Once I worked in a big advertising agency in the country named DYR (Dentsu, Young and Rubicam-Alcantara). It was a merger between the biggest ad agency in Japan (Dentsu), the biggest ad agency in the US (Young and Rubicam) and its local partner, Alcantara.
The partnership ended in the early 2000s. The new boss pressured me to specify December 31 as my resignation effectivity, otherwise I won’t get my full separation pay. It was only September, and I told him I had a four-month accumulated leave. It’d be forfeited if I didn’t take it. He shrugged. So right then and there, I decided to exit without a whimper.
I was head of several units, but there was no chance to say good-bye to everyone: they were busy chasing deadlines or on a client call.
After the organization formally closed, someone created a group chat called XDYR. For years, peers in the well-knit company kept in touch and would meet quarterly for dinner and chats. I missed all those events because then, I didn’t want to compromise Tony’s comorbidity.
With Tony gone, I joined them for the first time in November. About 30 of us met at JT’s Manukan Grille (their usual haunt) in Makati. I was relentlessly chided for disappearing like a smoke. Except for change of hair color and deep laugh lines, everyone seemed like they froze in time. The blustery jokes and boisterous laughter were exactly as I remember them.
All 25 years vanished, but new topics of conversation emerged—grandchildren and retirement.
Long-long, the hero in my latest book, “Ready, Set, Focus” arrived with his wife and he gamely posed for photographs, duplicating the cover.
Every DYR department seemed represented: Media, Account Management, Audio-Visual, HR, Art Studio, Maintenance, and Services.
That night, I did NOT travel back in time. X in DYR means grace for today amd every day thereafter.
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