06

01

Yesterday, I came across a blog that I’ve been following since before the pandemic. Those were the days when I felt so lost and confused about entering medical school while staying at my job. This blog, to be specific, is written by a medical student who shares her journey through med school. Her small wins and even her struggles. I read about how she felt discouraged during her clerkship, and I was tempted to reach out to her. But I hesitated, afraid it might feel awkward. I wanted to tell her that I’ve been following her journey since her second year. 

Sometimes, we don’t realize how we influence others, how we can inspire people, even through our own struggles. When I was reading her blog, it makes me wonder if there are people reading my blog too. There’s not much here, but I still want to share my own stories. Somehow, I hope somebody could find comfort in my own narratives too. 

02

Last month, I turned 27. It was a simple celebration just like these past few years. But one thing really made me feel special. I woke up to a birthday greeting from a friend I haven't spoken to in years. I have friends who even remembered my birthday despite not having any contacts or social media accounts.

The rain is heavy that day, all the plans I've been meaning to do has been cancelled. Last week, I had plans of celebrating my birthday visiting museums and coffee shops with my boyfriend. The plans were cancelled and we never saw each other. I became so frustrated that we even argued about it.  

The next day, I woke up to his message. 

He sent a photo around our streets and the next thing I knew, he rang the doorbell and surprised me with a bouquet of flowers, a gift set and my favorite buko pie from Laguna. We went on a date even if it's Sunday. 

I asked myself, how did I get so lucky? 

03

These past few days, coffee shops become my kind of therapy. I found myself visiting a lot of coffee shops more often. As for instance, I visited a cute coffee shop in Binondo called Gukeng cafe. They have a cute cat with a cute dress, it made me miss our cats, oreo and ginger. I enjoyed their strawberry chocolate latte.

It feels therapeutic to just go somewhere and leave the house for a moment. It feels comforting to go to a place where you're a stranger, nobody knows you  or what you're up to.  Some of my friends ask me if I don't feel weird being alone. If I don't get sad eating outside all by myself. But sometimes, aloneness doesn't always mean loneliness. Sometimes it could mean finding solitude within yourself. 

I just want to share an excerpt from the book I've been reading. It's called Love, Freedom and Aloneness by Osho; it says... 

"What is needed is that you become aware of your aloneness, which is a reality. And it is so beautiful to experience it, to feel it, because it is your freedom from the crowd, from the other. It is your freedom from the fear of being lonely."