"Maraming salamat sayo Ms. Enriquez ha," he said. My attention was caught when he uttered that mentioning my name while leaving the room.
He is a retired lawyer with a distinct personality trait. I find him as very brilliant and witty. He came from a well-off family. It surprised me when he knows about his medical diagnosis. He kept asking questions to me about the prognosis of his disease. So I wonder what if I reverse the conversation and change it to another topic just to escape from all his queries.
While rendering the nursing care at his room with just the two of us, I tried asking him "Mukhang marami kayong nalalaman ha, matanong ko lang ano ho ba ang trabaho ninyo noon?", I uttered. Conversation went on as he said "Naku, I am a lawyer. I worked in a government agency. I've been to different places, USA, Canada, Autralia, bla bla bla." I knew that all he wanted is to have someone who can spare a little time to chitchat with and his life story to be heard.
As I went listening to his story, I forgot that I had to attend to other patients needs. I had to leave him for a while. When I was about to leave, he looked up my embroidered name on my shirt and said "Enriquez ka pala, ano kasing pangalan mo uli?" I said, "Alane po." He asked me what town did I grow up. I answered just in Manila. "Kung ikaw lang ang makakasama ko, siguradong gagaling ako eh," he said.
When this man is about to discharge and ready to go home, I couldn't imagine he would speak to me a sweetest poem I have ever heard. "Naku, si Sir talaga mabola," I said to him. "Basta ba ikaw lagi ang makikita ko, siguradong gagaling ako." The poem he recited will surely remain in my mind. Hail this grumpy old man.
So that's how it ended....
