In between spoonfuls of sans rival mcflurry 

and red light stops

I've unconsciously let you inhabit 

this corner in my heart

Where childhood dreams and 

happy thoughts live, 

For as long as they possibly can.

How long you intend to stay there

Is a question I don't have an answer for.

#jessandmelanie2015

Some girls have to kiss several frogs before they get to the one who turns out to be a prince

While some girls are lucky enough to find a prince in the first man who plants a kiss on their lips.

Who would have thought that the "NBSB" in our little Grad Girl Group in the PM team would end up to be the first one to walk down the aisle and marry the man of her dreams?

When I joined DKS more than 7 years ago, Mel was the first person outside my grad program batch who became my friend. I was hired by the PM team to take over her tasks so she became my trainer. She's one of the most organized people I know and was the one who taught me to be OC with even the smallest things such as file names and subject lines. Spending most of our working hours with each other allowed us to get to know each other really well and it didn't take a long time for us to realize that we have a lot in common and became good friends even outside work. She was my shoulder to cry on when I was going through a  terrible heartbreak, would listen to my stories about attempts to move on, and surprised me with the best frozen brazo cake on my first birthday away from home. In between long working hours and getting frustrated in some meetings, she waited patiently for love to come into her life, the kind of love that makes you excited and giddy like in those chick flicks we watched.

We were on a weekend trip in Subic when she first told me about Jess. Even then, I somehow knew that Jess could potentially be The One. I didn't get to see them together as often as their other friends but in the few instances that I got to spend time with them as a couple, I witnessed just how caring Jess is of Mel. His humor complemented Mel's and his opinions about current issues showed his integrity and that he's someone who would stand up for the things that he believed in and people he loved.

I couldn't be happier that I got to witness Jess and Mel tie the knot. It was such an honor that they chose me to be one of their bridesmaids. While we were waiting for the ceremony to start, we teased Jess that perhaps Mel was already on her way back to Manila instead of heading to the chapel. He played along but we know the joke did not bother him one bit. That Mel was going to come and walk down that aisle was as certain as the beautiful sunset that would later come in sight. I don't know if wedding organizers put some sort of formula in all the brides' drinks on the day of their wedding. Somehow, brides are just glowing and look their most beautiful on the day they get married and this of course was the case for Mel. Tears were already flowing down her father's cheeks a few seconds after they started walking. Theirs was the most emotional bridal march I've seen and Abby and I had to exert much effort to stop our own tears from flowing. It was truly a beautiful ceremony. Their vows were genuine and heartfelt, and the priest's homily made us realize even more just how perfect they are for each other, because God brought them together. :)

Even though the guest list was probably a little more than a hundred, the whole event still felt very intimate. I was certain that every single person present either at the chapel or at the chapel knew the couple at some point and for some of the guests, the wedding reception doubled as a reunion of some sort. High school classmates, college friends, previous workmates had the chance to catch-up over cocktails and snapshots at the photobooth. It was great to see my teammates from the PM team. Though it's been years since the last time all of us were in one place, I still felt that same old feeling of comfort and assurance around them and we still laughed about the same things.

                       

Who's next? :)

Freedom (and responsibility) within a Framework

Because post-op requires me to get sufficient bedrest for a speedy recovery, I have more time than usual to catch up on my reading list. I am still on book number 1, Good To Great by Jim Collins.

Here's an insight from the book that I found striking and is definitely something I would want to emulate in my team.

"The good-to-great companies built a consistent system with clear constraints, but they also gave people the freedom and responsibility within the framework of that system. They hired self-disciplined people who didn't need to be managed, and then managed the system, not the people."

That Old Feeling

You've seen this long ago

But it remains too familiar

Heartbreak I guess, doesn't change how it feels

No matter how old you become

You type away to distract yourself

From the voices inside your head

Yet they continue to ring louder

Than the noise in the real world

The lyrics of an old memorized song

Suddenly becomes magnified

You start hearing the meaning

In a completely different light

You've seen this long ago

But it remains too familiar

Heartbreak I guess, may heal overtime

But the image does not leave your mind

You travel back to the long dark days

Unable to sleep after several tries

Staying in bed even when the sun is up

Obscuring reality by closing your eyes

You don't stop the tears from flowing

You allow yourself to feel the pain

Until the sad love songs no longer sting

And you are ready stop being broken

You've seen this long ago

So you know it's not permanent

Heartbreak I know, happens more than once

But always leaves you wiser than the last one

It's not always about the numbers

Your name was called and 

you stood up immediately

The past seven years of course

allowed you to master the drill

Out of excitement or maybe anxiety

You brought nothing with you

The boss said maybe it's a good thing

So you wont get to calculate anything

With a slight smirk you shake your head

You tell him, I can do it mentally instead

He recites the standard speech

That he memorized this morning

The only thing that sticks with you

Is that the numbers are final

And before you know it, the numbers were out

Initially it sounded good, you let a sigh of relief

He then went to the next step

Which left you confused at first

Did I hear the numbers right

This must be some kind of mistake

He went through it again for your sake

There was no denying it

Your mind's calculation was correct

Single-digit rate, far lower than expected

You had to ask yourself

Why am I still here again?

But then again, it wasn't like you weren't warned

The past seven years of course

Allowed you to master the drill

You just need to look at it as a whole

The numbers are final after all

It didn't sink in until you were back at your desk

All of a sudden, tears were rolling down your cheeks

Did you expect too much, aren't you being ungrateful?

Why does it even matter, you probably received more than most people

Young and underpaid, 

Haven't you accepted that long ago?

It has always been a fact

But it never stopped you from working hard

So why let it bother you now?

You look around you and 

you see the smile on the faces of your team,

These are people that you hired,

These are people you've trained since day one

You look at them working collectively

in awe of how each of one them has grown

You then realize that those numbers

Interesting and tangible as they may be

Will never tell you the whole story

Cliche as it may sound, your fulfillment comes

From things other than those figures

Haven't you learned anything

In the past seven years?

You've always known about greener pastures

But you'll always choose the side

Where happiness is effortless

So let today be a reminder

Of why it was worth it to stay

After all this time, and why it still is

The good will always outdo the bad

Today was an opportunity for me to look back and remember why I stayed after all this time, and why it was and still is worth it.

Long Distance

There will be a time...

When see you soon

won't mean a facetime call

When a goodnight kiss 

Won't be a tiny emoji

When 3 months worth of movie dates 

Won't be crammed in one weekend

When my good morning message is a whisper

Not read but heard

There will be a time...

When I will know what you're having for dinner 

Because we cooked it together

Not because I saw it on a picture

When a proud moment is shared

With a squeeze of my hand

Not by the like button on instagram

There will be a time

When i will be the last face you'll see

before you fall asleep

And you'll be next to me 

as the sun rises

I know that time will come

But for now, 

This will have to do