mo lang! na may camera and the camera is panning towards the mommy from the daughter and yaya, mommy now in focus. slowly zooming
in...)

Dahan-dahan mong makikita ang nangingilid na mga butil ng luha sa mga mata ng mommy. habang siya'y nakatingin kay yaya and daughter. Few seconds later tears started to run down her cheeks... She looked so sad and so frustrated..

Bakit???? Dahil di natuloy ang Jollibee?

Hindi noh!!!

Eh Bakit nga???

Kasi, natakot sa kidlat at kulog...

Hindi rin noh!!!!

After almost a month, I got a call... Pare, birthday celebration ni daughter sa Linggo. Sa Jollibee. Three years old na inaanak mo... punta ka kasi despedida na rin namin...

Bakit? Saan kayo pupunta?

Uuwi na kami sa province.

Ano??? Bakasyon? Bakit kailangang may despedida?

Hinde, pare, for good na.

For good???

Oo, alangan namang for bad. biro ng daddy... Tawanan kami...

The couple decided to give up the careers they have started to build here in Manila. They decided not to take the challenges and the millions of opportunities here in the city. At the very early stage of their married lives, they decided on their priorities. They decided to have a life. A family life. A decision that cost them the new promotion of the father in a bank and the chances of the mother to become a bank officer after her Officers' Training Program where she had been consistently performing above the rest.

Was it the wisest decision the couple has ever made? Well, our answers may not be the same. It will all depend on our way of looking at things.

Katulad ng maraming bagay, desisyon lang yan: buhay o trabaho?

You can not put your title in your lapida when you die, you can not bring your wealth in your coffin. But you will always be remember by your family, not your boss, not your company, your nothing when you die they will just send you the most expensive flowers and that's it.............so better think guys....................