How old are you?

It is very improper to ask a woman "How old are you?"

In my career, I am constantly surrounded by people who are young enough to be my own children. It sometimes irks me when they get that look on their face, about to pop that "How old are you" question.

The hilarious "wish I had my teenage body" back

Out in the streets, I am always referred to as "Ate"(older sister) or "Nanay" (mother).  It is what it is. I am an older sister to my siblings, and a mother to my three children. 

I hate it when people make a joke out of me being classmates with Jose Rizal. Sure, I went to the same University that gave our National Hero his degree in Medicine. That was centuries ago. Do I look like being born in the 1800s? I don't think so. I think they're just jealous that my parents could afford sending me to The Royal and Pontifical University of Santo Tomas.

I love watching college sports. I pretty much get around by walking. (Sorry to disappoint my detractors, but I do not have arthritis). I still chill out with a cold bottle of beer and some nacho chips. I am flexible enough that I can give that lethal high kick to your ear if I so desire.

I do not like wearing house dresses, those loose-fitting shapeless dresses with obnoxious prints. I still go around in shorts and t-shirts. I do not have varicosities in my legs. Although I have gained weight, I am still pretty much in shape. I am not a DOLOR (dodo hanggang floor) or a SUSAN (suso hanggang tiyan). For my english speaking readers, those two capitalized words only mean one thing - sagging boobs. 

I am proud of this age. I have been through 7 Philippine Presidents. I was a few months old when Ferdinand Marcos became President. I was pregnant with my first child during the EDSA Revolution. I have very vivid memories of the worst typhoons the country has ever seen - Rosing, Dading, Milenyo. I was in UST-Zoology during that Doña Paz tragedy, I was attending Medical School when that  7.7 earthquake hit Nueva Ecija and caused major damage in Luzon, killing hundreds of my countrymen. I had just finished taking my prelim exam in OB-Gyn when the earthquake struck. I have had the scare of my life when at 2:00 in the afternoon, it suddenly because pitch dark. Seven months into my pregnancy with my second child, Mt. Pinatubo erupted.

Enough said.

To set things straight... I AM NOT OLD. I AM EXPERIENCED. Old is a number, and I am not a statistic. I am a person. I am a mother sending kids through school. I am an investor. My business is investing in my children's future. My collateral is my life and my work. I am still working not for myself, not for gadgets but for the three children that God has entrusted me to raise and care for.

You understand? Now, let me ask you back... HOW OLD ARE YOU????