With teary eyes, I begin to type in my laptop and try to organize my thoughts on how to come up with a hearty article for a dear woman as I pray that I will never experience such kind of sacrifices in my work in the coming days.
For 25 long years, superiors came and left, job order staff came and left too as they found more stable jobs and this woman was always left behind. She entered the National Nutrition Council in 1991 when NNC-CAR just started.
She said that function involving voluminous multi-tasks including doing tasks not of her craft but at the end of the day, she can always say, “Thanks God, I was able to make it right, is very challenging and this motivated her to stay at NNC for many years. “Ayokong masira ang boss ko at ang aking office dahil sa hindi ko nagawa ang aking trabaho kaya hindi ako nagbibilang ng oras, ang importante matapos ang aking dapat tapusin at mahihigitan ko pa ang expectations nila sa akin” she said as I noted her many hours of overtime work.
I asked what sacrifices she had to do and her answer broke my heart. “When my husband died and I went on leave for only a week and have to report for work immediately because no one will man the office, the OIC and driver are busy with MELLPI. Working with a bleeding heart is not that easy.”, she said. She also added, “There were times I failed to attend school activities and graduations of my children. There were also times when I was not able to accompany my children when they got sick, instead endorse them to a neighbor. All of these are due to call of duty.” She also said that many time she did not attend family reunions because of her work.
The story of her sacrifices hit me but suddenly, I felt so lucky for in my school days when I got sick, I was never endorsed by our mother to a neighbor but her tender care always makes me well. In my stand as a staff who is just a three years old in the agency, I thought that I have sacrificed a lot, I complain, I compare, I demand. But who am I to feel this way if I am to compare these little things to the sacrifices of this womanThe woman I am referring to is no other than Ms. Rosalia Federico Pablo, the Administrative Aide VI of NNC-CAR . She was given a service award for 25 years of continuous and dedicated service by the National Nutrition Council during the NNC’s 2016 Year-end General Assembly last December 20 at the NNC Lobby, Taguig City. We fondly call her auntie in the office for we all consider her as our second mother for she always displays warm friendship and caring ways to all.
She said that she has no regrets and does harbor any bad feelings about the sacrifices she had to do because she feels that God has been so kind to her and her family with good health and many blessings. She is also thankful for being part of NNC saying that NNC takes care of its people. She said NNC provided her training for her professional growth and made her capable and confident in all aspects of her work
Her message for all NNC staff is for us to be patient, to love our work, to love our office, to love our superior and co-workers because they are our second family. The spirit of love suddenly then put my broken heart into whole again as I realized that Panagbenga month is fast approaching, the season for the flowers to bloom, the month of hearts. Therefore, let us then spread love for it is the real essence of the coming valentines. NEP/RDP
