Busy July......

These were the chain of events last July........

1. I went to Manila with my husband on July 2 for his forthcoming Chinese 80th birthday celebration to be held in Metro Manila on July 12, 2019.

2. All my children arrived Manila on different dates to be with us at my second home in Manila.  They all took their leave of absences from work. I was the chief planner of the occasion. All my siblings were informed before hand and they too were in Manila to support me and Lucas for the big event.
3. Understandably, among the siblings of Lucas, Luna was the only one who could come, together with his wife Tina and their children and their spouses. Lucas' eldest brother Lucio and his wife Conchita were left in Cotabato holding the fort, meaning to watch the the store, so we could spend the whole month of July fully.

3. My husband Chinese 80th birthday party was to be held at  Crowne Plaza Hotel on July 12, 2019. Aside from the party event, we were also going to put up Lucas’ paintings on exhibit. Everyone helped in one way or another. But my daughter Martha was my foremost contact since she was the only one who was living in Manila. We could not have done it without her. Kudos to Martha! But surely, I do also appreciated everyone's help, effort and contribution.

4. Before the birthday celebration,  I did plan for the family to vacation at Mannhann Resort on July 6, 7 and 8 for two nights and three days in Tagaytay. Some of my children like Roy and Tom had not visited the place as of yet. Thanks to the Chua’s family for the hospitable accommodation. In Tagaytay, upon my invitation, some of my siblings came to chill with us at the classy private resort. My invitation to my siblings was in acknowledgement of their sincere support to me and my family. The place was really big enough to accommodate more people. I took charge of feeding the whole bunch. I brought along two househelps and one driver to help. Thanks again to the Chua's family for the accommodation.

5. Everybody was excited because aside from the birthday party event, we were also preparing for our forthcoming family trip to Taiwan, from grandpa, grandma to the grandkids. All eleven of us in the family. That would be on July 14, two days later after the birthday.

6. I was the busiest person in charged. Hahaha. I wanted things to go my way. I tried to stay cool. But how can anybody stay cool with all the comings and goings happening around.

7. One of the hullabaloos of our own making was the practice of line-dance and ballroom dancing at my brother’s Jun place. We hired three professional dance instructors to the grand event to initiate dance participation. But to ensure that everybody could pick up some steps during the occasion, I requested a night of practice beforehand with our main contact. That was two nights prior. Thanks to my sister-in-law Jean for lending us their place and for being a gracious hostess to me, my family and siblings.

7. The eve before the birthday, I was calling up more friends to confirm their attendance and adding more people to my roster of guests. At home, my son Roy, and the girls namely Martha, Marion, Angel and Suiling were busy getting Lucas’ art work ready for exhibition. Gosh, there was so much work to be done. I hoped everything goes well according to plan.

8. The morning of July 12, I woke up early to prepare the family breakfast. My husband Lucas, myself and all family members partook of the traditional birthday noodles and hard boiled eggs for longevity.

9. After lunch, the girls checked-in early at the hotel for hair and make up. The boys followed suit in the afternoon. How lucky for them boys not needing any hair and make up done. Hehehe.

10. At seven in the evening, the one man art exhibit of Lucas was officially opened at the party venue, at Ballroom Ruby-B, Crowne Plaza Hotel. Lucas wore a rose buttoneer on his lapel pinned by his children. It was his special night.

11. Guests started to arrive as early as seven pm despite the Friday’s traffic jam and bad weather. I really do appreciate everybody's kind gesture and effort to be early that evening.

12. The program began at 8pm. My second son Tomas emceed for the party. He also gave the welcome speech. He gave a touching tribute to his father, opening up on why the children thought of putting up their father’s paintings on exhibit. Kudos to Tom! He did pretty well hosting the event.

13. After the remarks, was my next number. I sang a song entitled “My Cup Runneth Over” as a serenade to my beloved husband. In between the song, I also danced briefly with Lucas. Bragging aside, I could say, I did a good rendition. (Of course with the help of a good pianist, and violin and flute accompaniment.) I dare say my song made a few people teary eyed that night. Hehehe. 

14. After the serenade, the band played a lively birthday song. I guided Lucas to the birthday cake and all family members gathered around us. The song continued ........."....Happy birthday to you!” And the birthday candles were blown. (Hurrah!)

15. My youngest son Emil gave a thanksgiving prayer and said the grace before meal, after which the 8 course lauriat dinner ensued. 

16. Before the dinner was over, dessert wine was served and poured into the wine glasses. Roy my eldest son gave a toast to his father, saying how his father has inspired him. He said that if he were not into computer, he would also want to become an artist too. He narrated briefly how his father has influenced him and how he has been emulated by his father’s examples in life.

16. Desserts were fresh fruits and cold red bean pudding. As people continued to enjoy their desserts. The emcee called upon the family members to the dance floor for the Tan family line dance presentation. The dance “Good Times” was  choreographed by my daughter-in-law Suiling. It was a happy, lively dance that we all enjoyed dancing. Our guests were simply amazed that even my grandchildren Dylan and Yuri, even Roy and Emil and yours truly gamely performed the cheerful number. Hahaha.

17. After the family line-dance, the three dance instructors whom we hired, took over the dance floor. They initiated and taught the community group dance, followed by different variations. The dance instructors made them easy to follow. It was well participated by others.

18. Ballroom dancing ensued. The music played all night, yet with a minor accident that took place with my sister Theng.. After the minor scare, but which everything turned out all right, we went back to the dance floor. The three dance instructors were dancing with many of our guests, and other couples came forward too, to dance and enjoy the evening away.

19.  The contract time for the party was supposedly to end at 11pm, but the family asked for extension from the management. People were still lingering around the art exhibit and guests still dancing. The party lasted until almost twelve midnight. After it was over, I breathed a sigh of relief. Thank God for the nice and successful birthday celebration. I hope the guests enjoyed it as much as we did.
20. My husband Lucas and I slept at the hotel for the night. The next morning, my twins Martha and Marion picked us up from the hotel. Everybody rested at home that particular day to prepare for an early trip next morning to Taiwan.
21. We left for Taiwan in the early morning of July 14, 2019. We spent 5 days and four nights in Taipei. Luxuriantly, my family of 11 people were accommodated in one big tourist bus all to ourselves. Now in Taiwan with the tourist guide in-charge, I could relax much. Alas, Taiwan was hotter than the Philippines, but we made do and enjoyed our vacation to the max. We ate good food, went sight seeings, stayed in comfortable hotels and shopped. Taiwan is big on consumerism. I could post about our travels in a separate post.
22. After 5 days, we flew back home. The family arrived Manila safely in the evening of July 18,2019.
23. Two days later, Roy left Manila for USA on July 20. Tom and Emil and the rest of the Cebu contingent of in-laws and grandchildren left for Cebu on July 21. Marion would be leaving on the 29th for New Zealand and Lucas and I to come home to Cotabato on August 1. Martha would be the only one left in Manila. I wish her well. She had to go back to work and she would be tremendously busy at work. I thank God for a wonderful family time, well spent together. Thank God for keeping us safe and bringing us back home to our respective places.
24. Before coming home to Cotabato however, I wanted to do some house repair. I did not want Martha to be left alone to do all the work when we were gone, so I started by getting hyper again, taking charge of home repairs here and there. My husband Lucas was but only too eager to help me.
25. Alas! Lucas had an accident. He fell down on an uneven road pavement near home. He hit his head on the pavement and cut his forehead. The cut on his forehead was big and it was bleeding all over his face. His hands were bruised and his knee scraped. My twins and I brought him to the er. I prayed and prayed so hard. I hope the injuries were not serious. At the hospital, he was submitted for ct scan and x-rays. He received 4 stitches of sutures on his forehead. My Blessed Mother was with us. She was holding all our hands and keeping us together during this time. Thankfully, the Lord is merciful. The scan and x-rays readings found him all right. Lucas was released that same day with instructions on how to care for his wounds and hematoma. Lucas looked awful, aside from the cut, he had a big bump too on the upper part of the forehead and black bruises underneath his eyes. We were grateful though that the injuries were not worse than it looked.  I verily thank God for giving us his protection. O Lord keep us safe. "O God, heal us and we shall be whole; save us and we shall be safe. In you we hope, in you we trust." That untoward incident happened on July 27.
26.  On July 29, Marion left for New Zealand. Lucas came with us to the airport to send her off. Bon voyage Marion. Finish well your dissertation and see you soon again.
27. Lucas and I left Manila on August 1, 2019. His head and face injuries were looking better but now he was feeling pain in his left knee. At home, we need to nurse his knee back to normal again. Currently, he is doing some rehabilitation exercises under the care of a physical therapist. I hope and pray he recovers completely well from the fall. "O Lord, heal him and he shall be whole, save him and he shall be safe. In you we hope. In you we trust." Amen.

Pictures of My Sisters.....

 Our most recent picture together, taken this June 2019.

From left to right - Helen, Jeannette, Heddy, Imelda.

 The four sisters eating noodles together in Japan on March 2014.

Helen, Heddy, Imelda and Jeannette.

 My sisters-in-law Solan Ledesma, Jean Ledesma, myself, Helen, Imelda and Jeannette.

 Taking our snacks in Japan. Imelda and I, kind of look alike. Hehe.

 Jeannette in pensive mood.

 Helen and I at Victoria Peak, Hongkong.

Helen and I at the mall. We enjoyed many things together.

My Sisters

I have three sisters. They are:

1. Imelda Yaw - She is my eldest sister, the eldest among us siblings. She was born on March 13, 1945. She was the most talented among us Ledesma children. Imelda was also popularly known as Theng Theng by her Chinese name. She was fair and petite, one of the most popular girls during her high school years. She was a  school cheerleader, dancer, orator and many more. One of her most unforgettable performances had people in Cotabato forever recalling how gracefully she did a solo calypso dance on top of a giant drum on stage. She was a good actress too, winning the school most coveted best actress award, portraying the role of an old matriarchal lady in a Chinese play contest. Academically she was equally competitive, graduated first honorable mentioned, so narrowly inched by her salutatorian best friend, maybe due to some school board political thing perhaps. After finishing high school, she went to Manila, to study at the University of the East for an accounting course. While taking her four year accountancy education, she was at the same time enrolled at the Chinese Cultural Academy (Qiao Zhong) for she just needed two more years to finish her Chinese education. During her stint at Qiao Zhong, she was entered into a nationwide Chinese inter-scholastic oratorical contest. She came out the winner, the champion/the best orator which was such a high accolade for a girl coming from far flung Cotabato City. This achievement in Manila made my parents and us siblings and her alma mater in Cotabato so very proud of her. And to add more feathers to her cap, she graduated her four year course with ease, she took her board exam and passed the rigorous test on first take. She became a certified public accountant, much to her parents and family’s delight. After passing the board, my rich uncle Fernando Go took her in, to work for him. She married at the age of 25 to James Yaw who was from Manila, (Alas!) a complete opposite to her personality and dream. They had three children, two boys and one girl. Unluckily, her husband is at present sick and incapacitated. And Imelda continues to run her own handkerchiefs business very industriously, six times a week including overtime work. I only have the best of prayers for her many projects to succeed.

2. Jeannette Yu - Jeannette, is a beautiful name taken from a Hollywood actress called Jeannette Macdonald. The second child of Francisco and Mary Ledesma was born on November 4, 1946. She was darker and bigger and more brawn. Family members fondly called her Tata, and her peers called her Suan Suan by her Chinese name. From a big fat brawny girl, she soon grew up taller and more statuesque in high school. My sister became quite an attractive girl. During one Philippine Independence Day parade, she was selected to don as Lady Filipina on a float, representing our Chinese School. She had darker skin, oval face and a tall nose. However her long slanting chinky eyes were her most beautiful and attractive facial features ever. When she went to college in Manila, she took Bachelor of Arts major in sociology at the University of Santo Thomas. She was a social butterfly, having the time if her life with beautiful and popular girls as her peer group. She was courted by boys and she was the only girl among us, who had a steady boyfriend during college, which was by no means, a no no to my parents. Hahaha! One summer vacation, she came home to Cotabato, very in and stylish. She visited our alma mater and attended a graduation ceremony at the school. Tony Yu, one of the most eligible bachelors from the scion of the Yu family that ran the Imperial Hotel and Yu Kuan Guan Hardware in Cotabato City, spotted her. He fell heels over head in love with her. An aggressive wooing soon began and the rest was history. They got married few years later, after she had graduated college and had barely worked few months at a bank in Manila. She was 21 when she married Tony in a wedding of the year event in our hometown Cotabato City. Presently, my sister Jeannette is a widow of ten years. Her four children, three boys and one girl, all inherited their mother’s sociability that make them good entrepreneurs and businessmen.

3. Helen Tansuk - was born on October 31, 1949. She was two years my senior. When we were growing up, I used to tagged along with her. She led and mentored me in many ways. She was a  responsible and good elder sister to me and my younger brothers Wilson and Willie. She was thin,   quiet, slow in motion and tend to be unnoticeable. Academically she was good though. She studied  her assignments and lessons fast. She was getting top honors during her elementary years with great ease. During her younger years, she was gifted with some kind of a photographic memory which nobody really noticed, and which she didn’t really even know. Her talent however did not developed into her teens. When we were grown, sometimes out of nowhere, there were few spark instances of photographic memory where she would quote from a book or magazine without much intention. That really amazed me. “ Did you memorize that?!” I would ask. Although her talent wasn’t further developed into adulthood, yet she was still good. She finished BS Chemistry from Adamson University, Manila. Unluckily, my demised mother did not get to be around when she graduated college and when she passed her board exam on first take. Helen worked as a chemist for many years. She was very independent and reliable. She married at the age of 25 to Felipe Tansuk, my husband Lucas’ bachelorhood best friend. Together, they had three boys. She became domesticated during her child bearing years until her husband passed away from a second heart by-passed operation. Alas, Helen had been sickly since childhood. Today she suffered from weak knees and legs. She was a breast cancer survivor and had a big fall last year which even increased her slow mobility. Yet despise her physical difficulties, to this day, I still consider her my most dependable and reliable sibling. 

Turning Points.....

In 2011, when I turned 60 years old in November, together with my best friend Imelda Bugayong who was also a zodiac fellow scorpion; despite us turning around the milestone age corner, we seemed to be the giddiest girlfriends at hand. We had just recently received our Quezon City Senior ID cards and booklets that entitled us to discounted grocery items, movie passes, medicines, dining and parking benefits. Together, we went to Shangrila Mall, and at their basement food center to try out our newly acquired ids. We were literary laughing about our new acquisitions, our age and everything else. Looking back, both of us seemed to be the happiest senior citizens ever. Hahaha. During that time, at 60 years old, I was not really feeling the age yet. I may not have looked my age either. Hehehe.

When I was 64, I began to feel my age. My shoulder began to ache, my legs and my back also. At one point, I was brought to the er because of unbearable lumbar pain. After which I started keeping some pain pills inside my medicine pouch, fearful of another episode. Knock on the wood but it has not reoccur yet. Maybe due to the fact that I have been doing some stretching exercises and dancing at home, and  tai chi also. Well at 64, I was still wearing heels and could still walk fast. But there were tale tell signs of aging, of sagging skin, eye bags, thinning hair and blurry eyesights and yes, cataract.....

Now I am 67 years old. I just had my left eye cataract operated. After the operation, I could plainly see myself in the mirror. Gosh I look old. I feel old. These days, I have restricted myself from carrying heavy load, bending and squatting. I still have to resume my dancing and exercises. I hope I can go back to my old frame of mind......to keep myself young at heart all the time. “Heal me, O God, and I shall be whole, save me and I shall be safe. In you I hope. Amen. “

Home Again!

I went to Manila again last April 13, 2019, this time with my husband Lucas. We spent the holy week observance in Manila with my daughter Martha. She had a four day break from work. Most people in Manila went out of town, to the beach, to the province or abroad for the long break. But this year, I decided to be in Manila, rather than for Martha to come home to Cotabato because I was going to see my dentist for a tooth capping before the holiday and undergo a left eye cataract procedure after.

During the Holy Thursday observance, my husband Lucas, my daughter Martha, my sister Theng, my brother Ollie and his wife Solan and and I went visiting different churches in Metro Manila. We began at Santuario de San Jose in San Juan, proceeded to Sacred Heart Church, to the Pink Sister's Chapel at New Manila, to the nearby Mount Carmel Church, and lastly to the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Cubao, - 5 churches in all. That night, there were plentiful of people doing the visita iglesias. Some like us, visited the transferred  repository; others were doing their way of the cross, others the rosary perhaps. That night, some churches opened up several confessional services to their faithfuls. There were lines of people patiently waiting for their turns. There were so many pilgrims. I was amazed at the throng of believers. I am pretty sure my Lord knows us by our names. He will certainly bless us for our faith. And by the way, I would like to mention that Santuario de San Jose had the most beautiful repository of all. We stayed there longer for the vigil and I made some personal prayers inside, I hope St. Joseph will intercede and bring my petitions to the Lord our God. I promise to go back. I will wait for the Lord to perform many miracles yet. Remember me and remember us, O Lord!

During the remaining holidays, we watched home movies at my sister Helen's place. Helen who walks with two canes now, has put up a big tv and a movie entertainment gadget at her home. To include her in our holy week activities, we watched old academy award movies at her place such as "Song of Bernadette", "Jesus Christ Superstar" a rock musical; and "Fiddler on the Roof". They were beautiful movies.

On Easter Sunday, I suggested a house warming event at Ollie's new place. We brought pot luck dinner. I cooked native chicken adobo and streamed fish with Chinese herbs. Helen brought pork liempo, Theng brought hofan and Solan ordered many delicious dishes from Mannhann. They were all yum-yummy. I also brought my maids to cleanup after dinner. After dinner though, we watched another home movie picture at Ollie's new residence. Ollie had a new television set and Martha used her netflix to scroll down for entertainment. We watched "Operation Finale" a movie about the capture of nazi's head Adolf Eichmann by the Mossad agents. It was an interesting movie but Theng fell asleep and so did Lucas. Hahaha!

 After the holy week, I prepared myself for my cataract procedure. It was a good thing I had the "best doctor" at American Eye. My cataract procedure took longer than usual because my eye was not responding to the medicine drops. It was not dilating so Doctor James Lee had to manually dilate it. My husband Lucas was my companion but he was outside the operating room. Yet with him around, I felt safe and wholly confident, although I was really really scared and nervous inside. During the procedure, I knew something was not right, so I kept on praying...."Heal me Lord and I shall be whole, save me and I shall be safe. In you I hope." In you I trust. I prayed the Hail Mary, reiterating "....pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death....pray for us sinners, now.....". I repeated the guardian angel prayer several times too.... .And then....... thank God it was over.

Thank God, the doctor did well. Everything was good. When I reached home, I felt exhausted and slept the whole day at home, waking up every two hours for the eye drops and back to sleep again. I also went to sleep the next day too. Lucas watched over me while I slept. He woke me up for meal time and my eye drops too. I was so glad he was with me. I would be lost without him. Thank God, all is well and that I am back home to Cotabato and blogging about it right now. Thank you God, so very very much!!! 

Pictures from Last March......

Here are pictures from Last March........

 Group picture with some of the Lecom members at the Trapesstine Monastery compound.

 With my roommate Mildred Lim. Behind us was the retreat hall.

 The chapel/church of the monastery.

 Group picture with Sister Julie Pesongco, my former student, a cloistered nun at the monastery

 After an over night stay at the monastery in Polomolok, we left for Cotabato and  stopped at Blooming Garden in Tupi for lunch.

 At the restaurant.

 Vegetable salad and healthy blue tea for our starter.

 Group picture.....

 More pictures and striking poses before going home. Hehehe.

 Can you spot me? Hehehe.

 Surely, the one with the more lively pose. Hahaha.

Lucio, Conchita,Tony,Bibi and Lucas, before the Canadian visitors left Cotabato for Manila.

Last March 2019

Last March, my in-laws Dr. Antonio C. Tan and his wife Bibi Tan came home to Cotabato from Canada. Whenever they are here in Cotabato, they stay with me at my home. Bibi Tan is also from Cotabato. For a little bit of Cotabato history and background, her family, the Lim-Go used to open a fabric store in Sinsuat Avenue. Her family had since closed that store, instead they went into the more lucrative business of trading agricultural products. Their family establishment is called Comart. And boy, did they really make good and prosper. These days however Cotabato's business environment had drastically changed. Agricultural trading has lost its luster because of the costly and difficult process of sending out the produce via water transport. Rio Grande River is now hardly pliable due to the silting of the delta. The port and pier have shifted to Polloc, Parang; but even there, the boats are not docking because of the unreasonable fees and labors and costs imposed on the ships and the businessmen. Many a trading establishment has since folded up. Despite that, their family business continues to be operative in the City, although not as progressively as before. Anyway, my sister-in-law Bibi comes home to Cotabato, I think to primarily visit her maiden family, most specially her sister Agiok who mans their business establishment called Comart. During the daytime, she would go visit her maiden family, eat lunch with them, come home in the afternoon, have supper at my place and sleep at LCT Hardware Residence.That is because her husband Tony, who is the second eldest child in the Tan family prefered to spend time with his Tan siblings and sleep at my abode. While spending time in Cotabato though, Bibi had much decisions regarding the couple’s daily activities which were mostly meetings old family friends. Lucas and I were not very good hosts, we just let them be. We let them do or go to whatever and where ever they want to do or go. They come to visit every year, and after many years, I guess I know what they really want already, and that is to just let them be. Infact they would not hesitate to tell us what they like and prefer. The important thing is for me to buy more local fruits because you know Canadians are so much into healthy eating. I have come to be quite adjusted to their yearly visit. This year they stayed for ten days before leaving for Manila.

During their 10 day stay this March, I went for a one day lenten retreat at the Trapessitne Monastery in Polomolok, South Cotabato with the lector community of our parish, the Queen of Peace Church. It was a refreshingly and learning retreat. I roommate with Mildred Lim. I got to met Julie Pesongco, my former student in CCI who has become a cloistered nun. The vespers and the mass were very solemn. The monastery was a peaceful place and I liked the serenity of the surroundings. Not to mention that I simply enjoyed land trips and chatting with the ladies and buying pasalubong to bring home too. Hahaha. At the monastery gift shop, I bought lots of cookies for myself, my husband, the maids and the secretaries. Surely my husband’s and mine sugar will go rocket high because of our many sugar intake from the cookies and biscotti. (The Canadians were not eating any of those sweets by the way.) Hahaha. I also bought a Madonna and Child picture from the gift shop. We had all the religious items we bought blessed by our parish priest, Rev. Father Simeon Samson. On our way home, we passed by the roadside fruit strands and I bought lots of fruits for my visitors too such as pineapples, papayas, avocados, guyabano, corns, and also fish. Coming home, we had lunch at the Blooming Garden in Tupi and bought more pasalubong. Hahaha. Truly, this was such an enjoyable retreat trip for me.