My Heroes

1. People who are nice to you when they don’t have to. The villain in MI3 says something like, you can judge a person’s character by how well he treats other people whom he doesn’t have to treat well at all. Which is why I love this boss that I have who’s always so warm and affectionate, always putting a personal touch to his emails and texts like, take care or I hope you have a pleasant day ahead or have a good weekend or something like that. It’s like he’s really concerned about my well-being and is not just communicating with me to give me work. And he doesn’t have to do that at all. He doesn’t even have to say hi to me. (Of course it helps that this particular boss is a hottie. Old and married and a daddy but a hottie notheless.)

2. People with strength and principle. I happened to meet up with a batchmate who is from  law school in my MPLE classes. I learned that she has left her law office and has filed a complaint against the partners who were making her do something illegal not to mention unethical involving a labor arbiter. The firm has offered her like one million to get her to withdraw the case and she has declined (so far). I don’t know how it’s going to end but for now I really admire this girl for being so brave going up against an entire law office, against a whole way of doing things in the legal profession. It’s people like her who make me believe maybe there’s hope for lawyers, after all.

3. Blooper girls. I rode the MRT to Ayala Triangle one office day and sat across this girl who looked perfectly put-together, make-up and all. She was wearing a skirt with some strings and when she stood up the strings got stuck on the leg of her seatmate and her skirt came falling down like halfway thru her leg, exposing everything including her beige panties. I know it’s mean to rejoice over other people’s misfortunes, but I’m sorry, things like these really make feel better about myself and reassure me that I don’t have a monopoly on bloopers (even if it seems like that 6 out 7 days in a week).

4. The people who planted the flame trees all over the office compound. I counted nine on the facade alone. At this time of the year you can hardly see any leaves, everywhere it’s just red and orange, on the trees and the ground below, so vibrant and all for free. It’s like an unexpected gift from God, these flame trees, as if he’s reminding you, you’re alive, life is beautiful, smile.

5. Characters. I don’t mean those who dress weird and talk loud to grab everyone’s attention. Just people who are happy to be different, not scared to go against the norm, in terms of how they look at things, how they express themselves. Colorful people you meet and won’t soon forget bcoz they stand out and do not just blend in. Nico once said that a non-conformist is not necessarily one who’s unlike everyone else; it’s more of someone who doesn’t really care what everyone else thinks. (This was during one of Nico’s few lucid intervals.)

In my former  office, we had an accountant who was otherwise normal and staid the whole year, but who really went out of her way to dress up in our themed Christmas parties. One year she came as a Millennium Lady Bug, and another year she was Cruella de Ville. Rhoel surmised that it was her one time in the year to let loose and get wild. People were practically lining up to have pictures taken beside her, as tho she were some Disney attraction. She became then, in that one time of the year, figuratively and literally, A Character.

6. People who are contented with what they have and are happy where they are. I know this guy who operates the elevator in the SEC. At every stop he’d say, “Ikatlong palapag na po” or “Unang palapag na po. Salamat po.” I admire his grace and good humor (not to mention his eloquence in Filipino). I’m sure it’s not his lifelong dream to be an elevator operator but the fact that he is doesn’t make him bitter or cranky as I’m sure the rest of us would be if we have to spend our days going up and down the same building and never really getting anywhere.

7. Mothers’ Day bcoz of a Hubbies who are startlingly sweet and endlessly patient. When we brought Yosh to the Mt. E ER on persistent fever, there was an old lady who was sick on a nearby bed. Her husband was lovingly brushing her hair away from her face and whispering to her. I couldn’t quite hear what he was saying but I could make out that he was telling her to hold on and that he’s there for her. It was really touching.

Really, PC would be perfect if only he had the charms, accent and income of Hugh Grant. Ooops. This could be the final straw for him to make good his long-standing threat of putting up his own blog site.:P