Let's Celebrate

Yesterday, we had a family reunion.  My brother who is studying abroad came home for the holidays and he brought his family over to the house for lunch.  My niece who is studying in another city was also home for the holidays.

My sister decided to cook pansit for the occassion.  It was already our midnight meal but she cooked enough to last us a few more days.  I had planned to get ice cream cake which my nephew volunteered to buy for me (he just wanted a reason to go out).  My brother brought some roasted liempo.  We also had ham, cheese and a whole chicken cooked in the turbo oven.

The highlight was the baby.  My brother's youngest turned one in September and is only beginning to run.  She is curious about a lot of things and stares to observe what is going on around her.

The wonderful thing was that she was in a good mood yesterday.  She smiled.  She laughed.  She hammed it up for the camera.

And she even danced!  When some hiphop music played on the radio, she would raise her arms and sway about.  If she was sitted, she would still raise her hands and sway her head.

New Addition to the Family

I had a client presentation yesterday but I had to move the schedule.  I just had to visit the infant ward at Capitol Medical Center.  My sister-in-law gave birth on Saturday just after midnight.  As expected, it was a baby girl.

She was asleep when I looked in on her.  She just learned to suck her mother's breast and with that came a full meal.  Naturally, she dozed off afterwards.  Unfortunately, she had an infection and so they kept her in the nursery for observation.  She should be ok by now, I still have not asked my brother.

A new born is always a joy.  

An Act of Generosity

I was riding on a train with Celia Martinez yesterday.  We just came from a radio guesting on DZME in Monumento and were on the train bound for Baclaran,  We were to get off at the Doroteo Jose station.

At R. Papa station, a mother and her baby came aboard.  The mother was having a hard time carrying the baby. The child was so thin that you could see from the legs it was almost reduced to skin and bones.  Its legs were stiff, probably from disuse.  We guessed it was more than a year old, probably close to two, because of its height or rather length.

But what really caught our attention was its head.  It seemed that it was longer than the child's torso.  The mother was supporting the head instead of the neck and we were worrying about its neck breaking.

The mother was having a hard time because apart from the fact that she had to carry the child with his big head and their bag, the baby was complaining too.  Apparently, he did not want his mother to sit down.  For him, mommy had to rock him while standing in the train.  Trouble really was, to stand up and hold him, she needed both hands so there was none left to hold on to the rail.

Anyway, that's not the point.  My friend Celia was so moved by this scene that she decided on the spot to hand her some money to help defray doctor's fees for the child.

That is generosity,   She lives on a fixed daily budget and any unspent amount, she returns to the family fund.  Yesterday, she gave half her daily spending budget to that mother and child.

I salute you, Celia Martinez