Lent and love in February

The shortest month of February is turning out to be one of the more eventful this year, even if it was just mid-month as it was yesterday.

Taking off from my Bystander-ing last week, it was the 15th anniversary of the Cebu Daily News last Friday, the 8th. With a number of us who were recognized and awarded for being with CDN from 1998, we marvelled at how fast the years went as CDN grew to be what it is today: Cebu’s independent, well-written paper headed by a woman, publisher and acting editor in chief Eileen Mangubat. She it was who had personally asked this Bystander to write for it starting from when CDN started at Escario Street. Thank you, Ms. Eileen!

Now, at the beautiful CDN building at the Cebu North Reclamation Area, anniversary celebrations opened with Holy Mass celebrated by Rev. Fr. Raffy de Gracia. Then followed a significantly dignified program at which we and other fellow columnists, writers, reporters and the loyal staff were recognized and awarded by Inquirer Publications Inc. president Alexandra Prieto-Romualdez, assisted by Ms. Eileen and CDN officers. The program concluded with President Alexandra recounting, even emotionally at times (so like a woman!) CDN’s growth and development through the years. This was followed later by an early evening dinner at which I spent some bonding time with fellow columnists, including Jaime Picornell, Madrileña “Mads” dela Cerna, Ricky Poca, Malou Guanzon-Apalisok, Aissa Dela Cruz and Hidelito Pascual.

The following day Saturday the 9th, the start of the Chinese New Year – Kung Hei Fat Choy! – I attended anticipated Mass celebrated for the first time at the Mall at Paseo San Ramon, on invitation of good friend fellow Zontian Rosita “Chit” Arcenas. The Celebrant was Rev. Fr. Wendell Balbuena, our parish priest at our Alliance of Two Hearts Parush Church in Banawa. Mass was followed by the traditional colorful Lion and Dragon dances in the area. I was to learn later that the Dragon would shed its scales and evolve into the Snake, whose Year of the Snake, the Chinese Lunar Year started on Sunday, the 10th.

Monday, the 11th, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes and the World Day of the Sick, I attended afternoon Mass at the beautiful Lourdes Grotto at Cempark (Cebu Memorial Park) at Banilad on invitation of good friend and fellow Zontian and Cempark executive Felisa “Feling” Chiongbian. Mass celebrant was Italian Fr. Luigi Kerschbamer, OAD. In attendance were special young students and a few disabled, two nuns, and a few guests. During the Mass, I remembered visiting the Lourdes Church, Shrine znd Grotto in Lourdes, France back in the ‘80’s with my already sick late husband on an enlightening, inspiring visit. Remembering the Blessed Virgin’s appearance to the young Bernardette also brought back memories I learned about Her other appearances, also to the young, at Fatima and then in Guadalupe. Truly blessed are the young, and the young iat heart, for that matter.

Tuesday, the 12th, the country’s campaign for national candidates officially started, and we may now expect the familiar “noisy and contentious” election in the country. That day, the administration coalition’s Team PNoy held its proclamation rally of senatorial candidates at Plaza Miranda in Manila, while here in Cebu, the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) held its proclamation rally for senatorial candidates at Plaza Independencia.

Wednesday, the 13th, Pope Benedict XIV celebrated his last Mass in public on his tenure soon after he stunned the world by announcing that he was resigning on February 28th. More details next week regarding worldwide reactions and his reasons for his decision.

The 12th was made personally significant for me with an invitation to lunch from my late husband’s niece Ma. Lourdes “Inday Lou” Babiera-Cabatingan, to belatedly celebrate her birthday on the 11th, the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. Other guests were her older sister Imelda Babiera and husband Ari Santos, and fellow Cebu Women’s Network member and auditor Fe and husband Froilan “Boy” Cabatingan (50th wedding anniversary celebrants last January). Inday Lou’s husband Ben could not come because he is on a special diet. The Cabatingans turned out to be relatives of my former Match teacher in high school, Mr. Custodio Cabatingan of Liloan. It is truly a relatively “small and inter-related world” after all!

Lunch was at a Japanese restaurant in the newly opened One Pavilion, one of two high rise towers going up at the former site of a cockpit near the corner of our R. Duterte Street and V. Rama Avenue here in Banawa. At the ground floor of One Pavilion are a mall, restaurants, and other commercial establishments. The R. Duterte-V.Rama intersection, popularly referred to as “Eskina Banawa”, is now a very busy intersection with various banks, restaurants and a covered corner street market. To think that we first settled down in Banawa in the ‘60s because it was a quiet residential area with trees. Now, there are other high rises along the well-paved 4-lane R. Duterte street with busy traffic going to Labangon. How time truly flies!

And now to return to Saturday, the 9th, last week, when I host our monthly Women’s Kapihan every second Saturday afternoon of the month at which I host on radio station dyLA. Up for discussion by Cebu Women’s Network panellists was the “Kasambahay Bill” regarding policies for the protection and welfare of domestic workers, most of whom are women and the very young, of which child household workers are perhaps the second largest group of working children.

Among our CWN panellist-discussants was Atty. Noemi Truya-Abarrientos of the Children’s Legal Bureau. She contributed a lot to our discussions on whether the Kasambahay Bill has enough teeth to alleviate the plight of lowly household workers. Also taken up was the “One Billion Rising” global movement to end violence against women and children. It culminated yesterday afternoon at the Ayala Terraces. Earlier yesterday morning, Valentine’s Day, at 10:00, our Zonta Club were invited to the Georich Livelihood Foundation 45th Anniversary as one of its beneficiaries. Mass was celebrated by Rev. Fr. Carmelo Diola at the Sacred Heart Center at D.Jakosalem St. after which lunch was served.

More on all of these and other Bystander-ing on further developments next week. Till then, as always, may God continue to bless us always, one and all!