“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” – Confucius
AT SOME point, I wished that this vacation would never end. But still, I’m grateful that I’ve enjoyed every single minute of it. I attended parties, visited long lost friends, even spent my time driving around the province for some sort of adventure.
My grandmother often forced me to help in our store because she noticed that I was becoming a bum. To make up for my mistakes, I worked everyday as a cashier. It was while I worked that I met the nephew of the owner of the store beside ours. He is about my age and like me, he doesn’t wear the usual palengke attire. We usually wore pants and top-of-the-line shirts but worked like the others in the market. We became friends and when there were no customers, he would sneak into our store for a short talk.
He told me a lot of interesting stories about his life. Though he owns expensive clothes and a nice car, to my surprise, he wasn’t studying. At first, I didn’t take him seriously. I thought he was like the other teenagers who opted to stay out of school.
I once told him that I wish I could stop studying and just pursue my dreams and earn a lot of money. He disagreed with the idea even when I mentioned people I know who didn’t finish school but ended up successful.
One time, he asked me to go with him to his car because he wanted to show me something. Without a second thought, I followed him to his car and sat in the back. He opened the compartment and took out a huge file-holder. He handed it to me and when I opened it, I saw an amazing collection of sketches and drawings in different mediums—all of them depicting his life.
All the characters in his artwork gazed upward, as if praising God. Some of the works revealed his own state of mind just like an image of a depressed boy, crying helplessly while covered with blood.
His parents died in an accident and a relative promised to support his education. After graduating with honors in high school, he never got the chance to enter college. He passed the entrance test in a state college but his relative didn’t want him to study far from the province. He would have been a fine arts iskolar ng bayan.
But unlike others, he doesn’t blame God for his misfortunes. He is satisfied with what he has right now—good clothes from his cousins abroad, and a car left by his deceased parents.
But still, he hopes to study just like me. For almost three years, he has wished that his vacation would end. His wish made me thank God that mine would be almost over.
Prayer: God Almighty, thank you for lighting up our lives by giving us our mentors. May you help them achieve the happiness that they deserve. May you bless us all, and help us become successful individuals. Please help us realize the importance of wisdom and help us to apply this gift for the benefit of the good. Amen.
