Chapter 4

I took a day off.

Sa loob ng apat na taon kung pagtatrabaho ay ngayon lang ako nakapag pahinga.

2 years as a janitor, 5 months as a caregiver, and 19 months as a ballet coach.

Kaya sure akong deserve ko ang pahinga.

I went to a cafè, spent my morning there sipping my coffee. I also watched Wicked: For Good. And lastly, at night, I went to Palermo to drink.

Umuwi akong lasing pero di ko sukat akalain na first time ko yon!

I met guys but not exactly my type. They were asking for my number and I gave them—pero hindi ko binigay yung saakin. I gave the telephone number of my previous company instead.

Wala pa sa isip ko ang mag entertain ng mga ganyan. Busy pa ako sa pagsasayaw at sa upcoming grandest performance ng The Siren para sa mga panauhin namin na galing sa La Scala Theatre Academy in Milan.

Buwan din ang ginugol namin para sa once in a lifetime opportunity na ito kasi kapag nagustuhan ng direktor ang aming performance ay pipili sila ng magiging kabilang sa kanilang team para sa Varna International Ballet Competition held in Varna, Bulgaria.

We did so many stunts.

Giselle, The Swan, Coppélia, and The Nutcracker.

Isa ako sa sasayaw para sa The Swan kaya todo practice din ako.

Poise and composure ang tinututukan ng bawat sa isa sa amin ngayon and aminado ako nung una ay nahirapan akong ibalik ito.

It's been almost 3 years since I last stepped onto the stage and got to wear my pointe shoes.

Fresh parin sa isipan ko ang mga iniwan kung opportunity sa Pilipinas. I almost got competed in Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) held in Singapore, pero nangyari ang nangyari kaya I don't know what they did pero sure akong malaki din ang galit nila sa akin. I lost a chance to compete in an international kaya alam ko yung tensyon.

After straight 2 hours of practice, we decided to take a water break.

"Ms. Walsh, we got an email." sigaw ng secretary ko

Ipinakita nya sa akin ang email ng Scala Theatre Academy na we must expect another changes sa preferences ng board of committee. And ang mas worst pa, their chief operator and ceo will also join them to witness our performances.

Nadagdagan na naman ang pressure kaya I decided to start the practice.

After months of practice, ipinagpahinga ko muna ang mga dancers from practice but keeping an eye on them doing minimal stunts para hindi nila malimutan yun mga steps at para mas maging flexible yung mga katawan nila.

When the day came, I had the confidence yet the nervousness is still in me.

The outfits, lighting, music, props, the stage and the people are all ready.

We have four sets of performances and nasa pangatlo na kami.

I was praying at the backstage. Para akong stagemom na kinakabahan para sa anak kung nagp-perform.

When it was my time, I arranged my poise and did my stunts neatly.

After the performance, everyone was standing and cheering for us.

Another milestone for us.

"Congratulations, Ms. Walsh." Mr Gonzalo approached me

"Thank you, Sir."

"Our chief director was so amazed how you manage to cope up with this kind of performance. A total of four stunts and it was different. You also dance, which is great." pagbati nya

"So we, the Scala Theatre Academy decided to take your group as part of our team for the upcoming Varna International Ballet Competition. We will keep in touch."

"Thank you sir, thank you for coming! I promise that me and my team will do our very best to bring home the fame." I assured them

"I love the confidence, Ms. Walsh. We are heading now."

It's indeed good that things take time.

"Thank you for your life, Ms. Walsh. Thank you for bringing The Siren into what I just dreamed before." the owner praised me

"I must be the one thanking you, Ms. Valencia. Because without your help, I might be sleeping in the streets now."

She just smiled and we ended our day full of laughter as we celebrated our success.

Matagal tagal pa naman ang competition—next year pa. Kaya I took another job. As a broker of Casa in Sicilia.

Okay lang naman ang pa sweldo kaya kuntento ako.

My life moves faster as usual.

Seven months to go before the competition kaya andito ako ngayon sa Milan to attend a press meeting.

Hindi naman masyadong kailangan ang presensya ko pero I was given a chance to attend so I took the opportunity of course.

Sanay ako sa mga ganito since exposed ako sa iba’t ibang negotiations ng pamilya ko sa Pilipinas.

My night went well. I met different faces, learned new things and visualized other plans for our upcoming performance.

After that event, hindi muna ako pinauwi. Meron pa akong meeting together with our partnership with the Scala Theatre Academy. Kung saan na meet ko ang isa sa mga direktor nila na si Mr. Amadeo Luis Moretti.

He had a strong aura na para bang kaya ka nyang tirisin kapag hindi ka nya nagustuhan.

Pero I was wrong.

I learned that he is also a Filipino kaya we get along with.

"Grabe naman pala ang pinagdaanan mong pagsubok hija. I'm glad that you've conquered it all." he complimented me

"Thank you, Sir. And it was the best decision I ever made kasi kung hindi ko yun ginawa, baka eh nakatali na ako sa kamay ng asawa ko."

"I'm sure that everything had a reason in your life, Alezandra. Thank you for living."

After our conversation, we parted ways.

Kinabukasan agad ay excited ako umuwi ng Sicily para ibalita ang dala kung good news sa mga estudyante ko.

Other utilities and resources were given to us.

Kaya ngayon ay ganado kaming lahat sa pagpapractice.

For our upcoming event, we have to perform Le Corsaire, Medora Variation, at Le Corsaire Pas de Deux. Kaya grabe ang paghahanda na aming ginawa.

I'm so excited and grateful at the same time because my dreams are slowly taking its place.

Sana, ganito nalang palagi.