Custodio: All these, while unwrapping underwear

ARE they expensive? Yes, a bit, but their worth to me has more to do with supply than expense and luxury because it's hard to find granny panties in my size in this country!

It's funny.

What is?

It is how we care for certain things and have them well kept and tucked away from possible admiring eyes. I realized this while I was fixing my underwear drawer one quiet Monday morning.

Hmmm.

I am not sure if it's a cultural thing but it seems inherent among us Filipinos to "save" the best for the best time. We hold off using certain items for special occasions and for those treasured things that we have already "used", we to try to extend its life (who hasn't seen a set of good furniture protected by thick plastic to delay normal wear and tear in at least one Filipino household?). I just think we really need to learn to let go more.

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As for my knickers, they aren't really new. Yes, they're still in their original packages, with the small dainty plastic hangers, tags and all. But they've been in my boudoir drawers for almost two years. Are they expensive? Yes, a bit, but their worth to me has more to do with supply than expense and luxury because it's hard to find granny panties in my size in this country!!! :P

As I set out to clean out my cabinets, I find myself confronted by the thought of enjoying and appreciating the good, joyous things in life. Who doesn't want that? I do! Life is not easy and so when these perks come unexpectedly in our lives, we welcome them, appreciate them, and bask in their glory until they fade away. We even try to hold on to them for as long as we can, and even when they're gone, we keep vivid, mental memories of them to make us feel good when we are down.

I understand this completely. Happy thoughts are tools for survival and in this downtrodden, economically challenging times, we do what we can to stay above water.

Here is my question.

How do you know it's time to enjoy the good stuff?? I know saving champagne for a worthy celebration is normal, but what if it fell over and broke? I'm just saying that's one good bottle gone to waste. And you could have enjoyed it last night as you sat by the balcony, listening to the raindrops while the cool wind kissed your face. (Rather than waiting for New Year's Eve which is more than five months away!)

Now back to the knickers.

I was grinning as I carefully unwrapped each one. In my head I was making a mental note of the colors and designs, and I was trying to figure out which ones I would use and how many should I take out when an impatient voice inside me screamed:

"What the hell are you saving these for?"

Huh?

Oh yeah, I had some naughty answers in my head that would probably sound ridiculous if I said it aloud but honestly, the question had a point to make. Well, at least to me. When am I supposed to start using them? What magnificent celebration am I supposed to wait to happen to use up all sixty-something of them?

What if I die tomorrow?

I will not be able to use any of them! Then the whole point of finding and purchasing them would mean nothing. What a waste!

Then, I am reminded of a post I saw in one of the social networks a few days ago:

The most important notes a person should always bear in mind:

1. Use things, not people.
2. Love people, not things.

Makes sense right?

Sometimes, we get attached to the wrong things and value the wrong objects. We lose sight of the important things that we should live by. The measure of man's success should not be based on his material possessions but through his integrity and the respect he is accorded by the people whose lives he has touched by treating them right and as equals.

We really should remind ourselves about these little things once in a while...

They're sound and they matter too! :)

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Nina is a doctor, a writer at heart, and a Cancer survivor, whom we have been wooing to write for quite some time now. This is her first, hopefully, of many articles for Sun.Star Davao readers. Nina Custodio