It Comes in 3’s

I had my own version of the 9/11 tragedy. I woke up at 7 am on that fateful day. I was still groggy but desperately looking for my phones as part of my morning habit. I usually put them on top of the small table beside my bed. Unfortunately, I saw no phones. I rushed to look for them under the bed. Negative.

Then I noticed that my apartment’s door was open; the keys still inserted to the knob. My heart throbbed faster. Even the digital camera that I remember to have placed atop the fridge was missing. Shit, a roughneck just selfishly looted all my gadgets while deeply asleep. Three of them: 2 cellular phones and 1 digicam which my plastic card will yet have to pay until May 2007. Oh, plus my cousin’s phone…

Flashback: How did it all happen? Well, I can be raped whenever soundly(?) asleep. Or perhaps, that creature was an expert, his tiptoes like feathers. I slept at 1 am because of a paper work. I went out before that to go to an Internet café to post a comment on the Iran nuclear crisis as requested by a friend who is working with an online magazine in UAE. I brought my umbrella when I went out because of the drizzle. When I returned to the building, I inserted the key to the knob, then left the umbrella at the corridor to dry it up. Then I entered my unit. THERE! I forgot the key dangling freely, an open invitation for any dark-hearted creature.

Lessons learned:

1. Never be complacent. Double-check locks and keys. (I thought I live in a very safe building. I’m sure though that the suspect is just in the building.)

2. Don’t put gadgets in areas easily accessible to anybody.

3. Thank God, only the replaceable things were taken and not my priceless life.

Reflection: God has willed this loss so I will realize that interpersonal communication is warmer than simply fidgeting the gadgets’ buttons. I was insensitive of some human needs. I have been very busy in work that I have forgotten to spend quality time with my friends, family, and even God. The loss can be negligible (although better if avoided) but it anchored me back on what really is important in life.

The Law of Karma says: It all comes in 3’s. The loss was replaced by three feats:

1. I won 2nd place in the essay-writing contest of the Angel C. Palanca Peace Program and won a big cash prize.

2. I accepted the Special Order from the Chair of the FEU Board of Trustees and University President appointing me as a regular faculty member. (I shall be enjoying some perks while I am still affiliated with FEU).

3. I was featured at GMA-7’s 100% Pinoy because of my collection (table napkin with company logo).

Hay...what a cycle: Sometimes you’re up, sometimes you're down. What matters is not your position but how you face this reality. Just be at your best with your feet on the ground.

Thank you to all my friends and colleagues who shared with me during my feats and defeats.