Some things are better left unsaid

As I was rummaging through my things looking for the necessary papers that I need to bring Monday to work (yes, I landed a new job, and oh boy, am glad!), I came across a very small envelope with some kind of card in it. I pulled it out and was so surprised that after all this time, I still have this literary composition written out on a sheet of a thin cardboard, written by someone who could be long gone by now.

I still remember... I was about twenty years old, I was working in one of those prestigious establishments in Makati city, my first job. He was one of our regular guests. He was American. He was like a grandfather to us, to me and my colleagues. He would always give us advice, he was very kind and soft-spoken. His name was Dr. Burns.

I was assigned at the delicatessen that evening and he was having dinner at the restaurant. He stood up and walked towards me. He handed me this small envelope telling me he wrote a poem for me while he was having his dinner (right there? on the spot?). "For me?" I asked. "Please read it", he said. I was surprised, didn't know how to react. So I did, and I was deeply moved reading it. I thanked him, he left and never saw him again.