If I had the chance to vote for today’s American Idol 5 finale, my choice is [tag]Taylor Hicks[/tag]. This is funny. View here *EDIT- May… Read More »Rooting for Taylor Hicks
I was quite apprehensive over the production of Ali’s Sotto Mother’s Day Feature. Ali’s talk show was launched late last year and I had never… Read More »Ali Sotto’s Special Mother’s Day Feature
It’s not that I’m vain. That’s a test shot. I checked to see if the makeup artist placed too much cake on me. Okay, I’m… Read More »Mother’s Day Special for Bereaved Mothers
“[tag]Fallen Cradle[/tag]” is a book of 22 stories by parents who have a lost a child. It was formally launched today at Powerbooks Greenbelt Makati. What can I say? The Book launch was a huge success. The initial 150 books set for the launch ran out. Anvil Publishing rushed to get more stock from the warehouse. My story on Luijoe, My Angel is on page 29. A lot of people say he’s such a handsome boy. I know. We chose that picture because he exudes so much charm.
The first few sentences of my story goes this way:
““If I die, Mama, will I be alive again?” Luijoe asked. My six-year-old was lying on the bed, flipping through the prayer books piled on his tummy.
It was Holy Week, a month before that fateful day of May 27, 2000, the day he drowned in a beach resort in Cebu.
I turned my body to face his and stroked his cheek. How could I explain the mysteries of death to a little boy? ““When we die, Lui, we will live forever, through eternal life in heaven,” I said the lines I’d memorized from the teachings of our Catholic Church.
Of course you have to buy the book to read the rest of the story.
This book paved the way to the positive resolution of my [tag]grief[/tag] journey. During the second blueprint in November 2005, Agnes Prieto invited me to be part of the book. I have never written my loss much less how Luijoe died. Writing Luijoe’s story turned out to be very difficult, often bringing tears as I recalled the painful events. These events were buried deep in my heart and I had to reach out to my innermost feelings. My sister, Myrna L. de Vera helped me a lot with the writing style (Thanks dear sister) and the editing work. Writing Luijoe’s story culimnated into the renewal phase of my grief journey. I submitted the final edit of my story on November 27, 2005. On the same day and inspired by my transformation, I wrote The Compassionate Friends International Council if I could start a Philippines Chapter. That was how The Compassionate Friends Philippines started. Reaching out to other bereaved parents is a living tribute to my son . Luijoe is never entirely gone.
I’ve only attended two book launch events in my lifetime so I can’t really compare if today’s event was a tremendous success. I just said it was a hit because they ran out of copies. Agnes Prieto prepared a touching rose and cradle ceremony with a powerpoint presentation of each child represented in the book. A short anecdote taken from each story and our child’s photo flashed on the screen. The parents picked a single white rose from the table and placed it on the vase by the baby’s cradle. The toys surrounding the cradle belongs to Luijoe. Yes, all these years I’ve kept them in a sealed box. Butch , my dear hubby was a substitute for the absentee parent contributors.
If you happen to be in the Greenbelt area, do drop by and visit the book launch of “Fallen Cradle”. I’m one of the 22… Read More »Today, May 3 is the book launch of “Fallen Cradle”
My friend Emma showed me the article of her beloved son, Ariel Llanto who passed away last December, 9 2005. Ariel had hepatosplenic gamma delta T-cell lymphoma, a rare and particularly aggressive disease and lived barely one month after the diagnosis. His April 27 article on the Inquirer’s Young Blood was about Leaving Manila. As a Cebuana who studied college in Manila during the mid seventies, Ariel ‘s observations was evident during my time.
I started to uncover social nuances at school. I have vivid memories of roaming around the campus, trawling for evidence of the disparities, in particular, between the way Cebuanos and Manileños spoke. I winced at the sound of the Tagalog accent and words finding their way to English statements. Many girls — and, to my horror, guys — spoke like Kris Aquino.
An amusing breed, known as ““coños,” acted as if they didn’t know how to speak straight Tagalog, opting to communicate in a mangled mish-mash of Tagalog and English (““Taglish”).
Creatively-challenged me had a great time at our monthly Compassionate Friends meeting. Instead of our usual sharing sessions, we turned it into a family activity involving [tag]art therapy[/tag]. Cathy arranged a special session with Color Me Mine Philippines just for our group.
For this meeting, I also invited my daughter, Lauren. My other daughter had a singing performance so she begged off. Lauren brought her boyfriend along to the meeting with us (We allow a bereaved family member to bring a friend to the first meeting ).
She giggled as she sat down:
“Wouldn’t it be funny if someone will approach us and ask how we lost a loved one?“.
“I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me… Read More »Happy Resurrection Day
“Fallen Cradle” is the title of the book which I am a part of. (View the book cover) Friends like Cathy Babao-Guballa, Alma Miclat, Agnes Prieto, Pia Cayetano are among the 22 parents who contributed to the literary anthology on their experiences of the loss of a child. Like Cathy said : “it promises to be a literary exploration of the many faces (and phases) of losing a child. ” The book is edited by award winning authors Agnes Prieto and Ricardo de Ungria.
Do drop by and take a look at our book and meet the authors as well.
When: May 3, 2005 at 5:30 PM
Where: Powerbooks at Greenbelt 4 , Makati Avenue
Thanks Annalyn for the Blog-O-Rama interview of this blog. I received a few emails from readers who have lost a loved one and got directed… Read More »Featured in Blog-O-Rama and other site news
