Ganito Ako Magbakasyon... Noon

Ang batang makulit,
Pag summer, mega-init
Walang pasok, uwi sa Ilocos
Doon kay Lolo at Lola
Dalawang linggo hanggag isang buwan.

Tabacco, bigas, mangga,
Kamote, mais, talong, sili,
Katuray, atbp.
Sarisaring tanim,
Kantang ‘bahay kubo” buo na.

Ang carayan, (ang ilog),
Paboritong puntahan,
Si Lola noon doon naglalaba,
Sa gilid maraming tutubi,
Hinuhuli, hinahabol ng batang makulit.

Habulin ang manok,
Ang inahin, tandang pati sisiw,
Pakainin ang baboy,
Sumakay sa kariton
Hila ng kalabaw o baka,
Nasaan ang kambing?
Ayun pinaluto na ni Lola!

May TV, dalawang channels,
Malabo pa; wag na lang manood,
Sumama sa bukid,
Pumunta sa carayan,
Maghabulan sa plaza,
Mag-attend ng DVCS,
Ang batang makulit.

Pagkatapos ng bakasyon,
Uwian na,
Mangungulit naman dito sa Manila.

Ang Alamat ng Atabay

My Lolo is 81 years old. He’s well respected in our small barrio, Atabay, in Ilocos Sur. The whole family looks up to him with much love and respect. Last weekend the family went home to Ilocos to celebrate my Lolo’s birthday.

On our way back from our brief trek from the mountain (where we attempted to pick some mangoes), Rod, my husband was talking to my Lolo…

R: Lolo, ano po ang ibig sabihin ng Atabay (referring to the name of the barrio, he probably thought Atabay is an Ilocano word)?
L: May kwento diyan ang matatanda… noong araw pa…

We were listening intently to what Lolo will say… expecting a magical or tragic story about the town.

R: Ano po yung kwento?
L: Noon daw may mag-asawa na nakatira dito, ang pangalan ng asawang babae ay Ata. Isang araw sabi ng lalaki, aalis na siya, iiwan na niya ang asawa niya. Ang sabi niya sa asawa niya, “Ata… ba-bay…” kaya tinawag na Atabay ang lugar na ito.

Ngeeeh! Ganon! Ata, ba-bay - - - Atabay! Hahahahaha!

I am not sure if Lolo was serious about the story. We were too polite to laugh so we just kept our comments to ourselves and burst into laughter when we reached our room. But one thing’s for sure I will not forget the legend of Atabay, which was told by my 81-year old Lolo.

Insight to A Dream

In a narrow street you were standing,
Buildings all around,
Crowded but deserted.

You gave me a big smile,
I see your jacket with blue stripes,
Your arms open wide.
And then a transformation
A miracle unfolded before my eyes
The street is no longer narrow,
Became 4x larger than before
Buildings abound
And yet there’s still space around.

My daughter, open your eyes,
Open your mind,
Open your heart.
You are called to do great things,
You are called to do great things for Me.

Many times you feel lost,
Lost in everyday undertakings,
Lost in laughter and tears,
Spending time doing many things,
Yet what do you achieve?
I am calling you, my daughter
Hear Me, come to me.

I will open the gates of heaven,
I will pave the way,
For I have plans to make you great,
And make you a blessing.
My daughter, open your eyes,
Open your mind, heart and sprit unto me.

An Account of the Weekend

Had a busy weekend…

Lanie went to the house to give Molly a flu shot. Molly cried which signaled the adults to entertain her with – an ice cube, her stuffed quack-duck toy, non-sense talk, etc, etc….

We had an IT party last Saturday at Sharyn’s house. Ava, our boss, sponsored the party. It’s been a while since the group went out and partied so I think most of us had a good time. There was a lot of food, drinks, Sharyn and Jens were (as usual) great hosts, Robert of course took charge of videoke, Lyn sang Alanis Morisette songs, the girls (Ava called us piranhas!) had their own entertainment – asking the boys to dance, and Mami Joyskee was there and we had a lot of laughs (di ba Edward?)

Since I didn’t get my license last Friday (4-day work week nga pala ang govt offices) and Rod attended a company outing, Chris drove the car. On our way home, we had a flat tire. Buti na lang we were still near Sharyn’s and she sent Mang Boy to assist us but still Chris took charge of changing the tire. Thanks Chris!

Sunday – we started the day by eating party leftovers. Masarap pa di naman. Then we, Molly, Rod, Ate Tata and I, went to Baywalk. Daming tao but I had fun watching the people – there’s free aero classes joined by fat and slim people, young and old; families were jogging, having picnics, walking their dogs, some were wading in dirty water, old folks were fishing, etc. I also watched 3 teams rowing but in one of the boats, I saw one of the guys na nagtatabo ng tubig from the boat at wala pa silang life vests! Hmmm… Now I am having second thoughts about asking the team to go rowing at the bay.

At home we had a little episode with Tita Lita and the maids – Mama to the rescue. This was resolved by 11am just in time for Rod and I to attend service in church. We prayed for peace at home and protection of Molly. After service, we passed by our favorite Iranian carinderia to buy some authentic Iranian food – shawarma, spicy beef flavored with turmeric and curry rice.

Papa, Becky, Juaf and Foncy were in the house when we got back. We went with Becky to the grand opening of the derm clinic in P. Gil.

The kids, Becky and Ma and Pa left at around 5pm. Molly took her afternoon bath and slept until around 730pm. Rod had weekend duty and left by 9pm. I asked Molly – “sinong love ni Molly?” to my delight, she said, “Ma-ma.” That’s me! I was so happy that I didn’t want her to sleep on her crib so she stayed with me on the bed, had quite a long wonderful sleep. : )

Twas a busy weekend indeed…

P.S. Rod, my husband, might be reading my blog for the first time – so I want to say hi to him. (mush!) Hi, JTB!

5 Love Languages

There are 5 love languages according to Gary Chapman: quality time, gifts, physical touch, words of affirmation and acts of service. He says that each one has a primary love language; if we speak that language to that person then he/she would feel that he/she is loved.

Thinking about this, I thought of my family and friends and what their primary love language could be. My analysis (based on feelings and experience) might not be accurate but I think these are their respective love languages:

Rod – words of affirmation
Mama – gifts
Becky – words of affirmation
Papa – words of affirmation
Juaffy – gifts
Frank – quality time
Tita Lita – gifts
Joyskee – gifts
Sharyn – acts of service
Lanie – acts of service
Mariciel – gifts
Ryan – quality time
Zeala – words of affirmation
Kateh – quality time
Sandee – physical touch
Jenny - quality time
Melot – quality time
Trixie - quality time

As for myself, I can’t decide between acts of service and quality time. Oh well, I will just ask my friends about that. How about you? What's your love language?

Wanted: IT Helpdesk Analyst

As weird as it seems I am advertising (in my blog) that I need an IT Helpdesk Analyst for my team. One of the analysts is going to be transferred to systems development. I am really pressured to find a replacement for her but at the same time I am glad that she’s pursuing a career that she has chosen. She’s been trained in different aspects of IT plus she has experience in handling customers. What a good combination!

I know the unit leader (Supervisor) of the team is quite apprehensive. She’ll have a neophyte to train… again. But I have to say, kudos to her! She has trained the people well and for those who don’t see a career in helpdesk, I think it’s time to let go and let them take the next step in their careers.

So please help me find an IT Helpdesk Analyst. If you’re interested or if someone you know might be interested, give me your e-mail address through comments.

Holiday at Holiday Inn

I didn’t have work last Saturday, it was Araw ng Kagitingan. The family went to Holiday Inn at Clark Field. Molly was so excited. Galaw ng galaw at sigaw ng sigaw sa car – sumuka tuloy! She threw up on her Ate Tata. Poor girl, didn’t bring extra pants, kaya next time dapat ang yaya may extra clothes lagi. Nakinig kasi kay Ukraine (my Tita Lita) tapos si Ukraine pala daming dala damit for herself.

Ma, Pa, Foncy and Juaffy were also there, pati si Becky, si Frank lang ang kulang. Saya! Dapat uwi din sila nung gabi but they stayed na din. Siksikan sa suite kasi sabi nila di sila mag-stay so I canceled the other room e nagbago isip. Okay na din… close naman kami.

We went to duty free siyempre – milestone… I didn’t buy comida de basura nor chocolates. Although I must say, I was tempted. Daming chocolates no pati yung mga variety na wala ditto sa suking Robinson’s and SM supermarket ko.

Rod and I went out for dinner… sira tuloy ang diet. Can’t help it, it was American ribs night. Nilantakan ko ang ribs. Rod was too sleepy kaya konti (by his standard) ang nakain niya. But at least we got to spend some time together. May compli cake and wine pa. Inalay namin yung cake kay Ukraine kasi birthday niya April 11. Ang saya, the compli cake went a long way, it really made her happy and loved. Mabuti naman, that’s the point of going out with the family, di ba.

Nag-exercise ako. Todo takbo, rope jumping, nag-treadmill pa. Grabe tagaktak ng pawis. Tapos ayun sakit tuloy ng katawan ko. Sakit ng tuhod, likod ng tuhod, shin, binti. Yesterday tuloy absent. Masakit ang chest ko parang namamaga. Punta sa doctor, namamaga nga daw. Di ko alam kung dahil sa exercise or dahil nasipa ni Molly. May pain reliever naman na binigay. Kailangan daw ng stretching araw-araw. Kung mag-gi-gym daw ako siguradong mamaga pa! Hmp! Very encouraging ang bruhang doctor na yun.

Haay… sana wala ulit work sa Saturday.

Amazing Writing Class

Three years ago, I found myself in the middle of strangers, all of us, attending a writing class taught by a wonderful teacher, Barbara Gonzales. I was apprehensive and self-conscious at first, mainly because I didn’t know how to write, and we were asked to write about our families and ourselves and share them with the class. I was terrified at the thought that I would be sharing very personal things to people I’ve just met. But then when my classmates started reading their pieces, I realized that each has his own story to tell and those that wrote the truth were the best writers.

I went to that writing class 3 years ago, my classmates are no longer strangers. They all have sad, funny and memorable but altogether beautiful stories to tell. I have learned that writing can be learned and though I am still self-conscious most of the time when it comes to writing I think I have found my voice.

To show you what I mean by finding my voice, I am sharing my graduation piece…

Amazing Grace

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound…
The song of my father,
My lullaby and wake-up call,
The song of Aunt Joy’s wedding,
Uncle Guillermo’s funeral,
Juan Rafael’s christening,
The song for all occasions,
The song of every generation.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound…
The song of my father,
A quiet man, humble and simple,
In a family of strong Christian faith he was raised.
He doesn’t curse; he doesn’t lie,
Mother complains that he’s just so nice.
Too nice to ask for the raise he deserves,
Too nice to fight for the land that is his,
Too nice to say no for his family’s sake.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound…
The song of my father,
The song he sings to himself
When mother is angry
With him and with her daughters,
Over the bills and her job.
He doesn’t shout, he doesn’t fight,
With a quiet prayer and amazing Grace
He patiently waits until peace comes back.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound…
The song of my father,
The song he taught my mother to sing,
To calm her down when she’s worried about
The mortgage, the house, the store, her daughters,
About everything.
The song that my mother is still learning
Has been learning … for almost 30 years.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound…
The song of my father,
The song that woke me up in my hospital bed,
When I was six.
I crossed the street and was hit by a car,
I awoke the next day with
My father’s hand holding mine,
I saw tears on his cheeks,
And heard his shaky voice singing and praying
And then I knew that I was saved through Grace.

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound…
The song of my father,
When his youngest daughter became a doctor,
And I, his eldest, got married.
The song we sing because of grief or joy,
Lack or contentment, triumph or failure,
The song that delivered us through many dangers,
A song of love, faith and hope that endures,
The song that keeps us all together.

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound…
The song of my father,
The song of his two daughters,
The song my mother is still learning to sing,
His grandchild’s lullaby and wake-up call,
Our family’s song,
The song for all occasions and every generation.

Barbara Gonzales continues to teach writing, if you want to learn how to write, if you’re looking for ways to be creative or if you’re on the road to self-discovery or if you have nothing else to do, I encourage you attend this class. A new basic writing class will start on April 23, 2005, if you’re interested, e-mail barbara@lilypadlectures.com.