Mart, Al (whom I haven’t seen in 2-3 years) and I were having a few beers at Petron Treats near Westgate, Alabang. The place is nice to hang out and have a talk… open air, cool breeze blowing, quiet night with light music in the background. We were having this conversation about making mistakes in life and getting hurt. While I was sharing something about a recent experience, Mart said: "Minsan masarap din masaktan…" ("It feels good to be hurt sometimes.")

He has a point. Sometimes the experience of getting hurt emotionally makes us feel human… that we are vulnerable and we’re not just some thinking machines without feelings.

For most of my life I based my decisions on what’s practical and logical. I considered that emotions would only cloud correct judgment. That everything in life can be calculated and quantified… That everything will be easy if I just follow what’s reasonable.

What I didn’t realize is that in denying feelings / emotion, I was also denying a big part of my being human. Being practical and logical also would not eliminate the fact that we’re not perfect. Mistakes and failures always happen to us. What’s is important is how we deal with it.