Column: Manila is Eager to be Loved
If you’ve been following me on my social media channels like Instagram, you prolly already know that I started a column with The Manila Bulletin. It’s one of the major broadsheets in the country and I’m so happy to have space in their Lifestyle Section every Saturday. So if I haven’t been writing here much, you know where to find me. 
Here’s an excerpt from one of my columns – some things that I have been learning to love (again) in and about Manila.
Manila is eager to be loved
How the return to Manila from seven years of living in Kuala Lumpur and Berlin is teaching this diplomat’s wife how to find happiness wherever she finds herself
Toward the end of our time abroad for my husband’s diplomatic posting, I was often asked how I felt about going home. Whenever I said I looked forward to it, it was always met with disbelief. Surely, I must be joking. Did I not enjoy my time abroad?
I often assure people that I’ve savored every moment I get to spend in each city we move to, getting to play local for a few years. First, it was Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, then Berlin in Germany. It’s an immersion like no other but the life we chose is that of an adventure of packing and moving every few years. I guess knowing that your time in a place is limited makes you immerse yourself deeper into a place in a shorter span of time. You learn how to appreciate and live in every moment. This, so that when it’s time to leave, you don’t feel too bad or have too many regrets.
Live in the present and compare less
“You’re always where you’re meant to be. You’re always in the best possible place,” a senior diplomatic official once told me. It’s the best way to teach someone to be truly happy wherever they are in the world. One’s happiness does rely heavily on disposition and attitude toward life. You can be in Paris, living in a fancy apartment yet still be the most miserable person if you’re someone who feels like you should be in New York instead.
