Making a Difference

I recently had one of the most moving conversations that left me humbled and inspired.

My friend who also used to be my direct report told me that I changed his life. In one of our one-on-one conversations many years ago, it seems I helped him realize his potential and believe in himself more than he did at the time. He told me that this allowed him to take a huge and even frightening leap in his career, a move that would very positively impact his life. While I'm sure he would have realized how good he was by himself, I am filled with joy to know that I helped him in his journey.

I still get a bit emotional when I think of that conversation. When I decided to become a people manager in my previous job, I believed I could make strong contributions to the company I was working for. Making this much of a difference in someone's life, however, is not something I imagined I would ever be able to do.

Wedding Weekend

We're only two months into the new year but I have now attended four weddings! Just this last weekend, I attended two weddings. Thankfully, they were scheduled on different days so I was able to attend both. On Saturday, Gian and Blessy got married in St. Michael the Archangel Parish near Uptown Mall in BGC. It was my first time in this church and I love how bright and airy it is. Arguably the most memorable moment during the ceremony was the bridal march, when Blessy sang a few bars of a beautiful love song while walking down the aisle. Awesome! The dinner reception was at Bonifacio Hall in Shangri-La at the Fort. The ballroom decor was absolutely stunning, with gorgeous lights draped elegantly from the ceiling.

The introduction of the entourage and the couple was also really cool, with all of them performing a dance number that was well-rehearsed and well-choreographed. I actually found it very entertaining. :) The first dance of Blessy and Gian was even more amazing, as it included a very romantic lift and an exquisite dip that I believe ended with a kiss.

Gian was my teammate in my previous job so a lot of our ex-colleagues were also there, making it a fantastic reunion. As this was Shangri-La at the Fort, the food was sublime, including the desserts: tiramisu in a chocolate cup and a mille-feuille. I planned to leave once the program was over but Gian asked me to stay so I did. I ended up leaving once the party was over, which was after midnight. It was a truly memorable night.

The next day, I attended the wedding of Pao and Therese. The church ceremony was held at the Manila Cathedral in Intramuros. It's been a while since I had been here so it was a welcome return for me. However, I woke up late that morning and thought I was going to be late for the wedding which was supposed to start at 1pm. Thankfully, the time indicated at the invitation was padded; the ceremony actually started at 1:30pm so I ended up being quite early. Cool!

The reception was held at Casa Ibarra near Mall of Asia. Both Pao and Therese are ex-colleagues so for the second night in a row, it was like I was attending a massive reunion. The program started quite early (I assume it was because the wedding was on a Sunday and there was work the next day) with the entourage being introduced at maybe around 530pm. The emcee started with a game that would prioritize the tables for the buffet dinner. Only one person per table would compete and I realized later on that I should've volunteered to participate because the game was "Name that tune"  with a twist; after guessing the title of the song, you had to dance to it. I knew almost all the songs and their dances so if I participated, our table could've been one of the first 2 to 3 to hit the buffet tables LOL. Nevertheless, because I was catching up with so many people and because dinner was served quite early, there was no rush to eat. :) Oh and another memorable moment from this wedding was the rock star entry of the newlyweds: they entered the venue with microphones in hand and sang Cruisin'. So cool!

The program ended at around 8pm and while I planned to leave immediately after the program (it was a full weekend so I was tired), it was so much fun catching up with many of my friends that I ended up staying an extra hour and leaving at 9pm. The great thing about weddings is that you celebrate one of the most special days that two people will ever have and you get to reunite with many of your friends and/or relatives.

Parasite

Congratulations to Parasite for winning four awards at the Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director for Bong Joon-Ho, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film. It is the first time that a non-English film won the top prize at the Academy Awards. Prior to its Oscar success, this South Korean movie also became the first non-English language movie to win Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the SAG Awards. Amazing!

photo from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parasite_(2019_film)

I made sure to watch Parasite immediately after its Oscar triumph, primarily because I knew there was a major twist in this movie and I was worried that I would be spoiled if I didn't see it immediately. (True enough, a few days after I saw it, a radio DJ actually spoiled it on air.)

SPOILER ALERT: I will be sharing some details about the movie so please stop reading now if you don't want to be spoiled.

The great thing about Parasite is how unconventional it is. The story revolves around the Kim family who con their way into high-paying jobs for the Parks, a tremendously wealthy family. After Ki-woo gets a job as an English teacher for the Parks, he sees an opportunity for the rest of his family to find employment at their household. As this was all unfolding, you just knew that at some point, their scam would be exposed. This tension made for very exciting viewing. The truth came out midway through the film but not in the way that I thought it would. This twist that people were talking about was truly unexpected and the frantic chaos that ensued when the Kim family tried to protect themselves from exposure was gripping. It is at this point that the mood drastically changes. Issues of social inequality, while treated lightly in the first half of the movie, become significantly stronger in this second half. The climax of the the film is wild, intense, and harrowing while the denouement is, once again, unexpected and very powerful.

To be honest, when I left the cinema, I wasn't sure how I felt about the movie, mainly because it was so heavy that I actually felt quite disturbed by how all the events unfolded. However, when I had a bit more time to process it, I realized how good Parasite is because it left me with a lot of uneasiness and discomfort and it weighed on me for a while. Only really good films can do that to its audiences. If you haven't seen Parasite yet, please do. It is highly recommended.