the ASINGANIAN ( last installment of the 1994 article )

Political discussions

What is an account of Asingan without a little discussion of local Politics? 1995 is the election year for the next mayor of the town. According to some sources, there are three probable candidates: the incumbent Mayor Carlos Lopez, Mrs. Elvira Ramos Veniegas ( the daughter of one time Mayor of Asingan Jose Ramos ) and Col. Romeo Dranciang an Asinganian military man who struck heroic deeds in the strife torn Island of Mindanao. Who will win? Only time will tell.


The governor's position is also up for grabs. Current runners are: Mr. Orbos and Mr. Ranjit Shahani the nephew of President FVRamos.T his race presents something that would be a discussion fodder for local political analysts. The discussion would be worth a case of San Miguel beer or a few bottles of Cuatro Cantos. Do not to forget the pulutan or finger food.


Colonel Daranciang is a military man and he is good at his job. It was President Ramos who pinned his medals of valour. When he visited Asingan recently, Col. Daranciang was warmly given a hero's welcome.

The strongest asset of Elvie might be her blood relation to FVR. I heard that she might be the official party candidate. If she makes it, then she would be the first woman mayor of Asingan.

Now we come to Mayor Carlos Lopez. He appears to be a very humble and honest man. " I am a farmer by trade," he told me recently when I visited his office.

" I am trying to open the Mayor's Office to the common Asinganian. The poor vendor on the street, the common TAO who never had the chance to step into an air conditioned office of the Mayor." he said emphatically.

Then he proceeded to relate the story of Mimay the peanut vendor who was able to see her child go through College by just selling peanuts. Mayor Lopex said he personally escorted her to visit his office one afternoon.

The governor's race is a more difficult issue to write about since one has to go to the Capitol nosing about for some stories to print without you being sued for libel. But I talked with some Barangay leaders from Calepaan who have some axes to grind with the present Vice Governor, Ranjit Shahani.


"If he does not fulfill his promises of cementing the Calepaan road going to Urdaneta, we will vote for Orbos in the next election." One of leaders said.

An Asinganian military who is the CO of an AFP HQ in San Isidro, Binmaley asked me if I could write a press release about Ranjit. Particularly his promises of fixing the roof of the Camp sleeping quarters.

"When it rains, we seem to be sleeping under a mango tree. Water pours freely, " he said pointing to the sunlight streaming through holes in the roof of the sleeping quarters.

The CO added: " Ranjit and his Mom promised some pinaod to fix the roof. But up to now, no such materials arrived and it is almost the rainy season again..”

Only in Asingan can you have so much fun discussing this and that while waiting for some one to tell you it is already suppertime.---#

the ASINGANIAN #4

The Birth of Two Papers

During this year 1994, Asingan became the birthplace of two provincial newspapers, THE TRIBUNE and PANGASINAN NEWSLINE.

In the beginning, there was only THE TRIBUNE, published by a Mr. H------, a foreigner from California. For its staff, the paper had Nonong Necessito, Francisco Malala and Sammy Curameng . Then according to Nonong, the publisher started to get greedy and dishonest with the funds. A break up eventually came. Nonong, Francisco and Sammy put out their own paper THE PANGASINAN NEWSLINE ( or PN for short ). With guts, hard work and self reliance, the first issue of the PN came out.




FRANCISCO MALALA and NONONG NECESSITO in a 1994 photo..


Last April 20, 1994, the PN still going strong, celebrated its first anniversary. The TRIBUNE is still being published. And the publisher married a young Asingan girl. Inspite of his unpopularity with certain Asingan circles, he is still in town..


On November 1994, a big celebration will be held in Bantog. Why Bantog, not Poblacion? I asked. I was told Bantog has its own Parish Church now. Thus the people here do not have to go to town anymore for religious services. And besides, the St. Louis Bertrand church is under renovation. Thus, Bantog was at that time girding for the big, prestigious event which would be attended by pilgrims and devotees from all other towns of Pangasinan. A glossy Invitation Program would be printed for the event. The last Cristo Rey celebration as I remember was last held in Asingan last 1948, under the administration of Fr. Jose Macaraeg.

Asingan as I saw it, has never been so busy providing for the needs of its townspeople. Majority of the populace are farmers and the rest are providing the needs of the population especially the younger children. Thus various schools, (Montessoris) bakeries, restaurants, gift shops and mini grocery stores and other kinds of services have mushroomed all over town. And let us not forget the various OFWs who are sending their hard earned dollars for their loved ones left behind.

I came upon Fidel Agsalud ( his Mom is Flaviana Agsalud, a school nurse when I was still in my Elementary years). Fidel runs a bicycle repair shop in front of his house in Calaoagan.

“Hey, I thought you are in the USA!” I said.

“I am”, he said with the usual smile.. “United States of Asingan.

“I am running this repair shop because if you do not work here, you will starve to death.”

Well the situation is the same in many places all over the globe, especially the Philippines which have no Unemployment Insurance program. This government program provides some money to the insured worker in case he loses his job.

The street where Fidel lives is now a very busy area. Thus we have his bicycle shop, then a sari sari store in the ground floor of the stately house owned by Don Doroy. Then we have the Farmacia Antonio. My mother in law ( Miguela Hufana, the mother of Miguelita ) once boarded here when she studied at the Asingan Institute ( now the Rizal Academy ). During the ‘30s, there were only two high schools in Pangasinan. The Asingan Institute and the high school in Lingayen.

The late Titong Arzadon converted his agricultural land in Dumakit into a subdivision. He started selling the lots for very low prices, so some Asinganians, especially those in Aragaag or Sta. Ana, the constantly flooded areas in town started buying a place for their new houses. With the help of town mates abroad, big houses started to be built in this part of town. Other places in the barrios followed this “mansion” building spree. Now it is said that there are more beautiful houses in the barrios than in the Poblacion.

Some vendors have also started organizing themselves into one powerful union. I met Alex Casimiro and he told me one time all the vendors staged a strike against the raising of taxes imposed by the municipality. All vendors, he said did not come to the market so the place was as lifeless as a cemetery for a couple o days.

According to Alex, the strike was successful because they got what they wanted. Now the Association has some money deposited in a bank outside of Asingan where a member could obtain a loan which he/she needs to expand business..



Another photo circa 1994 showing Miggie Costes, Remy Manuel and Esther Lomboy taken in Crystal Glades Resort established in Ariston near Sta. Ana...

the ASINGANIAN, no. 3

__________________________________________________

OUR WATER SYSTEM..I could never understand why TOBOY AND Bantog have their own water system but Poblacion is still putting in a big, 25-foot pipe that would serve as the heart of their water system.The work is going on under the nose of Andres Bonifacio, right behind the Guillermo Auditorium.




The town plaza is also being beautified with funds ( so I heard ) from the Department of tourism. The gazebos and statues are newly painted, some park attendants ( euphemism for janitors?) are working on sprucing up the plaza and concrete benches are being built all around the area. Some townspeople using these benches however could not help scattering balut shells when eating this delicacy while sitting on these benches. Waste baskets were placed in the plaza too. One moment they are there, next time they are gone…

At the southwestern part of the plaza is a burger joint called BIG MACK. The spelling is correct and it does not exhibit the golden arch of its International namesake. It is manned by two lovely young ladies who sell just hot dogs, hamburgers and cold soft drinks. The burgers have only ketchup for condiments: no onions, no relish no mustard. However, business is quite brisk. Usual patrons are kids who are tired of Mom’s cooking or Moms who are too tired to do the night’s cooking.

Last May 1994, President FVRamos came to town during the Barangay Officers election. About 2:00 pm, the Presidential helicopter touched down on the school grounds of the Dupac Intermediate school aka Bnorth Central School. Then a motorcade with the Big Man himself wound towards the voting place. He casted his ballot for Rocky Diaz as Barangay Captain. As an aftermath, the next batch of voters heard about FVR’s choice and most of them voted for Rocky, so the story goes. Thus, lucky Rocky got the job.



THE CHURCH RENOVATION. The Asingan Roman Catholic church which was ravaged by a big earthquake in 1990 is now undergoing a massive facelift and construction. The sidewalls are almost finished. Every Sunday ( the regular Mass ) and Wednesday ( the Perpetual Help Novena ) is being celebrated here. But the valuables are being kept in the priest’s house ( the microphones, amps, speakers, sacred host , etc ) to be brought out before each celebration. The new Pastor for the Catholic church is Monsignor Peralta from San Carlos, Pangasinan.

Before each Mass, someone would announce a financial statement of the financial help which arrived during the week in connection with the construction. The Finance committee is headed by Judge Dario Navarro and the actual work is done by a crew led by Architect Pablo Canadido. I was informed millions of pesos more will be needed before the work will be finished. And so financial pledges are being sought from good-hearted Asinganians all over the world. President Fidel Ramos pledged 50, 000 pesos for the project.

( to be continued )

the Asinganian, no. 2

HIGH SCHOOL FRIENDS WILL ALWAYS BE REMEMBERED...
Our best friends are those we met during our Elementary and High School years. Remembering our town is remembering our good friends with special fondness...













(Class '56, Rizal Junior College..Class Adviser: Mrs. M. Casaclang, nee Miss Fernandez)


....Anybody can print a newsletter, but it takes more than money and time to put out a GOOD newsletter. It demands dedication, love for the craft ( writing ) and love for what you are writing about. In this case, it is Asingan....Asingan signifies the happiest times of our lives, especially the years of our youth. Our best friends are those we met during our Elementary and High School years. Remembering our town is remembering our good friends with special fondness...To many of us, we started feeling our love for Asingan after leaving it. After getting married, Miggie and I stayed in Los Banios Laguna. It was then that I started writing about Asingan as a Correspondent for the Philippine News Service ( PNS ). My first article published was about the oldest living man in Asingan ( he is dead now, RIP ) an elder member of the Cardinez family. He claimed he saw Jose Rizal moments before he was executed in Bagumbayan ( now Luneta )...I wrote many stories about Asingan until PNS was padlocked after the declaration of Martial Law... In my opinion, if you love our town intense enough to do something for her, then you are a real Asinganian in the highest sense of the word. It is someone who feels proud and happy he/she came from that small town in the heart of Pangasinan. For smallness can become greatness and greatnes can also become smallness..It all depends on what you really are deep inside you...vdc

( a filler from the 1994 the ASINGANIAN )

the asinganian

The Asingan Municipal Hall, circa 1994



The Asingan Municipal Hall at present..



the following article came from an Asinganian newsletter printed here in Toronto in 1994. It has been decided during a recent meeting of Toronto Asinganians that a newsletter would be a welcome project that would bind townmates together. I am reproducing the article entitled ASINGAN '94: SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW..The New Asingan referred to in the article is Asingan way back 1994..


ASINGAN is no longer the sleepy town we once knew in the '50s. In the '90s, this languid, sluggish settlement woke up with a vengeance.

Nowadays, if you live in the Poblacion, you will hear nothing but noise, noise, noise. All day long, 7 days a week there is the constant roar of motorized tricycles carrying people from one point to another. Then there is also a new kid in the block called the KULIGLIG. Originally intended for the farm, some innovative farmers put on it a minivan body thus changing it into a passenger vehicle. It is complete with a steering wheel and four tires.Kuliglig, by the way is a Kubota motorused by farmers to perform menial tasks originally assigned to the carabao.

Now a days the KULIGLIG has found other uses: a parade float for beauty queens, a carrier for various farm products and many others. It adds to the noise pollution in Asingan. As if there is not enough of this din from cars, jeeps, vans and small trucks owned by some well-to-do Asinganians.

Recently, the telephone arrived in Asingan. In 1992, some townspeople were asked to subscribe to a private telephone business. Some signed up, the rest didn't. The second group later regretted not accepting the offer. Now anybody with that gizmo could call overseas by dialing first 108 which connects you to a switchboard operator who in turn will connect you to the country of your choice as soon as there is an available line. Sorry folks, now a days, there is still no direct dialing for overseas yet. It may take you about 15 minutes before you could talk with that party located halfway across the world.

But the really rich Asinganians have started acquiring another new kid on the block: the cellular phones...

( to be continued )

note: the black and white masthead at the top of the page is originally used in this ASINGANIAN newsletter that was published in 1994. This article SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW is quite long. Frankly speaking, I am not a fast typist and I do appreciate someone who might help me do some word processing which I could just insert in the template or pages. If you a fax machine and you have some time to spare, then please e-mail me at Mabait42@aol.com..I would surely appreciate your help. This is purely voluntary work for now, until maybe we can get some sponsors or advertisers. Well, maybe, just maybe.

Thanks!...

ALEX's STORY

lest i forget, are we really in section B in our grade
six years? i thought we are in section one. malagip ko gayam pare. naminsan during
the recess, arthur, rudy(yakal), juan, tinong(DECEASED) rudy esperon, rudy dumapias
potso and i went for swimming in pagumpias. it is not a creek nor a river but only a canal.
the water is only half knee so what we did was tinambakan mi diay canal and the water
went above the knee. so we swim and swim not hearing that the bell rang already.
our clothes were left behind and we just noticed mr. santiago was holding them. then we heard him shouting at us.

so we got off from the canal and proceeded towards him. but he kept on walking carrying our clothes. silalabos kami nga simmangpet idiay school but not in the classroom. he handed our clothes before we reached the school. oh what an experience.

imbag la ketdin pare ta saan ka nga naikuyog idin.

_______________________

That was a real funny unpublished story, Pare. I am sure the girls in class were looking out of the window laughing their cute asses off!

Those were rough days, I tell ya.Some of our classmates were bullies, some would tease you until you would be in tears..But the funniest incident I witnessed was when this group was sitting on the lawn ( the backyard of Dupac Intermediate school)hours after school, late in the afternoon. Some boys hated to go home, prefering to play after class.. There was this group of about 6 kids. One started telling a "dirty" story. One of the group, )he is older than us so his hormones were already running high) could not help himself so he started jerking off in front of us!!...

Of course I will never tell his name. I do not want to face a law suit!!!
--Vic

IMELDA, BEFORE AND TODAY

Miggie's sister Ellie Hufana Viray posted this photo in her FB account..It shows Imelda Romualdez Marcos during the early days before she became a First Lady..Ellie told me that this picture was taken in Sta. Maria, Pangasinan. The President during that time? Elpidio Quirino.

I remember when Ferdinand , her husband also dropped by our backyard with Dr. F.Vitug. Why? There was this movie house then, the only place where Asinganians could watch a movie. Dr. Vitug, an ardent movie buff, never missed any of the Hollywood movies shown here, rain or shine..

Maybe the Marcoses' visit to Sta. Maria took place before or after their visit to Asingan...

*****




Ellie's daughter, Eliza also sent me these photos, this time taken just very recently. During a pleasure trip to Laoag, Liza found out that the former First Lady was in the same plane too, together with her daughter Imee.

Eliza said that when all the passengers got down from the plane, some of them started clicking their digital cameras at the First Lady. She posed graciously with the other passengers.

Eliza is shown in the first photo. She is the woman 2nd from the right.

Even today, Imelda can still command the crowd's attention wherever she appears. Amazing!

AVE MARIA

	101 Strings - Ave Maria .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

Ave Maria
Gratia plena
Maria, gratia plena
Maria, gratia plena
Ave, ave dominus
Dominus tecum
Benedicta tu in mulieribus
Et benedictus
Et benedictus fructus ventris
Ventris tuae, Jesus.
Ave Maria

Ave Maria
Mater Dei
Ora pro nobis peccatoribus
Ora pro nobis
Ora, ora pro nobis peccatoribus
Nunc et in hora mortis
Et in hora mortis nostrae
Et in hora mortis nostrae
Et in hora mortis nostrae
Ave Maria

3 SONNETS by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

	101 Strings Orchestra - 101 Strings The Shadow of Your Smile .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

XLIII.
by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861)
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
I love thee to the level of everyday's
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
I love thee with a passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints, --- I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life! --- and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.


XIV
by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

If thou must love me, let it be for nought
Except for love's sake only. Do not say
"I love her for her smile--her look--her way
Of speaking gently,--for a trick of thought
That falls in well with mine, and certes brought
A sense of pleasant ease on such a day" -
For these things in themselves, Beloved, may
Be changed, or change for thee,--and love, so wrought,
May be unwrought so. Neither love me for
Thine own dear pity's wiping my cheeks dry, -
A creature might forget to weep, who bore
Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby!
But love me for love's sake, that evermore
Thou may'st love on, through love's eternity.

XX

Beloved, my Beloved, when I think
That thou wast in the world a year ago,
What time I sat alone here in the snow
And saw no footprint, heard the silence sink
No moment at thy voice, but, link by link,
Went counting all my chains as if that so
They never could fall off at any blow
Struck by thy possible hand,--why, thus I drink
Of life's great cup of wonder! Wonderful,
Never to feel thee thrill the day or night
With personal act or speech,--nor ever cull
Some prescience of thee with the blossoms white
Thou sawest growing! Atheists are as dull,
Who cannot guess God's presence out of sight.

POEMS FROM RAIN'S BLOG

	101 Strings - Love Is Blue .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

LIFE'S LITTLE LESSONS
Life's little lessons,
Aren't easy to learn
Sometimes you're uplifted
Sometimes you are burned!

People step on foreign soil
Hoping to get comfortable
But dreams are so elusive,
Some can't do it, some are able..

What's very, very important
Are virtues of old,
Hope, Love and Faith
Are much better than gold

If we struggle and work hard,
In any kind of endeavour
In the end we will be showered
With gifts which we will savour!

--Rain (September 22, 2009)

THE LITTLE GIRL
WITH THE LONG BLACK HAIR

There was a little girl with long, black hair
Her face was cute, with such lovely eyes
She stayed in a store under a big, green house
That place for me is paradise

Aside from the girl inside this store
Were jars of pastries, biscuits and rice cakes too
Each time I go to church with my Mom
I begged to her "Oh please, let's see what's new"


So every Sunday morning we would go
And I stared at the wonders inside
I would see her there in the corner
She was silent but to me she always smiled

Then we dropped by again one time
And I asked the owner on that Sunday
"Where is that little girl that always sit here
Why is she not here today?"

"Somebody came and took her away"
The man in the store explained to me
"Why did she go, I love her so."
" Its her I really want to see!"

I broke in tears and begged my Mom
Let's go home now I am so sad"
I never told her I saved some coins
Now its too late, and then I felt so bad

My Mom said, "My dear little girl
Do not be silly, there are other toys around"
"Yes, but she's the special doll for me
I saved for her, and now she's gone..."

for rain
from Anonymous


Monday, February 16, 2009


Love

by Susan Villanueva



Love has no season,


It has no clime…


It transcends smoothly


with the passage of time...





It touches us


from birth to our death.


It is with us in each gasps,


in each and every breath...





Our lives are sustained


by our efforts to Love…


Love holds us up


to the end of the day



when the light


fades away…..




A LITTLE RAIN
"Into each life some Rain must fall"

and so goes a pretty song

A little rain is good for my soul

It helps me move along



Vancouver's hills are mesmerizing

The soft rain keeps them green

And somehow seeing is believing

Its beauty has to be seen...



But there are days when rain pours out

Like blood upon my brow

My heart then wants to cry and shout

"Oh let me go home now!"



Eventually comes the soothing voice

"Fear not, I'm with you always,"

Indeed I let Him dominate my choice

Then I can sleep in peace...

AKOY ISANG PINOY

	Florante - Ako'y Isang Pinoy .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

Ako'y isang Pinoy sa puso't diwa
Pinoy na isinilang sa ating bansa
Ako'y hindi sanay sa wikang mga banyaga
Ako'y Pinoy na mayroong sariling wika.

Chorus
Wikang pambansa ang gamit kong salita
Bayan kong sinilangan
Hangad kong lagi ang kalayaan.

Si Gat Jose Rizal nuo'y nagwika
Siya ay nagpangaral sa ating bansa

Ang hindi raw magmahal sa sariling wika
Ay higit pa ang amoy sa mabahong isda.

Repeat Chorus
Repeat 1st verse except last word
Less...

photo shows the matchless manila bay sunset as seen from MALL OF ASIA

theme from "a summer place"

	Percy Faith - Theme from A Summer Place .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

	Mike Dickson - Bayan Ko .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

"Ako po'y isang taga hanga ng mga manunula,
himig at ritmo ng bawat salita nila ay parang awit ng mga pusong umiibig.
Salitang mapang akit hambing sa halimuyak ng dagat sa umagang kay ganda.
Sa kasalukuyang ako'y sumusulat, diwa ko'y naglakad sa ulap at narating ang nakarang mga alaala.
Diwa ko'y parang nanaginip kung maari'y pigilin ko ang panahon para kamtan ko pa ang mga alaalang nakaraang sa aking pagkabata,
Oo may mga lungkot sa nakaraan ngunit sa ngayo'y ang ramdam ng puso ko ay iisa... ang masaya.

“Tinig sa karimlang nag-apoy sa dugo ng lahing ginaga ng budhing baliko;
may paninindigang hindi naigupo,
bagkus naging kulog: umangil, kumulo; sa dayong watawat ay ayaw yumuko,
sukdang mapatapo’t padurog na bungo.”

“Nagkawing sa diwa ng malayang pakpak na inihinang pa ng dugong sumulak;
utak na kinasi ng gabing magdamag na kasuyong dupil sa pagbabalikwas…
talim ng panitik ang sandatang tabak na ipinanghawan sa tinikang landas.”

Through the Years by AG***

	Willie Nelson - You Were Always On Mind .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

Beloved, you should have known without my telling,
That you are the reason why I enjoy the joys of living,
That to live a life when you are far out of sight,
Is like living in the dark devoid of a guiding light.

You should know how much I love holding your hand,
Whenever we leave footprints that we scatter around,
The fun, the laughter we had with all the hugs and kisses,
Those are treasures I keep along with your sweet caresses.

Whenever you are with me, my heart races out of bound,
Because the effect of your touch is very deep and profound.
And I always have pain and heartburn whenever you’re away,
Because I dream and think about you at night and all day.

You should have known how much I love and adore you,
Because never had I said anything that prove untrue,
Remember that no other woman would be in my dream,
Because you are the one and only who would ever use my name....

I FELL OUT OF A CHRISTMAS TREE by Little Rita Faye

I started searching for really old tunes which I heard long, long time ago.I found this item entitled I FELL OUT OF A CHRISTMAS TREE..If you are born in the same time slot as me ( try 1942) and you were in Asingan during the 50s, with a battery operated radio, when you start hearing this cute song, then you know that Christmas is just around the corner..The singer is Little Alice Faye and she sounds like a nice little girl when the song was recorded. But I am sure she would look like your grandmother now a days, that is if she is still alive. My message is this..If you want to search for old songs, the Internet ( Google ) is the place to go. Before i typed in the title, I told myself, there is no way the song is in the net..But, miracle of miraces, IT IS THERE..!

	Little Rita Faye - I Fell Out Of A Christmas Tree .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

IN PRAISE OF OLDER WOMEN ( AND MEN )

Yesterday, I bade good bye to two of our Music "classes" at the Senior's Home.

Maybe God gave me some musical genes so I can serve these people at this point in my life.

When I was still about 10 years old, I have already been listening to different genres of music from an old, battery operated RCA radio in Asingan. Folk songs from different countries ( esp. Ireland, Scotland, England, ) and also the current hits of that era..

Of course the hits then were YOU DON'T KNOW ME by Jerry Vale, QUE SERA SERA by Doris Day, I UNDERSTAND by Julius la Rosa, and other names whom younger readers of this Board would remark "Never heard of them.."

But right now I still know them : ITS A LONG WAY TO TIPERRARY, HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN, HARBOUR LIGHTS, LILI MARLENE..etc. My Senior singers love to sing these, every week..They may not remember their room numbers, but they still know the tune and lyrics of these ditties..


We have no piano at home in Asingan. But there was a piano in our neighbour's house, who was the late Fr. Castaneda, a priest of the Aglipayan church. I love going to that church during those days, but only when there was no service. So I sometimes visit the empty church in the afternoon to play with Pete Castaneda, one of the Pastors sons.

Pete was a bit older than me, but he was full of fun. We would play Indians and Cowboys inside the empty church. There were plenty of nooks and crannies where we can hide ( including the confessional box ) which, like the Catholic church in Asingan, was also hardly ever used that time.

He was the one who can piay the piano. So after we played , we would go to his house located behind the church. Then Pete encouraged me to try their piano. I fell in love with the instrument the first time I tinkled its ivory keys. Started playing them then and never stopped playing it ever since.


Now I am using this unique acquired skill, not to earn money but to provide entertainment for the helpless older men and women in the senior home..As a volunteer, of course. There is no pay but I get the feeling of being useful and appreciated by the Recreational Director and the residents themselves. The feeling of self worth is important to anybody's mental health..


In addition, I found a good activity for me and Miggie. She is still working, but after she retires, there must be something we can do together aside from watching TV day and night.

She loves singing to a "captive audience", the residents of this brand new, multi storied facility that looks like a 5 star hotel, from the outside and from the inside .

The building was one time a high school, and then it was bought by a corporation specializing in building Retirement homes.


Thus we found ourselves as "musicians" We sing nothing but the old songs, the ones I heard in Asingan when I was young. I learned their tunes first, and then when I learned how to play the piano, I also learn by memory how to play them without the use of written scores..( to be continued )

next installment: WHEN I AM EIGHTY FOUR..

Returning to Asingan

"But to reach one's final destiny, I believe that first you must have to leave the shore"
A few days before my Mom's telegram arrived, I applied for a job at the Philippine Education Journal as an artist/ illustrator. The art director there asked me to make an illustration of a turtle delivering mail. Very realistic because Philippine Mail then was as slow as that amphibian.

Anyways, the Director seemed to like my work. He started telling me the benefits, working hours, etc. The magazine subscribes to most schools in the country so it seemed to be a very stable periodical. Then I told them I was studying Fine Arts and the director seemed to turn uneasy. I never got the job, of course, but if I did, I was ready to settle down in Manila. The office was in Cubao, on the way to Camp Murphy and my boarding house was just a 15 minute walk away.

I never really wanted to go back to Asingan but the job at DWA seemed to be a challenge. The school has a good reputation during those years and many well to do families were sending their children to this Institution founded by German SVD Fathers. It has also a newly started College Department, and offering a better pay than most private schools at that time. Maybe I could settle there for good, so I thought..

It was Mrs. Loreto Blando Mizal who got me the job. We were together at the Rizal Academy, then we left the school at the same time to seek for the proverbial greener pastures. Both of us went to file our application at the DWA. She also sent another application to the FORPRIDECOM in Los Banios Laguna.

Then I heard she got the job at the DWA. Me, rather than stay in Asingan, without any job, I decided to go back to school thus I enrolled at the UST.


Manang Loreto finished her Journalism in UST. She was a published writer in the Philippines and she encouraged me to keep on writing. Because the only way to learn the craft is to do it. Write a journal everyday, she said. I did write a Journal too, but sometimes my sisters will find it and they do not believe in the privacy of a written diary. They would read it, and would kid me about what they read in front of the dining table.


Anyways, Manang Loreto asked me to visit the school when I am back in Asingan to report to the Director the late Fr. George Harwardt, SVD. When she received her acceptance about the job in Laguna, she filed her resignation from DWA and she was released on condition that she would look for a replacement. And that was me. Good for her..and for me too.

At last she was able to get a writing job in FORPRIDECOM, a government agency dealing with Forest Products Research. I did receive a letter from her telling me that if there is a vacancy in any of the several agencies in Los Banios, she would inform me about it.

And she did. It took two years before I was able to land that dream job of working in an Editorial Office where I could practice my craft. In this life, there is always a person aside from your parents, who would help you unselfishly find your own way.

In my case, it was her. First, she showed confidence in my ability. She corrected my early attempts at writing. Maybe she saw a grain of potentiality in those horrible, high school articles. Then she helped me find jobs wherever she was stationed. With her help, I finally stood on my feet, living in a good community by myself, my new family, away from the comforts of home in Asingan. I had a heavy heart when I left Asingan for Los Banios, with Miguelita who was already pregnant with our first child.

But to reach one's final destiny, I believe that first you must have to leave the shore.---#

my favorite love poem

Sonnet XIV from the Portuguese

If thou must love me, let it be for nought
Except for love's sake only. Do not say
"I love her for her smile--her look--her way
Of speaking gently,--for a trick of thought
That falls in well with mine, and certes brought
A sense of pleasant ease on such a day" -
For these things in themselves, Beloved, may
Be changed, or change for thee,--and love, so wrought,
May be unwrought so. Neither love me for
Thine own dear pity's wiping my cheeks dry, -
A creature might forget to weep, who bore
Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby!
But love me for love's sake, that evermore
Thou may'st love on, through love's eternity.

by Elizabeth Barret Browning..

My interpretation:

According to Elizabeth, love a person not because of looks, way she/he smiles or how good he/she speaks. Because if these attributes would change, then love for the person changes likewise.

Do not love also for pity's sake on seeing the person cry. For if he/she can not cry anymore, then the love would also dissapear..

But love a person because of love's sake..Because true love is eternal, and will last longer than time. True love is a reflection of God's love for all; whether they love Him or not---#

my favorite e-mails..:)

Manong Vic, you are such a talented peron. I want to thank you for posting Jun esperon's life in Asingan board. i am so illiterate when it comes to computer, somebody already thought me how to post from U tube but still I forgot how to do it. it's a good thing you are there. can you also post that
landslide victory from www.tapatmaglingkod.org Thanks again.

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VANCOUVER DIARY PART1

Vancouver is really bursting at its seams now a days..at least until after the end of the Winter olympics. At the airport, there is always a batch of baggage toting tourists; some arriving, some departing..A special train ( called Canada Line ) was constructed so the passengers would take the train conveniently without the hassle of driving or taking the bus...While waiting for my reception committee, I went up the observatory deck of the Vanc. airport. It has a panoramic view of the take off runways. The building is sound proof, so you could hardly hear the sound of jet engines, but you could see through the glass panes, each plane line up, wait for their turn, then they would go about 180 degrees, and in a split second, you would see them soar up like a rocket ship..Children love watching the iron birds defy the law of gravity and inspite of their bulk, size and weight, they are able to soar like kites up the blue yonder!!...

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My flight yesterday was not a direct one, thus I was able to save a few bucks..:) The first ( and only ) stopver was at Edmonton International. When we arrived into its air space, the fog was so thick. There were a few planes ahead of us waiting for the order from the control tower to make a landing. Thus I noticed the plane making circles because the misty afternoon sun keeps rotating around us (!)and you can not see anything in front of you..I know below and above us, some planes are doing the same and I was hoping they ( including ours ) will not run out of gas..!Anyways, after a while our plane started to make its roaring descent ( you could almost hear all passengers heaving sighs of relief ). When I passed through the gates to check my connecting flight, many of the boards there (posted in red letters ) flight delayed. Passengers were calling their friends waiting for them in their destinations about the delay..It set back arrival times for as long as two hours and I had to text my reception committee in Vancouver so they won't be coming to the airport ahead of time.The weather in Edmonton at that time was so cold.Vancouver, on the other hand, ( which was just an hour and 15 mins away already)had a weather so balmy and spring like..When the plane made its descent into Vancouver International ( YVR ), one could see the mountains looking like small mounds of chocolate hills capped with vanilla ice cream. One of them must be Whistler's Mountain which is the hub of the Olympic's outdoor events...

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Your posts are like shots of adrenalin on a battered and weary board; a much awaited downpour on a cracked and parched land. Your vivid and picturesque descriptions are a feast for the mind’s eye; your metaphors, crisp and precise. Even the most ordinary subject by your pen becomes a literary piece. They are a much welcome respite from the postings of late which - if not rash and run of the mill - are uninspired, malicious or confrontational. The AMB is, of course, not a literary venue but it does not prevent anyone from posting well-crafted and sensible messages. Thanks for setting the standard. Your postings reflect well on our beloved town and paint Asinganians as educated and urbane. Congratulations.

---Asinganiantoo

Visiting a new city ( Philippines or Vancouver ) gives me the shot of adrenalin which every writer, published or unpublished, need in order to keep his creative juices flowing..Allow me to continue my updates, esp. the experiences I had yesterday being a "newcomer" in the sense that I was one because Vancouver being the host of this world class event became a "new" place, and the unwary tourist could be trapped..Well, I had a few hours to kill while waiting for my reception commitee. I had a backpack which I could carry around the huge YVR which in day time, looks like a city by itself.But I have also this 25 kilo suitcase which carry clothes, books and other cumbersome but necessary stuff. I saw a baggage depository. For 5 $, you can leave your suitcase with them up to 11:00 pm ( the time they close). Now I said to myself I can go downtown and come back to the airport to pick it up before 11:00 pm.So I thought.But when I proceeded to the Canada Line entrance which promised 25 mins ride in order to reach downtown, I asked this elderly volunteer who acted as an Information Officer to new arrivals at the airport.."How much is the fare or ticket going to downtown?" I asked. "It is $8.25, sir", she said with a smile. I did not smile back because I remember that the last time I was in Van, the fare was only 1.75 $ for Seniors.."How come it is so expensive? It was only 1.75 a few months back?" I feel my BP starting to rise.."Well sir, this is what we were told and we are just followwing what they told us during the training sessions.." I really do not want to argue with her, so I just left, went around the YVR with my backpack, and that is when I saw the escalator going up the observatory...Hours later, when my "sundo" arrived, I asked her: "Did the ticket fares from the airport changed to 8.25 from 1$ something?" "Are you crazy?" she answered.."It is the same! I got here using the 2$ tickets!" Then I related the incident re: the elderly volunteer.."Okay," I said, "she is beside the baggage depository and you talk with her.." So we went to the baggage depository counter while she talked with the lady in question. I did not hear their conversation. ..As we walked towards the gate of the Canada Line, I asked her: "So what did she say?.." "She does not know or she pretends she does not know about the old fares..She said that was she was she was told to say to tourists..."."Mamma Mia", I said.." "If a newly arrived tourist comes in, asked the same question I did, he would be duped into buying the same, paying $8 plus for something he can buy in reality for 2$!.." I calculated mentally how many would fall into the "trap". In a big city there is one sucker born ( or made) every minute..When we reached the Canada Line gate, she gave me my ticket costing $1.75 if you buy a booklet of 10. We went straight into the skytrain whose last stop is the YVR. There was NOBODY who inspected the tickets. One can just board the train without any ticket at all, but if you are caught without one ( during the days before the Olympics ) you will be fined with a hefty sum. As the train crammed with passengers went by smoothly I asked my companion why there are no ticket inspectors. She said.." There are soooo many people now that they just quit doing that tedious job. Because most of the time, the trains are packed like big sardine cans.."

RUSSIA MEETS VANCOUVER EXHIBIT

THE TEXT below is the English caption of the photograph above showing one of the wonders of Russia. A second caption was written in Russian..

"..At the Baskunchak Lake, the railway was laid directly along the original halite described in the ancient chronicles as 'salt as white as snow.' The crater at the summit is huge, a 10 km. depth to the 'salt mountain'.

Baskunchak Lake is a unique self generating salt mine. Each day, more than 2.5 tonnes of sodium chloride -ordinary table salt- are filtered out from its underground springs. This "salt railway" have already more than 100 years of uninterrupted service.."


A line of the globe-art works showing messages in art form about global warming..


A close up of one Board showing effect of global warming on Ice caps..




Two more views of the Vancouver's Science World which is just located not far from the Main sky train stop..