A century's worth of memories
How does one address a 100-year-old birthday celebrant, and what gift do you give her? Do you celebrate with noodles and wish her long life (yes, am being facetious) or do you merely stare in jaw-dropping amazement? My friend, Ever Bilena’s CEO Dioceldo Sy, gave me that unique problem when he invited me to join him and the Ever Bilena “family” as they trooped to Catarman, Samar, and the nearby town of Mondragon, for the weekend-long festivities that was being held in honor of Dioceldo’s and brother Silliman’s Lola Cristina on her 100th birthday.
Lola Cristina is their paternal grandmother, and along with Dioceldo’s father in tow, a full contingent of Lola’s children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren had come from all over the world to join hands in wishing her the very best on this, her centennial month of December. There were friends from the locality of Mondragon, Samar; and the Sunday lunch party was held at the gymnasium of the Mondragon Agro-Industrial High School, that’s situated on property that was donated by Lola so the school could be founded! To be safe, one could say that practically the whole town was there at the gym.
On the night I arrived at Mondragon (after a day trip to Calbayog where Ever Bilena had an event for its direct selling Distribution Center/ Depot), there was a small family dinner at Lola Cristina’s home — and I say “small” with qualification, given that the whole immediate family was present. They joked about how individuals/ “outsiders” such as myself, Ever Bilena endorser Francine Prieto and official makeup artist Almira Muhlach-Alvarez were now honorary adoptees of the Sy family. And I asked that this be documented and notarized as if there is one special individual worth meeting and interacting with, that would be Lola Cristina — imagine the stories and anecdotes she could come up with. Despite her advanced age, she had an ever-ready smile and gamely engaged us in a conversation. She’s fine for her age, complains about her joints, is a little deaf, but watches TV with avid interest, and her eyes kept sparkling, taking in the family that was surrounding her on this momentous occasion. Excuse me, Lola Tinay, but I hardly think you’ll be running a marathon this year, and at your vintage year, we should just do the listening and you don’t really have to pay much attention to what we have to say! From where I stood, if one has to reach the age of a hundred, the condition Lola Cristina is in, is one fine way to reach that venerable landmark of an age. In fact, it struck me as I chose the photo to accompany this article that even if one added up the ages of the three ladies surrounding Lola Cristina, their combined ages still wouldn’t “lay a candle” on the 100 we would have to inundate her cake with!
My mother passed away at the relatively “young” age of 62, and a week doesn’t pass that something or another happens and I’m still struck by how it would have been nice to share that moment with her, to laugh about something — she was sarcastic at heart, or to regale her with the escapades of my boys, the silly things they say or do as they grow up and play “alienation” or “disaffected youth” — in the same manner that I did during my teenage years. Am certain my sisters and brother feel the same way, and as the first of my nephews or nieces gets married later this month (my elder sister’s daughter), I know my mother will be sorely missed. So these thoughts swirled in my mind as I watched Lola Tinay look bemused by all the fuss that was surrounding her.
During that Sunday lunch party, one special guest of Lola Tinay gamely took a seat beside her, and when I was told that the man in question was 98 years old, I was tempted to joke that it may be Lola’s suitor, but she’s been rejecting him because she doesn’t want to be called a cradle-snatcher. But in fact, it turns out that the man was her younger brother! That floored me, they were four siblings and while two have passed away, what are the chances that you’ll find a sister and brother hitting the ages of 100 and 98! Somebody should check what’s in the water in Mondragon, or patent the diet of the two! Calling “Doctor” Silliman! You can have your Lola and her brother as endorsers for an Ever Bilena Fountain of Youth Long Life product! In the meantime, am grateful to the Sy brothers for allowing me to be part of Lola Cristina’s very special day.
That it came on a December weekend made it especially apt, as more than any other month of the year, December is all about family, memories and remembering the ones who have meant, or continue to mean, something in our lives.
Happy New Year to all!
