I may seem naive but one thing I have learned the hard way is that I have to learn how to read people. In my profile I described myself as someone aspiring for Machiavellian intelligence. I know from experience that I can draw people in but I never forget that some people has their way of drawing me to them too. Rationality has yet again proven me right.
When I came into this world of politics, I have already accepted the fact that I will be up against schemes and machinations. It is just amusing sometimes that people tend to forget this about me. I listen and I listen well. When a person tells me something, I listen not only to the words but how he or she says it. While, I do need extra instructions when it comes to dealing with my own emotions, I am well versed to people's emotions. Empathy is a gift as it is a curse. Like, a battering ram that continuously challenges the integrity of my carefully built wall of rationality.
Playing dumb or naive is not easy. It takes a lot of practice. I get carried away sometimes but as soon as I stop and take myself away or distance myself from the situation, I see things differently then.
Recent things have been unfolding before my eyes and I have learned to go with the flow. I have discovered a lot really.
Lesson 1: I have so many things I need learn when it comes to leadership.
Lesson 2: I have to learn how to read things and people more quickly.
Lesson 3: I am too gutsy for my own good. I am a risk-taker and I do not get scared easily. So, I think I need to learn more prudence.
Lesson 4: I should learn to curb my enthusiasm.
Lesson 5: I am losing my sense of humor lately. I need to find something I can laugh about.
J'ai raison. Sont je non? (I am right am I not?)
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Last monday, I gave a message during our LGU's monthly convocation about seeing or appreciating Christmas like we have when we were kids. I started off with a greeting or shout-out for those whom we call, "malalamig ang pasko". Right now, I miss the pre-Christmas buzz of Metro Manila. As I close my eyes, I would try to remember the late afternoons and early evenings I would spend in a cafe just outside Shangri-la Mall while I wait for my shopping buddy/stylist Cheryl. I miss the gaiety of dressed up shop windows and the smell of new clothes. I miss having sunday lunches, afternoon coffees, and weekend dinners with all my friends. Alas, I miss my old life in the City. Still, I am finding the coolness of rural air, the solitude and simple luxuries I afford myself pretty charming too.
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I think the reason I have yet to acclimate myself with my life here is that I have yet to find the quantity of friends I used to enjoy while living in the City. I am wary of making friends while people are suspicious of the friendship I extend to them. They say it is not the quantity that counts but the quality when it comes to friends. I say you cannot judge the quality of your friends unless you have reached the critical mass which you can use for comparison.
So far, I am opening up myself to get to know more people and befriend them. It is not about substitution but rather making new friends is always a learning experience. I guess my reputation always precedes me when it comes to meeting people in my new hometown. Most people do not realize that the name Tintin is but a product of my political machinery. I am not my public persona. I carefully select the people I let in my circle because people should understand that I can trust them enough to know who I am in private.
I remember what my friend Fritz always says when we are together, "If your voters only know how crazy kalog you are..they might get the shock of their lives". This is the reason why it is important to have your real friends because you can be who you really are when you are with them. Facades and imaging are essentially part of everyone's life not because for purposes of deception or misdirection but rather for compartmentalization and maybe reservation of self and even one's sanity. N'est pas? There is no use of disagreeing with me parce j'ai toujours raison. Occupez-vous-en!
Joyeux Noël à vous tous! Merry xmas y'all!
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