Name game

   It is a rare occasion when my arrival at the office is much awaited. I was greeted by "Ayan na si Liez. I'm sure alam nya." Nostalgia was definitely in the air because Lisette brought old pictures in preparation for the Christmas decoration contest. As our department has undergone major changes from "company closure" to downsizing we wanted a collage showing the evolution of the medical indexing department. My officemates are certain that I know the name of a former officemate who was in only one picture. This former officemate was my co-intern at the East Avenue Medical Center and she finished Medicine at UERM. What is her name? Hmmm… her baby during the kris kringle was Jun Inciong but she thought it was Jun Aguilar. Name…. name… name. Starts with the letter E. She didn't stay long with the company, didn't even finish her training which explains why her name escapes our memories. After much pondering I told them the name could either be Ellen or Eileen. Ha! That was easy. After an hour Ma'am Nellie, our manager arrived so I asked her whether the former officemate's name is Ellen or Eileen. Eileen, she said in an uncertain tone. So there, the issue is settled. Or so I thought. An hour has probably passed when Ampy said, "Liez, hindi ba Em ang name nya?". It struck like the much-awaited ending in a suspense thriller. "Ayun! Em! Emereen." Em. It's such a short name, how can we remember it? It could have been filed as "M" in my memory bank.  And then Domeng said, " Eileen! That's Liez, often wrong but never in doubt."