Salamat po

written May 2015






Thank you for sharing your time with me this special moment of my life.  Today is my first time ever to celebrate this occasion.  Today being a special day for which I have not intentionally did not celebrated for the past 50 or so years for reasons melancholical for me to express.  but having lived a good life after all:  Having gotten perhaps most of the things that I needed and wanted in life....it has been a happy life.  And there were so much to be thankful for.  I still have some dreams though that I wish to achieve.  but regardless.......Today, on this special day of my life...anything disappointing of my expectation is immaterial.  Now is the time to say THANK YOU in the truest sense of it.

Thank you "tatay".  though you are not around anymore, I know I did not fail you and in fact you were proud being my father.  You were my first fan.  And I am equally proud of you being my mentor.

To "nanay" for your unending patience on me.  You were my exact opposite in many ways.  but whenever I asked help you to do things for me....you never questioned it.

Thank you "ate" for your surrendering laughter.  It reminded me that failures in life are just punchlines to laugh about.  It then motivated me to rise up and face life's battle and start over. fresh and vigorous.

Thank you Cocoy for appreciating me as your "kuya".  Though you seldom ask help from me, you treated me as the next father to your children.  Recognized and respected by your children the same way they admire you as a father.

Thank you most importantly Debbie, my wife.  You may not know it and may not believe but really you are my life.  You are the very reason why I should be living.  I am happy whjen you are and grieve when you fell lonely.  You listened to me all the time.  You are the person whom I always wish to come home to and tell my crazy experiences and laugh or even cry at them.  On my loneliness and darkest moments, you compel me to smile and cut short my anguish then motivate me to stand over them and be a winner that I dreamt of me to be.  You are more that a gift a man could ask from God for a wife.  A gift I could not ask for anything anymore.

To my relatives who never turned back at me, you know who you are.  thank you for the wonderful memories of our youth.  I felt genuine happiness with you.  I sometimes wish if we could still do such crazy things as before.  It was madness when we were all together.  thank you!

To my frined from way before and friends from today too many of you to mention.  You are the numerous paints I have put on my pallette.  I have chosen you to become part of my canvass.  My life's work of art as being drawn on a canvass and still becoming colorful because of you.  Be it pastel, kayong mga "burgis", be it water color, kayong mga struggling for success, or be it in oil, kayong mga sulit na sa buhay at meron nang ibang mga prayoridad, o kahit charcoal sketch lang....mga kasamahan kong putik na malayang hinaharap ang buhay sa kabila ng kawalan.  Salamat, ipinadama nyo sa akin kung sino ako.  Mas naintindihan ko ang buhay dahil sa inyo.

Sa mga hindi ko pa nakikilala nang personal ngunit kinikilala o pinaniniwalaan ako sa mga desisyon ko.  Salamat po.. Sa mga taong umaasa na pumalya ako sa mga gawain ko, nagigiliw na makita akong nahihirapan.salamat din po.  Kayo ang naging compeling reason kung bakit nagpilit akong pagtagumpayan ang bawat larangang hinarap ko.  Upang ipakita sa inyo na nasa katuwiran ako at kaya kong tumayo sa paniniwala ko.  Gusto ko lang po magbahagi ng ibang anyo kung paano isabuhay ang mga bagay na hindi ninyo nakagawiang alamin o tangkilikin.

To all oif you, my hearfelt thanks.

And for those of you whom in one way or the other somehow I did wrong or broke your heart.  Please consider my sincerest apology and release me from that guilt so we may move on with our lives with no burden or unwanted baggages......  Forgive me please.....

Yes, I realized I have neglected some important this that I should have done then but I did not put much emphasis on.  Today as I soberly reminded myself, though it is a little late somehow I still thank the Lord for the que. But stay inside me during my lifetime please.  I would love you to be part of me forever.

Poetry spoken on a violin accompaniment.