BSE Library Science Batch 94 Reunion 2017: Librarians Just Wanna Have Fun!

What I have resolved to do since my reappearance last year in my college batch's annual reunion was to join them every chance I get. We climbed a mountain in Pampanga that April 2016, a few weeks before my Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA). This year, thanks to God, I was able to spend a weekend with them in Cabongaoan, Burgos, Pangasinan.

It was a long drive. We never ran out of stories. We talked like we have seen each other just a day ago. Since we are all librarians, we talked about issues and controversies in the profession at large and lent advice to each other on our professional and personal endeavors in life. We missed the rest of the batch, seven of those weren't able to go. We wondered how they are and hoped they could join the reunion in the coming years.

In Burgos, Pangasinan, at the town proper, we went to market for our food the whole weekend. The adventure has truly begun! Buying fruits and vegetables we don't usually see in our urban marketplaces and groceries was delightful. There were cashews, lato, duhat, and even pako. Tagalog veggies and fruits in season abound. Baguio veggies were on sale too. Fish and seafood looked so fresh, like these were caught from the sea at dawn. And yes, it was! The fish meat was white, sweet and juicy! The veggies were crunchy and the fruits were refreshing

From there, we journeyed an hour more to Brgy. Cabongaoan. It is a remote place! We were off the grid the whole weekend!

We stayed in Roven's Place, a beach resort that is far from fancy. But, we liked it there very much. It is an idyllic place where we pumped water from artesian wells for our bathroom needs, where we grilled fish and cooked food using charcoal and where the sunset is as beautiful as our unspoken dreams. The beach is amazing, by the way.

Our stay there that weekend is a wonderful memory that I will tell my grandchildren.

Friendship is a delicate thing and only time can truly reveal friends who can walk with you through the road of life. Friendship is indeed a grace!

Here is my letter to my future grandchildren:

My dear grandchild/grandchildren,

*Give your friend a helping hand, especially when she happens to be the group's designated driver and is tasked to bring you all safely home. 

*Appreciate the best cooks in the group. They can either feed you well or poison you with so much big sister sermon.  

*Help out. Pump water. Clean up. Wash the dishes. You may all be friends, but good friendships are rooted in trust, fairness and honesty.

*Listen. Listen to each other. Listen to yourself.

*Thank God. Because, despite yourself, He gave you this beautiful world to share with friends.

          Love,

          Lola Gay

We parted ways with new resolutions: eat healthier, stay strong in faith and love, do our best to make this place a better place one day at a time. Whoever thought we would come this far? We were young and scrappy in the early 90s in PNU. The years have made us gentler, wiser, more forgiving of ourselves. 

I look at my friends and I am in awe at the beautiful people we have all become. Our lives are never perfect. For some reason, we smile. We stand strong. God is truly good!

The School Librarian in Action Slows Down

I endured a sprained ankle for two weeks. I went on therapy to cure the swelling and to build on back its strength and mobility. It was a sign to slow down. So I did.

Together with family, we went to San Juan, Batangas where we spent a weekend at Balai, San Juan. The beach has dark brown sulfuric sand. Low tide is in the early morning until early evening. The tide comes in at night time. It was off season when we went there so, we practically had the beach all to ourselves.

I don't swim but I love beaches. 

We went night swimming too since there were two warm pools in the resort. The night sky looked fantastic since there were so many stars above. I have not seen that many stars in a long while.

I wish to have more quiet moments. 

Yes. I have grown old.