Th Summer of '60

In 1960, I took a year long sabbatical from my University studies( I could not adjust to Manila life then ). That was the summer of 1960 when I joined the Cathecism League in Asingan, headed at that time by Fr. Lazaro de Guzman, the town's Parish Priest. His assistant then was Fr. Geronimo Marcelino from Camiling, Tarlac (the hometown of CP Romulo ).. So during this summer of 1960, I and several out of school Asingan young people(YPs) took a crash course on Catechism, aiming to teach Catholicism in the Elementary schools for the next school term, 1960-61..

I joined this club before because there was nothing much to do in Asingan.Being idle in this town could be the pits. So I signed up with Lito Domaoan and Philip Martin. Pretty soon, Lito found a job in Manila and Philip Martin joined the US Navy. I was left alone in Asingan, but I persisted with the project where I met other friends in town, mostly women.

Anyways, before we entered the church at around 3:00 pm for the hour long lectures, , we socialized, played games, etc. For me, this is the best part of the afternoon's agenda.

After 20 afternoons of "intensive" studies, the "successful" students ( those who did not give up ) received a membership card and half a cavan of rice. Which was nice.

When school opened that June, we were assigned schools to visit. The school curriculum was adjusted through an arrangement between the priest and various schol principals so religious teachers could come 3 times a week and teach Catechism. I was assigned to South Central and North Central Schools.


A month before the closing of the school year, there was a first confession for all students taking up Religion. A week later, there would be their frst communion followed by a breakfast for all first time Communicants.

Fr. Gerry Marcelino was the priest who heard their confessions the kids who took Religion in South Central. We accompanied him to the school together with one altar server..

The confessions took over an hour, and after the session, he appeared to be in a mild nervous wreck.Then we heard from his altar boy some little stories about Fr. Marcelino's first encounters with the new would-be-members of the flock... "I heard the confession of about 30 pupils. They seemed to have the same "sins" like they were reading from a common piece of paper...

"But what really made me lose my cool is one kid who confessed..'I pinched my brothers, my sisters, my friends and I also pinched our cat..!" Fr. Marcelino, nearing his wits' end, blurted in a much louder voice" It is not a sin to pinch the cat!!!"

I added one story, that goes.."On our last day of school, I gave a short quiz ( the kids wrote their answers on a 1/4 piece of pad paper)..There were just 10 easy questions. One kid had only one answer from numbers one to ten. Just the word GOD. He figured that out of the 10 questions, there there would be a few whose answer would be GOD.."

Sparky's New Video in my Blog...

IT was raining: drip-drip-drip constantly yesterday..Our dog Sparky positioned himself in front of the patio door as if he wanted to go out, but when I opened it, he ran back to his comfortable bed in the kitchen..'stupid dog," I said, "but I will always love you.."

He is my constant companion at home. He loves roaming around the backyard which had grown green and fresh and flowery with the arrival of summer rains and days of sunlight. Every three days, the grass has grown taller than the day before. Thus, they seem to call to me, in their silent plant language, cut us now, cut us now..just like the plants in ALICE IN WONDERLAND...

So I had to take out the very long extension cord and to begin the preliminary ritual of trimming the lawn, our dog Sparky's play ground..

A WITNESS TO THE EXECUTION

One of the more interesting Asinganians I met in my work as a correspondent for our town was a 90+ senior who lived in the Malong residence along the road to Dupac. I do not know if he was related to the Cardinez or the Malong family..Anyway, I learned the fact from a friend that he was one of the oldest persons in Asingan at that time and he was a former member of the defunct KKK ( the famous Katipunan league )

I found his mind then was still sharp, and his eyes were bright and he was responsive to my questions.. He showed me a certificate (yellow with age ) showing his emmbership to the KKK league. One of the signatories on the document was Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo...He related to me further that on the day of Dr. Rizal's execution, he and a few compatriots ( all KKK's ) were hanging out around Bagumbayan. Somebody concocted a foolhardy plan to rescue Rizal from execution, he said for there was an overwhelming feeling for the martyr-to-be. He said he was there in the crowd of witnesses for the execution with a short knife hidden underneath his trouser pants. But security was very tight he said and to do anything drastic then would mean sure torture or death for the perpetrators of the rescue plot. So the plan was aborted the last minute..He said he saw Rizal from a distance, and he said it seemed he heard him reciting some verses from his MI ULTIMO ADIOS... After the volley of shots, he fell the same way as described in some history books...

I sent in the story to my agency a few days before Dec. 30..When I opened the Manila Times on that day, Rizal Day, I saw it appear in the front page. I was then in Los Banios. Miggie has just resigned from her job from the DWA in Urdaneta to join me. The day before, Dec. 29, we visited Calamba, Laguna just to see this birthplace of our national hero. It was a very beautiful Philippine town. On its entrance is a big clay jar ( Calamba or Caramba meaning jar )embellishing the entrance to this picturesque community.---#

scenes from our Asingan Hospital

On April 28, Grace Gurion, Miguelita, myself and Sonia Agsalud embarked on an all day journey that brought us from our own Asingan Hospital ( located on the diversion road which passes from Binalonan-Asingan-Santa Maria) to the grand Capitol grounds which sprawled on an area close to the Lingayen beach..


Taken on the front of the hospital together with some staffers..


Photo says it all...


Sonia on her work desk

April 17

This morning, I dropped by the headquarters of Jun Esperon with Miggie to see Rudy and Linda. Initially, I missed Linda who left earlier on an assigned campaign trail. I saw my classmate Rudy Esperon who looked fine and sounded like a radio announcer with his deep voice. I also met Jaime Esperon who recognized me. There were so many people in the front part of his house. In this spacious area, there was a wide screen LCD TV monitor, several cushioned seats, a number of tables, a receptionist with a laptop, two washrooms ( his and hers ) for obvious purposes; water fountain, a xerox machine, flyers, a centralized air conditioner ( what with the kind of weather ) and staff busy attending to an endless list of chores...Rudy and Jaime attended to us. I overheard schedules for the day. Not far from us was Jun Esperon having a haircut while having breakfast. He has just arrived a few hours ago ( around 3:00 am ) then he had to deal with some paperwork. That is how busy he is..Then new arrivals: Leticia Malalang who came to see Norma Esperon..and we had a few introductory chats...People inside a campaign headquarers come in and out as quick as the wink of an eye..Then Jun Esperon was done with his haircut and he came over to shake hands with us....There was reminders about a wedding, some places to visit in the pm..et ce tera..And I have not seen the busiest part yet...Well we bade good bye cuz we want to visit another place...Walking along the road going to Poblacion, we met a van with Esperon stickers..We continued walking....A minute later, a young voice called out from behind: Sir, sir balik daw kayo sabi ni Madam Linda..We turned around and we saw Linda at last whom we were trying to track since the time she arrived. I have no cel phone, she said..We had to go back to her house and we shook hands with Rudy again was surprised to see me back in such a short time..Rudy had to go and take some rest and Linda attended to us: talking about the Fiesta, activities, checking new details in the house..New guests come and go..Busy busy busy...Tonight we will attend the Gay Night at Sobol..All siblings of Gen. Esperon are helping out within all human capabilities to help in his campaign. His sisters are doing house to house distribution of pamphlets, flyers, fans, umbrellas, t-shirts, hats ( but no money )..In a nutshell, this is how life is in a campaign house...more to follow...

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REAL ESTATE PRICES...The average price per square METER of a property right now on where I am staying ( beside the Chua mansion overlooking the busy market area ) is about 5,000 pesos. Converting the amount to US or Can $$ gives you quite a hefty sum. Ownership of certain properties along this block have changed considerably through the years. Some did not. For example, one time the house of my classmate Teofilo Bugayong one time was located not far from here. Now, a massive store stands on its place. The house owned by the Lavarias family is still there. The SALVATION ARMY has opened a school around that area too. The building is quite eye catching, and I heard it is getting quite an attention ( and enrollment ) from Asingan residents.>>>>The main entrance to the market seemed to be presently on the area where the "puesto" seemed to be. That strip of stores made with wood standing a long time ago. The market entrance is marked with an arch emblazoned with the letters:PAMILIHAMG BAYAN NG ASINGAN over a governemnt seal. Other stores: PB SAPIGAO builders, then RICHPRO BAKERY hot pan desal, munay, etc. then COR FARM MART ( ANIMAL FEEDS ) and also TRES HERMANAS PAWNSHOP (TAKBUHAN NG BAYAN )..Meaning a place to run to if you have some valuables and you are short of cash..There is a constant flow of motor cycles, motorized tricycles, expensive looking vehicles ( including cars and SUVs )If you see this flow of human and motor traffic you will conclude that Asingan and the rest of the Philippines is not really in recession. The town is in the black, business is healthy, people are happy. There are jobs from well to do professionals in town who need labanderas, cooks, nannies, etc. Some of them pay as high as 3,000 pesos a month..The Philippines in recession? WHAT RECESSION??

we revisited Gloria Andrada in Sta Maria a close friend of Miguelita's.They were neighbours in the old days...Gloria is a retired nurse who spent so many years in California working sometimes 3 shfts just to see to it her kids could finish their college studies...Her husband is also a US Airforce Surgeon and when they retired, they decided to sell their California home and settle in Sta. Maria....When she learned that Miggie is still straddling on the fence whether to retire or not, she said: "You should retire now, now that you can still go about. What is the use retiring when you are already confined to a wheel chair?"...Then she showed us her home which was just beside Miggie's family land. The back yard was full of fruit trees, flowering bushes, ferns planted on the trunk of some tress giving it an unbelievably beautiful appearance We also saw some bonsai versions of tamarind and some other Phil. trees..Very cute. As we walked deeper into the "sanctuary" for living plants and various birds, we saw 3 bahay kubos. a water fountain and an empty chicken house..."Why are they empty?" I asked. "Did they die of an epedimic?"...Then she began to relate the story of the empty chicken coop. She said one time there were around 30 native chickens caged in there..Then one day, a friend asked her:"Why are these native chickens inside the cage?,,They should be allowed to roam free and find nourishment from the ground.".."Oh Okay," she said. The next morning she unlocked the cage and set al l birds free....NOW, the same afternoon, she went to check some of her vegetables planted in the backyard. Oh No!, she said,,Those ruthless chickens ate all my camote plants and several other veggies which suited their appetites..So she ordered one of the servants:"Capture all of those stupid chickens, kill 'em all and stuff them in the freezer..".. she said, that in the next few days, they had nothing but chicken dishes:adobo, arroz caldo, lechon AT IBA PA.."


Life starts early here at the Marketside..4:00 am brings the vendors, tricycles, farmers dropping in some veggies for consignment and the omnipresent sidewalk vendors..Our proximity to the marketside makes it easy to have freshly made tupig or bibingka in our breakfast table...Our hosts are Drs. Ben Gurion and spouse Grace Ramos, who is also an MD but she stopped her practice because after 10 years without a child, all of sudden, she was blessed with one. She wanted to take care of her daughter named Mia ( just like my first grandaughter ) and so she resigned from her post in a manila hospital..Her husband is one of the best loved Pediatricians in town and around town..Grace's mom is a sister of Dr. Regalado Tendero who was the husband of my aunt Minay. On day 1 of our stay in her house, we found that Stauro stayed here also for almost 2 years! Stauro is grace first degree nephew and the books I donated one time all landed in her house!..She related some "horror" stories re: him which filled in some of the mystery jigsaw pieces of why the library project collapsed. Grace found a job for him in UCC Urdaneta..She and her husband are quite prominent, affluent and respectable figures in Asingan ( I never knew that til now )..They let us stay in their guest room which has the amenities of houses abroad...It was such a nice time recalling the early childhood days when the tenderos and costeses were still grade schoolers living in close quarters. She knew most of the Tendero chronicles which I also knew with some I knew and she did not know because she is very much younger than I am..Oh boy, I said to myself as I write this entry, God really has willed that I would meet her to renew those days and renew ties with long lost relatives..Anyhow, that is WHY we take holidays in Asingan..To try to look for missing jigsaw pieces which dissapeared as we started growing up to be adults..I loved the books you sent, she said..The boxes landed in my house..You should have been the rightful recepient I said since your husband is partly involved with a local pediatrician charity group helping kids not only with their medical needs but also with reading skills..Oh we need children's books, she said..Her husband have outreach work not only in Asingan but in tayug where he holds office in the government..Thus right there and then on the dining table, Miggie and I promised to send them books out of our expenses and they were so happy..This is just one way of repaying their hospitality for letting us stay with them as long as we can while in Asingan..If you hear how Dr. ben Gurion explain his experiences as a starting physician in Asingan, you would both laugh and cry..Starting a practice in Asingan is hard said Grace, because most of the patients are my relatives and sometimes it not easy charging them!..But after several years they now have a big home, lots of patients ( Asingan kids ) and he has also some visits to another hospital in Urdaneta..Doctors like teachers enjoy such a high standing in the eyes and hearts of people in a community, even Asingan....

From: A Reader
To: Vic
Date: Saturday, April 17, 2010
Message
I am not from Asingan but you make me feel like I belong there because of the way you describe the places in town. It is so vivid that I could visualize what you are talking about. Your down to earth approach of writing is indeed good journalism, you write it as you see it and that is the reason why I feel like I am by your side listening to your stories. Thanks, keep on going till you leave town. Tasyo

Archie and Sam, I’m relieved to see you post. I thought all of you have gone home for the fiesta, leaving just elmer omar and myself stranded in the limbo. Except for peter and norbet, I don’t see you guys post as you used to. Even Ricky is asingan bound, I heard. Hey armando, just in case you get to Mng Elsa Sindayen’s joint, splash a shot for me and reynold, ok. And wheres annie? Jessie, shy and timid boy, are you in asingan, too? I still don’t get it! Why is it that Gin and Kappukan are much tastier in Asingan than anywhere else…Can someone explain? Mng Vic, you’re doing a great job being our eyes and ears. We want more… every sumptuous detail. Asingan should give you a retainer for doing a great balikbayan promotion. You have re-activated everyone’s homing instinct with your little stories.


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From: alakdan
Town_City:
Email:
To: manong Vic
Remote Name: 67.11.82.24
Date: Friday, April 16, 2010


Message
Manong Vic, dont forget about the succulent chico found only in Manaoag. Your first bite will be for me, yumm, yumm, yummmmmm.


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From: Zeus
Town_City:
Email:
To: Manong Vic...
Remote Name: 76.175.165.68
Date: Friday, April 16, 2010


Message
Hindi baling hindi ako nakauwi nandiyan naman si Manong Vic Para narin nandoon ako sa Asingan. Although its mesmerizing I want to go home I feel homesick now. While reading Manong Vic's narrative posting my mind played back and jogs and grooving in forward all the chronicles from the places he mentioned. Nice job Manong Vic!


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From: VIC
Town_City:
Email:
To:
Remote Name: 124.217.85.180
Date: Friday, April 16, 2010


Message
Hello, Marcie!..We are now staying in the street close to where Mr. Jovencio Esteban lived before. The place has also a bit of history. Our host told us that a house was transfered to another spot nearby because the first house in question was standing on a road going to the market. I believe the widow of Rudy Esteban had a grocery hereabouts..Natalie was a co teacher of mine at the Rizal Academy, so with Rudy..20 years of absence from a place makes you long for some updates..