My fear is that one of us (from the family) will be infected with the virus. Since our helpers are living out, I did not allow them to report for work during the first months of the pandemic. This is to protect my family and theirs. And because of that arrangement, I need to do all the household chores like going to the market, cooking, laundry services, cleaning, etc.
As the Chief Administrative Officer/Legal Officer, I have to address several deadlines and troubleshoot problems of the institute that requires me to travel most of the time to places like Metro Manila and Nueva Ecija.
I addressed legal queries and issues that were very urgent in nature. As head of the committee on the acquisition of agricultural lands for seed production, I need to scout available lands with the committee members. I need to talk with the owners or their representatives and validate their documents with government agencies like DAR, BIR, LGUs, Provincial Offices and the Register of Deeds. These activities require travels around Nueva Ecija where the risk of getting infected with the virus was very high as it involved face to face dealings with different people.
Another challenge was my engagement in daily meetings. My time in the office was consumed in attending meetings. Thus, I always bring home my work to accomplish all the required documents from my end. This is the time for reading laws, news, circulars, and Supreme Court cases. Even though there’s no extra pay for that and I can’t even get enough sleep, I never complained or tell people. I believe that if you love your work, you will give your 100% time and effort for the best results.
I was able to overcome these challenges by religiously doing the following: (1) praying the rosary daily; (2) attending online masses; (3) joining on line activities of the Couples for Christ; (4) drinking vitamin C with zinc and other vitamins; (4) frequent washing of hands; (5) changing clothes and taking a bath immediately whenever I go out of the house; (6) wearing face shield and mask always; (7) observing social distancing especially when going out; (8) monitoring of body temperature; and (9) eating fruits and balanced diet meals.
