Back in New York
"The noisy one is back!" the boss welcomed me with a huge bear hug as we bumped into each other at the corner of 42nd Street and Third Avenue. He was on his way home and I was headed for the office to say hello and drop off some stuff that I wanted my friends to enjoy fresh from the Philippines (like the bibingka malagkit from Legazpi and Samala from Cavite).
Well, it seemed the same sentiment was echoed when I went from office to office on our floor. Admittedly, I do have a tendency to get very loud in the office
but nevertheless it felt good to be missed.
I realized that this was really where I belonged - here in this city of chaos where everyone is in a rush to do their business. This is where I fit in and where my life has become. Despite the fact that I do come home to Manila regularly, reality is people - including those who truly truly love me, have learned to live without me
. But what else did I really expect anyway - that they hold their breath until the next time I am in town?
My daughter has her own life now, with school and as literary editor of the school paper (which byt he way is the same position I held back in college - hah! Now tell me from who she gets it from....hah!). My parents have their routines with their garden and their friends and their daily rituals. And my friends have their work and everytime I drive to Makati they can only set aside either coffee, lunch or dinner with me. Well, someone DID have time for me whenever I had time to see her - my dear dear Gabrielle! Life moves on without you, Victoria, I told myself....surprisingly the fact made me smile.
My flight from Manila had been uneventful although I did make some new friends (read next entry). After saying goodbye to my parents early in the morning (and crying my eyes out all the way to the airport - it's a ritual so don't think much of it) I was checked in and then boarding my flight by 9:30 AM. I also sent text messages to the friends who took time off to spend time with me.
I arrived in New York an hour late at 6:30 PM and breezed through immigration and picked up my luggage (no boxes, just a medium sized check-in and priority baggage - hey, I flew business class!). In almost no time I was back in Manhattan in my very warm apartment (the centralized heater was on of course).
Jetlag had me swinging in and out of consciousness the whole day before I got a call from the M.O. at lunchtime, wondering where I was. "Still in bed!" I laughed when I realized it was 1:30 PM. He urged me to get out since it was a nice mild day. Renee also said the same thing and so I showered and stepped out - to a beautiful afternoon when Manhattan was basking in sunshine and 50 degree weather. It felt almost like spring!
For the meantime I have emails to sort (yahoo tells me I have 158 emails in my inbox, 112 still unread) and regular mail is piled high on my dining table also screaming for attention. Magazines I have subscription to are also accumulated since I was away and I have no idea how I will read through all of them or even WHY I have so much magazines!
I will continue to live two lives I guess, like my mom says: one in Manila and one in Manhattan. And she fearlessly forecasts that it will remain the same until I settle down and get married - then I will finally make just one place home.
I plan to return to Manila in September but until then... my life in Manhattan resumes. I am back in New York. The noisy one is back. And she's glad to be back.
Well, it seemed the same sentiment was echoed when I went from office to office on our floor. Admittedly, I do have a tendency to get very loud in the office
but nevertheless it felt good to be missed.I realized that this was really where I belonged - here in this city of chaos where everyone is in a rush to do their business. This is where I fit in and where my life has become. Despite the fact that I do come home to Manila regularly, reality is people - including those who truly truly love me, have learned to live without me
. But what else did I really expect anyway - that they hold their breath until the next time I am in town?My daughter has her own life now, with school and as literary editor of the school paper (which byt he way is the same position I held back in college - hah! Now tell me from who she gets it from....hah!). My parents have their routines with their garden and their friends and their daily rituals. And my friends have their work and everytime I drive to Makati they can only set aside either coffee, lunch or dinner with me. Well, someone DID have time for me whenever I had time to see her - my dear dear Gabrielle! Life moves on without you, Victoria, I told myself....surprisingly the fact made me smile.
My flight from Manila had been uneventful although I did make some new friends (read next entry). After saying goodbye to my parents early in the morning (and crying my eyes out all the way to the airport - it's a ritual so don't think much of it) I was checked in and then boarding my flight by 9:30 AM. I also sent text messages to the friends who took time off to spend time with me.
I arrived in New York an hour late at 6:30 PM and breezed through immigration and picked up my luggage (no boxes, just a medium sized check-in and priority baggage - hey, I flew business class!). In almost no time I was back in Manhattan in my very warm apartment (the centralized heater was on of course).
Jetlag had me swinging in and out of consciousness the whole day before I got a call from the M.O. at lunchtime, wondering where I was. "Still in bed!" I laughed when I realized it was 1:30 PM. He urged me to get out since it was a nice mild day. Renee also said the same thing and so I showered and stepped out - to a beautiful afternoon when Manhattan was basking in sunshine and 50 degree weather. It felt almost like spring!
For the meantime I have emails to sort (yahoo tells me I have 158 emails in my inbox, 112 still unread) and regular mail is piled high on my dining table also screaming for attention. Magazines I have subscription to are also accumulated since I was away and I have no idea how I will read through all of them or even WHY I have so much magazines!
I will continue to live two lives I guess, like my mom says: one in Manila and one in Manhattan. And she fearlessly forecasts that it will remain the same until I settle down and get married - then I will finally make just one place home.
I plan to return to Manila in September but until then... my life in Manhattan resumes. I am back in New York. The noisy one is back. And she's glad to be back.