That Pool

Back in the day when my siblings and I were little kids, we would always spend every hot summer afternoon basking in the backyard swimming pool. We would bring inflatable toys, pretending that they’re some superhero from Marvel or DC, and we would stay there for the whole day.

Life was so simple back then. We never had to worry about anything. You see, we were born in an upper middle class family, so we had the chance to experience – to enjoy – things which would not have been there had we been in a different place in life.

We enjoyed hanging out at the pool a lot, and then one day, we noticed the kids next door. There were five of them who would always watch us whenever we were playing. They were not as fortunate as we were; they are six in the family and their dad works in the mines earning just enough to feed them all. They would always look at us with innocent, jealous eyes. I know that they wanted to play with us too, but they were too scared to ask.

So we approached them and asked, “Would you guys want to go over the fence and jump right in?”

All their eyes glowed with joy. They climbed the picket fence dividing our lots, and with no hesitation, lunged right at the water. They smiled, and laughed, and shared stories with us. At that particular moment, those kids and we… were Joy itself.

My siblings and I became really good friends with them since then. We would invite them to swim in the pool with us. Neither they nor we wanted to do anything else. The look in their eyes whenever we’re with them - that feeling that I cannot quantify in words – is priceless. We played and had fun every day until they suddenly disappeared, their father was laid off and they had to move to somewhere else. We’ve never heard from them eversince.

Now, our old place houses no one anymore. My siblings and I have grown up. We have ceased to be children. We now live in the city, with the humdrum and permeating cold of urban life. The swimming pool of years past has gradually deteriorated from neglect. But once every now and then, I think of that time when we were still kids, playing with them in the swimming pool that was.

I would give up anything just to feel that feeling again, when happiness was just a few steps away.

An oDesk Freelancing Story: From Crappy to Happy

I have worked in an office setting for more than five years. It can be said that it was a “safe” job – nothing glamorous, nothing special, doesn’t pay a lot, but pays nonetheless. I answered customer service phone calls from irate clients ranging from seven-year-old kids who complain that the sour lollipop they bought tastes like grilled tofu or geriatric ladies who whine about why their boyfriends left them forty years ago. Like any trying-to-be-good customer service representative, I did my best to calm them all down. But then, the company I work for sells toilet equipment!

And oh, I forgot to mention that ever-so-nasty boss! She drives everyone crazy with her incessant need to scold everyone around. My co-workers and I think that she was a criminal in a past life. We firmly believe, in all conviction, that she commits aesthetic assault on a daily basis. She usually wears that polka-dotted top with ruffled sleeves which kind of gives us the idea that she somehow managed to escape out of a 70’s Prom Night, looked around, and then found herself clueless about why twitter is not a bird anymore.

I love the human race and all its capacity to do good… minus her. There was this occasion where I got the chills when I saw the butter knife in the office pantry, then I glanced at my boss, then I unknowingly, unintentionally stared back to that same knife for more than 30 seconds. Similar incidents have occurred with the telephone cord, the paper shredder, and that particular time when I realized that a computer monitor can be suitably heavy. Unfortunately back then, my hunger for sheer happiness seemed insufficient. Is it time for me to eat less?

Suffices it to say, I hated my job. But then, what choice do I have? I think I’m reasonably smart, I can write well, I can talk well, and almost all of the things that you can attach the word “well” too, possibly except for navigating intergalactic space ships…

The point is, like most people, I have a passion for things that do not pay the rent. In a country where half the population lives below the poverty line, art and culture is not exactly the wisest thing to prioritize. What I did, instead, was to keep my day job, put up with all the evil that is my boss, and pursue my passion during the hours in between. Yes, I know what you’re thinking, but no. I just look like Clark Kent, but I am Asian, which now makes me wonder why X-men’s Jubilee is the only Asian superhero I know. Going back to where we were…

I asked myself: What if I can find a way to do what I love to do and get paid for it?

And so I sent myself on a mission to search for the Holy Grail. I packed all my stuff and prepared myself for the task of a lifetime. As soon as I’ve finished packing (which took about 2 minutes, as I don’t have a lot of stuff anyway), I checked Google.

Voila! I found oDesk. I thought I almost cried, but I realized that my mom was just making onion soup.

So I went to oDesk, What I saw was an undeniably unfamiliar and potentially hostile territory… SO I REGISTERED. I looked at all the things that I can do there and BOOM! There’s blog writing!

Now, I really cried big time.

I took fifteen 40-minute exams in a span of 2 days. I was able to do that much with that little by keeping a mindset that the world can end anytime, so I might as well take the tests. Don’t worry; I don’t get the logic either! I did quite well in this battery of exams (well, it’s more like self-imposed torture if you ask me) and I landed on a job right away. Just a couple more days and I got more job offers, and I realized – if I make more than thrice as much here, what reason would I have for staying in the hellhole that was my former job? And also, the work hours are flexible, so just in case someone on the other side of the planet cries for help, I can stop working for a little bit and swoosh right away!

Thus, after getting an official seal of approval from the command center, a.k.a. my wife or my mom depending on who you ask, I have now become a full-time freelancer. No more doing something that I hate, no more putting up with power-mongering and aesthetically-challenged superiors, no more sleepless nights for having to be a superhero on a graveyard shift. I am finally doing what I love to do.

I know I can write, but I haven’t written anything good for a long time. But now, I can write again! You know why?

Because, at this exact point in time, I am Happiness personified.

I know what's on your mind right now:

You can thank me later.

Author’s Note: This is a work of fiction. This article was based on various stories coming from personal experience sprinkled with a little spice here and there. This does not necessarily represent the author’s personal advocacies, personal history or social relationships. The author has no connections with oDesk.com except for being a regular provider. He does not engage in any other sort of business with the said firm. X-men, Jubilee, Clark Kent and oDesk are trademarks/copyrights owned by their respective owners. And I don’t really know why I wrote this disclaimer. I just felt like it. Anyhow, please be guided accordingly.