NEW YEAR BENEDICTION

New Year 2010
The Lord bless and keep you!
The Lord let his face shine upon you and be gracious to you!
The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace.
(Numbers 6:22-27)

Godbless and cheers for the New Year and always. All the best.

Hugs
Gabby

Celebrating Norman's 69th Birthday

December 30, 2009

We had a quiet but good celebration of Norman's 69th birthday. We had a 9am Mass celebrated by my friend Fr. Peter Lavin, AM at the crypt of Christ the King Parish Church attended by about 15 friends. Then we proceeded for a lite and hearty brunch at Delifrance. Tonight we had a birthday cake at home and Gina's grandkids, Kirsten and Wyet, did the honors of blowing Norm's birthday candle. Thank God we had a good celebration.

Gabby

Happy 69th Birthday, Norman

December 29, 2009
Tomorrow is Norman's 69th birthday. A year ago I was in Salt Lake City, Utah to bury part of his ashes in his parents' snow-covered grave in Ogden, Utah. 2 years ago he celebrated his 67th and last birthay here at home. Very happy occasion with my family and our close friends. Now, he is celebrating his 2nd birthday with God the Trinity, Mary & Joseph, and all the Angels, Saints and dearly departed ones up there.
Happy New Year.
Gabby

Christmas Lights

December 27, 2009
Last nite I took Gina's grandkids Kirsten and Wyeth to see various Christmas light displays around town. It was a great experience for them.
Cheers
Gabby

Christmas Eve 2009

Continuing a tradition Norman and I started in 1993 every Christmas Eve, I took the household to distribute 110 snack packs to poor children and their parents clustered by the gate of the Monastery of Sta. Clara. Then we proceeded to visit Norman's niche to offer our Christmas prayers and cheers. Included here is a picture of our creche at home. Godbless and Christmas cheers.
Gabby

Beatification of Pope John Paul II

The Vatican just announced that Pope John Paul II will be beatified on October 16, 2010 which is the final step before he gets canonized officially as a Saint in the Catholic Church. I was blessed to receive Holy Communion from him at the public Mass for the beatification of Pedro Calungsod, a Visayan martyr who died for the faith in Guam in the 19th century on March 5, 2000. May he intercede for us before our Father for appropriate graces and blessings.
Cheers
Gabby

BLESSINGS FOR CHRISTMAS AND ALWAYS

Wishing one and all peace and joy for Christmas and always. Let us not tire of doing good no matter how hard because in the end God will give us His rewards. For, He has plans for us to prosper and succeed and not fail.

Cheers for the New Year.

Gabby

Pictures in Legaspi City

December 12, 2009

Last December 10th I flew to Legaspi City to attend the installation rites of its new bishop, Bishop Joel (Bong) Baylon, a very dear friend of our family who also was very kind to Norman. It was a big event, attended by luminaries like Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales and several bishops from Metro Manila and elsewhere, the Archbishops of Dagupan, Naga and Zamboanga, and the Papal Nuncio. Lots of priests and nuns. President Gloria Arroyo came as well, and even greeted me at the altar steps. She left after his very passionate homily on POWER OF LOVE and LOVE OF POWER because she needed to fly back to Manila before sunset.

At Legaspi I also met my former students from the Defense college as well as the family of Tess Bacos, the sister of my home manager Gina.

Gabby

Christmas Gift Giving to Children in 3 Hospitals

December 10, 2009

Am at the deaprture lounge of Cebu Pacific waiting for my noon flite for Legaspi City where I will attend this afternoon the installation of the new principal Bishop of the Archdiocese, our family friend, Bishop Joel (Bong) Baylon, a very wonderful Servant Shepherd.

Yesterday our Partnerships for the Poor Foundation held our annual giftgiving to poor children in 3 hospitals. We covered 750 patients, in various degrees of ailments--cancer, dengue, liver problems, kidney problems, malnutrition. It pained me to see so much suffering among innocent youngsters. But, I was happy to provide some happiness for their Christmas. I pray that God restores their health.

Must go now to my gate. Godbless.

Gabby

Pictures of our University Church of Gesu

November 24, 2009

My Ateneo batchmate Lito Nazareno, a very good photographer, shared these pics he took last Saturday, Nove,ber 21 during the gift giving to children of families who were victims of the recent floods. Very dramatic because of the appearance of 2 rainbows. God is good.

Gabby

November 14, 2009

Got this pic from our IOV Conference Organizers. I am with my co-participants and Chinese hosts in the Jiuzhaigou National Nature Park on a beautiful autumn day. Lots of butterflies in the park.

Gabby

Some Pics of My 60th Birthday

11/12
Last Nov.7th I quietly turned 60. Spent the whole day serving as a Moderator in the 4th National Conference for Cultural Heritage Conservation in San Fernando, Pampanga, 2 hours north of Metro Manila. Since I had no plans for a big bash, there was a small intimate dinner at home organized by my Mayor Doma Gina. Mamina came as did Freddie, Evelyn, Grace and RJ. My good friends Linda and Grace Lopez surprised me and came with a great fresh salad, chicken pastel and asparagus soup. Gina prepared lamb caldereta (the lamb brought by Clem from his Irish farm), bringhe rice (a la Valenciana), fruit salad. Clem Rumley, my Irish friend from London came with his 2 student beneficiaries, Mariel and Jhon. I was grateful for the wonderful celebration but I was so exhausted and had to retire early. Hoping to spend my remaining years enjoying serving others more. Have decided to donate my bday bash costs to Caritas Pilipinas for the recent calamity victims. Godbless.

Turning 60

November 7, 2009
I thank God for 60 grace-filled and challenging years plus the opportunity to continue serving others. May I remain to be a true and happy servant steward of the Lord. Angel Bear continues to take care of me from his happy world.
Godbless
Gabby

All Saints Day 2009

Today is a very happy feast for us Catholics in the Philippines. It is our long period to remember our beloved dead and visit their graves or niches. Our faith posits the "Communion of Saints" where the living connect with the beloved departed. I have brought flowers to Norman's niche and have offered prayers for his eternal rest as well as that of his parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts, cousins and all other relatives and friends as well my own. I had a very happy dream of Norman last night in which we were walking to a friend's house along Massachussetts Avenue, NW, Washington DC. God rest him and all of our faithful departed forever and grant them happiness and peace eternally.
Godbless
Gabby

China Trip, October 20-27, 2009

I participated in the first international conference of the International Organization for Folk Arts in Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan, China on Oct. 22-26. All participants and organizers met in Beijing on Oct.20 and called on 2 important offices in Beijing: the Committee on Ethnic Cultural Peoples and the Chinese Peoples' Association for International Understanding. In between we toured the national ecological park of Jiuzhaigou to see the lakes and mountains. We attended several Tibetan events because they are the dominant ethnic people there. Jiuzhaigou was badly hit by the earthquake of May 2008 but has recovered quickly. The trip to Jiuzhaigou is long (8 hours) from the nearest functioning airport of Mianyong. In our last evening we attended a Tibetan Baima bonfire dinner and dancing up in the mountains, going by vans up the narrow and steep rough roads, which was frightening. We all returned to Beijing Oct.26 to stay overnite. There I was invited to a great Japanese dinenr by my student, Raymond Lopez, now a 2nd secretary at the Philippine Embassy. On Oct.27, I stopped in Hong Kong for a quiet rest. There I discovered the very pretty Kowloon Botanical Park and Aviary in the heart of town. Now am back home very tired but happy for the experience.
Cheers
Gabby
P.S. Everywhere, I kept seeing colorful butterflies that reminding me of Norman's ever present spirit.