A favor
By Jarmela J. Avelino
It all started at Instant Messenger. I was a fresh graduate and the newest member of the staff in our department. I learned to use Instant Messenger because we constantly use it at work. Vinz, an officemate and not yet a friend then, was in my I.M. buddies list. The first time I practiced IMing, he was the only “available” buddy. I practiced IM by sending him phrases like Hi there, hi gorgeous. I was only trying to be friendly but then he replied: Stop it or I’ll block you. I did not realize before that he was not exactly Mr. Nice Guy. I should have taken the hints. He rarely smiled and most of the time, he looked so serious. So I said Sorry. I was just practicing. He did not reply and I was embarrassed.
Days passed and I was supposed to make a report in spreadsheets. It happened again. He was the only one around and I badly needed help with a formula. At first, I was reluctant to ask him, but after various futile attempts to He looked disinterested but still he said OK. When he was done giving me some pointers, he went back to his desk and computer. There was something I wanted to clarify so I asked him again. With an irate tone he said, In-anilagi o. (This is how you do it). For the second time, I was embarrassed. Finally, it was Christmas season. It was not the most ingenious idea for a Christmas Party but we had to pick a contestant from our department for Mr. Gay. As expected, no one wanted to join, so the poor guys decided to pick a contestant by drawing lots. I was put in charge of preparing the names. When everyone was busy, Vinz quickly came up to me and with a worried look on his face, he asked me not to include him in the draw lots. I paused. For a second, I imagined him looking like a gay on a stage, and joining the contest. There will be videos and pictures of him wearing a dress. Then I thought he would be so mortified. He was not exactly Mr. Bubbly so I knew all too well that he will never think that wearing a dress, let alone on a company Christmas Party, will be fun. I gave in. I did not include his name in the list. Our department head’s name was picked. We were glad because though he was straight, he was the
most capable to pull it off.
Vinz became nicer to me after that day. Though I was not expecting it, eventually we became friends. He was not downright mean after all. Maybe we just started at the wrong foot, or maybe I simply earned his respect when I was still being nice to him by extending him a favor even if he was had been mean to me a couple of times; even now, he still appreciates the nice things I did for him when we were still friends. The following day after our Christmas Party, he told me he was looking for me after the party because he was going to give me a lift home. Later on, I discovered he had a great sense of humor. In fact, I got my sense of humor from him. I can be funny now. The rest is history. We are happily married now. Vinz is my best friend and he is incredibly the best husband and father to our child. I consider him as one of my greatest blessings. Life is quite surprising. I never expected that a favor I gave would change my life forever. Indeed, life is like a box of chocolate. You’ll never know what you’re going to get. I do hope that this season everyone will be a little more pleasant and compassionate to everyone even to those who are not very nice, not just because we expect something in return but simply because it is the spirit of Christmas.
