I Didn’t Know I Was Being Spared

Last July 2019, I was in BGC.

Sachi, my cousin wasn't even born yet, and I was already there.

Funny how I felt suffocated back then. I had just graduated from GTC Global Training and was so used to being around people, only to end up in a condo with my aunt and her husband, who were away at work most of the day.

Long story short, I was sent home in October 2019. When I got back, I started working at a feed store. Life went on, and then COVID-19 happened.

I was spared.

Honestly, it felt like a narrow escape. I can't imagine being stuck indoors during that season, especially with how weak my immune system has always been. Last year, my aunt told me they all got COVID and experienced symptoms. That made the escape feel even narrower in hindsight.

(During my Sunday afternoon stroll in BGC after church.)

Now I'm in my 30s, and I'm back in the city. Makati.

It’s funny looking back at how much has changed. The house is bigger. Sachi is old enough for real conversations. And I’m no longer the stuck-up, know-it-all, dogmatic religious person I used to be, I’m less difficult now (I believe).

When I read the news about hog raisers struggling with business transactions and the government leaning toward importing almost everything, I realize I was spared from a financial situation that could have been far worse than I imagined.

Even Brenda, one of my sows, failed to get pregnant despite being inseminated twice. At the time, it was disappointing. Looking back, maybe it wasn’t. She had already given birth six times, so selling her wasn’t really a loss. And with piglet prices so low now because many backyard fatteners are discouraged, another litter might not have made much difference anyway.

The toil. The stress. I was already in bad shape last year. If I had stayed, I don’t think I’d be functioning as well as I am now.

Those were seasons when I truly thought life was moving in the wrong direction.

AS WE KNOW NOW, IT WASN’T.

A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.

-Proverbs 16:9

Photos are mine.

Thank you for reading this far.
I stopped posting the life system analysis. Haha It's TMI anyway.