By: Telly Gonzaga-Ocampo
Mourning in June
Cagayan de Oro
The Monday morning radio news at dyTR was sad. Vicky Wallace’s son, Abdul, died in a spear fishing activity . He was 39 years old leaving his children, with one stillwho is still in the womb of the mother, his wife.
I know Vicky because she is one person who is always ready to share her creative talent. Chronologically the children ought to outlive the mother. But death comes like a thief in the night.
There must be something mysterious in the depth of the sea. Divers like to unravel its mystery. They lost tract of time following a creature down in the depth below.
It’s just like the poem Annabelle Lee of Edgar Allan Poe. The sea embraced her Annabelle Lee and took her as their own.
To Vicky’s family and the family of Abdul, our heartfelt condolences.
I also lost a dear friend last Monday. This time, she is a family friend from Cagayan de Oro. For our children, their memory of Medina, Misamis Oriental is hazy. But they also treasure the memory of my friend Leni Borromeo Tiro who passed on to eternal life.
When he was still young, my husband, Roger, opened the branch of Granexport in Medina Misamis Oriental in the 70’s. Our youngest Irene was born there in 1974. Medina is a port town and a coconut producing town. I love the place for it is like my hometown. I joined in the choir and Leni was the organist. Her husband was a doctor. And her children went to the Parish Nursery School together with my children. We have two other friends, Evelyn Pepito married to Erdul Clarete of Dauis and Rosalinda Tolang married to Erdul Tiro of Bato, Leyte. Evelyn is a medical doctor while Rosalinda is a dentist.
All pf them are family to us. And our departure from Tacloban left a void in our hearts. We are all widows now and have our own medical challenges. When their children were in high school, they relocated to Cagayan de Oro. Rosalinda stayed for her dental practice but also had her home in Cagayan de Oro.
To Leni, this is not goodbye, but till we meet again in God’s time.
