Civil Servant

I've been working for the Department of Agriculture as a permanent employee for almost 7 years now excluding the 2 years as a contract of service worker. Working in the government has its own highs and lows. There are times that I regret working for DA because the intrigues in the office can be much more cruel and daunting than the actual work pressure. My blood pressure shoot up to 140/100 2 years ago because I handled the pressure badly. Bosses can be demanding and deadlines are sure ways to pressure employees into working well into dawn to meet it. It was a good thing that I relented to Edwin's request to have a check up because it saved my life. My doctor told me that if I went on with the increasing stress, I might just find myself collapsing on the floor dead.

Private companies are in a way like government. When I used to work for the Mindanao Burley Corporation in General Santos City, pressures of meeting production and area targets haunted me even in my sleep. Although the pay during that time bordered on labor exploitation, I enjoyed the work because for me it was an adventure and being with my contract growers made me feel part of the land. Barrio Siete in Marbel, South Cotabato was my area then and I fell in love with the place. My parents wanted me to quit out of fear for my safety but I pleaded with them that I stay for a few more months. I left when I felt that I've experienced and seen enough. And also because I cannot afford anymore to stay because the pay was more than lousy.

After passing the civil service exam, I tried my luck with DA and got stucked, literally. The "freeze hiring" policy prevented me from getting a higher position but it did not prevent demands from piling. If there was one good thing that came out of my DA employment, its meeting and loving Edwin and the rest they say is history. I also get to travel around the country for free during trainings and seminars that are held anywhere in the Philippines. I guess I am dismayed because there are few opportunities for personal growth in DA because there are protocols that you have to adhere to. Trainings also for skills development and opportunities for added knowledge are few and limited only to bosses.

But the saddest part is when civil servants become to complacent and has served the bureacracy too long that they fall into habits of gossip, intrigue, laziness, procastination, and lose the fire within them.