New Year 2006

Last night, I spent a quiet evening with my family in our newly occupied condo unit in Ortigas. We felt it had the best view of the fireworks that would simultaneously light up the Manila sky on New Year’s Eve. And what a spectacular view we had indeed! Even before the stroke of midnight, we could see the colorful display as far as Quezon City and even Antipolo! But as always, there were just the four of us – Dad, Mom, my brother and me. It’s not as if we were all jumping up and down as 2006 arrived, nor hugging each other in the warmth of the holidays. We’re not that type of family. Instead, we were all seated in the dark watching the fireworks from our window.

I couldn’t help but feel all sentimental. I remembered the year that passed. I remembered everything that I had to go through, all the good things and the bad. For some reason, my chest was filled with heaviness. I felt lonely. I guess I didn’t have the right to be. But on an occasion such as the start of a new year, I couldn’t help but look back on a lot of things. And having to look out into the horizon of what the future will bring, sitting quietly in the dark, I felt alone... It’s not a sad thing really, just a moment of realization that whatever will come and go in my life, I’ll be able to weather through everything, as I have time and time again, on my own.

God has ways of making us strong. He gives us all the trials and blessings in our lives to shake us up and grow. We just have to take things as they are and be grateful for the blessings, but not to the point of anchoring who we are on the special things that come our way. After all, everything changes. We just have to trust and hope for the best.