We were all excited when Baby Keira was born, the first daughter of my brother Jojo. Of course, who wouldn’t be? Our family has all the reasons to celebrate for the coming of our additional member! She has a pair of big lovely eyes, an adorable face and a cute smile just like her father's. She wiped away our pain and disappointment since the death of the first son of my youngest sister Janice.
The emotional stress we suffered over the death of my nephew cannot be easily forgotten. We prayed for healing to come to our family so we could recover from such great loss. And it’s true that when someone’s gone, another will come. She may not know it yet but Baby Keira brought us life and comfort in her own little way. Her arrival signifies that God can give us happiness in the midst of our loneliness, at a time when we were almost blown out of proportion. When we thought that death of a loved-one would always cause so much pain before we could ever move on.
Every time I see the innocence in Keira’s eyes, I have mix-feelings of joy and sadness. I’m happy to see her grow into a cute lovely baby, but then I feel a little bit sad because our parents will never have the chance to see her. My father and mother died at the time when my siblings and I were just learning to discover new things. We were very young then and dependent of them. I had reasons to ask God, why? Why my parents, why did they die too soon?
The years of living without our parents became a sea of struggle and pain. It took years before we realized that we were still alive and had to go on. Living in this world for us is absolutely priceless. We had to learn how to fight for our life; we had to deal with people who took advantage of us, not to mention the huge amount of hardship just to put food on the table. Each time we think about the past, we become stronger and stronger and move up to the stairs of life one step at a time. We looked forward to the days when our weeping would soon be replaced by indescribable joy we have never imagined.
Then Baby Keira came. Death will hold us no more and the pain of grief cannot overcome us for such a long time. Yes, we cry once in a while but still the grace of God is always there. As long as there is free air to breathe, a beautiful morning to wake up for and a setting sun to view each day, we have reasons to be happy. Our cute little baby doesn’t have the ability yet to know our feelings nor understand our thoughts but she is one proof that there is indeed life after death.
It was a last minute decision for me to travel to Aringay, La Union on a Friday midnight. My supposed trip to Tagaytay on Saturday was cancelled so I opted for a different itinerary just to appease my itchy feet. The 5 1/2 hour travel on a bus was quiet and cool with a few stops along the way. I arrived at 5:30 am on Saturday and met my long-time friend Femia who was celebrating her birthday that day. I slept for a few hours just to regain strength and prepare for a certainly busy hour later.
When I woke up at almost noon, I met Femia’s family and relatives who were busy preparing for the celebration. They were so warm and hospitable that it made feel at home. I helped prepare the fried lumpia and had the chance to chat with them. But when the rented videoke arrived, I jumped off my feet and started singing, hehe!
Aringay is a cool place, with a wide area of farmland that produces tobacco, corn, rice and sugarcane. I was expecting houses made of bamboo and native nipa roof but I was amazed of the huge concrete houses standing on this side of Northern Luzon. Even Femia’s house is absolutely opposite from the native house I pictured in my mind. The floor and walls are made of tiles that I felt living in a 2nd class subdivision in Manila.
After tiring myself by singing in videoke, I grabbed the camera and took shots of the place and people who were busy preparing and cooking. It was really fun meeting new faces with a different dialect. I could hardly understand what they were talking in Ilocano but at least I was able to befriend them by talking with them in Tagalog.
Then evening came, all the dishes were already cooked and the invited guests, relatives and neighbors were beginning to pour in. Of course, the videoke was the star of the night. As expected, the visitors became busy queuing with the songs as they waited for their turn to sing. Soon despite of the busy people around, I took pictures of every dish before it was served on the table. The dinner party for my dear friend was a whole lot of fun, everybody enjoyed singing, eating and chatting. And for me, meeting new people and discovering about their customs is something I will truly remember.
The following day was Sunday. I was planning to go to Baguio to attend the Victory church but I woke up late so I just stayed and rested the whole afternoon. Then on Monday morning, I strutted to the beach with Precious, who is Femia’s relative. She accompanied me on my way there since she is more familiar with the place. We walked for 30 minutes but didn’t feel exhausted because we enjoyed walking around. We passed by a wide area of fields with different crops, mostly tobacco and corn. Some farmers were already out there doing their daily task which is watering the plants. I learned that it didn’t rain since November but the good thing is, since the farmland is near the coastal area, there are excavated wells that help in preventing the threat of drought.
We finally reached the shore and the sea water was very calm and inviting. I felt sorry for not bringing my swim wear, wished I was able to swim even for a few minutes. Nevertheless, the fishermen nearby caught my attention. We hurriedly came to see their catch for the day. I thought I would see a lot of different fish inside the fishing boat but was disappointed. Only two kilos of fish were taken from the four-hour fishing of those fishermen. I felt sad for them; they went out there on the sea as early as 4:00 am and went back at 8:00 am for just a few catch. I interviewed of the fishermen and said that they still have to pay for the 2 liters of gas which they used for the boat. Even for that dismayed situation, he was still hopeful. Times like that happen he said, there are times they have a big catch and sometimes it’s the other way around.
We’ve seen and heard enough, so Precious and I started back home. It was a memorable trip to the beach even if I didn’t have the opportunity to swim. I promised that next time I will see to it that I will taste the salt water there.
Wednesday was my last day so I was thinking of the best thing to do before going back to Manila. Coincidentally, it was San Fernando, La Union’s Fiesta and there was a pageant night. So Femia, Precious and I wasted no time at all and found ourselves brushing elbows, not to mention heads with a jam-packed people around the plaza who wanted to see the Miss San Fernando Beauty Pageant. There were TV personalities present at the event as well as politicians who took the opportunity to campaign to the crowd. Then the celebration ended the night with colorful fireworks and we hang there for a moment to watch.
Early in the morning, I bade goodbye to the family who hosted me and thanked them for a very warm reception they have shown. Then I took the bus going to Manila. With me was a box loaded with Apple and Cambodian mango, squash and string beans. I really enjoyed my 5-day vacation and hoped I could stay longer but my duty in Manila cannot be put on hold. However I promised my friend that I’ll be back to Aringay whenever I find the time.
Place: Soriano Residence, San Benito Norte, Aringay, La Union
Date: February 6-10, 2010 Transportation: Partas Bus via Laoag Fare: Php 348.00 one way
The 7-day Prayer and Fasting is one thing I’ve been looking forward to every year. It usually happens during the first week of January. I wrote down my faith goals for this year 2010: personal goals, spiritual goals, and even goals for my family. I started praying for it yesterday which will end on Thursday next week. I really enjoyed my time with God on the first day. Without any food intake (just water), I felt the presence of God as I read the Bible, sang worship songs and played the guitar. Today is already the second day and I expect more breakthroughs!
The years of living without our parents became a sea of struggle and pain. It took years before we realized that we were still alive and had to go on. Living in this world for us is absolutely priceless. We had to learn how to fight for our life; we had to deal with people who took advantage of us, not to mention the huge amount of hardship just to put food on the table. Each time we think about the past, we become stronger and stronger and move up to the stairs of life one step at a time. We looked forward to the days when our weeping would soon be replaced by indescribable joy we have never imagined.
