The Send-Off Party

It has been a week since we gave Ate April, the "former" Ateneo Placement Office Assistant, a nice chocolate, blueberry cheesecake & tear filled send-off party. We, the placement reps, managed to sneak inside the office two ice cream tubs, two cakes, a tumbler of M&M's peanuts, and a bilao of pancit malabon without her suspecting. I also managed to plant a Flash presentation commemorating her stay in the Placement Office in her computer without anyone knowing. Grabe, ang daming ginawang palusot at panloloko upang maipasok lamang ang mga pagkain. May kakausap na lang sa kanya, tapos dadalhin sa kabilang kuwarto --- sabay pasok ng pagkain. Mas madali talaga kapag maraming kakontsaba.

The mini-party started with my Flash intro, showcasing her photographs accompanied by a piano soundtrack that brought tears to her eyes, as well as some of the Placement reps (sabi nila). Everyone was silent during the presentation, as if a great void was created inside them. Roki, then, broke the silence by joking, "O Ate April, puwede ka nang umalis. You're fired!" Tawa na lang lahat.

Natawa pa nga ako, may ilan pa ngang humingi ng kopya ng maikling palabas na iyon. Napuri pa ako ni Tita Chit --- maganda raw ang aking nagawa.

Afterwards, some placement reps gave her gifts, and Tita Chit presented her with a picture frame containing a gigantic card crammed with different messages from everyone in the office. JD Uy, our newly-elected Execom president led the prayer, and Ate April opened the party by taking the first bite out of the pancit and slicing the cake. Photographs were taken left and right since this would be the last day Ate April would officially grace us with her presence in the office. Kuwentuhan, kantyawan, kainan, nasarapan ang lahat sa mga hinanda.

It was sad to see her go, since she contributed a lot to the office, both job-wise and friend-wise. However, it was time for her to move on and venture out into other career fields, to grow and absorb new things that would make her more whole as a person. Hindi ka namin makakalimutan, Ate April.