By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas
My favorite analogy during this time of year was the Pandora’s Box.
Just before Christmas, the underside of my low riding daily driver car, hit a stone on the road. Luckily the consequence was just a small dent. It happened once before and we had to overhaul the engine to the tune of tens of thousands of pesos I could ill afford. Without a car, the cost of bringing out this paper is quite prohibitive. Without a car, the cost of going here and there relative to my law practice becomes unaffordable in terms of time, pesos and convenience. Without a car, life becomes a daily test of patience going to and from our house in the mountains. In other words, without a car means hell for me and my family.
So I mustered enough determination to “body lift” the car on my own with whatever meager resources were available. There was no way I would risk my engine which, arguably might be the best car engine ever made on account of its economy of operation, durability and reliability. As to speed, forget it. That is for rich kids who can afford gas guzzlers. At any rate, doing nothing about the prolem would have been gross negligence, or almost criminal. Much less would I like my family to be in hell. I knew it would take a lot of work and effort. And the fact was (and still is, he he), I was (and still am) not young anymore.
With the prospect of solving the pesky problem and fixing or improving other areas or parts along the way and perhaps lose a pound or two from my overweight, I was hopeful or with lots of positive attitude when I was getting ready to deal with the challenge.
From all indications, the car in its early life was used for racing. So it was lowered to lower its center of gravity, thus lesser chances of turning turtle and would have surely lessened the drag when it accelerated—in short, better aerodynamics.
To put it back to its original stance meant overhauling the front undersides of the car and then use coil springs of the original length. I did it once around 30 years ago and it took me all the way to the wee hours of the morning—3.30 a.m.—of continuous improvization and effort as I lacked the special tools for a specialized model. Sure, I went to the gunfight with only a kitchen knife, but the job was done.
This time last Christmas eve, December 24, I started the work. Since I am now 61 and had been sitting only in the office for ages, I did not think I could do heavy physical stuff continuously through the night. So I reckoned that perhaps if I worked 8 to 10 hours straight every day, I could accomplish the overhaul in two to three days including “righting” other parts of the car that went wrong or that needed fixing. So I should have been done by dusk of Dec. 26. I was not so off with my calculation. The main job was done but there were some other parts yet to fix including some needing welding work—which caused my old welding machine to conk out.
And, boy, was I tired. So on the 27th, I had to sleep in the morning as I felt I was getting sick out of fatigue. The sleep was what I needed. I got refreshed enough to work again. I got up at 10 a.m. and started working at 11:00, all the way to 7:30 p.m. – or until I was satisfied the car was roadworthy again. In sum, after four days of hard labor, a good number of pesky bruises and scratches on my hands, and perhaps a pound or two pounds lost from my overweight, my big problem was solved. No more danger of stones on the road hitting the oil pan of my engine as its ground clearance increased by 3.5 inches, or no more hell for me.
What I went through was mild but it illustrates what the Pandora’s Box was about. When you open that deadly box, out comes evil or unheard of germs, diseases, pestilence, and other problems. But with all those problems, there is hope.
While my car problem was a very small thing compared to those who have to deal with incurable diseases like cancer or paralysis or other forms of personal or family misfortune, it also came with the hope to “right” things in the car that could turn out to be life threatening. Yes, there is always a positive side to anything.
As to those who have to deal with incurable health conditions, there was one very important thing a client once told me. Over lunch, he related his experiences around the world with those suffering from cancer or other similar afflictions, or with those who had to spend the better part of their lives in hospital beds or have to interminably suffer from other forms of misery. He said, there was that feeling in them of getting cleansed, or getting prepared to meet their Maker. Theirs was hope for the ultimate experience.**
