August 3

is Russ' birthday. it is also cherry lou's. and two days from now, my brother will be celebrating his birthday. in a week or two, thea will also celebrate hers.

four people. four people i like. four people whose lives touch mine.

anyone taking the time to ask more about these persons and their relationship with me would quickly come to uncover telling bits and pieces of my personal history.

one, they would know that i'm not an only child. i have a sibling. he is older than me.

second, cherry lou is a nurse who finished her undergraduate degree from a respected institution in cebu. i am a BA Public Administration baccalaureate degree holder from UP Diliman and i hail from ozamiz. thus, the connection? cherry lou and i both run in the same tight-knit, exclusive (hehe) high school clique who call themselves SJ...which embarrassingly stands for Space Jammers! lol

and russ and thea? law school groupmates during my all-too brief stint in law school. i have fond memories of them two.

i remember, orientation day, some of us freshies were milling about and we were told to queue according to our block letter. i lined up for block b, and thea was standing behind me. i think i was the one who spoke first, asking her about something, and...i don't exactly remember what happened next. we might have sat together for the orientation, i think. haay, i am waxing nostalgic. we had lots in common together. she was one of those pretty, unassuming, and cheerful types, and i remember i always found her perkiness contagious. =)

now russ...russ is nakaka-impress. i remember mae said that she often spoke of russ to her mom kasi natutuwa raw siya...cause russ was (and still is) very hardworking. really. incredibly so. we would gape in wonder at him, wondering how in the world he manages to hold several jobs or so and balance it with law school - and take note - he wasn't in night class...he was also a full-time, day student in law school. that was no easy feat. one time, we even formulated a verb for that. nagru-russ - that's what we called it pag naghahandle ng iilang jobs along with daytime law schooling...=)

two years from now, both of them will be graduating already. and i'd be so proud and happy for them, as i already am right now.

but i have to admit, sometimes, i wonder, what if i had not left law school? will i ever go back?

gilmore girls had this very touching episode where rory graduates from chilton...and before they left the premises, her mother lorelai drags her to the lobby of the austere hall where rory finished high school, and lorelai insists on leaving their mark by engraving their initials on the marbled floors or walls or pillars, whichever spot appeals...a statement declaring their passing - we were here!

(kind of like when i graduated from high school...seeing as it was the last last day of school, my male classmates decided to commemorate it by entering and peeing in the girls' CR. yeah, kind of stupid and nonsensical but hey, high school!)

anyway, since every stone and mortar in that chilton edifice were supposedly sacred and touched by the great, rory and lorelai reluctantly aborted their mission but as rory was turning to go, lorelai held her back and when she turned in askance, lorelai said to her, 'look around...do you notice it?'

'notice what?' rory asked.

'it's not as scary anymore,' lorelai answered.

rory took a moment to look around at the wide, airy and imposing hall that terrified her the first day and then she smiled and agreed, 'yeah, it's not that scary anymore.'

and i wonder, if the future could also possibly hold the same scene for me...where i might find myself in the law school that changed my life, stand in its lobby, and notice...it's not scary anymore...

but as being human goes, futures are covered by veils too thick for reliable forecast...maybe some deus ex machina...maybe some deus ex machina...=)

in the meantime, happy birthday noy, cherry lou, russ and thea...a candle of thanksgiving each to you. =)