Thank You, 2023

First and foremost, thank you Lord for another year.

We can’t predict time what is going to happen. Incidents and illness are always a threat to all of us. Of course, no one wants to be in danger and the worst might be the end of life. There’s nothing we can do but pray and hope that nothing bad will happen to us. A new tomorrow is a blessing, how much more when a new year has yet to come? We could not ask for more but be thankful.

For me, the previous year was the busiest time in my whole life. I’m not sure if it’s because of adulthood or just long ago I was just immature. I started to have a stable lifestyle, like being with the woman I loved and began to build our both dreams. Who is ready to accept this kind of life status, especially a man when they only think of always having fun? Not in general but for some maybe and I’m one of those men.

Last year we planned our wedding so we doubled, no, tripled our ways to earn money. There’s no one we could rely on to earn. Our small store was the only source of our income. We must think of other ways to make sure the sale of our store would not slow down. We had a specific amount to be spent on our wedding after all. If we noticed our store had a slow performance we thought of other ways how not to stop the money we saved from working.

It was hard and sometimes very exhausting. I traveled once a week going to our hometown to be a vendor in order for me to sell street foods. We have a desired amount to reach so to rest last year was not an option. I sometimes blamed my poor status in life and regretted the life I chose. I should have boarded on the ship to earn bigger but no, I kept my mind to be positive. “You are just tired,” I told myself when that kind of thinking appeared. Then again when it was gone I continued doing those things because I realized, no matter how hard and pathetic I was in that state, I was happy. There was a sense of contentment inside despite hardships and shortcomings.

Our wedding finally happened and after I thought I could relax at last. I was just imagining it because it became harder facing the debts and trying to overcome the money in the store that was spent on our wedding. It was nothing to blame but it’s just stressful working hard. I decided not to give up because that’s what we agreed to be a legal couple in the eyes of God and society. I kept going because I believed rain would not keep pouring forever, time would come and it would stop.

After 3 months of working hard, the store was slowly going back the way it was, in fact I noticed it became bigger. We are seling dressed chicken, ice cream, school supplies and other goods that we didn’t sell before. However, it became tiring again because 1 and a half months ago my wife was hired as a teacher. Yes, you guessed it right, I was left alone handling the store for the whole day. Opened at 5 in the morning and closed at 10 in the evening. I just hired her younger brother to watch the store during noon because I wanted to rest even just for a short time.

Yeah, I could help myself but to be proud of what I had overcome. A whole year of stressful and working hard lifestyle. Of course I complained sometimes but it never came into my mind to give up. I was ready for it because I should since this kind of profession or maybe a life situation I chose.

Here I am, a new year of beginning and opportunities. I faced many battles already so no matter how this year hit me hard I will stand and rise again. But before anything else, Thank You, 2023.

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