My daughter's wedding day

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

Today on Aug. 1, 11:30 a.m., my youngest daughter Maria Regina is getting married at Newport Town Council, England. 

Known as GG among friends and “Badik” to close family members, she would exchange “I do” to Simon Charles Boddison, her fiancée of two years.

It is a union of two adult people with diverse cultures who would like to live their lives together. 

“It is a small-relaxed wedding,” GG told me in confidence.  Attendees would include the mother of the groom Jean and his two sisters Lucy and Kate, brother-in-laws, nieces and nephews, aunts and uncles. His very close friends would be in the event. 

Due to some medical issues Ronnie and I could not come and share beautiful moments with my daughter and her husband-to-be. 

GG would be wearing an ivory dress, white flowers and her veil is a birdcage type. 

She would do her own make-up. She's a simple girl with simple dreams and  is a romantic by heart. 

Her idea of a small intimate wedding includes choosing the music for her special day and her playlist consists of songs of Amy Winehouse, Frank Sinatra, The Beach Boys, The Ronnettes and other classics.

Six year old Louie Boddison, Simon’s son from a previous marriage, would give away the bride. 

The couple met for the first time two years ago in Charlotte, North Carolina and traveled together in some countries in Asia like Thailand and the Philippines. 

Simon works in Siemens UK and has been traveling all over the world while GG worked at the National Census Office in northern Mindanao before she came to the US five years ago. 

The wedding venue is at the Guildhall of Newport, one of the most prestigious and historic listed buildings in the town. 

The couple intends to settle in Newport, Telford, UK. 

Reception follows at the Granary Grill and Deli at Weston Park and the second reception will be held at the lovely home of Simon's mother.

(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippines who worked as a nanny and is now employed as a sub-teacher and a part-time teacher assistant in one of the school systems in the Carolinas.

Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com and at http://www.blogher.com/myprofile/spdennis54. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.

You can also connect with her through her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063)

Stories of my mother

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

The two weeks I spent in my birthplace of Tagoloan town, Misamis Oriental in northern Mindanao, Philippines was a reunion with my ailing father, whom I haven't visited for five years.

He might be boney and fragile but my Tatay (father) Simeon Barros Naelga's mind is as clear as the skies. During those few precious days with him I recorded all our conversations to serve as posterity for me. 

One of those topics we discussed was about his late wife, my mother Loreta “Lily” Ejem Espellarga Naelga. Sorry Nay (mother), we were talking behind your back--he said he was just stating facts about you now that you are gone.

He had no fears of retaliation from Nanay because she was six feet below ground. But trust me, my tatay's recollection of my Nanay was told with gentleness and love. I would see a tear or two drop from his eyes. 

It was not a straight recording I stopped twice for him to compose himself. Today, July 27th, is her 10th death anniversary today and she is always remembered by those she left behind. 

Nanay (Mother) took time to learn something especially if it has something to do with electricity and technology. She learned about it with my father's help but still scared if it is a new thing. 

There are exceptions of course and there are some things she didn't learn. The more I thought about it, it could be that her genes influenced my choices because there are some things I didn't push through like driving which I chickened out of.

Anyway I recalled the stories my father told me about her. One of these stories is my mother not learning to look at time. My father said he and Nanay were taught by the American Peace Corps how to read time. 

My father knew the difference between pocket watch, wrist watch, wall clock and table clock. The problem lies in my mother unable to memorize the Roman numeral equivalents to number 5 to 10 which is V to X.

We all know that V to X means adding I to V like VI or six and so on. This was too much for my mother, who knows only the Roman numeral equivalent from 1 to 5 or I to V.  

When she worked at the cannery at the former Philippine Packing Corp., now known as Del Monte Philippines, he bought a table clock with an alarm. He set the alarm before he goes to sleep and the problem came when he slept.

Tired after finishing the 2 a.m. work-shift, he would be roused from sleep by mama after the alarm went off. Since the alarm clock is set in Roman numerals she doesn't know the time so she wakes him and asks him what time it is.

He taught her how to set the alarm but she wouldn't budge because she was scared that she would break it if she set the time. To solve the problem, he asked that they work on the same shift and their employers agreed.

The second story involves my mother's fear of appliances that run on electricity. It's okay if it was battery powered but if it runs on electricity, she won't operate it. 

She doesn't have a problem with the refrigerator because it's always plugged in. The problem lies in the TV, stereo and others which usually involves unplugging it whenever there's a brownout and plugging it back in.  

When the appliances malfunction, she's not the primary suspect because of her fear of appliances. My mother was a simple woman who prefers to be left alone with her plants and laundry. 

Never one to complain, she is always proud of her children. Cooking wasn't her forte but she can do the laundry. She can cook rice without “dukot (burnt)” but she cannot cook any viand except stewed fish roe or ”inon-on.” 

One more thing, my mother has the most beautiful handwriting I have seen. She writes with dedication on a piece of paper that I noticed in my younger days. 

She might lose an argument with my father with people around since she is a believer of the old adage “respect me in the road, kill me in the house (respitahi ko sa gawas puede nan a patya sa balay) but trust me when in the house, my father would lose the argument. 

She was the winner. Yes it's been 10 years since she left us but her memory is still fresh to my mind especially the time when her seven children was on her bedside as she breathed her last. My father was outside her room at the time.

One thing I'm sure of is that she does not want to be buried alongside my father to which my father already made an oral will that he would like to be buried beside his mother at Sta.Ana cemetery. 

I guess it would be too much and too loud for the neighbors if they are together,  but don’t get me wrong they sure love each other.  My father is still a bachelor 10 years after her death.  

My sister Betty Alombro who's now based in Auckland, New Zealand told me the other day that there is a Filipino belief that on the 10th year of death the departed would be far away from their loved ones. 

That's sad because nobody would be guiding us anymore. How true that belief is I don’t know. She appeared in my dreams on several occasions and I knew it was her.  

We all love her to death and we hope she will still guide us until it is also time for us to leave this world.

(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippines who worked as a nanny and is now employed as  teacher assistant in one of the school systems in the Carolinas.

Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com and at http://www.blogher.com/myprofile/spdennis54. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.
You can also connect with her through her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063)

The movies in my mind

Photos by Jong Casino from Facebook page Old Tagoloan

by Susan Palmes-Dennis 

Yes, there were movies back on the old days of my home of Tagoloan town in Misamis Oriental, northern Mindanao in the Philippines. 

I speak of this after reading a Facebook post of my friend and town mate Gerva Tagapolot nee Celeredad.

It stirred memories of a time in Tagoloan town when TV and radio were considered luxury items. I wasn't sure whether it was in grade school when I saw for the first time a giant white “telon” in the public plaza.

What I do remember is that there would be a van or a jeep that would go around the town announcing a free movie showing at the town plaza later in the evening. 

I was reminded that the movies were sponsored by “Purico” and Star Margarine. Purico is a brand name for lard. A quick side note: I remember Purico as a white bar used in cooking by my mother.

Worth living
I also remembered placing Purico on hot rice or corn if there is no fried fish, chicken or pork to eat it with. If days are good then I would also place Star Margarine on my rice. 

Since movies were hard to come by, these public film showings were always something to look forward. For me it made life worth living. 

Why? That's the time when school hours would zip by and household chores so easy to do because everyone wants to watch that movie in the plaza. 

Watering plants and cooking are done quickly and when everything is finished I bathe my sibling and dressed them so we can go to the plaza. 

Film showings are usually held during the summer evenings when the night air is cool and the acacia trees sway comfortably near the town plaza.

At its best
Bringing our own bench and some essentials we head to the plaza. My late brother Ramon Naelga would go with his buddies Onyot Rollenas and the other guys. 

We would be walking with my  aunt Luz Pete Naelga and her mother Nay Doring. The plaza isn't far from our home and so we are usually the first to arrive. 

We usually sit in the second row because the front row doesn't actually offer the best view for such a large screen. Same principle applies to today's IMAX I think.

Commercials would be playing as we wait for the movie to start. Seeing those images on the screen brings out a sense of wonder and awe in our eyes back then. To my young mind, it was technology at its best. 

Unlike Gerva who recalled the names of every movie held in the town plaza, I can only remember those cowboy and Indian movies in which the Indians are the bad guys. 

Double feature
This is unfortunate because at the time we associated unacceptable behavior or anything bad with Indians.

As the commercials played, the town plaza would soon be filled with people from all walks of life. Boys would be running around and chasing girls. Most are sitting on their benches while a few stood.

The film showings would usually consist of a two-hour movie followed by a double feature. I loved the movies but strangely can only recall those cowboys and Indian films. 

But even now I didn't know there was a movie house in Tagoloan town until I read Gerva's Facebook post entitled The Movies in My Mind.

She recalled the big movie house of Iya Pepe and Iyo Oloy Factura located in the same street that she used to live in. The movies there were sponsored by Sputnik, a traveling theater from Jasaan town. 

Breaking news
Gerva said there was no permanent schedule for screening as Sputnik would come to Tagoloan only after visiting other towns where it was eagerly anticipated by the fisherfolk.

The day would start with Sputnik securing permit from the late Tagoloan Mayor Antong Cosin. “Among my playmates, i would be the first to know because of my Tatay Kiking who was a police then. Must have been an early version of "breaking news". Haha!!!,” Gerva said.

After securing the permit, the yellow Sputnik bus with the big megaphone on top would start going around town to announce the movie showing scheduled for the evening. 

The lines would be visible at the ticket booth early in the evening. Gerva said her mother has relatives working at the Sputnik bus so she and her family watched the movie for free. 

“Inside the movie house were rows and rows of long benches in the balcony and orchestra areas. And like the moviehouses in the city, there was always the peanuts and other snacks sold by vendors near the entrance,” Gerva said.

Open air
Gerva recounted that when the movies are shown, laughter and screams would be heard depending on the film genre. At the end of every show the people would  form a line and leave, each with their own story to tell about the movies.

Besides Sputnik, other companies sponsored film showings like Darigold, a milk brand from Procter and Gamble. “It was an open air film showing in the town plaza and it was always well attended. But everyone has to bring their own chairs,” Gerva said.

Yes, those were good times. I may not recall every movie, but I cannot forget those film showings for they helped make my childhood more enjoyable and introduced me to a bigger world of which I would soon be a part of.

(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippines who worked as a nanny and is now employed as a sub-teacher and a part-time teacher assistant in one of the school systems in the Carolinas.

Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com and at http://www.blogher.com/myprofile/spdennis54. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.
You can also connect with her through her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063) 

Good times anew in my hometown of Tagoloan

Photo by Jong Casino

by Susan Palmes-Dennis

For two weeks, I was home again in Tagoloan town, Misamis Oriental in northern Mindanao, Philippines.

I'm at home in a town where I learned to read, write and do my arithmetic and multiplication tables. At home where my family and the friends of my youth live in, where life is just the best. 

For two weeks I was in Tagoloan and it is a beautiful town. It is one of the largest towns in Misamis Oriental and it is located to the east of Cagayan de Oro City and located southeast of Macajalar Bay. 

It is a residential and industrial town and according to Wikipedia it has five high schools, three colleges and two hospitals. Tagoloan has a population of 99,677 people as of 2013 and 29,677 registered voters as of 2010. 

As a member of the media industry in Cagayan de Oro City I knew that in the early 2000 there are 23,000 registered voters already and the number listed by Wikipedia is reasonable.

Migration
Tagoloan produced two governors in Vicente Emano and his son, the incumbent Governor Yevgeny Emano.
   
Not only did it produce politicians but also doctors, lawyers, engineers, nurses, teachers and other related courses. 

We also produced top military officials like retired Air Force General Gregorio Gerry Paduganan, son of the late Dodoy and Denny Gaccion Paduganan.

But there are many Tagoloanons who remained in the town and stood by it through thick and thin. There are many of them. I don’t have to name names and I salute them- they are the witnesses of what Tagoloan is today. 

When the Phividec Industrial Estate opened, many migrants from other towns and provinces came to Tagoloan for employment. As Phividec started growing, the migration increased and intermarriages followed. 

Stranger
Now I barely recognize a face in the crowd. Of course I understand that my contemporaries are either six feet under or migrated to other places. So for the first few hours, I felt like a stranger in my hometown. 

I recall being startled by the changes and I wasn't sure whether I could locate all the places I went to in my youth in today's Tagoloan town. Most astonishing to me then were the Mercury Drug Store and Paula Hotel—an actual hotel in Tagoloan town.

Tagoloanons can now shop in the town and don't need to go to barangay Puerto in nearby Cagayan de Oro City. What didn't change are the people in my town who remain friendly and well. 

Ask my friend Roy Paduganan and he would tell you. The stretch of the national road is a place of business. The Mercury Drug Store is located close to the home of Landa Yap who married a Dalman. It is no longer vacant. 

There are stores and business establishments of all kinds. Even the entrance of the Catholic cemetery could not be seen unless one is a frequent visitor of the cemetery. 

'Chicken place'
Then there is the hotel where my uncle Norman Naelga works and is operated  by the Ragandang family of Sta. Ana. Right in the hotel's backyard is a gasoline station. 

The area occupied by Iya Linda Lee or specifically the house owned by Seigfredo Lee is now known as the “chicken place.”  I forgot the name of the outlet though. Beside it is the terminal of taxis operating in the town.

Transportation is no longer a problem for those who can afford to go from Cagayan de Oro City to Tagoloan town. I think the fare is P300. Taxis are plenty along with the hundreds of trisikad and habal-habal (passenger motorcycle) operating in the town. 

Since there are a lot of commercial outlets, Tagoloan had become quite noisy. I recalled a time when it was a lot quieter and serene. I couldn't see the house of the Marianos because it is blocked by a three door commercial building which they own I think. 

Many other things remained the same. Tagoloan Central School, the Sta. Maria Candelaria Church  Catholic cemetery, the town plaza, St. Mary’s High school formerly known as St. Mary’s Academy and the Municipal Hall.

Improvements 
The Tagoloan Central School where I studied had been rehabilitated through the years.  I hope it won't be demolished unless it posed safety risks to the students and teachers. The building should be preserved. 

The Catholic cemetery which many believed is a public cemetery is filled with  occupants. When I visited the grave of my mother I think it rained the day before and it was messy. 

But I saw that there are improvements undertaken by the church. Five years ago I saw “condos” inside for the dead. The plaza is different now as there are finished and unfinished structures that cut its old size. 

A few acacia trees remain. The plaza used to be surrounded by acacia trees. 
St. Mary’s High School now looks new since the old one was burned several years ago. 

I hope it still houses the pictures of the old school. Being a former alumni president, I am supporting any project that improves the school. 

Nostalgia
The municipal hall is new and its compound houses new buildings. The old Puericulture center is gone. I don't know if it was necessary to demolish it to give way to the new PNP building.

The Puericulture Center, just like any other landmarks of Tagoloan, should have been preserved and rehabilitated to help Tagoloan residents remember the past. 

A long time ago I saw the market transferred to its new location. I have not visited the Tagoloan River due to time constraints. Maybe next time I would make sure to visit it.

I felt a deep sense of nostalgia on seeing my hometown. Everything seemed smaller than I remembered but it looks to be progressing and that's a good thing.

Photo by Jong Casino

(Susan Palmes-Dennis is a veteran journalist from Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao in the Philippines who worked as a nanny and is now employed as a sub-teacher and a part-time teacher assistant in one of the school systems in the Carolinas.

Read her blogs on susanpalmesstraightfrom the Carolinas.com and at http://www.blogher.com/myprofile/spdennis54. These and other articles also appear at http://www.sunstar.com.ph/author/2582/susan-palmes-dennis.
You can also connect with her through her Pinterest account at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/41025046580074350/) and https://www.facebook.com/pages/Straight-from-the-Carolinas-/494156950678063)