sliding doors

background music : don't think twice, it's alright by bree sharp


today, seven years ago, i passed by the sliding doors of the ninoy aquino international airport and said goodbye to my life of 24 years. i was off to a great adventure, thousands of miles away.

i will always remember the frenzied last week before i left my beloved los banos. i barely slept. friends kept calling left and right. have a drink with us? coffee before you leave? can we say goodbye? i said a lot of goodbyes. 24 years, one has got to have a lot of people in one's life. my former students came calling. co-teachers, high school classmates,bandmates, girlfriends, college brothers and sisters. it was a happy kind of goodbye.

coming here via northwest airlines was a long trip. 19 hours. the first time i rode a plane, it was a mere 2 hours. i crossed many a sliding doors. i came in one, and went out of another. passport and visa stamped. welcome to the united states.

funny how i am still here 7 years later. i was supposed to just study here, go back home and continue teaching. but life took its turn and i am still here.

i almost gave up on finding friends here. i spent most of my weekends on the phone chatting with friends back in los banos or manila. my first winter was quite an experience. it can really take a toll on a homesick mountain girl. christmas is so different here, but every year it gets less and less lonely.

fast forward to seven years later, i look back at my old self, smirk and keep walking.
no regrets. there are many more sliding doors to pass through.