What were the highlights of your year?

At every yearend, we look back on the year that was and try to decide whether it was a good year or a bad year, and often we find that each year brings mixed blessings. Things sort of even out in our personal and professional lives when we least expect them. There are areas in our lives where achievements outweigh the failures and the joys outweigh the sadness, or vice versa.

Before we could even bid 2004 a farewell and say it’s been a good year (we did have peaceful elections in May, which could very well have gone south), we were surprised by the news of Philippine cinema icon Fernando Poe Jr.’s death, and a few days later deeply saddened by the tragic loss of a young beautiful lady, KC de Venecia, daughter of Speaker Joe and Gina de Venecia.

In spite of all this, we have to move on. The coming of 2005 signals another chance and hope for all of us. Let us not forget to look back at the positive things in 2004 and learn from the mistakes we made.

The year may not have been the best of times or the worst, but for our personalities featured here, it brought untold joy, such as the birth of a son, and professional successes.

Rico Hizon, BBC World business news anchor: It’s been a great year! My wife Melanie gave birth in September to our first child, a baby boy named Jose Miguelin Federico Syquia-Hizon, Migo for short. My parents and sister visited Singapore to visit Migo last October. Working at the BBC News main headquarters in London for four weeks and being the youngest recipient of De La Salle University La Sallian Achievement award in media and the honor of being voted the Most Outstanding Kapampangan Awardee for Mass Media 2004.

Beth Romualdez, cookbook author, cooking teacher and food consultant: The highlight happened in October when I celebrated my 5th year in remission, which coincided with the launching of my cookbook Cooking Lessons. I felt a sense of fulfillment at being able to share my blessings by donating the proceeds of the sale of the book to indigent women who are in need of a mammogram. On the day of my 5th anniversary, I went on a pilgrimage to Lourdes, France. I knelt in front of Mama Mary, thanked her for delivering me from that oppressive affliction and walking through the trials and then ending it. Now, I am well and enjoying life, living it as it should be lived.

Architect Bobby Manosa: My receiving the Gawad CCP Award para sa Sining in the field of architecture, given by the Cultural Center of the Philippines, last September and the TOFIL award on December as one of the Five Outstanding Filipinos (TOFIL) in the filed of architecture by the Philippine Jaycees Senate and Insular Life.

VJ Iya: I had my debut this year at the Shangri-La and getting into MYX. I’ve always wanted to be a VJ.

Tourism Secretary Ace Durano: On the personal side, it was celebrating my 11th wedding anniversary with my wife Carmen. And winning a third term in Congress and being appointed secretary of tourism.

Veronica Pedrosa, CNN news anchor: In terms of achievement, it was winning the Asian TV award for best news anchor, but I also want to mention CNN’s "Eye on India" week. It was my first time there and I loved it!

Willy Soong, president, Jaguar and Land Rover Phils.: The highlights of my year were securing the Land Rover franchise and having Prince Andrew as my special guest of honor at our launch of the new Discovery 3. We opened the new Jaguar-Land Rover showroom in Ortigas in a very private gathering of close friends and clients with the Prince in attendance. Another highlight of 2004 was my having guested on Cito Beltran’s show Straight Talk. It was a most humbling and rewarding experience.

Sheila Carlos, homemaker and commercial model: Losing 40 pounds after giving birth and having done several great modeling projects were surely the highlights of my year that was. But it is definitely the quiet moments spent with my family that I treasure the most in my heart.

Veronica Baluyot-Jimenez, homemaker and former newscaster: Last August, East Timor Foreign Minister and Nobel Peace Prize winner Jose Ramos Horta made an official visit to the Philippines. Since my husband Lito is Honorary Consul General of the Democratic Republic of East Timor in the Philippines, we had to accompany Minister Horta to most of his activities here. For his rest and recreation, we brought him to the house of our dear friends Consul Fernando and his lovely wife Junie Pena in Tali Beach, Batangas, for an overnight stay. During our after dinner drinks, our discussion veered towards religion. After learning that I was a Marian devotee, Minister Horta teasingly debated with me the Marian dogmas, i.e. Immaculate Conception, Mother of God etc.. He even managed to insert naughty jokes in our debate. It was such a challenge debating with a Nobel Peace Prize winner who was playing devil’s advocate to the max. Good thing I have been taking Mariology lessons from priests and experts. We happily ended in the wee hours of the morning. After breakfast the following day, Minister Horta approached me and said, "I want to apologize for being bad and naughty last night and this is my offering." With a wide grin, he opened his jacket to reveal his shirt with the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I laughed and said "You are forgiven!"

Jay Gamboa, chef/owner, El Cirkulo and Milky Way: Education was the highlight of 2004 for me. Lucia, my two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, started going to play school and I returned to school as well, taking a pastry class over the summer at my old school, Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park New York, and also taking a chocolate workshop at an Alain Ducasse class in Singapore. Just like Lucia, it’s great to see new things, and to keep motivated and ready for new challenges. Hope 2005 will be just as exciting!