Reunion Lessons

For many years, I have been praying to God for assistance. To always guide and guard me in everything I do. I thank Him in most of the things I have. I thanked him for all the graces, all the pains, sadness, joy, problems and all. There are times also that I ask God, “why is this happening?” in case some things are not acceptable to me.

Our batch reunion (11 July 2009) is an eye opener. I met most of my mates who I have not made contact with for over 20 years. The reunion day it self is full of laughter. We said hello’s, updated each other of our present lives, played games, ate and drunk merrily. Things seemed okay, not until days of talking and story telling or “gossiping” after our reunion. I found out how we are all the same, and how we are all so different from each other. No matter what status in life we are in now, we have our own problems. Most of the problems I heard are so common. He/She got married, he/she separated from partner, he/she is sill single, he/she wants to leave jobs and he/she needs a job. Different gravity of problems but still each has problems in lives. How we deal with our own problems depends on how strong or weak as a person we are. This made us all the same – we have our own problems.

Some of my past classmates are so rich. So rich that they can afford to travel anywhere they want, anytime they please. Some are so rich that one can afford to buy cars or build a multimillion house and live there only on weekends or stay there only for the holidays. Some can employ few helpers, gardeners, cooks to make life easier for them. Others live a middle class lifestyle. They work, they survive. They can afford to have the necessities in life. Can buy clothes and food they NEED. They are happy and saisfied. Some are so poor. Poor that they cannot find a job, do not have enough to even sustain them for the day/week. While few have houses, some don’t even have a roof of their own to keep them sheltered. They survive but with so much pain, so much problems, too much heaviness that I felt guilty. I felt guilty because I have enough and somehow still can complain, I sill can ask God, “why is this happening?”

I realized, there are really lots of things to thank God for. If we are to throw our problems away, we may end up picking up our very own problems if we found out what others have. The problems that are given to us depend on the capacity/ability we have to handle them. All problems have solution. Do not loose faith in God. He knows what he is doing. Be thankful all the time. The reunion also allowed me to think of other things. I remember what Fr. Louie Castaneda said in his homily during our Reunion Holy Mass. “You have to create a support system for each other”. Support for the ones who become so weak. Weak in every sense depending on what support we can give. If all my batch mates will focus on this message, I believe we can find solution to some, if not all, problems of each other.

I asked myself, ”my next project”? Communicate and find the possibility of creating that “support system”. Reunions are not there to gauge each others achievements. I felt reunions are held to help compliment each other. It is not enough to know which class (upper, mid or lower) you belong. Each needs a hand on anything. Be it spiritual, moral, etc. Being able to extend to others the needed support they deserve will make each reunion a more memorable, more productive one. One each will always look forward to the next time around.