In 2017, Greenwoods Pet Hospital had already been around for ten years. Ten years of treating pets, comforting families, and building trust. But behind the smiles and the work, I was carrying a heavy truth—GPH didn’t have a home of its own.
We were tenants. Every year, rent went up. Every year, the building decayed. Sometimes, the landlord’s words felt more like chains than agreements. I wanted to fight, but I couldn’t. Because one wrong move, and our lease could vanish overnight. Imagine pouring your life into something that could be taken away with a single signature. That was my reality.
I told myself I had to leave. Maybe the Philippines wasn’t for me. Maybe Canada was. I decided to take the NAVLE, and I studied every day at Ebens Coffee Shop. I carried books, notes, and dreams of a new life abroad. But if I’m honest—I wasn’t excited. I was scared. Scared of leaving everything I loved behind.
Then one day, as if heaven wanted to test me, I looked up and saw it. A building across the coffee shop im sitted.. For sale. I froze.
In my mind, I could already see it—our reception area, our surgery room, the place where GPH would finally stand free. I fell in love instantly.
For the first time, I didn’t want Canada. I didn’t want NAVLE. What I wanted was right there, across that road.
But the price crushed me: 13 million pesos. It felt unreachable. For people like senators, not for vets like me. I almost gave up.
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Until one afternoon, Dr. Expedito Lee, a fellow veterinarian, came to the clinic for his rota. I shared my impossible dream. He didn’t laugh. He didn’t doubt. He said, “Let’s go. Let’s see it together.”
As we walked, I told him, “Doc, it’s 13 million. That’s too much.”
He looked me straight in the eyes and asked, “Are you a millionaire?”
I paused. “In assets, maybe… yes.”
Then he said words I will never forget:
“In the 1980s, millionaires were kidnapped. Today, they’re everywhere. Now it’s the billionaires who stand out. So don’t tell me you can’t be approved. You can.”
That moment broke something inside me—and rebuilt me at the same time. His words became a torch in the darkness.
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From then on, I didn’t sleep. I devoured everything I could about bank loans. How to apply. How to prepare. How to convince. Every day, I prayed. Every night, I whispered, Lord, please let this be mine.
And one day, it happened. I was approved.
Greenwoods Pet Hospital finally had a home. Not rented. Ours.
Looking back now, I see what made the difference.
It wasn’t just money, or luck, or timing.
It was two things: a trigger, and a mentor.
Something to ignite the fire, and someone to fan the flames.
Sometimes, all it takes is one sentence to rewrite the entire story of your life.
And that day, I found mine.
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Dr. Geoff Carullo is a Fellow and the current President of the Philippine College of Canine Practitioners.
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