when help is gone

too dramatic a title. caught your attention? hehe

yesterday, a trusted household help of 10 years bid adieu. i thought she was leaving by saturday. i thought i would still have the chance to treat her and the rest of the help to simple dinner somewhere as despedida. so i felt bad when she said her goodbye.

i wanted to 'honor' her stay with us, with me. but the chance is gone. and that put me in a gloomy mood yesterday.

i have always held household help, particularly the domestic helpers, in high regard. i could never refer to them as 'katulong'. something stirs in me that make me hesitate to call them as katulong. i refer to them as 'katiwala', which really shows the kind of trust i bestow on them as part of the household.

in a brood of six, i didnt have the luxury of a personal nanny. but we always had help who assisted mother take care of us. and i was always the one closest to them. i'd bring them komiks i bought along the way from school. i'd share stories with them. and hear them out about their lives, their loves. i treated them as friends.

as i started working and the idea of managing other people became more concrete, my relations with the help evolved. i still hold them very dear though definitely, they recognize the employer-employee relationship and respect that.

they are the first to see my moods, especially if they keep on repeating certain mistakes or didnt get the instructions right. but when that mood passes, it is back to being friendly and open. i even share pics of guys i date with them, and they'd swoon over one or the other.

i love them as family. and because of that, it still pains me when one has to leave and resign. yes, an attachment forms because they are truly nice, sweet, caring people who take care of me, my parents, my family.

i wasnt able to throw that despedida dinner for her, for carina. however, with this humble post, i honor you for your loyalty, your care, your passion in your work.