A letter from Oct 13, 2022

Dear 2026 Mich, Oi *****! Buhay ka pa rin! Akalain mo nga naman. 2022 Mich here. Musta sis? Naalala mo ba kung kailan ka huling nagsulat ng FutureMe? 2016 yun bes, addressed to 2020 Mich. It was a dark time. Nasa Rex ka pa nun. You just bounced back from TB. You were in the midst of moving on from Jay. He got married that June, and you got over it because you needed to, because you didn't wanna get stuck there. Tapos nagstart kang mag-CTP. As of 2022, kumpleto mo na ang units mo para mag-LET. Gaga ka lang eh, di ka pa nag-LET noong 2019 kasi naduwag ka. Since that FutureMe letter in 2016, you've traveled, made friends, lost friends, got depressed, went to therapy, attended concerts, got a new job, moved to a new city, lived in a condo, lived with relatives, then moved back home.... Halos ibang tao ka na by the end. And now, you've received your second FutureMe letter. From me, 2022 Mich! But before the kumustahan, let me give you a walkthrough of my life right now (I know alam mo naman ito, but I'm reminding you of where I am at). Today is October 13, 2022, 12:18AM. A rerun of Brooklyn 99 is playing in the background. Pang-white noi(c)e lang. I am currently eating a pancake and two pan de sals with cheese for midnight snack. Was supposed to edit a few snippets tonight but decided to write this letter instead. So nasan na ba ako? Eto, the entire world stood still for almost two years. And now, it has been recovering from the pandemic. Currently 1 1/2 years na ako sa Expertise (and counting). So far, masaya ako dito. I barely work 8 hours a day, and yet full pa rin ang sweldo ko. Sobrang flexi, at nama-maximize ko ang skills ko. I've led a team for the first time, something I didn't know I could do. Pwede pa akong maglakwatsa anytime I want. I feel at home here. Sa totoo lang, kung hindi lang ito freelance, baka dito na ako magstay forevs. Kaso temporary lang ito eh. (Ewan ko lang kung nandito ka pa rin sa 2026, pero di naman masama kung oo). Oh, and you're paying off kuya's credit card debts. As of 2022, you're bitter about that. Sana naman by 2026 tapos na yun no? Kasi balak kong mag-driving lessons na at bumili ng mumurahing kotse after kong magbayad ng CC. Natupad ba 'tong plano ko? Speaking of kuya, nasa Bacolod siya ngayon, living in with Joyce. Kaka-1st year anniv lang nila. Sila pa ba ngayon? O kasal na sila? Kumusta na? Did they even end up together? Si mama, okay pa ba? Okay naman siya ngayon, tahimik lang ang buhay dito sa Sto Tomas. Si papa? A few months ago, isinugod namin siya sa ospital. Hindi kasi stable kondisyon niya noon. Pero ngayon, okay na siya. Kailangan lang talagang mag-stick sa maintenance. Oh, and nakapila rin siya for angioplasty. Natuloy na ba yun? Ano na nangyari? Dahil work from home ako, wala akong masyadong ganap ngayong 2022. Nandito lang ako sa Sto Tomas. From time to time, lumuluwas ako sa Manila to meet people, pero hindi naman ito madalas, at hindi rin ako nagpapagabi. Chill lang dito habang pandemic, pero ayoko naman sanang dito na lang ako habambuhay. May nagbago ba? Ikaw ba, nasaan ka na ngayon? You know, I used to envision myself landing a lucrative job in Manila, then I would have to move back there again. Gusto ko rin sanang magrent ng condo kahit studio, para naman hindi na ako nakikitira kina Tita Sally (kahit welcome naman ako doon). Natupad ba ito? (Don't feel bad kung hindi. Remember, OKAY KA kahit nasaan ka. Life is not a race.) And now, for the roll call... Si Vince, nasa UST nagtuturo. Nagp-PHD rin siya. Nakatapos na ba siya? I don't think he's planning on switching careers, so I hope mataas na ang position niya sa uste. Or at least he's still enjoying teaching. Si Roe, ikakasal na kay Yeyen sa January. (Haha I remember last FutureMe letter na si Carmen pa at Earl. Lol, none of these couples worked out). He's settling down in Mindoro na rin. Nandun na ba sila? May anak na ba sila? Si Leah at RD, kumusta? Si Leah, workmates with AJ, Angel, and Denver. Haha, nandun pa ba silang lahat? Nasa Marikina/Nova pa ba yung mag-asawa? Kumusta si Haru? Si Angel, nasa Inno kasabay ng coffee shop business sa Antipolo. Musta siya? Si Michael, nasa Rex pa. Siya na lang one of the few orig people in there. Nandoon pa ba siya? Sila pa ba ni Liz? O kasal na sila? Si Judy, nasa Central. She seems okay, may lovelife daw siya according to our last usap. Nasan na siya ngayon? Si Dan, nasa Emerson. He's been thriving so well in his career. Kaso her mom passed last year. I hope he's doing okay in 2026. Si Emman, nasa Abiva pa. Nag-eenjoy naman siya dun. Single rin siya ngayon pero searching. May jowa na ba siya sa 2026? (May Avril concert pala kami sa November! Naaalala mo ba yun?) Si AJ, ayun may jowa, si Dale. They live together sa Laguna. Kinasal na ba sila? Nasaan na sila ngayon? Si Millie, I forgot the name of the company, pero nag-eedit pa rin siya doon. Chill lang naman siya. She's been traveling with her fambam kung saan saang panig ng mundo. Kaingget much lol. Chill pa rin ba siya ngayon? Si Coco, as far as I know wala siyang work ngayon, pero thriving yung business niya na arts and crafts (umorder ako dun minsan ng baybayin necklace, ang cute). Musta na siya? Si Chi, nasa Korea ngayon for studies, pero pabalik na rin. Magkikita-kits kami nina Ate K at (hopefully) Coco para sa Westlife concert sa Feb (naaalala mo yorn?). Can't wait! Si Ate K, nasa Coca-Cola, project officer. She seems happy. Travel din siya ng travel for work. Sana nasa magandang work pa rin siya sa 2026! Si Twinnie, ayun kakaresign lang. Balita ko may bagong work siya agad. I'm hoping magkita kami soon para magcatch up. Asan na siya ngayon? Si Raph, honestly di ko alam... I don't keep tabs on him. Minessage ko siya last summer para magsorry. Naalala mo ba to, I was planning to message all of them para magsorry. Pero as of this writing, si Michael at Judy lang ang nakausap ko. Nagpahapyaw na sorry ako kay Raph pero di ko na naituloy yung mahabang message ko, kasi sabi niya wala na raw yun. Everything was forgiven. But somehow I still want to go through with my apology. Ano na nangyari? O may nangyari ba? Si Buchi, nakausap mo ba ever? Hindi ko na siya nakausap since that dreadful day I texted him that long. ***. text. when we last fought. I haven't talked to him in four years. May nagbago ba ngayong 2026? Alam mo Future Mich, hindi na ako nakawala sa alaalang to. Mahal ko pa rin si Buchi, pero at the same time, kinakain ako ng guilt sa ginawa ko sa kanya. Dito na ako nakakulong. I can't even bring myself to date anyone else. Sa kanya pa rin ang puso ko. Naalala mo ba noong 2019/2020, andun na si David, who's like this almost perfect guy. All I needed to do was to fall back in love... but no. Si Buchi pa rin. Siya lang talaga laman ng puso ko, hanggang ngayon. You know the worst part? Na kahit ganito ko siya kamahal, he's the last person I want to see. This aversion is not stemming out of hate, but of guilt. That's how ashamed I am. Ikaw ba, Future Mich? Were you able to somehow escape from this nonsense hullabaloo? Nagkaroon na ba kayo ng chance na, at least mag-usap man lang? Naibalik ba yung samahan nyo? O baka naman may bago ka na? (I doubt that though haha sorry! Hindi naman dahil sa mababa ang self-esteem ko, pero dahil sa ngayon, I have not the tiniest ounce of will, energy, or passion to date.) But you know, that's not my only major heartbreak this year. Kung maaalala mo, ito yung taon ng Pink Movement. Buong puso ko (natin), inialay natin para sa kumakawatan sa pag-asa--kay Leni Robredo at sa mga kakampi niya. Pumunta pa ako noon sa Pasig rally at dumaan saglit sa Makati grand rally. Sobrang fierce ng political climate ng 2022. Pero nabigo tayo noong nanalo yung magnanakaw. Alam mo Future Mich, Oktubre na ngayon, pero umiiyak pa rin ako kapag naririnig ko yung Rosas ni Nica Galang. Ang sakit palang magmalasakit sa bayan para sa wala. Ang lungkot ngayon. Tarantadong gobyerno, puro na lang confidential funds. Poor pandemic and disaster response. De Lima being silenced, Ka Percy Lapid getting ******, Maria Ressa getting persecuted with cases... nasa 59 pesos ngayon ang dolyar, at pataas pa. Marami pa sigurong mangyayari, ano? Dark times are ahead... Kumusta ba dyan? Is the Philippines somehow worse in 2026? (Sorry kung oo.) Ilan lang yan sa mga tanong at chika ko sayo. Pero ultimately, masaya ako dahil buhay ka pa. Lumalaban kahit hindi halata. Sana malaman mong okay ka pa rin kahit saan ka nagwowork, kahit san ka nakatira, kahit anong itsura mo, o kahit gaano ka tumaba o tumanda. Fancy title or no fancy title, large income or no large income, boyfriend or no boyfriend... Walang meaning lahat yan, ang importante may saya at peace of mind ka pa rin sa puso. Congrats for continuing to exist, 2026 Mich. Sulat ka ulit sa sarili mo para naman sa 2030. Malay mo nanalo ka na sa Lotto nun. Charot. With much (self-)love, 2022 Mich