It is a new place. Legaspi City–a city right-smack in the heart of Bicolandia welcomed me several days ago with the Mayon Volcano as a backdrop. As I drove nearer the city, after a lengthy 9-hour journey, the Mayon Volcano unfurled the clouds covering its face to take a peek at me. The streets where I drove had never been so free of automobile clutter and nauseating gas emissions. As I drove through, giant trees, giving a great breath of fresh air, formed a promenade, stood at attention, and welcomed me with great respect.
There are new faces. I met several people, colleagues in the sales industry, proffesionals, businesspersons, visages of success and aggressive dreams.
This is a new life. Since I arrived, I have felt independent. Noone is here to look after me but myself. My family is many kilometers away from me. My friends are a plane away. It will be my call now.
Nevertheless, despite the warm welcome of the Mayon, the acquaintances I met, and the independence that beckoned me, a troubling feeling inside makes me asks: Are these new things worth leaving the old: Manila, my family, my comfort and security–the old things I had.
New things bring old problems after all.
