Due to some technicalities in the visa that I will use, I got delayed in leaving the Philippines. Now, I have to wait until everything is settled. For the mean time, I have to gather all the necessary legal documents that I need. It is a good thing that I have already resigned from my job. It provided me with a lot of time to process all the documents that I need. For aspiring OFWs, here is the procedure for the authentication of your school records. This requirement will greatly eat a lot of your time.
1. Photocopy your Transcript of Records, Certificate of Graduation, and Diploma.
2. Go to your school and request for the authentication of these documents. For my alma mater, the processing time is two weeks. This has raised my blood! For a simple authentication, you have to wait for two weeks for the release.
3. The authenticated documents will be brought to the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). The processing time is one week.
4. From CHED, bring the documents to the Office of the President in Malacanang. The processing time is one day. Yes, you need to go back the next day to get your documents.
5. From Malacanang, bring the documents to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Processing time is another one week.
They allow a representative to process your documents but be ready for authorization letters and power-of-attorney.
The Test of Waiting:
"When Abram was seventy-five years old, he started out from Haran, as the Lord had told him to do; and Lot went with him." (Genesis 12:4) TEV
"Abraham was a hundred years old when Isaac was born." (Genesis 21:5) TEV
I have read and heard several times about the topic on comfort zones. It is said that once we became too comfortable in our comfort zones, we become so uninterested in finding ways to grow and expand our horizons. Being too at ease in our comfort zones makes us become too stagnant on where we are. That if we do not let ourselves be challenged, sooner or later we will have the great chance to feel the emptiness in living the comfortable life.
Just recently, my sister and I have taken the big step to get out of our respective comfort zones. My sister has resigned from her eight hours office work in the Makati City hall in order to face her original passion. She is now a full time grade school teacher in a private school that is located some blocks away from our house. It was a win-win decision. She will no longer experience the daily traffic from Cavite to Makati. She can go home during noon time not only to have her lunch but to see her kids as well. The salary is not so competitive but I always believe that teaching is a rewarding career. Good for her.
About my decision? I too have quit from the job that I had been doing in the last seven years. I just simply want to face a new environment, a new company, a new job, and a new life as well. Traveling and living somewhere is my passion. No regrets.
After a week of send-off dinners, I am still here in PH. My second week of bumming has given me the chance to accomplish my checklist before I finally leave. Another chance too in mending some broken friendships and relationships. The Lord has been so good that He provides ways to let me settle and heal everything around me before I journey to another chapter of my life.
Anyway, my real topic in this post are the items that I have written in my checklist. These are the following:
I got home around half-past midnight. I came from another despedida dinner which is supposedly the last before I leave this country. Fortunately, my visa was not release this week so I got another week to enjoy a life being a bum. Though I am pretty sure that the next few days will still be not so relax as I need to finish some paper works, errands, packing and cleaning.
The past days have been so filled with different send-off dinners. I had been going out almost every night with different sets of friends. And I just realized how blessed I am to have these good people around me.
It is now 2:41 AM and I admit that I am not yet sleepy. Most probably due to the coffee that I took earlier. Nope, perhaps due to some good and not so good conversations earlier. Thanks anyway.
I know that I am still in denial that I will be leaving soon. It has not sink-in yet. Not yet.
