A Loving Power

Sometimes the course of our life just takes a sudden, unlikely turn. It can seem to us like punishment, or a stroke of bad luck. Yet, at times, a gloomy surprise can also turn out to be a real advantage

I had an unfortunate experience in the middle part of last year, when my lifetime savings were rendered inaccessible as my bank closed down. Fortunately, at the time I was awaiting some money – a post-dated cheque was getting due, my compensation from a non-government organization that contracted me to do their advocacy film. I was keeping the cheque for three months already; the client begged for time to source the funds from donors

The day at the mall that I promised my little nephews and nieces as my treat to them was only a few days away. For the kids those were a few days that seemed like a very long wait, in which they were left with no other choice but to endure. And as if to add to their agonizing anticipation, as the big day drew very close, it came out that they might just have to wait longer still.

When the day to cash the cheque finally came, I was all dressed up at 5 a.m., ready to go to the bank. That might look rather too early, but not for me who had been awake the whole night. Breakfast was the last thing I could think of; my anxious mind was preoccupied in taking note of the very slow movement of the clock.

My excruciating clock-watching was interrupted shortly by school kids who, on their way to school, passed by my place to sell me raffle tickets. They were raising funds for their school's "clean and green" project. A five-peso ticket would entitle the holder to a chance to win a cash prize.

There were coins in my pocket, apparently more than enough for the jeepney fare to the bank. I picked three five-peso coins and gave it to the kids. They were jumping with joy as they left. And I was thinking: If only the kids came after I would have returned from the bank, I would probably have bought a whole stub of 50 or so tickets.   

I was already on the jeepney, on my way to cash the cheque, when my phone rang. It was the managing director of my NGO client. Their funds were still short to cover the amount of the cheque - if I could "wait for a little more time."

Goodness, gracious! - Well, okay, I could wait, of course. I would. Did I have a choice?

As there was no more point in proceeding, I got off the jeepney and took another one back home. I must have looked really miserable that a neighbor asked what had happened. I felt tired, deeply tired, way beyond the physical sense.

Just as soon as I could take off my shoes, I settled myself in bed. Drowsily, I checked my wallet; the lone one-thousand-peso bill looked forlorn, although the five or seven pieces more of hundred-peso bills made the paltry bunch look plenty. I searched my pockets, as well. Sixty-three pesos worth of coins, and three raffle tickets.

It was scary to realize that I had less than two-thousand pesos to contend with for an uncertain period of time. It was not certain how much time it would take for my bank savings to be cleared for withdrawal, or how long would I have to wait until my NGO client had the funds for their cheque. My mind grew numb and I soon dozed off.

The banging of the door woke me up. I had inadvertently kept the door open since that morning and the strong night winds were blowing it to and fro. It was already close to midnight. Which means I had been asleep for most of the day.

The neighborhood was alarmingly quiet. This was an area where, ordinarily, people roamed around at any time of the day and night. But that night nobody could be seen outside.

To my big shock, I noticed indications that my rented place had been broken into. Well, actually, the burglar didn't really break into the house; the door was open. And probably, finding the lone house resident asleep like a log, the fellow had an equally easy time taking whatever he liked.

My wallet, which was placed on the small table near the bed, was gone, including all the coins beside it. And the mobile phone, and the wrist watch, and the headphones, and the rubber shoes, and so on. The cheque, however, was not taken; the envelope containing it was still there on the table.

While frantically checking what else was missing, it occurred to me: Had I been able to successfully cash the cheque that day, I would have lost all that money too. Given my sad experience with the banking system at the time, I would have preferred to just keep the money at home. And the loss would have caused me to go nuts, or, at least, go berserk. Curiously, I remained composed, my mind still numb to take in anything seriously.

I locked the door securely and went back to sleep. And it was still a very sound sleep; I woke up late the following morning very well rested and fresh. I never told anyone about the burglary. I didn't need the added stress from the embarrassment.

As I was checking around whether my unknown night visitor had left me anything to make for breakfast, the kids who sold me those raffle tickets the day before came back. They tried to tell me something, but they were just so excited and talking simultaneously that it took a while for me to get the gist of their story. One of my tickets won second prize - twelve-thousand pesos cash!

Now, isn't that strange?

It remains a wonder to me how things happened in the exact sequence they did at the time. I don't try anymore to figure it out. What's important is that I was able to keep my promise to my little nephews and nieces... that a loving Power was watching over me then, as always.

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