Our Lady of Pillar

My sister Helen went to Europe several times. Upon coming home from her travels, I listened to her many stories. The foremost story that enthralled me was her going to Zaragoza, Spain where she got to see the image of Our Lady of Pillar and the miraculous pillar itself.

“I just learned that Pilar in English, means pillar, as in the column.” She said enthusiastically. And her interesting story was about the miraculous appearance of our Nuestra Senora del Pilar to St. James who went to Spain to spread the good news. Accordingly, St. James was not very successful in preaching the faith because he was not very eloquent, so he asked for the help of the Blessed Mother. The Blessed Mother who was at that time still alive appeared to him standing on a divine pillar near a river. Divine because the pillar was not made from human hands, but rather, it came down from heaven. The Blessed Mother promised to help St. James and to give him plentiful of converts. As it turned out St. James was able to evangelize Spain, and in return Spain was instrumental in converting many nations. Henceforth, St. James is the apostle with the most Catholic coverts all over the world, including the Philippines.

After my sister Helen’s story, I also heard from one of the sermons of Bishop Collin Bagaforo, that Our Lady of Pillar was the first apparition manifested by our Virgin Mother, and it happened while she was still alive living in Greece or Turkey. It just shows us how sympathetic the Lady is to the call of those who need her help.

I was also curious because Our Lady of Pilar is most venerated in Fort del Pilar, Zamboanga, Philippines. When I was a little girl, I heard a story about a big flood in Zamboanga City. The Infant Jesus accordingly was missing from the statue by the wall. The Boy was found playing with flood waters by his Mother. The Mother came down and took the Boy back and the water receded. Of course this was only a story, and many people must have long forgotten about this tale. But indeed there was once a big flood in Zamboanga City, as well as here in Cotabato City too. Sometimes my memory surprises me.

And wonder of wonders, few years back, my sons Roy, Tomas and Emil were able to go on a walking pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella to the burial site of St. James. It was an adventure, an expedition as well as a religious pilgrimage for them. But their going there, drew my heart even closer to St. James and our blessed mother. In my prayers, I ask St. James to intercede for them.

Last night, I participated my tenth healing rosary on air. The bishop of Imus Cathedral was leading the prayers with the venerated image of Nuestra Senora del Pilar. The commentator briefly narrated the story of St. James and Our Lady of Pillar. Even though I knew of the story already, I was still very much enthralled to hear it again. Our Lady of Pillar in Imus had come to the aid of the Cavite people many times; whether it be man made or natural calamity. One of the disasters happened to be the cholera epidemic in Imus. Henceforth we as one people, and one nation are appealing to her again, to aid us during this crisis. O Blessed Mother, help us and pray for us.

Lockdown in Cotabato City

In the Philippines, because of the spread of the virus, president Rodrigo Duterte announced the lockdown of Metro Manila and the entire province of Luzon starting March 15, 2020; after which there would be no air, sea or land travel, coming or going to other parts of the Philippines. Cotabato City which is located in Mindanao gets most of our supply from Metro Manila, so people here began to panic. I bought medicines, food supply like noodles, canned goods, salted fish and other essentials, good for one month. But because of our shared building and existing shared kitchen policy with my in-laws, I became unwittingly responsible for our two households, namely the household of Luna and Tina Tan and their two maids, and the household of Lucas and Heddy Tan, our own two maids and one common cook, nine persons in all. (Our children are all dispersed in different places.)

Cotabato City began its lockdown on March 16, 2020. Three days later we closed our store and confined ourselves in our home. The first fear was getting the virus. We prohibited the maids to go out and we closed our homes to any callers. Nobody is allowed to enter our building. My second fear was, having not enough food supply to last us for a month. I tried to ration the use of our stockpile. My own personal biscuits, crackers, tea, chocolates, food supplements, I carefully approportioned them too. My sister-in-law Tina had a runner guy (who worked in her cellphone store), to buy her things. Sometimes I would request that same guy to buy me bread or fruits, but even then, I was afraid I might get him infected, so I did it as less often as possible. Our fresh food though like pork, fish and vegetables got depleted already during the first week of the lockdown, so I hesitantly allowed the maids to go to the market. Where as, the households used to market everyday, now we do it once a week, or even longer. I tried my best to stretch our food supply to last longer. We were not eating like paupers but we were not eating like kings either. Nobody was complaining (except maybe Luna, I heard him a few times.)

After few weeks, I found out that I could call for grocery and produce deliveries, henceforth I started calling and buying things. I was ordering more and better goods too. We began to eat better also. Still, I was most careful in using our stockpile to last us longer, for I was also giving aids to some of our former helpers.

After two months, I decided to buy flour and baking powder. Yesterday, with my remaining dried blueberries and with the recipe of my daughter-in-law Angel, I baked a batch of oatmeal blueberry muffins. Oh, it was so good for snacks and desserts, I tried refraining myself from eating it three times a day. Haha!

Thanks to the following persons who sent me food:
1. My sister Jeannette Yu - for sending me loaves of bread, fried chicken and raddish cake, and the suman today.
2. Margie Plando - for the big beautiful ripe mangoes.
3. Tina Tan - for the pomelos, pineapple and other fruits.
4. Nestor Alasalas - for bringing to me my own produce from my own lot, those sweet Manga Manila and coconuts.
5. Last but not the least, my household helps for sharing their banana-qs.

As of today, after almost a month, Cotabato City has a new positive case. Yesterday, my in-laws Lucio and Conchita came home from Davao after being held up for two months. The store is again open for business. I keep at home since I don’t work for the store. I am as scared as ever because of the new positive. O Lord, please put an end to the spread of the virus. Please put an end to this pandemic. Have mercy on us O Lord, have mercy.

Healing Rosary

Last night, May 6 at nine in the evening, my husband, my household-helps and I  participated in the 8th Healing Rosary for the World; live-streamed from Manila Cathedral, Facebook. It all began when Pope Francis led his flock in praying.
1. Pope Francis led the first healing rosary in Rome on March 19, 2020 during the Feast Day of St. Joseph, the foster father of Jesus.
2. The Next Wednesday, March 25, on the Feast of Assumption, our very own Cardinal Luis Tagle in Rome, Italy, followed his footsteps by leading the healing rosary. Because of the big following among Filipinos, subsequently the healing rosary came to be recited in the Philippines every Wednesday at nine o’clock in the evening, covering different churches around the country. The following below are the sequences done by different churches: if my memory serves me right.
3. The third healing rosary was recited at the Sto. Nino Cathedral in Cebu City, with the original statue of the Infant Jesus.
4. Then at Antipolo Church with the miraculous statue of our Blessed Virgin Mary.
5. Followed by Dagupan Church led by Bishop Villegas with the miraculous statue of Our Lady of Manaoag.
6. Then at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Cubao, Quezon City with the replica statue of Our Lady of La Naval.
7. The 7th healing rosary was led by the archbishop of Davao in his residence in Davao City.
8. Last night, 5 different churches led the 5 mysteries with participation coming from various orders of religious men and women of the Philippines. The five churches that led the rosary were:
    a. Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in Quezon City
    b. Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Quezon City
    c. Church of Mary, Help of Christians, Paranaque
    d. Shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help, Baclaran, Manila
    e. Church of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of La Naval Manila,  Sto. Domingo, Quezon City

Last night, the 8th Healing Rosary was quite long, as 5 different churches were leading each mystery. The different religious orders and groups were also given importance in their participations. There were singing of hymns, homilies and the recitation of the litany. I love the litany but I was not very keen with the homilies. In fairness though, some religious persons gave beautiful talks. I was just restless because the night was getting late and my husband and the maids had work to do the next day.

But I was very happy because many a friend were following the healing rosaries every week because I have been messaging and reminding them. And besides, because I felt that those five churches last night were somehow chosen very closely to my heart: I felt really close to Jesus and my blessed mother.
1. When I was young, my cousin Nelly, a devotee of our Lady of Lourdes and her sisters brought me to the Retiro Church to attend mass. There was one incident where I looked up to the crown on the statue and was mesmerized by the sparkle of the gems on her head. My cousin Adele saw my fixated gazed upon the crown, she thought I was kind of crazy. Hahaha. My going to that church had somehow brought about my own devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes.
2.  Ever since my father and my siblings moved residency to New Manila, Quezon City, I have personally felt that I belonged to the parish of Mt. Carmel Church whenever I was there. These days, although I am not living in New Manila anymore, I still prefer to attend my Sunday masses at Mt. Carmel Church whenever I am there. I truly love the serenity and the solemnity and the ambiance of the church.
3. I have never been to the Church of Mary, Help of Christians, but I had been drawn to this title of our Blessed Mother when I was praying for my son Emil while he was studying at Ateneo de Manila University. While praying the litany, for the intentions of Emil, I singled out Mary, Help of Christians to help my son with his hardships. Thank you O Blessed Mother for your many help. When this covid 19 will be gone and done, I will try to visit this church. My best friend Imelda Bugayong agreed to go with me too.
4. As you know, my siblings and I are devotees of Our Mother of Perpetual Help. When I am in Manila, together with my siblings, we go visit  Baclaran Church on Tuesday nights to offer our prayers and petitions to our mother to intercede for us.
5. I used to study at UST. The university is run by the Dominican priests, so too with the Sto. Domingo Church of Our Lady of La Naval. The Lady of La Naval is akin to Our Lady of Rosary. I visited Sto. Domingo Church few times, but I pray my rosary religiously these days.
O Blessed Mother, do intercede for us.
O God, have mercy on us. Have mercy on your people.

Reposting from Facebook

The last Sunday mass I attended was on March 15, 2020 at Queen of Peace Church before the community lockdown in Cotabato City on March 16. I was one of the readers and I was very paranoid because most of the people were not very aware of the gravity of the spread of the virus yet. (And careless about distancing). I was really scared of using the microphone too close to my mouth, sharing it with two other people; Cecile the first reader (I was the second reader) and our priest Father Samson. I wiped the microphone with cleansing wipes before the start of the liturgy, but still I was not very confident enough about its safety. After the mass, I left the church immediately, and together with my husband and my friend Siolan, off we went to the beach to bask under the sun and swim in the sea. Today marks my seventh Sunday to attend mass on tv.
O Lord, for how long will you deliver us from our anxiety and fear.

Plans Thwarted....

This 2020, my husband and I planned to do a lot of travelling.....

 

First, we bought tickets for May as early as 2019, together with our daughter Martha to go to New Zealand for my daughter Marion’s (Martha’s twin) graduation. My daughter Marion went to New Zealand three years ago to further her studies on disaster management. Since this would be our first time to go the country, we also arranged a tour from Auckland to Wellington. We did plan this trip to visit Marion towards the end of her studies, so as not to distract her from her many works and commitments. But unfortunately this covid disease side steps all our plans.
But God is tremendously kind to us, and the good news is, my daughter Marion successfully defended her thesis on March 20 (on her birthday). And she was also further nominated for the university dean’s list. Yay! This was great. I did not mind that our flight to New Zealand was cancelled, nor minded that Marion’s graduation ceremony was not going to happen. I was simply overjoyed by the mere fact that she had passed and was recognized. Thank you dear Lord! The most important thing is she has already hurdled her doctorate degree and has an on going research work with the university. I don’t mind not being able to travel to New Zealand. Thank you dear Lord. Do keep her safe always.

Secondly, I booked a flight to Manila with my husband in February to attend the wedding of my niece Jacy and at the same time to visit my daughter Martha in Manila. But two days before my intended flight, I personally cancelled our trip because I was scared to take the plane ride with an unknown virus. 

Third, thinking that things would become better by March, I planned to go to Manila before March 20 with my husband to visit Martha, on her birthday and to attend the engagement party and ceremony of my nephew Miguel, subsequently his wedding to take place in September this year. But the contamination of the virus was getting out of hand and President Duterte declared a community quarantine for Metro Manila and the whole of Luzon starting March 15. My brother Wilson also cancelled the engagement party a week before the event because the parents of the intended bethroded girl were sick with suspicion of the dreaded disease. Thankfully they recovered, the father from pneumonia and the mother from mild symptoms. Joyce the fiancée of my nephew was tested negative. While thankfully, somehow prior to the engagement, Miguel had an earlier distancing, due to some Chinese custom of not meeting his girlfriend for 15 days prior to the engagement proper. Thank God for sparing and protecting everybody. Thank you O Lord.

Fourth, my eldest sister Imelda’s (Theng Theng) husband passed away from a lingering illness on March 11 in Manila. I did not go to Manila to condole and console my sister, because again I was scared to take the plane ride. I spoke to her over the phone, and reiterated that she should take care of herself. As you know my sister is now suffering from Alzheimer. After the burial of her husband, she went to stay with her sister-in-law for few days. Unfortunately, her sister-in-law did not know how to handle her, and my sister Imelda’s (Theng Theng) son, quickly and conveniently transferred my sister to a senile home, during this time of the covid lockdown, without consulting us siblings. We the siblings want to take her out but this covid lockdown and scare is hampering our efforts. We can not even visit her to know her real condition. I talked to her once but briefly, and twice with her nurse. We have no way of really knowing her current situation. I hope this covid ends soon, so we can get to visit her, or take her home to any of our own siblings’ houses.

Fifth, early on, since last year, my husband Lucas, my daughter Martha and I talked about going to USA sometime around the fall season, in August or September; to visit foremostly my son Roy in Seattle, and then fly to Virginia to see my husband’s brother, Dr. Domingo Tan and his wife Jackie. The Tans intended to do a small family reunion in Virginia. We will be meeting there with My husband’s second eldest brother Dr. Antonio Tan and his wife Peckha from Canada, and younger sister Lehua Lim from Los Angeles. But all these are forsaken now, because we have to stay home, stay put and not endanger our lives, nor other people lives as well. When this shall all be over and behind us, I think I will be scared to travel. O Lord have mercy us and the whole world.

Paranoia

I was a paranoid before, but I get even crazier ever since this disease of the covid 19 begun. As early as the first week of February, I had already lockdown my second home in Manila from visitors. I also cancelled my flight to Manila to attend the wedding of my niece in February. I was scared to be confined together with my 80 year old husband inside the airplane with an unknown carrier. Yet I attended my class reunion (with caution) in Davao on February 27 to March 1st. The “exclusively for classmates only” event was carefully planned. We booked our stay at Paradise Island Resort which had a wide open-air space and big beach area and few foreign tourists to boot too. My travel from Cotabato to Davao was via land, in a private van (Toyota super grandia). The Cotabato contingent was composed of 5 healthy classmates; thanks to Gerry Tan, who was classmate, driver and owner of the vehicle all over. Hehehe. But we can never be sure, that after basking from the sun and the sea, whom might we get in contact with when we transferred venue from the Paradise Islands to Abreeza Seda Hotel, which we also included a day tour to Malagos Farm. We - meaning 22 former classmates, all of the age of 68, 69 and/or 70. We were not all healthy, two had suffered stroke and both walked with difficulty; one classmate was asthmatic with heart palpitation, one went through knee replacement (but thankfully she was walking a lot better now), one had concurrent prostate problem, another with heart palpitation and bladder issues, and two boys who were still chain smoking. It was a good thing Davao was strict with no smoking rule, hence they had to leave us to go somewhere else to smoke. Hehe. It was a successful reunion though. Not much fun fare except to get together and keep in touch. But I was wary and scared about other people all through out the time. Nobody was wearing mask as of yet.

When I came back home to Cotabato, my best friends Imelda Bugayong and Anita Go together with Imelda’s husband Arthuro came back home with me. They were my house guests. I hosted them and brought them around Cotabato. I took care that we did not go to crowded places too. They stayed with me for three days and two nights. When they left, I was kind of feeling exhausted. My throat was strained from talking too much. My voice became hoarse. I was so scared that I might be sick. I counted the days after my best friends left since March 4. Thankfully everybody from our reunion arrived home safe and sound, including me.
But I was concerned about my son Roy in Seattle, my daughter Martha in Manila. They were in the hot spot areas. It was a good thing that President Duterte declared a quarantine early-on starting March 15, but early wasn’t early enough. Many people had already travelled and confirmed cases had reached Mindanao even Cotabato City. I had forbidden my maids to go out even before the national quarantine was declared. I gave them small bottles of alcohol and/or hand sanitizer each, gave them money to buy two cloth masks per person, to wear mask when they go to the market, to wash their hands before entering the house, etc, etc.
One night, I shedded tears over a person on tv who was in anguished because his father died from covid 19. He was distressed for his father had to die alone. He was so broken hearted because he could not even hug nor console his mother. I was so much troubled after listening to the story. After which I got scared later, because I realized I was suddenly not able to breathe well. I felt I was not breathing normally. All fearful thoughts came to my mind. But my practical sense told me that maybe  I was hyper ventilating, or maybe my nose clogged-up after crying. I tried to calm down. I did a simple in and out breathing exercise. I played my iPad solitaire game until one o’clock in the morning until I thought my breathing became normalized again. Then I fell asleep. I was so thankful the next day to wake up normal. I prayed for God to not let this fear consume me. Have mercy on me O Lord, have mercy on us, and have mercy on the whole world.

Palm Sunday.....

Few days before Palm Sunday, I was frantically looking for the right tv channel and church instructions on how to attend and participate the Palm Sunday mass on air.

Every Sunday, I usually follow the schedule of the Manila Cathedral mass at 10 o'clock in the morning which is done in Tagalog. But since it is the Palm Sunday, I am hoping to look for something that is in English instead. So far, my archdiocese and parish here in Cotabato are not able to live stream their masses yet. Sometimes they do, but they don’t have previous announcements and schedules to follow regularly.

So just then while browsing the net, our parish priest Father Simeon Samson sent feelers for those who wanted to have their palm leaves blessed, to forward them to the church. I had palm leaves at my lot, so I sent some to be blessed. But they could be retrieved back on Tuesday yet. In the mean time, what was I supposed to do while attending Palm Sunday mass on tv? Shouldn’t I have some palms with me as well? In anticipation though, I brought down three potted palmeras plants from my roof top garden to my living room. And then, thankfully, on the eve of Palm Sunday, our retired Cardinal Orlando Quevedo notified the faithful, that we can have palm leaves or any green leafy branches ready at hand while attending masses on air or online. The blessing of the palms accordingly is done during the reading of the gospel. We can hold them in our hands during the blessing which is done before the start of the mass. After learning about it, I went to the group chat of the MMLC ladies and other friends to help them out, (specially my sister Jeannette Yu) regarding the processes of the mass. For the Catholics, this Palm Sunday begins the observance of the Holy Week season, until Easter. So I happily cut the branches of my potted palmeras plants for this event, even distributed it among my house helps who joined us. Thankfully the mass at the Manila Cathedral that Sunday was in English.

The palm if you must know is a symbol of our joyous welcoming of Jesus Christ as our king. This time it is even made more meaningful, as we faithfully welcome Jesus to come into our homes and into our lives.

In preparation for my Palm Sunday mass.

 We joyfully welcome you Jesus to our homes.

 Martha’s palm leaves put together with the Lourdes’ mementos in Manila.

Marion’s palm leaves in New Zealand.

We attended the Manila Cathedral’s on air and on line mass at the same time.