MY YEAR 2005

A very agonizing year for me. So many sad events happened, so many frustrating circumstances occurred.

Two Thousand five was the year I lost some of the most important people I adored and loved.

In January, my paternal grandmother suffered a bad fall and had a hip fracture, she was 97 years old and despite her frail body she still sufficient energy to move around. She would love to talk, loved to read books (at her age she never wear eyeglass, she had a fantastic eyesight until her death), loved to share stories from her younger days. What amazed me was her ability to recall significant events in her life, at her ripe age she had a terrific memory.

My grandmother was a woman of deep faith in God, she had served the Catholic church as mother’s butler for most of her life and part of the Apostolada group, she prayed the rosary everyday, novena and never missed Sunday masses. Her intense devotion to the Catholic faith influenced all of us in the family and her passion in serving the parish was inherited by my father and uncle who are both Lay Ministers in our home town.

During this time, my grandmother, once very active and strong-willed now needs a support to walk and even in going out to the CR. There were nights that I would go to her room and talked to her, she still managed to throw some smile and humor, but clearly, she was already suffering hard.

My grandmother was transferred to my uncle’s house by March. My father visited there frequently and he would update us about grandma’s condition. One day she would feel better, the other day would not. 

Towards the end of this month, sad news about the deteriorating health condition due to some illness of Pope John Paul II was broad-casted on television. It sent a terrible blow to my heart since he was my favorite and would often pray hard to let me allow one day to see him.

I kept praying for the Pope’s condition, asking God to let him live longer for the sake of mankind. But on the 2^nd of April, devastating news of his death hit the world like thunderstorm. What made it so unforgettable was, it happened on my birthday (though April 2 in Europe).

The news was relayed to us by our Parish priest on the 3^rd day of April during a Sunday morning mass. I tried to appear calm and cool but my throat began to constrict with emotions and tears. I cried when I reached my room. I watched his funeral on TV. 

Another news on royalty made me upset. Prince Rainier III of Monaco died on April 5 after a lingering illness and his only son ascended the throne as Prince Albert II. Elsewhere in Europe, Prince Charles of England married his long time mistress, Camilla Parker-Bowles which made me choke in anger.

Back home, another terrible agony swarmed in my already devastated emotion.

My grandmother died in the morning of May 5. It was the most upsetting moment of my life. Though at her age (97 years old) we were already expecting this would eventually happen, her demise was still agonizing. I cried as if I never cried in my whole life. In the past decades since birth that I became very close with my grandmother, I must admit there were times that we couldn’t get along. One root of this misunderstanding was her obvious favoritism to my cousins that would lead sometimes to competition.

Weeks after her funeral, my father’s blood pressure rose to unimaginable level, we rushed him into the hospital but several days later the doctor advised us to bring him to Davao City and because the hospital in the province is a government run, the doctor recommended DMC, but I and my mother were hesitant to bring him there because of the unimpressive service of this hospital. I wasn't mistaken, when we reached at this damn hospital we experienced a very rude service so we moved to a private hospital.

By December, I moved back to the city for good. I first helped my friend run a beauty shop at the mall. Then the rest is history....