Forgotten Love Note

One uneventful evening, I was preparing to go to bed when I saw an old wallet just waiting to be opened. Curious as to its contents, I opened it and was glad to see that it contained some precious mementos from my trips abroad (a pass from the Louvre, tickets to the London U and Glasgow bus, ticket to Eiffel, etc.) and pictures from my high school, college and law school days (wallet size pics taken in cheesy studios :)), some from friends with matching dedication, tipong Joan, thanks for always being there, lalo na pag recess or you are a ray of sunshine in my usually cloudy life, from a friend who was then full of angst.

But a small note, folded in three parts, obviously taken from a notebook, got my attention. The first line there was in my handwriting. It reads: Ano na babe? To which my ex-boyfriend replied: Just. Look. At. Me. I'M RIGHT HERE. The note struck me on different levels, not the least because it reminded me that even if I had since moved on with my life, there was that period where my failed relationship was real, palpable, honest... and well, it really happened. I may no longer remember how it felt like to have loved and be loved by the writer of this note, but it reminded me that, while things between us eventually soured, the time the note was written, I was blissfully in love.

But in a more 'big picture' way, I was struck by how poignantly sweet those words "I'm right here" are, then and now. At this crazy stage in my life where I am sometimes tempted to go on a frantic search for THE ONE because all my friends are getting married and I am always reminded that my biological clock is ticking, it would be extremely comforting if someone told me, "I'm right here." No, I'm not asking to be married ahora mismo, but wouldn't it be nice if someone I truly care for would tell me that he's not going anywhere, but here with me?

My life right now is, for the most part, a happy place to be in. But there are moments, like that evening when I stumbled upon a love note that I clearly cherished enough to keep in my wallet, that I couldn't help but wish that I receive another love note, just like that, soon enough. :)