173/365 - Farewell, 2013

Miniature effect shot of our Christmas Tree at home.

2014 is almost upon us here in the Philippines. 2013 has less than four hours left. Before we finish this year, I'd just like to reflect one last time on what an amazing and life-changing year this has been.

The minute I turned thirty-three, a lot of major events happened.

• We put our pet dog, Rebus, to sleep the day after my birthday. It was the first time in a long time that I bawled non-stop. The last time I started crying like that was when Lola Berting was spending her last hours with us in 2006.
• I resigned from work without a back-up plan. This was caused by massive burnout on my part. I'm taking part of the blame because I was not prepared, nor strong enough, to handle the pressures I was getting. I'm not letting my previous employer off the hook, though, because I had already discussed my issues with my superior and they were unable to help me out. To be honest, telling an employee to tough it out is not a very good way of taking care of your people.
• I became more aware of my negativity and shortcomings. This came hand-in-hand with my resignation. I suddenly realized that there are a lot of things I have to change in myself, soon. And up to now I am continuing this never-ending goal of mine to improve myself.
• I had no job for two months. This is what happens when I bank on two opportunities that don't end up working. That's all I will say about that. The good thing is I managed to spend a lot of time with my daughter. While I can't say I made up for lost time, I can say that our relationship has improved a lot.
• I found a new career opportunity, one that requires a lot of sacrifices but one that could have excellent rewards in the future. And I can't be any happier. I'm learning new things, and I'm doing something related to one of my interests - cars.
• We spent Christmas in Japan. My mom treated Maica, Martina, and I to a trip to Japan. And we all had a great time with my folks.

I will miss 2013. Because I grew up a lot during this year. I have no idea why it had to happen now, or why it happened so late in my current life, but I am very, very glad and thankful that it happened.

I will still revert once in a while to my old self, but thanks to better self-awareness I am now more conscious to make sure that whatever happens I will always look for the brighter side of things.

Out.