"Some experiences in our lives may be forgotten but the memories of sacrifices in our hearts remain"
@lovinglymers
Hello, my dear friends in Hive!Good Day!Hope everyone is doing fine. My heartfelt thanks to all of you for spending time to read my previous blogs and for your wholehearted support. In this blog, I want you to come with me as I'm on my way to the venue where our family reunion is held and to join us, as we celebrate the event.
Planning for Reunion
It was the month of September 2023, when my cousin from Florida USA called me. She wanted us to hold a Grand Family Reunion before his father departed from the Philippines. The event served also as a despedida party for his father and it would be held on October 7, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. She asked me to contact the printing press for our T-shirts. She made a group chat to determine the sizes of the t-shirts to be printed. It was agreed by the group that gold yellow would be the color of our T-shirts.
She also requested me to rent a tent, tables, and chairs.
Talking about the reception, she told me that she would send me money to buy two (2) pigs to be roasted(lechon) at that event. She asked me also to order one half (1/2) barrel of ice cream and one (1) set of tidbits"kakanin" in Tagalog version. Likewise, I also promised to donate ice cream and "kakanin" for that day. In our group chat, she requested every household to bring one menu for dinner.
The Venue of Reunion
It was agreed by the group that the venue of our family reunion would be held at our grandmother's residence. The distance of our grandmother's house is more or less 1 kilometer from our home.
The Preparation for the Dinner
The reunion day has come. Since I was requested by my cousin to prepare everything, I hired a person to roast the 2 pigs. The tents, tables, and chairs were already set a day before the event. Since we had an election briefing on that day, I always contacted my aunt the updates on the preparation.
Thanks to God, we were finished earlier since we were assigned as DepEd Supervisor Officials (DESO). After lunch, we immediately go home.
I decided to go to Bogo City before going to the event since the table for food has no cover for skirting. So, I rushed to Bogo City to buy red cloth and gold yellow for skirting.
On My Way to the Event
It has been a long time since I haven't visited my Lola"s house. There's a great difference between the past and the present. It was the year 1981 the road to my grandma's house was slippery and it was rough and muddy, especially during rainy days. But nowadays the road is already cemented and some vehicles can easily pass through the road.
My grandma's house is more or less 300 meters away from what we call Batanes one of the beautiful spots here in the Municipality of Tabogon. As I stepped out of the vehicle, I got my cellphone to take pictures. Going forward is the view of Batanes, the right side is the corner where my grandma's house is located. It takes more or less 100 meters to walk before reaching my grandma's residence. The way to her house is not yet cemented so I need to walk there.
The view of the Batanes
Green Field (Sugar Plantation Before)
Memories of Sacrifices at My Young Age
Looking upon the green field, I remembered my experience there 42 years ago.
When you read my intro blog, the picture I have taken now is the place that served as the witness to my sacrifices when our father left us for so many months. In that field, I was there working as a laborer.
Tears dropped from my eyes when memories flashed through my mind.
I experienced pulling weeds using my bolo throughout the day. In the middle of the field, as you can see in the picture, there are no trees to provide shade to protect us from the heat of the sun. Know what? As I pulled the weeds, I looked at the sky and begged God to bring clouds and cover the sun.
I reached the point that I even asked myself, Am I doing this forever? Can I escape this agony? This field served as our vacation place. Unlike others, they were enjoying their vacation by playing with their friends. My dear Hivers, we are different from them. We need to work to meet our needs, so we can eat 3 times a day. How much we earned during that time? It's only Php 5.00 a day. Since we were 3 working, I and my 2 brothers, earned PHP 90.00 per week. We did it during our school vacation and even on weekends during our school days until our father decided to come back.
Oh, memories of sacrifices are still fresh in my mind. Know what my dear friends in Hive? I used these experiences as my inspiration to reach my goal. Even in the area where Batanes is located, the field around it was a plantation for sugar cane. I was working there before.
Arrival at the Venue
After a while, my aunt called me. I proceeded to the venue of the event
Looking at the venue everything was set already.
The Lechon is ready for dinner and other food donated by the other relatives.
There was also jackfruit for sweets, "pancit' or bam-i,humba, and other dishes.
Cakes and "kakanin" were also ready and so with the ice creams and fruits
Everything is ready for dinner.
Meeting with the Relatives
Most of our relatives arrived at 6:00 p.m.I met my aunties, uncles, grandmothers, grandfather and cousins.
Time for Dinner
We blessed our food before we had our dinner. While eating our food, I handed the microphone to acknowledge all our relatives for their presence and extended my warmest welcome to all.
Our stomachs were so full of the delicious food being served at the table.
Raffle Draw
One of the exciting parts of the event was the raffle draw.
My cousin requested my aunt to buy rice to be drawn. Everyone must have a ticket for a raffle draw.
5 kilos of rice in a blue bag and 3 kilos in a yellow bag
Everyone was excited to win. Five tickets were drawn first to win five kilos of rice.
I was able to take a picture of all the lucky winners. They were so glad upon receiving the 5 kilos of rice. Then it was followed by 3 kilos of rice until all bags and packs of rice for raffle draw were drawn. For those who didn't receive bags or packs of rice, they were given Php 100.00 each.
Another exciting part of the event was the giving of bouquets and sashes of money to our grandparents. A feeling of too much happiness was painted on their faces as they received their gifts.
Our grandparents
My mother and uncle offered lovely songs to everyone. They received thunderous applause as they sang a wonderful song.
My uncle on his wonderful song
My Mom on her lovely song dedicated to my uncle Arnold
The father of my cousin, my uncle Arnold who will migrate to Florida, USA offered his song to his brother, sisters, mother, and all of us who were present during the event.
There was also a dance presentation by a group, Balak, and games. Everyone showed a willingness to participate in the game.
The contestant of the game (Racing to eat the banana)
Lastly, before we went home, I grabbed the opportunity to take pictures.
My daughters, nieces, and nephew
My cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandmother
It was indeed a fruitful and wonderful first reunion ever.
Reflection
Our first family grand reunion brought us closer together and made us feel united by love. No matter how far the venue we all grabbed the chance to see each other. It also served as a despedida party for our uncle who will migrate to Florida, USA. We wished him a happy trip. We are so thankful to God and to my cousin from Florida, USA who initiated the event as well as to our grandmother and aunt who hosted it.
The venue also reminded me of the sacrifices I made a long time ago. These sacrifices served as my inspiration to become a resilient person and led me to what I am today.
Let me park here my dear friends in Hive. Hopefully, you will spend time reading my blog and give your wholehearted support. Thank you so much! Loved you all! See you on my next blog! God bless!