Comfort room

The first time my brother Noel went to the States more than 20 years ago, he found himself in a minor quandary: he didn’t know how to find the bathroom. He asked an American in the airport, "Excuse me, sir, where’s the CR?"

The American looked at him, perplexed. "The CR?!?" he asked "What’s a CR??"

My brother was taken aback. He thought to himself, "How can this guy possibly not know where the banyo is?" Aloud, he said, "The CR! You know… the comfort room!

The American frowned even more and shook his head, bewildered and confused. "What the heck is a comfort room?"

My brother was desperate – he really had to go – so he said, "You know, er, where you relieve yourself!"

The look on the man’s face changed from impatience to pity upon realizing what my brother was asking all along. "Oh, you mean the restroom! Down the hall turn left."

My brother learned that "comfort room" is not a universal term after all! When he told us this story a few years ago, we all cracked up. It was quite an eye-opener for all of us. I always thought "comfort room" and "CR" were terms used by everybody. The rest of the world it seems has different terms for it: toilet, lavatory, washroom, bathroom, restroom, powder room, little boy’s room, men’s and ladies’ room, "the john," "the can."

I’m sure there’s a lot more out there. The irony of it all is that most of the names used for this room don’t really accurately describe the room itself – or what normally goes on in it. Most people don’t really "rest" in toilets. They may smoke, but that’s it. "Bathroom"? That term is only half accurate. In fact, sometimes, there’s not even a bath in the room – it’s just a toilet bowl. "Lavatory"? I suppose this is derived from the Spanish word for "wash." Just like "bathroom," "washroom" is only half accurate. Personally, I think the term "relief room" would be a more accurate name for it. But then again, it sounds like a room for typhoon victims.

Which brings me back to comfort room. How did we ever come up with this term? After doing your business there, comfort is hardly the pervading feeling. Relief, release, liberation – yes. Comfort is when you get upgraded to the first class section of a plane.

Let’s face it, we Pinoys are a "comfortable" lot. We feel comfortable doing acts that others consider embarrassing, like taking a leak in public. Frankly, I pity every wall, tree, and jeepney tire in the Philippines. A lot of men are also comfortable walking around without a shirt on. Now, if their bodies were like MiG Ayesa’s, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad – we’d have a country full of happy women.

There are also a lot of people in our streets that are comfortable with the whole of idea of begging – so that’s what they do. They beg all their lives in order to be able to sustain themselves and continue living – so that they can continue begging even more. Now I know that most of these people are victims of poverty, but I also know of a lot of poor people who worked hard and got themselves out of the rut they were in. So being poor is no excuse to beg. Michael Jordan once said that if someone can say, "Can you spare me some change, Mister?" that person can also say, "Welcome to McDonald’s!"

When people reach their comfort zone, they effectively reach the limit of their competence. At work, it means they can do their work with their eyes closed – and they would be happy doing the same thing for the rest of their lives. It’s when you stay in your comfort zone that you start to decline and deteriorate, and stop growing.

To a certain extent, I am glad that in our current economic situation, we are all not comfortable. The moment we sit back and become comfortable with our situation, we start moving backward.

So beware of hitting your comfort zone. Don’t look for comfort all the time. Rest if you must – but never stop. There’s always room for growth.

And to me, that’s a comforting thought.

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Thanks for your letters! You may e-mail me at rodnepo@yahoo.com.