To get home from work, I have to walk to the MRT station then ride a bus. But that very night—a Friday night, was so unusually crowded. I understand that it was Friday night and everybody is just out from work to hang around. But I had never went home with about hundred of people in one place. I had never been put on hold at the entrance of the MRT station together with some hundred more, just because there are plenty people in the platform and too many people inside the train. I stood up in line, waited for about half an hour, and I could still see more people coming, more people getting out of the station, and even so, we were still stuck at the entrance. I decided to leave, then walked to the taxi line. As expected, there were plenty of people waiting in line, with only one or two cabs coming every 20 minutes. And I was like in the 20th spot. So I decided to walk again to a place where I can have a better chance of getting a cab. But as I saw the road, the traffic was so heavy that the vehicles were barely moving. I thought that even if I do get a taxi that minute, I would be stuck forever in that road. My legs were aching.
Where did all these people come from? It was when I realized that the earth is overpopulated. Maybe even beyond its carrying capacity.
So I found myself waiting in line to the cinema. I thought maybe after the movie the road would be wider. It was also a long line that I was not able to get a seat for a movie I was planning to watch. A Filipino movie entitled "Ang Babae sa Septic Tank". So I decided to watch "The Rise of the Planet of the Apes". That was the movie that would start in fifteen minutes, giving me time to go to the ladies room and buy dinner to eat inside the cinema.
I was planning to reserve that movie to be watched with a close friend who is into chimps. Who strongly believes that man came from apes, which I don't agree by the way. I always prefer watching a movie with someone so we can share comments after. That was why it was not my first choice that night. Because I was alone. And it was an interesting movie to be watched alone. But anyway, I ended up watching it.
I didn't realize until I got inside the cinema that I have chosen a seat very near the screen—in the second row. I thought I have chosen the second-to-the-last row. So I sat on the seat, which is not what is indicated on my ticket. Then a couple came and told me that the seat I was occupying belongs to them, so I had to transfer. I chose another seat in the last row. And the same thing happened. I was kicked out of the seat by another couple—in a very nice way, though.
And so I managed to find a seat one row forward, thinking to myself that I will never go to my assigned seat because I will get dizzy near the screen. But as I was seated, I felt anxious. What if someone comes, then kicks me out again? Or even if no one comes, half my attention would be on the thought that someone might ask me to transfer to another seat. I concluded that very moment that I will not be able to enjoy the movie because my attention would be divided.
So I decided to look for my seat. A little bit worried about what people might think about me as to why I kept on transferring seats. I found my seat and as I sat, I felt so much at peace thinking to myself, "This is my seat, the one assigned to me. Nobody will be able to kick me out from here." I found myself wide-eyed, my eyes trying so hard to adjust with the distance from the screen and the intensity of the light.
I enjoyed the movie. I screamed and laughed when there were reasons to, not minding the fact that I am laughing alone—but not really alone since I had a seatmate, a stranger, who was laughing alone, too. And I found out in the end that the leading guy was my new crush. Good bye Mark Salling, hello James Franco. And that thankful enough, I realized that if I stayed at the back row of the cinema, I would be bothered by couples kissing once in a while. (hehe)
I was reflecting on the lesson I have learned at the cinema that night before I slept. I finally realized that the reason I don't have peace in some instances might be because I am sitting in the wrong chair. Something which is not assigned to me. And even if I know it is not for me, I ignore it. And because of that I become anxious not being able to focus on what is important. This made me ask: Am I in the right place right now? Do I pretend that I have peace where I am just to justify why I don't want to go to the right place?
