Hello, dear friends from Toronto and everywhere!
Hoping you are taking in our summer with a smile- we do that with the rains that come in almost everyday during this period in the Philippines. Pero parang medyo iba na-Ayaw ng mga kids magbaon ng kapote at payong, ano ba yan? Kaya hayun, my own 5 children all went down with the flu at about the same time- kahirap mag- alaga! I just thank the good Lord that this was ordinary flu- not the dreaded flu that has reached pandemic proportions. Still, mothers like me can’t help but be concerned- so panay ang litany ng ‘take your veggies, take your multivitamins, vit. C especially, hwag magpa- ulan (I even bought nice umbrellas with lace edgings para naman hindi nila ikahiya ang pagdadala nito), kain nang madami, hwag diet nang diet, etc, ngawit na ang panga ko).
On rainy days and after the children have left for school, and wala nang masyadong ingay sa bahay, I find time for self- reminiscing. Hay, naku,, slowed down ang mga activities…teka lang, I can find time para magmuni- muni ng kahi’t ano lang, whatever comes to mind. This morning as I assemble this article, I think about a gentle person who is now confined in bed, ill. Because she is so much loved by everyone around her, prayers have not ceased to be said for her recovery and regaining health.
Novenas continue to be offered for Mrs. Cory Aquino, former President, who is now in hospital battling colon cancer..
Over the years and especially when she so willingly and eagerly stepped down from the Presidency, ‘Tita’ Cory has won the respect of the masses many of who were not really fans of hers when she was in power. Bakit natin siya minamahal? Dapat ba s’yang mahalin? Parang movie titles, a. Let’s probe a little- sa pinakasimpleng terms, sa pinakapayak na dahilan. Hindi na tayo magpa flashback sa pre- EDSA, EDSA, and her Presidency days. Ngayon na lang, let’s say mga since 10 years ago siguro.
Hers seems like a calming presence to our nation beset by so many serious concerns-banayad pa ring magsalita, no intellectual pretensions pa rin, she is at ease replying to tsismis questions thrown in by Boy Abunda and other showbiz friends of daughter Cris as she is in addressing questions about this country’s deepest (take note, please sa word ‘deepest’- meaning sa pinaka importante lang cos hindi naman sya mahilig magcomment about mga simpleng this or that, piling- pili nya ang kanyang advocacies para siguro di naman sya matawag na namamakialam at nagsa sound ‘know it all’.) concerns like, aba, para yatang sumo-sobrang ‘at home’ sa Malacanang ang aleng nakaupo ngayon at tipong ayaw nang umalis!
Sumasali sa mga rally, kilos- protesta, at iba pang movements pero hindi sya yung palaban, me hawak na itak o kaya ay nagpapa interview ng 50 km per minute para lang masabi sa balana ang lahat ng points ng kanyang ipinoprotesta nang hindi nagbabayad ng expensive na airtime. She is not like that. Posed na poised pa rin ang ale.
Calming, oo nga- pag nakikita ko sa dyaryo ang picture nya kasama ang istorya ng kanyang ‘request’ lang naman for the ‘lady in Malacanang ‘ to pave the way for her retirement from the Presidency dahil ‘ sobra na, tama na!’ and this nation deserves to look for another President who is hopefully more effective.
Pati ang sakit nya maluwag nya rin daw tinatanggap- no hysterics, walang byahe sa U. S. para magpatingin sa kung sinu- sinong espesyalista, she has so much faith in her local doctors that she is content to be treated here. Right now, she is at Makati Medical Center being ministered by her suking medical staff.
Ang sabi ni ‘Steady Eddie’ (former President Fidel) ay marapat lamang ibigay kay Tita Cory lahat ng makakayanang dasal at respeto ng lahat ng Pilipino dahil deserving siya.
Mula sa pagiging isang ‘unobtrusive’ housewife ng bonggang si Ninoy, she was catapulted into the limelight by a twist of historical fate- she became a living icon of a returned democracy in this country.
Until before her illness, she has aimed to help protect this returned democracy . Tumataas ang kilay ng iba magkaminsan kapag nakikita natin syang nakikimartsa noon kasabayan ng mga trapos, mga dating di kakampi sa politika at kung sinu- sino pa, united in the movement to stop moves to perpetuate some leader in power. She had her own reasons for the ‘unholy’ alliances during those situations but no one really questioned if she had some personal motives because everyone knew she had none.
The latest news reports say Tita Cory’s condition is stabilizing and she is able to ingest some food. That is good news indeed for a nation that is not yet ready to let go of this woman who has symbolized strength and resoluteness in a citizen, someone who never resorted to fanfare and overuse of media to put her thoughts across.
I have a big cartonful of Cory memorabilia up there in my attic- special issues of Mod Magazine where her life before, during and immediately after EDSA 1 was chronicled, a book of speeches during her Presidency, betamax tapes of documentaries about her Presidency, many more readings and a couple of signed photos of her family- they are not my collection but my bosom friend’s Gel Valbuena who seems to have compiled everything she could get her hands on about Tita Cory. . She left that box in my care when she left the country. Gel, I know, remains devoted to this lady who was her big boss when she worked at RTVM( Radio- TV Malacanan.).
Ako, medyo recent lang nadevelop ang tunay na paghanga kay Mrs. Aquino. After she left her Presidency lang- na- aantig ako sa mga ginagawa nyang personal. Sa sobra kong exposure sa aking profession, medyo ‘jaded’ ako sa pulitika at mga pulitiko and any news about these 2 subjects.so, after nyang maging Mrs. President, the first woman ever in our country, nag ‘hat’s off’ ako for her ready willingness to step down from power. In my mind, I knew that this person ay hindi nasisilaw sa kapangyarihan.
In recent years, akala ko magti- take 2 ang paghanga kong ito sa isang kapwa babae when the other lady President said she would not be running for the Presidency again- e hindi naman itinuloy ang promise nya. So, up to now, si Aling Cory pa lang ang nakadambana sa puso ko bilang the only President na hindi nag isip na sya ang TANGING SALVATION ng bayang Pilipinas, the only one who can and will be able to turn this country around for the better. Yung mga iba kasi, sa maling isip nilang ganiyan ay hayun at nagkakapit- tuko sa kanilang position. Bakit kaya hindi sila magparaya naman sa ibang may K at baka lang gumanda- ganda na nga ang kalakaran sa ating gobyerno? Hmmmmm.
Pray with us, mga kababayan from Toronto and the rest of Canada, for Tita Cory. May she live longer and healthier. May she see the realization of her dreams (our dreams din!) for this nation.
Till next issue!
For your reactions, please email me at mediastrat@gmail.com
