HELLO, ATTORNEY!

(Below is a personal letter I sent to someone nice to me.) 

Hello, Attorney!

I remember Friday morning and the memory of our meeting often haunts me.

Siguro, dahil sa medical checkup mo... sa pagpapa-blood chem mo. Kasi, iyan din ang reason why despite Gapan-based na ako ay bumalik ako sa Olongapo. Nagpa-blood chem din ako rito kasi nahilo rin ako and my BP rose to 170/90. E, hindi naman ako high blood!

Since yung unang blood chem resulted sa high blood sugar, nagpunta ako sa Diabetologist. But before he prescribed medicine, he required three more blood chems for confirmation kung diabetic ba ako. Fortunately, hindi. So, hindi siya nag-prescribe ng kahit anong medicine.

I tried to analyze… bakit kaya? Since I had anxietty attack when I was in the province, I attributed the health problem to CHANGES; i.e., change in residence... change in the usual ways of doing things.  I am very much aware naman that change especially when sudden or abrupt and disagreeable can trigger anxiety.

Then I rationalized, "Ah, kaya pala may pre-retirement seminar. Anticipated or expected ang ganitong eksena. Kaya pala the last time I saw my psychiatrist, he asked me how I regard retirement".

So, balik muna ako sa Olongapo. Tuloy muna kung ano'ng naging familiar sa akin in the last 47 years that I had been away from home sweet home.

I have also realized that when one is in his twilight years, life gets more precious. Nothing but LIFE ITSELF becomes the only thing that matters.

Hindi na importante ang material wealth (buti na lang ever since ay strange sa akin ang bagay na 'yan).

Hindi na ang physical and outside beauty and glamour (okay lang din sa akin kasi wala naman ako nun).

Hindi na ang power and position (never ding nagkaroon ako).

Hindi na fame or popularity (lalo namang wala ako).

Kasi, mapasa-akin man ang mga iyon, if I have no life, paano ko mae-enjoy ang mga iyon?

And because life has become more precious now that I am a senior citizen, I am focusing on three major factors that will give me a good chance to live longer:

1. Foods and drinks that I take into my body

2. Activities that I do, and

3. The things that I think about (or my attitude towards people and circumstances).

Ang dami ko nang ini-snub na foods and drinks. I don't eat red meat anymore -- beef, pork (pero chicken, in moderation). I don't drink softdrinks and coffee. And I avoid as much as I can oily, sweet, and salty foods.  At kung anu-ano pang unhealthy and harmful substances. Nakuntento na lang ako sa sinigang, pinangat, bulanglang, paksiw, inihaw, steamed veggies o yun bang ipinatong lang sa nilutong kanin. Ang advice ko sa sarili ko: hindi baleng hindi masarap, basta't malusog! Look! No more gout… no more arthritis... no more rayuma. I mean, matagal nang hindi umaatake. Problema ko lang, itong patis na ito. Ayaw pumirma sa divorce paper.

But what's more amazing --- wala akong maintainance medicine.

Sa activities naman ---- brisk walking early in the morning, some light physical exercises, washing isang tambak na dishes (my stress reliever), and going to market. I also have an "ADOPTING A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE PROGRAM" which I hope to successfully carry out.

Sa attitude naman, dati naman na akong pasensiyoso, hindi magagalitin, Through the years, I have gained a high degree of tolerance with regards to dealing with super obnoxious and irrational people. And despite the strings of traumas that adorn my very colorful life, I still believe I have to let go of the past and move on. Yes, let go... and let God.

Also, I am determined to TRULY forgive and forget those who oppressed and harassed me (especially my irrational office superiors) and those who maligned my name. And I have forgiven them. Yun nga lang, isinumpa ko muna sila bago pinatawad.

(Joke lang yung last line, Atty.)

Lastly, thanks for the pleasant memories! I remember you would either email or text me, "Gaudz, admin leave na..." due to the storm. Or, "Gaudz , may vacancy sa..." (Saan nga bang department yun?) Imagine, HR Manager entertaining me!

Anyway, I hope okay ang result ng blood chem mo. O baka naman pregnant ka uli? Ikaw kasi, nag-asawa ka ng a la Yorme Isko. Ka-guapo na, mabait pa! 

Thanks again, Atty! God bless!

Gaudz

25 Nov 2019 

GOOD FRIDAY "REFLECTION"

Gaudz

I'm home (Gapan City) for the Holy Week--not just to reflect but also to unwind.

It’s Good Friday today and I am actually thinking of how I should spend the Day. I thought it would be okay to deviate from the usual way I have spent past Good Fridays as I have always carried my cross ever since. I have suffered long enough and have already sacrificed so many things in my life--my ambition... my personal happiness... and some other things that I value so much—not just for the sake of those who mean much to me but, more importantly, to please the Lord.

I have oftentimes been betrayed and stripped naked of my dignity as human. In atonement for my sins, I have mortified and offered sacrifices. I have practiced self-emptying and self-denial. In fact, I have already experienced crucifixion and death on the cross—if only metaphorically.

On 28 June 2009, I posted on this blog an entry titled “Deja Vu” where I wrote partly about the pains I had gone through. Please click and read the aforementioned link.

Have a blessed Holy Week!

THERE'S REALLY NO PLACE LIKE GAPAN CITY

I was surfing the Internet sometime last week when I came across a video about Gapan, my hometown. It made me yearn for home. I am embedding said video uploaded by nuevaecijabiz on youtube.com and sharing it with you, dear readers.

WELCOME TO GAPAN CITY

I have been working more than a hundred kilometers away from home for so long. Although I regularly visit my loved ones, there are times—and they’re quite often—when I yearn for home especially when there’s so much stress in the workplace and the pressures of life seem to drive me crazy. 

The last time I went to Gapan City for a brief sojourn and to unwind, I brought my digital camera with me and took photographs of the downtown area and other places I found interesting to visit. I thought it would be useful to have pictures of my hometown in Olongapo so as to lessen the effect of homesickness once it strikes me. 

 Let’s take a walk…

La Virgen Divina Pastora, Patroness of Gapan City

and the province of Nueva Ecija

Downtown Gapan (Tinio St., Sto. Nino)

Junction of Cagayan Valley Road and Olongapo-Gapan Road

Bucana (San Vicente)

Tinio Street, San Vicente

Downtown Gapan (San Vicente)

A portion of Tinio St., San Vicente (in front of

Gapan South Central School)

Tinio Street (Gapan City's main thoroughfare)

The almost-complete two-storey Gapan City Public Market

Tinio Street in front of Public Market

A building opposite Jollibee

San Vicente near Public Market

Jollibee in front of the city plaza

The Three Kings Parish Church

Church's interior

La Virgen Divina Pastora National Shrine

Divina Pastora College

Delos Reyes Street leading to the Church

A slice of Vigan

The city plaza

Henry Lowee, my nephew, standing in front of our house

Our neighbors in the subdivision

Walter Mart Mall on National Highway in Bayanihan

Walter Mart's interior

Walter Mart Mall

Goddy (2nd from left, standing) with former classmate Mayor Eto Natividad (center, seated beside Mrs. Natividad) & other classmates at a reunion

The Penaranda River separating Gapan City from the adjacent San Leonardo town