Due to some unavoidable (or not?) circumstances, I found myself living on a very tight budget last month. I had to discontinue some of the services that I enjoyed, which I thought at first as necessities, but I quickly found out that necessities are proportional to one's resources. Tight budget-- no gym, live on prepaid cards, no cab, no movies, no eating out, no shopping.. etc. No biggie, I thought. Most people are living like this. I can do it.
Fast forward. It's been a month now, and thank heavens, my resources are a bit better. I was really impressed at myself that I did it, but NO BIGGIE? I don't think so.
I was lucky enough to have generous friends who helped me get by. Let's just say that I didn't really get bored while I was on a budget. One evening some of my friends asked me to go to a birthday party somewhere Ortigas area. Normally I would quickly agree, but I had to pause and think of the money that I have left. No, the money was not enough. The problem was solved when my dear friends offered to pick me up at a place where my 'budget' would get me.
And so there I was, at an Ortigas mall patiently waiting for them, having almost no cash on me. Boy, they really had to come and get me or I would walk back home. I prettied myself that day, I was looking all dolled up for the party. At least I didn't look penniless. Humor. My phone rang and I answered it, just as a young girl (around 14) approached me. "Ate, pwede ka ba maistorbo?" Funny. "Naistorbo mo na ako." I said jokingly. The person on the other line was my friend who said they were near. The teen patiently waited until I was off the phone and asked again, "Ate, pwede ka ba maistorbo?" What is with this sentence? It was almost like a rehearsed spiel. "Ano yun?" "Ate pwede ba manghingi ng pamasahe?" I smiled so wide, my cheeks almost hurt.
This is freaking ironic. I thought to myself. This might be a 'gimmick'. But gimmick or not, of all the people to approach, she bravely asked the one who also didn't have any 'pamasahe.' I said with apology that I too, didn't have any money. She looked at me directly in the eyes and I felt her desperate plea. I said I was sorry and I meant it. Poor girl. Poor us. She quietly walked away.
This incident wouldn't have mattered to me had it happened a few months back. I guess I went through this tight moment for a whole month of learning. I learned to value every penny that I have. I learned that being happy doesn't really come from how much you have, but it comes from how much love you surround yourself with. More importantly, I learned to look at people around me and realize that I am no better. Every individual that we often take for granted has a spirit, and a story to tell.
Sometimes I ponder on who is more fortunate--a person who was given 'colorful' struggles or a person with a 'plain' comfortable world? Probably the answer is no one. No one is luckier. I believe that balance defines every life. One is not exactly 'unluckier' than the other. The experiences that we learn first hand are priceless, as equal to the comfort that we have when we have no worries.
I'm ALMOST (still not quite) back to my old, more comfortable lifestyle but I know that I will never look at things the same way again. Because of what I went through, suddenly everything around me has bigger value.
=)
Fast forward. It's been a month now, and thank heavens, my resources are a bit better. I was really impressed at myself that I did it, but NO BIGGIE? I don't think so.
I was lucky enough to have generous friends who helped me get by. Let's just say that I didn't really get bored while I was on a budget. One evening some of my friends asked me to go to a birthday party somewhere Ortigas area. Normally I would quickly agree, but I had to pause and think of the money that I have left. No, the money was not enough. The problem was solved when my dear friends offered to pick me up at a place where my 'budget' would get me.
And so there I was, at an Ortigas mall patiently waiting for them, having almost no cash on me. Boy, they really had to come and get me or I would walk back home. I prettied myself that day, I was looking all dolled up for the party. At least I didn't look penniless. Humor. My phone rang and I answered it, just as a young girl (around 14) approached me. "Ate, pwede ka ba maistorbo?" Funny. "Naistorbo mo na ako." I said jokingly. The person on the other line was my friend who said they were near. The teen patiently waited until I was off the phone and asked again, "Ate, pwede ka ba maistorbo?" What is with this sentence? It was almost like a rehearsed spiel. "Ano yun?" "Ate pwede ba manghingi ng pamasahe?" I smiled so wide, my cheeks almost hurt.
This is freaking ironic. I thought to myself. This might be a 'gimmick'. But gimmick or not, of all the people to approach, she bravely asked the one who also didn't have any 'pamasahe.' I said with apology that I too, didn't have any money. She looked at me directly in the eyes and I felt her desperate plea. I said I was sorry and I meant it. Poor girl. Poor us. She quietly walked away.
This incident wouldn't have mattered to me had it happened a few months back. I guess I went through this tight moment for a whole month of learning. I learned to value every penny that I have. I learned that being happy doesn't really come from how much you have, but it comes from how much love you surround yourself with. More importantly, I learned to look at people around me and realize that I am no better. Every individual that we often take for granted has a spirit, and a story to tell.
Sometimes I ponder on who is more fortunate--a person who was given 'colorful' struggles or a person with a 'plain' comfortable world? Probably the answer is no one. No one is luckier. I believe that balance defines every life. One is not exactly 'unluckier' than the other. The experiences that we learn first hand are priceless, as equal to the comfort that we have when we have no worries.
I'm ALMOST (still not quite) back to my old, more comfortable lifestyle but I know that I will never look at things the same way again. Because of what I went through, suddenly everything around me has bigger value.
=)
