mini-boss in a foreign land: a birthday story

this is a post i started writing three-and-a-half months ago, and i only got to finish it today :)

---

it started out like any other day. i woke up early (ei akane, istatyu?). i took a bath and prepared to go to work. as i reached the hotel lobby to wait for the shuttle, i noticed that my officemates were not around. "Hmm, I must be really early today."

After waiting for 5 minutes, I began to panic. Why weren't they here? Where is the shuttle? I looked out the window, and there it was, rounding a curve -- with my officemates aboard, no doubt.

i was incredulous! it's only 8:14 when i got to the lobby! the shuttle was supposed to leave at 8:15! i wasn't late!

i pondered arranging a 9:30 shuttle service before heading back to bed (yep, sleep is precious to me). or i could... i asked my batchmate, who had access to the staff car, to come pick me up. he was already in the office, but he came to my rescue.

when we got to the office, i received an email from my offshore team, asking me to stay late in the office, so that we could deploy the new application we were working on. sigh, it was my special day, and i had to stay late. :(

after office hours, my offshore team helped me deploy our application. but i was having errors on my end. four frustrating-and-dinner-depriving hours later, one of my friends happened to pass by my cube. she was also working late but was ready to go home. she took pity on "hapless" me, and helped me deploy my vexatious application. they even dropped me off at the hotel.

back in my room, an hour before midnight, i feasted on a microwaved mac-and-cheese dinner. while packing my things (i was to be transferred to another hotel the next day), i reflected on my day. sure, it was no way to celebrate a birthday, but i was thankful for some things: first, that i had something to eat for dinner. second, that i was moving to a better hotel. and most of all, that despite my "misfortunes", i had friends who were there for me, reminding me that God's arm is not too short to help me.

On such a lonely night in a land far away, i knew -- My Father in heaven has not forsaken me.