Our very own REYNA ELENA....

Nothing last forever, there goes the old familiar saying. There always come a time when you know you have to say goodbye and I’ve reached that point again. I was actually talking about my friend Rommel.

As I write this, he might be all set, geared up and had packed his things and ready to go.

A few weeks ago I promise Rommel that I would write about him and feature him here at my blog like I always do to my other friends who leave or not. I’ve been contemplating about what to say, in a positive way. It’s not that I’ve been running out of words but because of the many things I wanted to write about him.

Rommel and I have been friends for almost six years now. He is one of my oldest friends here in Riyadh. I always knew from the start, the moment I met him that we would become good friends to some degree.

Rommel for me is well, Rommel. I remember one time on our way to the EP forever years ago. We would hitch in this 10-wheeler truck in the middle of the desert with a stranger who drives us four hours way through to the EP. It was an adventure. We arrived to the place safe and sound though.

One of the many things I liked ‘bout Rommel is, he’s being adventurous and outgoing, it weird’s me out sometimes. Our adventure to the EP is just one of the many crazy memorable things we have shared over the years.

Rommel has come a long way since he first arrived in the Kingdom. He accomplished a lot of things. He came up with the idea and put up the now successful QIL for one. The now inactive LAPEMTS. He has become a member and an officer of the Mabuhay Toastmasters Club for years. He has recently been teaching IT at COMSOFIL and I had the chance to sit-in at one of his class one time. Though he was nervous at first but he came out very good at it.

The leadership quality of Rommel continues while serving as an officer of RAGI whom I was a member too. Not to mention he’s a good dancer and an efficient public speaker. And the list goes on and on…. There are just some people who are meant to stand out. Rommel is one of them. That’s the thing with him, he never felt he needed to prove to people that he was good. He is comfortable with the fact that he is. For him, it came naturally.

You might think Rommel is perfect but he’s not. I’ve witnessed his imperfections esp. when his inlove and I too can relate to him sometimes. It felt like Rommel and I had something in common in so many ways.

Rommel’s life has always been a roller coaster. There is nothing that exhilarates him more than his family back in the Philippines. I mean, his father passed away a couple of years ago, but he showed how strong he was as a person. I held his hand when his father died and he held mine when I cried because of love. He’s family is all that’s he’s ever got aside from us.

Nothing seemed to bother Rommel, much to his surprise, even. He came out of this knowing how strong he really was. These are things we can only hope for and that we ourselves will realize in our own time.

So it’s hard for me to see Rommel go.

Personally, I've never been very good at good-byes. I see someone walking into the boarding area at the airport, or getting into a bus or a car and there's something sad about it. Saying good-bye to someone like Rommel whom I've gotten to know for years is daunting to say the least. It feels as though a family is losing an important member. Those who thought they were alone with their problems discovered they had people to share them with.

My love goes out to you, Miss Reyna Elena and best wishes for the future.

Here it goes, just as I promise you a special feature at my blog. I guess you wouldn’t be called Reyna Elena for no reason at all.

Long live the queen, choz!