atin-atin lang

this year i spent my birthday away from all my loved ones for the very first time. i have always been afraid of the thought of that until it actually happened to me one week ago today. i can say that i managed pretty well, perhaps because i’ve made a few new friends here at work and that i was just a text or call away from my greeters. things didn’t go as i had planned though. i was supposed to celebrate it silently (nobody knew of it here but they’ve been guessing since the start of the month). my foreman friend was even saying that he was certain i was a virgo, judging from my decision-making, moods, and overall demeanor. i tried denying it but the mere thought of my birthday was putting a smile on my face.

as if expecting a barrage of birthday greetings, i deleted as many messages from my cellphone’s limited-capacity storage. true enough, messages started coming shortly after midnight. the first to greet me was my sister, and i was touched, almost brought to tears as she said she missed me. other friends followed suit. my face might have been beaming with joy that morning so much that my workmates were already cajoling me for a blowout. i was firm with my denial, hoping to find out how long i could hold it.

i went through my usual routine of walking around the site, inspecting the three buildings that we’re building, not noticing that i had left my mobile at our site meeting area. ohmigad! i thought to myself, nobody would dare… when i got back to the table, my women workmates (my closest friends here) were starting to sing happy birthday! drats! i hushed them even before they could reach the second stanza. so much for my silent celebration. hahaha! as it turned out, they were more convinced that it was indeed my birthday as the messages on my phone kept on coming, and they decided to take a peek at one of them. i was slightly irked by that intrusion into my privacy but i knew that the girls meant well. i was caught red-handed!

after checking if my pockets were deep enough, i decided that i could throw a little "party" in the evening. one of our engineers volunteered to cook and all i had to do was buy the ingredents. a good deal, i thought, so i went shopping at talipapa, d’mall palengke & bora budget mart. i managed to get back to the site by 4:30. at the end of work hours at 5pm, i was surprised by a song number by our workers (around 150 men, imagine that!), who were supposedly practicing while i was out grocery-shopping. it was quite a touching moment and somehow eased my longing for friends and family back in Manila. it sure put a big smile on my face, quite a thoughtful gesture indeed.

at our staff barracks i could only afford a few guests of about fifteen people, which included our foremen and some workers who’ve become my friends here. when dinner time came we feasted on the spaghetti and lumpia that was lovingly prepared by my work/housemates the whole afternoon. we even had ice cream afterwards! and to cap it all, videoke with a little booze. not bad at all for a grown-up’s children’s party away from home.

being the sentimental person that i am, i kept reading and re-reading the text messages that i received from family and friends. i was happy that they remembered and was even happier to receive greetings from those whom i didn’t expect. even friends who are now abroad managed to drop a line thru email, ym, or chikka text. a few close relatives also surprised me with their calls. thank you guys! you really made my day.

a birthday away from loved ones is one thing, but as the days go by i’m getting more anxious about the next big celebrations: Christmas and New Year. as our vacations are scheduled and subject to approval, i can only hope to be home wth my famiy by then. nevertheless, i’m already considering other options like spending the holidays in my new friends’ hometowns. they’ve been most accommodating and have volunteered their homes if i need a place to stay. exciting prospect don’t you think?

i’m now 26. and the clock is still ticking. i have a job that i’m enjoying (not to mention that it’s in Boracay!), my family’s doing fine, i have great friends; what else could be lying around the corner?

hmmm…