It was a sad day for Gorby and Tasha, my little Poodles, who were so looking forward to going to the blessings and meeting other pets, too.
So, not to let them down, I gathered all the strength I had and made it to our small garden where Yuri, Greta and Bud are buried. Gorby and Tasha took the opportunity to play tag while I read a prayer of blessing for them. We included a prayer for the people most affected by "Milenyo," too.
"This year we made the Mass extra special," said PAWS director Anna Cabrera to me a few days before the blessing was held. "We included the dogs as part of the Mass celebration."
It was great to know that the animal companions would be part of the Eucharistic celebration rather than their having to wait for the Mass to end before their turn at the blessing.
Anna told me that the Mass for the Animals was a touching one for many animal lovers present. Dr. Dog Una, a black Labrador, with human Popi Laudico, Dr. Dog Brady, a Golden Retriever with human Marge Camacho, and a yellow Labrador named Banana with human Alya Honasan were among those who did the offering of flowers and fruits.
Fr. Glenn Pacion, who officiated the Mass with his Chow-Chow, Honey, said: "True animal lovers are the ones that also care about people." This is because animal lovers have mastered the lesson of valuing God’s gifts to us, by cherishing and respecting all life. In his homily, he talked about the joy that his dog gives to him and even joked that he refuses to have Honey bred because "he is a priest, too!"
About 230 people and their pets came to the Mass and blessing. There were iguanas, hamsters and goldfish. Actress-singer Aiza Seguerra was there to have her Siberian Husky blessed.
The Mass ended with a candle-lighting ceremony. After all the pets were blessed, the lights were dimmed and candles were lit. Singer Aliya Parcs then gave a beautiful rendition of Colors of the Wind as video clips of PAWS’ rescued animals were shown on a large screen and the Whiplash dancers did an interpretative dance.
Over at Malate, CARA celebrated the day with the native breeds. They had a show for cats and dogs, anti-rabies vaccinations were administered for free and then the blessing was held after the Mass at noon.
That Sunday the sun was shining as Metro Manila was trying to recover from the damage of "Milenyo." Thanks to STAR photographers Ernie Penaredondo and Edd Gumban, we have such wonderful photos of the animal blessings of the Philippine Animal Welfare Society) (PAWS) at Eastwood and the Compassion and Respect for Animals (CARA) at the Malate Church.
Here’s how to join the contest. Just e-mail a high- resolution, full color or black and white photo with your name, address, home and cell phone numbers. Don’t forget to add the name and breed of your pet to PAWS_photos@yahoo.com or philpaws@yahoo.com
The photo entries of the top 20 finalists will be displayed during the Furry Tales Event at the SM Mall of Asia on Oct 21. Announcement of winners will be done during the main program at 5 p.m.