A. Dreams of Childhood- Accomplished and Partially Accomplished
The Japanese Bridge of Chateau Du Mer Beach Resort on Sunset, Boac, Marinduque, Philippines
When I was growing up in the small town of Barotac Viejo, Iloilo,
Philippines in the mid 1940's, I had several dreams and goals in life.
One of my first dream after seeing a movie made in US was to see and
visit( not reside) US and play in the snow. This dream was attained in
1960. My other dream was to live in a house surrounded by fruit trees,
flowers and orchids. This dream was realized in 1996 when we built our
retirement home in Boac, Marinduque. Another dream I had was to build a
Japanese bridge across a creek( see photo above) populated by tilapias
and other fishes. This was attained when we constructed the beach house
in 1998.
As a child I never dreamed to be rich in money, but just earned enough
to live comfortably. This was fulfilled when we immigrated to US and
after I completed my Ph.D degree in 1964. Completion of this graduate
degree was the most important goal and dream in my life.
My last dream in my childhood years was to have a residence with a
circular driveway with a fountain in the center. This dream was never
attained completely. However, this dream, was partially fulfilled when
we built the Chateau Du Mer Conference Hall in 2000. The Hall had a
semi-circular driveway but no fountain. Building a fountain in the center was
planned before construction. However, for practical reasons and lack of
funds, this dream will probably not be fully realized unless I win a lot of
$$ in the Lotto or at the Casinos.
Finally, I thank God for all his blessings for helping me attained most
of my dreams and goals in life. Lord without YOU, I am nothing.
B.Afterglows in the Sunset of our Lives
The other day while looking at my old photo files, I found the above
photograph. It is a sunset and its afterglow from the west balcony of
our retirement beach house in Boac, Marinduque, Philippines taken ten
years ago. Looking at the photo reminded me of both Macrine's and my
professional life in the US. Macrine retired as Manager, Quality Assurance Nurse Manager from one of Maryland's Home Health Nursing Company. Macrine joined her Creator on August 10, 2020
I retired from FDA as a Chemistry Team Leader in the Center of New Drugs,
Silver Spring, MD. Both of us had satisfying careers( I had received
several awards, letters of commendation and appreciation, and an EEO
award). So when we retired in the Fall of 2002, we often ask ourselves,
if this is all that we can contribute to society and the community.
Since retirement is often called " the sunset of your life" stage, are
there afterglows in our lives that we can be proud of. Yes, indeed! The
following are examples of the afterglows in the sunset of our lives.
Several years ago, Macrine received a letter of Appreciation and Thanks
from the late Governor Carmencita Reyes(RIP) because of her involvement
in MI, Inc Medical Mission Of Love, 2006. Macrine was president and
over-all chairperson of the medical mission in Marinduque that year.
Here's an excerpt from C Reyes letter of Thanks.
Dear Mrs. Katague,
I would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude for all the assistance
extended by MI, Inc. Your association is one of our full-time partners
in the delivery of health services particularly in the conduct of
medical/surgical missions which benefited hundreds of Marinduquenos.
Thank you so much for the support and assistance extended to our
administration and to the people of Marinduque. Mabuhay Kayo!
In addition about two decades ago, Macrine and I received a Letter of Thanks and Appreciation from then Governor Antonio Carrion in our efforts to promote tourism in the island not only during Easter but also whole year round. The letter mentioned several of my blogs and articles that proclaimed my love for the province and encouraging other Balikbayans to build retirement homes in the island.
In 2009, my dream as a "citizen journalist" was attained when two of my articles was accepted for publication in HULIQ News. The first article was about Marinduque as the Ecotourism capital of the Philippines. The second was on the revival of the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant in Morong, Bataan.
Last but not least: Just recently two of my thousands of readers of my
seven blogs commented: " I have been reading your various blogs and websites
for about one week now. They are all well written and great reading.
What I have been reading and following intently in your blog is your
life story, very interesting and inspiring indeed. Please keep on
writing and thanks for opening yourself up in your blogs."
A second reader also commented: I have been following your blog for
quite sometime. I learned a lot about Marinduque and the Philippines. I
specially enjoyed reading your childhood experiences during the Japanese-American War. Your contribution as an FDA employee to the burnt victims of the bombing in New York and the Pentagon in 2011 is indeed commendable and worthy of an award. Keep writing!
Will there be more afterglows in the future? I hope so. I would like to
hear that our oldest grandson ( now 30) got married and gave us a great grandchild. In addition, we
would like to hear the news that our youngest granddaughter( now 18) had
graduated from college and that I am still
healthy to attend her graduation.
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