It just came to mind that this year I celebrate my tenth year out of college.
My batchmates and I graduated from the College of Mass Communications and the University of the Philippines late in April in the Year of Our Lord 1997. Back then, we were fresh and full and ideals. Nowadays, we need refreshing and our ideals are sometimes foolish. But that's part of growing up.
Looking back, the past 10 years haven't been bad. While I haven't reached my goal of becoming a millionaire yet (and believe me, it's still a lots of zeroes to go before I hit the million mark) I have somehow managed, by sheer hard work and sheer luck, to attain my goal of becoming a manager (yes, I made this pact with myself a decade ago that I will become a manager someday). So, in terms of career, I'm quite on track.
But what's more fulfilling is the fact that I am now a husband and a father.
But there are still a lot to do and attain. There's still a lot of room for improvement and there are still many unfulfilled personal goals -- where's that book you've been planning of writing since college? Where's the dream house with the swimming pool and your extensive sci-fi and fantasy library? Where's the personal recording of all the songs you've ever composed?
Still a lot of items in the pipeline and a decade out of college haven't been enough time to do them all. But then again, it's only been a decade out of college and there's still a lot of time (a lifetime actually) to do them all.
In the meantime, I'll just contemplate that it's been ten years since college and yes, the reality that I'm getting old.
Here's a photo of me back in college (circa 1996), flanked by close friends, Pilar (left) and Elaine.
