Love is a one-way street

I heard a priest say once, "Charity [or love] is a one-way street." I immediately reacted in my head objecting to what he said. I objected because what I learned from Philosophical Anthropology class was that love has to be two-way because we cannot authentically love something that is incapable of loving. For example, we cannot say that we love our dogs because they do not love. They are just trained to be that way. We cannot say that we love our cellphones because our cellphones do not love us back.

Further on, the priest continues to explain that love is a one-way street because we should not expect something in return. This is what it means to have unconditional love. Now I get it. unconditional love is not putting conditions -- I will only love if you love me back. I will only love you if you will undergo cosmetic surgery. I will only love you if you get a job. Love means not appending our I love you's with if's.

This is why God's love is unconditional. God loves us without the if's. Despite our sins, our shortcomings, our not attending mass on Sundays (the least that we could do), He still loves us. He does not, however, love us to the point that sinful as we are, we still go to heaven nevertheless. The ones who struggle of the good people will not anymore be justified if that is so. God's divine justice still rules. Like any father or mother who will punish his or her child does so for the child's good. For the child to learn. God is our father pictured in the Parable of the Prodigal Son. He will do the same, but will welcome us in open arms when we ask Him for pardon in the sacrament of confession.

So take a stand: confession or not?

Crushed

Omigosh. It's been quite a long time since I had a crush on someone a bit more realistic. Because so far, two of my crushes are already married, and first one is even high profile. It's only today, I think, that I finally had a more realistic crush. I didn't expect to meet him today, but I did. Sir Leo had to introduce me to him because he was a potential publisher for the yearbook. Anyway, physically he passed my standards: a bit moreno, chubby (I don't like skinny or muscled men), medium height, owns a 17" Powerbook, and with great english diction. So far, so good. I didn't notice a ring on his finger (Yes, I tried to notice) so most likely he's single. Big problem is he does look a bit younger than I am. I am afraid he's just even a fresh grad from college. :( Other things to look out for: piety, schooling, family background, relationship status. Haha!

I feel like I'm in high school again! This is crazy. :P

Oh well, I guess he'll just be a crush. :) I'll keep you updated anyway in my 2nd teenage life.

People with Integrity

I never wanted to become a teacher until that day I had the chance to help a poor community in Cadiz, Negros Occidental when I was going on third year in college. I gave up my selfish ways and learned to give more of myself to be able to share what I know. Then I decided to enter the service industry and become a teacher.

My first four years of teaching was almost utopic. I did not encounter so many problems, or grave enough problems for me to remember them now, until I tried to seek greener pastures - you can take this figuratively or literally.

Don't get me wrong: I love the students and I love my salary. It's some of the people around me that I have to really contend with. These are people who say nice things in front of you, but say another in official documents. These are the people who calumnize and defame other people among friends, and do the same to their friends when they are not around. These are the people who complain - in fairness, they do have basis for their complaints - but leave it at that: a complaint. These are the people who criticize efforts of other people dismissing them as fruitless. And these are the people who evaluate you at the end of the school year.

For some time, my brains could not absorb the fact that there are actually people who behave like this. I thought these people only exist in movies, but I guess not. Maybe I'm just really naive. Because I didn't understand why they think and act that way, I started nurturing dissatisfaction for the organization. I became an overgrown angst-ridden teenager. I wanted to understand so I approached a more seasoned colleague. Her advice: lower my expectations. It was and is still a difficult to do. I received another advice from a Philosophy teacher: The reason why people behave the way they do is because the person is endowed with so much freedom making him or her a real incarnated mystery.

True, so true. People are not robots. We can't expect them to behave in a certain way. God did not create us as if we are all programmed. (Thank God for that!) Then there is really room for differences and greater struggle to understand. Being persons with intellect and freedom, the way they behave is already beyond our control. We cannot simply control them. The only thing we can really control is ourselves - how we will handle and deal with them.

So I am not going to act like the victim here. Am I complaining? Yes, I am. Am I doing something about it? Yes, I am. What am I doing? I am not letting them ruin my day. I am not fighting back because I do not want to waste my energy on them. I am praying for them that God may enlighten them, and eventually see their true colors.

Perhaps the guilty people are reading this essay now. They will only react in two ways: admit their faults and decide to change, or flare up in defense.

You may be in the same position as I am now be it in the corporate or academic world. We also have two choices in front of us: to react or to be proactive about it and use our God-given intelligence to understand. I guess it's time for more people to take the road less taken. These are the people with real integrity.

They're still at it.

Well, as expected, those who did not attend the forum still kept on complaining. Can't they just face the people involved? Don't they get stressed complaining and not do anything about it? I think it's just really crazy and unproductive.

These are the people who lack integrity, and people in position ought to be people of integrity. They sadden me while they snicker in their corners for the tears that are shed for them. It is really quite frustrating.

SM City Sta. Rosa a great buffer for Smart's services

After my grueling and almost traumatic experience with Smart's customer service, I am quite relieved after how my brother and I were treated at SM City Sta. Rosa. We needed to have his Telesulit replaced with a Budget Card becaust he thought that Telesulit is the prepaid card you can use to call abroad. Honest mistake on his part. He didn't know that there is exists a special land-based phone that only works with pre-paid cards.

So we both approached the Information Center that sold him the card. The customer service representative cordially listened to our needs, and told us to go to the Customer Service counter inside the Department Store itself. So we followed her, went inside the department store, and since the counter was not in sight, we asked one of the cashiers where the customer service was. She told us that there were two: one on the ground floor and another on the second. I asked which one is nearest, but she asked instead what our concern was. We told her that we needed to return a product we bought, so she immediately told us to go to the second floor. We were about to take the escalator nearest us, but she instead told us to take the other one farther us because the customer service is nearer that escalator, and even told us which cashier number it was nearest to.

Wow! What a relief! Customer service at its best! This is what I call efficient customer service even if it was already 7:00 in the evening, and they must be tired already. But this doesn't stop there.

When we reach the Customer Service counter, the girl was also very courteous. She did not immediately give us a reply whether we could refund or not. She tried to call someone through the phone, and it took her a while. There was another man lined up after my brother, and the other free customer rep immediately noticed that there was another customer waiting, and instead of calling him to approach her, she instead approached the customer to spare him of moving around the cordon. Impressive!

When the customer rep finished her phone call, she gave us bad news saying that she already called the Branch Customer Service Head to verify his concern, and that he really couldn't return nor replace the card. Although they did not solve my brother's problem, they handled the situation very politely, and efficiently. Before rejecting our concern, she made all possible ways to make sure that she can solve our problem.

Kudos to SM City Sta. Rosa! So far, the best in customer satisfaction. I wonder when they will fail me. Hmmm. Hopefully not. :)

When we reached

Airing out a Frustration with Smart

Pardon if I have not been replying to your texts or returning your phone calls because my SIM is still blocked ever since last Friday.

I thought I lost my phone so I asked Smart to bar all outgoing phone calls from my SIM. Boy! Was I impressed with the quickness they granted my request! The next day (Friday), I was able to retrieve my phone because a kind-hearted soul surrendered my lost phone to the authorities of an establishment. Was I relieved! So I immediately faxed a letter of request (as instructed by the Smart customer representative) to the number they gave me. I faxed once, twice and thrice on the same day because I was having problems faxing page 2 (the photocopy of a valid ID). Anyway, I tried to follow-up in the evening and the rep said to wait for feedback within 24 hours. I did not get feedback.

Saturday, I was just too busy to address my problem.

Sunday came, and still I have not received any acknowledgment of receipt of my fax. I called again and the person said she'll follow-up and told me to wait for another 24 hours to wait for the reply. A text came in after two hours saying that they never received any fax from me!

I knew there was something wrong in the faxing.

So I asked her what other ways I can send my letter of request to unbar the outgoing calls. She said to email. She gave me an email address. I scanned the letter of request and the ID, emailed it to the address she gave. I was quite confident it went through so I logged out my email. Hoping that within 24 hours I will have my phone working already, I didn't follow-up. But Monday came and still no reply. I already followed it up again, and to my frustration, they have not received my email! I tried to email the same letter again and only now that I realize that the mail bounced back to me! So they were really not receiving my emails! I tried faxing the letter again Monday three more times. Still waiting patiently, I was hoping that in 24 hours, I will have my phone working. But no, Tuesday came and still no confirmation. Another follow-up is done and they said they NEVER received any fax from me.

For the nth time, a follow-up is done and the customer rep said that she is already exasperated that they are not getting anything from me. I wonder who's more frustrated. And she finally said that I can do my request by visiting a Smart Wireless Center. [Pulling my hair.] Imagine how I would have felt if I knew that a Smart Wireless Center is just 10 minutes away from my home? But too late they said that, it's already evening.

How frustrating can it get when in 5 days, you are not returning important phone calls, and replying to texts! i do have Chikka access, but how could I do that without a computer?

So guys, until now, my phone is barred from making outgoing calls and sending SMS. Pardon me, and pardon the lousy service of Smart.

REALIZATION: Cellphones are important in official matters. Oh, the timing! Just when there is so much coordination to be done!

Angsty Teacher

Teachers can be angsty too.

I just came from a small get-together with my MA friends yesterday somewhere in Ortigas. We were there planning for a friend's wedding, choosing flowers, conceptualizing, and squeezing our not-so-creative brains for a great theme. Of course, my "new" outspoken me could not help my mouth from blaring out some "candid" comments as were planning. A friend commented something to this effect, "Hey! What's up with you? Ang taray mo ngayon ah."

Reflective me, of course it hinted on the fact that I wasn't mataray before. True, some of my college friends would always tell me how mild-mannered I was, but as years passed, as my experience grows, and as I get to know people I never thought existed in real life "You trying hard copy cat!" (Splashes wine on the face of the "copy cat"), I adapt to my environment and start growing my horns and start locking them with other people's horns. In my friend's word, "Angsty."

Angst was only specific to teenagers, I thought. But maybe I'm acting like a teenager -- again! I already forgot how it is to be mild-mannerd. Hmmmm... I guess I need to do more reflection, and talking to an objective reference.