Mix

**As I said in my facebook, it is not everyday that somebody from the Roman Curia visits the humble parish of Mirror of Justice. Fr. Danny Huang, SJ, the Regional Assistant to the Superior General of the Society of Jesus, attended the anniversary of our church dedication last May 15. He is now based in Rome. Mapalad ang Comembo na muli niyang nadalaw. He used to say masses in MMJP when he was Provincial of the Jesuits, and before that Rector of San Jose Seminary.

**When I was in Canada, Ruth, Doods, Erica and I spent one day in Toronto. We spent most of our time inside the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). Before we went home to Mississauga we decided to drop by St. Michael's Cathedral which was a few blocks from the Subway at Queen's. After praying and picture taking, we walked back to the subway passing by Massey Hall. It is the concert hall in Toronto where even some of our local artists perform. We decided to have some picture taking there with the Massey Hall at the background. Right across the Massey Hall where we were doing all the posing, some people inside a restaurant were ecstatically waving their hands at us like they have seen some movie stars. It turned out to be the family of Emily Marmol. They used to attend masses here in MMJP (although they are from Pembo) before they moved in to Canada. Had we not decided to go back to Massey Hall for picture taking, there was no other chance we could have bumped into each other.

**Went home to Bulacan yesterday to bring some pasalubongs to Edith, the sister of Ed. We decided to meet each other in front of Eurobake since I am not familiar with their place. In fact I am no longer familiar with our place as well. Angel and I nearly missed the turn going to our house because the barangay outpost had been removed. That outpost had been our landmark since I was small.

Some Good Things Never Last

Today is May 15, and it is 4am here in Manila and 4pm in Ontario. I am wide awake. I was trying to write this blog last May 12, my last day in Canada. Ed and Ruth went to work while the kids went to school. I was home alone. Perfect for writing a blog. But after almost an hour in front of the computer, not a single key was clicked, not a single word was typed. This is what I hate about vacations like this one. It will always have to end. And it will always have to end with my number one enemy -- GOODBYES!

Ed and Ruth together with Doods and Erika left for Canada five years ago. When I left to visit them last April 14, I was to be the first one from both sides of the family to see them. I was bursting with excitement. Though I was the one who administered the Sacrament of Marriage to them in 1998, I never got to be with them to get to know Ed better. I was already preparing myself then for pastoral life. When the kids were born I was already in Paco Parish, and eventually moved here in Comembo. Their occasional visits during Christmas and fiestas were also not enough to bond with their kids. And so just thinking that I would be with them for almost a month filled me with unexplainable joy and anticipation.

All the while I thought it will just be a simple vacation for me -- babysitting for the kids and staying at home most of the time. The only big thing I was looking forward to was the trip to Niagara Falls. But Ed and Ruth had other things in mind. Having been very busy with their respective careers (Ed as accountant in Skyservice and Ruth, the perpetual banker in Royal Bank of Canada) for the last 5 years, they have not been to so many places themselves. They took my vacation as an opportunity to explore. Armed with GPS and maps downloaded from the internet, we went from one road trip after another (and that's excluding my side trip to Windsor). We explored Niagara and Niagara-on-the-Lake for 4 days, prayed at the Martyr's Shrine and visited St. Marie-among-the-Hurons in Midland, went shopping at St. Jacob's County while side tripping to the Mennonite farms, visited Toronto's attractions (ROM, CN Tower, Casa Loma, Toronto Zoo), had an unforgettable dinner at Medieval Times, went out on a picnic at Port Credit, and so on and so forth. My camera was restless, taking 652 photos in all excluding the short video clips. Everything was much more than what I expected. And with so much happy memories, the more the foreboding goodbyes became difficult.

When I arrived at the Incheon Airport in Seoul, South Korea for our stopover, I got to check my email. Ruth sent this one: "eto, para kong tanga, naghihilik na si papa ko saka tulog na yung dalawang bata, eto ko, umiiyak. ayaw ko talagang umiyak sa airport, kasi syempre, alam kong malulungkot ka din. nabasa ko na yung sulat mo. pati yung sa dalawa. walang anuman. masaya kami at nakapunta ka dito, saka na-enjoy mo naman bakasyon mo. babalik ka ulit ha...thank you kasi napasaya mo kami ng mga bata kahit sandali. alam kong palagi kaming kasama sa mga dasal mo. salamat ng marami."

Then when I checked my email yesterday this one was waiting for me also: "kanina nung pag pick-up ko dun sa dalawa, sabi ko, wala ng uncle father. sabi ni doods, it's sad. yakap naman si girl ko, sabi nya, you still have us. o di ba? tapos nung nagdinner na kami, sabi ni girl, there's no more uncle father sitting on that chair; there's no more uncle father texting on the couch; there's no more uncle father using the laptop; there's no more uncle father playing the wii; ang last, there's no more uncle father.. tapos sabi ni ed sa kanila, at least nga daw, you got to know them.yung tingin nung dalawa, confused. sabi ni ed, kasi when you were small you hardly saw uncle father. at least now nakasama nyo sya ng matagal. at syempre, waiting silang magpunta ka ulit dito or makauwi kami dyan, kasi nagpromise ka daw na ipapasyal mo sila sa beaches."

This is what I don't like about vacations and goodbyes. There's a gnawing feeling of emptiness that is left behind. There's an empty space. Like the space that you find in an old mailbox...or between stars.

Windsor Trip

Several years ago I received a greeting card from a friend with these words: "Sometimes some people cross our lives and they remain in our hearts forever."

I remembered that line a few days ago when Hermie and Cristy (Sumabat) Dellosa came all the way from Windsor to pick me up in Mississauga. Our friendship goes back a long, long way... back to the year 2000 when I first came to Comembo. I was doing my house visits then and my staff (then) Oliver Palma brought me to their house to have lunch with the family. I found out they were leaving for Canada in a matter of days and I found out they were very active parishioners in MDP. I still got to invite them to attend my installation that week. Then all I can remember now was the despedida which was held in their house along Chico St. (I took pictures of the photos from that despedida which I found in their family album, and I am posting them below as well.)

The first two or three months after they left, I would receive overseas calls from Cristy. We will talk for God knows how long to update me about what was going on with their lives in Windsor and all that. Funny that we only met each other in Manila a couple of times and yet we talked like we've known each other for life. Eventually, the calls became rare. I knew they had already settled down by then and that work and other things had made them very busy. Perfectly understandable since by that time, I was already very busy with the church construction. That was nine years ago.

When I finally got the Cardinal's permission to go to Canada, I searched for them in the internet. I found Cristy. Thanks be to God for Facebook! Emails were sent and schedules were semi-finalized. One thing for sure, I will visit them in Windsor.

When they picked me up last Monday (after a long journey and mishaps...thanks but no thanks to their GPS...hehehe), I was excited. It was like seeing long lost friends. Again the irony of it all was that we've met each other only around 5 times at the most. I spent my short stay in Windsor talking to them...sharing stories about the distant past up to the wee hours...updating each other...recalling colorful personalities in Comembo. I was amazed at how Hermie and Herman (his younger brother) can still very much recall the residents of Acacia, Alagao, Apitong, Manga, Anahaw and practically every street of Comembo. I was with Hermie, Cristy and Herman for most of my stay there, enjoying meals with their families and introducing me to their very nice friends in Windsor. Bitin na bitin talaga. Before I left, Herman told me to take care of their mom. Almost all of the siblings are already in Canada except for Sis. Lanie who is in Bacolod. I understand where they are coming from. The time and the distance that have separated them from their mom is a gap too difficult to fill up.

I took the train by myself going back to Mississauga. My stay in Windsor made me miss Comembo. But when I go back home, I will surely miss them as well.

Niagara Trip

Before I went to Canada, I would always say that the most beautiful place I've been to is Kyoto, Japan. My mother brought me there 3 years ago. I just found the ambience so different and awesome. There was a certain simplicity and sacredness to the place with all the temples you will find on every street corner. Now I can give two -- Kyoto and Niagara-on-the Lake. The Niagara Falls was of course a sight to behold. It was a marvelous sight. Truly it is one of nature's wonders on this earth. But 45 minutes away from Niagara Falls is an "almost sleepy town" except that people flock to that place for respite and shopping as well. It is called Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Niagara-on-the-Lake is an 18th century town located at the north of the falls on the Niagara Parkway at the mouth of the Niagara River. It is a community founded by the United Empire Loyalist refugees from the American revolution of the 18th century. It has retained most of its historic charm and provides visitors with a number of cultural and historical opportunities. Its most famous annual event is the summer Shaw Festival, dedicated to the theatrical genius George Bernard Shaw and other dramatists.

Canada

My elder sister, Ruth, and her family migrated to Canada on July 4, 2004. It was that long ago when I last saw her. I can still remember the very emotional moments at the NAIA when we saw them off.

Last January, I wrote the Cardinal a letter asking for permission to allow me to visit my sister and her family in Canada. I told him it was a gift from my sister as I celebrate my 10 years in the ministry this year. The Cardinal agreed and helped me out with my visa application. After everything has been processed, I finally left for Canada last April 14, Easter Tuesday. Some parishioners joined me for mass and breakfast that morning.

I have been here for almost a week now. I'm enjoying my time here babysitting for my nephew and niece, playing tennis on Wii, walking around the neighborhood at 12 noon to ward off the biting coldness. Yesterday, Sunday, I said mass at the St. Catherine Parish. The Italian parish priest, Fr. Ruggiero (not sure of the spelling), gave me some Sunday schedule. I also concelebrated for the Filipino mass last Saturday. I finally met Ate Malou Calansingin and her sister's family. Yesterday after the mass Ate Malou joined me and my family for lunch at Square One Mall (very much like Glorietta). On Wednesday, my sister will bring me to the Niagara Falls, one of the main attractions here in Canada.

For now, I just want to share some pictures of my stay here.