On Celebrating the Day of All the Saints

November 1.

We commemorate today the solemnity of all the saints declared as such by the Catholic Church. We believe that these men and women, who lived holy lives on earth, fulfilling what their Christian calling required of them, are now bona fide residents of heaven, the “place” where we all wish to find rest for ever. I wonder if you have ever thought about why we should be celebrating the feast of all the saints. Should we be doing this? From a certain vantage point, celebrating them seems pointless. Today, we praise them, we honor them, and we venerate them. But let us face it, we are not doing them any good. The honor we give them, our praises and our veneration add nothing to who they now are. They are in heaven, enjoying the ever-refreshing presence of the Trinity. What else or who else would they need? They have God, and God is everything! Nobody and nothing can take that away from them – ever again. So why this celebration then? For whom really is this feastday?

It is for us! Our celebration today does not serve the saints a bit, but it does serve us a great deal. All Saints’ Day is a reminder of who we are as Christians: that we are men and women baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Ours is the call to tread the road to holiness, the same road that all the saints have trodden. The saints have reached the finish line, and now the crown of glory is theirs. Venerating their memory, we get in touch with our desire to enjoy the same heavenly residency at the end of our earthly walk. Our hearts are inflamed, and we are arrested by a holy envy: when will I see the face of God? Our existence here below is not an easy walk, and reaching the end is extremely difficult. But the saints present themselves as proofs that it is possible. In fact, the testimonies of their lives of faith, hope and charity stand as the road marks, showing which way to go.

Foremost of the saints is the Blessed Virgin Mary. When I think of the saints now, the Blessed Mother included, I realize that they are not different from us. Aside from the fact that they are human beings like anyone of us, we and the saints share the same calling to holiness. What differentiates us is the response we give to that calling. The difference is in the listening. And that is crucial.

When the angel Gabriel announced to the Blessed Virgin about the plan of God, she was confused. Yes, she understood that she was being singled out among all the women on earth to carry the Savior in her womb, yet she did not understand how that could be possible since she had no husband. But she listened on to the angel. Her listening led to her fiat, and she henceforth conceived the Lord Jesus. Listening is nothing else than being open and receptive. It’s like the womb. If the womb does not receive, there is no giving birth. If the Blessed Mother did not listen to and receive the plan of God, she would not have conceived and given birth to the Savior. To listen then is also to be creative. It’s giving birth to what is good and beautiful. The “yes” of Mary “created” the Lord Jesus in her womb.

This has much to say about our journey on the road to holiness. Our journey is about constant listening to God. The saints are now where they are because they persisted in listening to the will of God. Listening is the key, and there is no other. Our celebration calls us to become like the womb of the Blessed Mother, receptive and creative. Let us be open so that we can, like the saints, conceive and birth forth acts of faith, hope and charity. These will obtain for us the glory that is heaven.

Being man (part 12, end)

Mark had the sincere desire to serve God as a priest. He did not see himself watching his days glide to history except as ministering to God’s people. As his friend, the least I could do was help him keep an unflinching hold on this desire, caution him about movements that could endanger or make loose his hold on that desire, that dream. I believe that man’s thrown-ness into the world becomes meaningful only when he finds happiness in being. And that in turn is sought only when he is what he purposes to be. The coming-to-be of that dream was, to my thought, only that that could redeem Mark from the possibility of a life without sense. From absurdity, Camus would say.

I felt the wind read my thoughts, for a shiver ran through me as I entertained them.

Until the time when the potentiality of being a priest was already an actuality, every day would be a struggle for Mark (as it would be even as a priest). A struggle to be or not to be. Only if Mark authentically is could he lay a firm grip on the dream. Still, a struggle, true to its sense, doesn’t always yield victory. When the passions strike, they strike hard. Sometimes (or many times?), no amount of determination could shame them away.

His question shook me from my thoughts. “Ken, do you believe I can be strong?”

With a smile, I answered reassuringly, “I believe you can, Mark. And if I believe so, you must believe you can. Strength and courage are a matter of the will. Will to be strong. Will to be courageous.”

“Thanks.” His smile was gratefully sincere.

I just got to hope my assurance would do him good.

For the moments that followed, we watched the stars reclaim their spaces in the firmament. The moon shone again with a romantic brightness. And I wondered whether the sun could rise, too, in the west.

My wonderings were disturbed by the sounds of hunger down my belly. My watch said, it’s way past ten. Just one more imagining before being famished.

“Bro, how about getting some dinner?”

“I’d like that.”

“Let’s go.”

The waves came running after us. (February, 1998)

Mal-education

It was already November, but the Educational Service Contracting (ESC) fund for the private schools in Ilocos Norte had not yet been made available. This naturally caused anxiety among school administrators who were relying on it for their teachers’ salaries. Think of the many angry teachers who had mouths to feed, not only their own. To complicate things, there was actually one – only one – school in all Ilocos Norte that obtained its funding as soon as the ESC fund for the entire Philippines was released around September by the Department of Education but presumably with the go-signal of Malacanang. That needed explanation. It turned out that that school went straight to Manila to withdraw its share. Now, where had the fund been hiding for two months? With all the advancement in today’s banking system – electronic transfers and all that – it was quite easy to get suspicious and cast a doubtful look on the people in-charge of wiring funds.

Last year, the province received approximately 28 million pesos. That’s a huge sum. If it were deposited at a rate of 10% per annum for two months, it could earn as much as close to half a million. And if those people, in fact, deposited the money for that duration, where had the interest money gone? Would it be libelous to state that that interest money had gone to their already fat pockets? Cunning men will always find fat cows to milk, even if they were not their own.

It is Gospel truth and common sense suggests that for a field to produce much, it has to be prepared; it must be plowed, its stones and weeds taken away. In like manner, for a student to be fruitful, his stones and weeds must also be flushed out from his system. Education is the process of removing stones and weeding out in students. The Department of Education ought to be the agency through which this critical process must take place. Now, that this government agency itself needs to submit itself to a thorough stone-removing and weeding out is almost glaringly true. Could it be that those government people, who are supposed to be educated – and enlightened – were mal-educated after all? How bleak the future of students look!

2008 American-Canadian-Pacific Vacation

September

22 Arrival in Seatac, WA aboard Northwest Airlines. Lacey, WA. Olympia, WA.

23 Downtown Seattle, WA (Space Needle, Chinatown, Pyke Place Market, Harbor Bay).

24 To Vancouver, BC. Downtown Vancouver (Stroll through streets, Harbor Center). Dinner in Richmond, BC. Overnight in North Delta, BC.

25 Breakfast in North Delta. Joyride around Vancouver. Parks. Lunch at Harbor Market. Stanley Park. Dinner in Richmond. To Edmonton, AB aboard WestJet.

26 Breakfast in Edmonton. Royal Alexandra Hospital. Lunch at West Edmonton Mall. Alberta Capitol. Dinner at Chinatown.

27 Breakfast in Red Deer, AB. St. Louise Lake, AB. Banff Mountains, AB. Lunch to go from Banff’s McDonald’s. Dinner in Calgary, AB.

28 Drive back to and breakfast in Edmonton. To Vancouver aboard WestJet. Brunch at Denny’s. Vancouver Cathedral. East Hastings St. To Seattle aboard QuickCoach Bus. Dinner in Des Moines, WA.

29 Breakfast in Des Moines. Lunch in South Seattle. Seattle Cathedral. Dinner to go from Subway in Seatac. Overnight at Sutton Suites in Seatac.

30 To Newark, NJ aboard Northwest Airlines. Dinner in Jersey City, NJ.

October

1 Breakfast in Jersey City. Midtown Manhattan. Lunch at Grand Central Station. Central Park. Dinner in Jersey City.

2 Breakfast in Jersey City. Start of long drive to Ontario and Quebec regions. Niagara, ON. Dinner in Mt. Hope, ON.

3 Breakfast in Mt. Hope. Downtown Toronto, ON (CN Tower, Lunch in Chinatown). Dinner in Thornhill, ON.

4 Breakfast in Thornhill. Ottawa, ON (The Parliament Buildings, Notre Dame Cathedral, Stroll and Drive around Downtown. Dinner at Imperial Palace, Byward Market. Overnight at Cardinal Suites at 1057 Merivale Road.

5 Breakfast at Tim Hortons en route to Montreal, QC. St. Joseph Oratory. Lunch at the Cafeteria of the Oratory. Notre Dame Cathedral. Old Montreal. Drive around Downtown Montreal. Notre-Dame du Cap,Trois Rivieres. To Quebec City, QC. Dinner at Rascal along Boulevard Laurier. Overnight at Hotel Quartier.

6 Notre Dame Basilica, Quebec. Drive around Downtown Quebec City. St. Anne Basilica. Brunch at Le Marie Beaupre. To New Jersey. Quick look of Lake George. Dinner at Burger King, Lake George.

7 "Vacation Day" from vacationing. Barnes and Noble, Clifton, NJ.

8 Watch "Mamma Mia" on Broadway.

9 Newport Mall, NJ. Lunch at Red Lobster, Clifton. New Jersey Gardens. Dinner in Hackensack, NJ.

10 To Los Angeles, CA. Brunch and Dinner in Carson, CA.

11 Los Angeles Cathedral. Lunch on Universal Studios City Walk. Palos Verdes.

12 Mass at St. Philomena's, Carson. Torrance, CA.

13 Las Vegas, NV. Town Square. Walk the Strip.

14 Breakfast in Vegas. Wildomar, CA. Steak Dinner in Yorba Linda, CA.

15 Another take-off "from vacation" in Carson.

16 To Hawaii. Dinner in Waipahu.

17 Ala Moana Mall. Ala Moana Beach.

18 Lunch at Max's of Manila.

19 Dinner at Ala Moana Hotel and Condominium.

20 Lunch in Kalihi. Dinner in Kahuku. Around the island at late afternoon/night.

21 Breakfast at Pancake House. To Kauai via Hawaiian Airlines. Ele Ele.

22 NaPali Coast lookout. Waimea. Kekaha. Spouting Horn. Hyatt Resort.

23 Arrival from Kauai. Breakfast at Sam Choy's along Nimitz Highway. Lunch in Ala Moana. Dinner in Waipahu.

24 Breakfast at the Our Lady of the Mount Parish Hall in Upper Kalihi. Ala Moana Shopping Center. Lunch in Ewa Beach. Steak Dinner at Buzz's Original Steakhouse in Pearl City.

25 Lunch at Golden Coin. Flight back to Manila, 1:55 p.m. (Hawaiian time)

A piece of New York in Laoag

October 2. I am inside a car right now which will bring me, Fr. Joel, Fr. Nars and Lo Dennis to Niagara Falls, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City. It is a great time to go up north when leaves start to turn yellow, orange and red. I am a nature-lover, and it has always been my wish to see North America in autumn. Although summer seems fighting to keep itself felt and green is still the dominant color, I’m just glad to be on this road where the beauty of autumn is now written on the trees.

I, together with Fr. Joel, strolled through the streets of Manhattan yesterday, as we did last year. I love New York. What makes the home of the Knicks amazing to me is that, although downtown Manhattan is a jungle of skyscrapers, tall, verdant trees stand majestically along the streets which waves of men and women in suit as well as those trying hard to live a New Yorker’s life traverse every day of rat-race. When I walk amid pairs of maple or elm trees that line busy streets, I feel I am on that spot of the world where I just want to be.

We took the subway to 96th St. to go to Central Park. That street hits the middle of the park. We could have gone as far as 106th St. in the north and stroll all the way down to the southern tip of the park, but because it is so vast a park an hour would never be enough to enjoy it, we decided to go down at 96th. I missed Central Park last year, and I was not going to let this opportunity to enjoy nature in the middle of Manhattan, including the possibility of spotting at least a couple of Hollywood stars, pass me by a second time. And there I was relishing every inch of that American parks system masterpiece. The trees, the ponds, the bridges, the cafes are exactly where they should be. No actor appeared yesterday, but being at Central Park was joy enough. I was just a tourist in New York, but something told me this is paradise for New Yorkers and even for tourists like me, a haven amid the hustle and bustle of exhausting American life so characteristic of the metropolitan northeast. It is an oasis in the desert of what would otherwise be boring buildings. It is the crowning glory of the financial capital of the world, not the New York Stock Exchange Building on Wall Street, nor the Empire State Building, although New York is called the Empire State. New York is not New York without the Central Park. Well, that’s according to me.

I sat beside, well, not too near, a young lady who lay herself on the bench. She was reading a book. Several were just lying on the green carpet. A black man was walking his two dogs. European and Asian tourists, including a Filipino couple based in California, walked past me. A pair of what seemed to me were teen couples were enjoying their walk while chatting. Birds and squirrels had their own ways of relishing their moments. Further away, the big pockets were sipping their whisky, brandy or cognac in the café. Everything was perfect.

What if the space was used to hold more buildings and not the 26,000 trees it now protects? It could have meant more money for the city and the state. But the powers that be, visionaries as they were, opted to dedicate this portion of the land for the creation of a park, thus hallowing it, for by its ponds, on the benches, along its pathways or upon its green spread, the God of creation might be encountered.

And then I suddenly felt the intense desire for a Central Park in my home city of Laoag arrest me. I wanted to see a park, a greenery, a huge garden, in the heart of Laoag where the young and old, the big pockets and those who can hardly make both ends meet, relax and just be themselves, as I was doing.

The space where I am imagining the Central Park could be is presently the site of the Central Elementary School. There are now talks about moving the school to a more conducive location. If the transfer is carried out, I’d be jumping about to see a Central Park there, and not anything else.

It’s autumn in America. The idea of putting a piece of New York in that little space of Laoag may be nothing else but wishful thinking. Be that as it may, I’m still like a leaf holding on to the tree about that wish, praying not to blown away by a heartless, tempestuous wind or to be left taken for granted until it falls. I’m not about to hoist the white flag of surrender. Autumn may turn to winter, when everything would be frozen. But who knows, there are still people somewhere whose hearts aren’t and who share my wish of seeing spring come alive on that space in Laoag.