Kids on vacation

5:30 AM, March 31, 2008

This morning I woke up to an “empty” house. The kids, all three of them, are in Mindoro and will be there for the next eight weeks or so. Adrian and Andrea are so used to it that as early as February, they have been nagging me to bring them to Lola Mommy, “now na!”. It is Patricia’s first time to be separated from us.

Yesterday, before my husband and I left them, Patricia would not break from me. I was carrying her and she held me so tight I almost brought her back to Bulacan. But my dad has waited long for Patricia to spend the summer with them and I had to give in – my father has to enjoy his grandchildren while he still has the strength to carry them, play with them, and spoil them with cake and ice cream. And so, while I know my husband and I will terribly miss the kids – especially our little Patricia – we left them to the care of my parents for the entire summer, confident that before school opens, they will weigh a few pounds more, have a tint of color to their cheeks, and give us endless tales about how they chased dragonflies, flew kites, and shooed carabaos.

That means our house will be free of toys and clutter for the next two months, I will hear no sumbongs in the afternoon that I get home (“Mama, si Kuya inaway na naman ako…”, “Mama, si Rea inubos yung paper mo…”, “Mama, si Ate hindi ako pinahiram ng crayons…”), my vocal chords will take a rest from all those yelling everytime they misbehave, less laundry in the weekend, less electric and water consumption, less expenses for the weekly grocery.

But then, that also means, for the next two months, no kisses before we leave for the office and in the afternoon when we get home, no race for Mama’s tight embrace, no love letters from Andrea posted on the ref, no flowers (taken from the neighbors’ garden) from Patricia everyday, no little hands wrapped around my neck in the mornings that I wake up, nobody to raise his/her hand whenever the favorite question of the day is asked(“Sino’ng pinaka-love ni Mama?”), nobody to make “kulit” if he can share the bed with us (“Tonight lang, Mama promise…”) , nobody to bring me the towel (and a glass of water, and the charger, and my bag downstairs…).

It’s going to be a very quiet two months without them. But the upside is my husband and I have our bedroom for ourselves for now and pretend that we are on honeymoon. Wink, wink.

Life in Law School

Four semesters in law school, and these are what I learned so far. No, this ain’t about the Constitution, nor any Code. This is about life in law school.

1. Law school indeed is a jealous mistress. It’s not going to allow you time for other personal pursuits. The last movie I saw on the big screen is LOTR. Honest.

2. You have to love reading to survive. Not reading the FHM/Cosmo type of magazines, but reading an all-text, 2-inch thick book 75% of the time. That would be apart from at least a foot tall of cases (xeroxed or printed-out) that you have to read for one semester.

3. You have to have a "kapal mukha", so makapal that I should be able to feel it here from where you are sitting now. Some professors do not mince words if you don’t get it right in the recit, which is conducted everyday.

4. A writing notebook is not just for pre-schoolers. Atty. Suarez hates it if you don’t "cross your t’s and dot your i’s" properly. "Preparation for the bar starts now!"

5. Don’t trust the professor who starts the semester by telling "I intend to pass everyone in this class." More than half the class will fail. Believe me.

6. Believe the professor who starts the semester by telling "I pass only two or three students. Last semester, only one passed." Double your prayers.

7. It pays to have friends in the upper class, or at least ahead of you in some subjects. You can always borrow their notes, books, and if you are lucky enough, their exam booklets and case digests. (Thank you, Hjoan!)

8. Lipstick and blush-ons have no use during exams. Trust me.

9. Eyebags are normal. You don’t have it, you ain’t in law school.

10. There will always be "terror" professors, but there are also "mabait na professor" who will not scare you to death. But trust me (again), you will thank and appreciate the "terror" ones  later.