UMPHA TELL ME YOUR MEMORIES I

GOING BACK TO 1933...THAT IS A LONG TIME AGO

Last year, Tisha gave me a calendar with questions on every page. I had set it aside because I am sure that it will be such an undertaking on my part to try to remember and answer all the questions. The pages are 5"x31/2" and if I am going to write my answers the page will not be enough. A whole year of questions! I decided that the "blog" format will do justice and I can save it on CD for later reading and enlightenment of Kai...so here we are...

WHAT IS YOUR DAY AND DATE OF BIRTH?

I was born Friday, March 3, 1933. The 62th day of the year in Georgian calendar. There are 303 days remaining. I was born at my grandparent's house in Makati, Rizal, a suburb of Manila (now part of Metro Manila) If I remember my Mom told me that I was born at night. I was delivered with the help of a midwife and those days they don't have to licensed. I still remember the house because most of my early formative years were spent there. I still remember that the house is by the Pasig river. The house is typical Filipino house with nipa (coconut palm frond leaves) thatch roof, the flooring is of bamboo slats but the walls are of wood sidings. Typical of houses then, it is above the ground and the front door entrance has a veranda attached to a concrete wide stairs with big terracotta flower pots (no plastic pots then) of hydrangeas and assortments of other flowering plants.

I am a Pisces...with the traditional traits, IMAGINATIVE and SENSITIVE, COMPASSIONATE and KIND, SELFLESS and UNWORLDLY, INTUITIVE and SYNPHATETIC. On the dark side, ESCAPIST and IDEALISTIC, SECRETIVE and VAGUE, WEAK-WILLED and EASILY LED. According to my mom, someone (like a

horoscope reader) told them that I will be ARTISTIC in all the things I will do in the future

NAME YOUR BROTHER AND SISTER AND THEIR DTAES OF BIRTH:

Flordeliza............................................April 30, 1934

Wilfrido...............................................May 9, 1938

Renato..................................................September 16, 1941

Teodolfo...............................................May 7. 1943

Redentor...............................................September 2, 1945

WHAT IS YOUR MOTHERS' FULL NAME?

Matilde Esteban Ramos

WHAT IS YOUR MOTHERS' DATE AND PLACE OF BIRTH?

April 10, 1908

Jolo, Mandaluyong, Rizal, Philippines

WHAT IS YOUR FATHERS' DATE AND PLACE OF BIRTH?

July 11, 1908

Pila, Laguna, Philippines

TELL A FAMILY NICKNAME THAT YOU HAD:

"Pit"/ "Pit oko, malaki olo"/"Totoy"

"Pit"...a short version of Pepito.

"Pit oko, malki olo"...because I have a big head.

"Totoy "...as a mother's child.

TELL OF ANY NICKNAMES IN YOUR FAMILY:

"Tambuli" for my father.

"Tindeng," "Matte' " for my mother.

"Leleng" for my sister Flordeliza.

"Dadong" and "Bardongis" for Wilfrido

"Negro," "Tato" for my brother Renato.

"Hapon" for my brother Teodolfo.

"Bulilit" for my brother Redentor.

WHAT DID YOUR FATHER DO FOR A LIVING:

Dentist

NAME THE TOWNS YOU LIVED IN BEFORE YOU WERE 20:

Makati, Rizal, Pasig, Rizal, Paco, Manila, Mandaluyong, Rizal.

TELL A FOND MEMORIES OF YOUR GRANPA:

Mother's side;

He loves to go to cockfights and he will let me come along...not to watch the actual cockfights but to eat some goodies at the food stalls there. Every time I visited him at work at the Bureau of Internal Revenue, I can be assured that there will be some money in my pocket. He was a god fisherman. He make his own fish net using a handmade bamboo shuttles. I wished I had learned how to do that! He will wake up very early, their house, the kitchen was practically hanging on the river bank. He will throw his net and catch some fish for my grandmother to cook for lunch and dinner. At times he will just do some deep diving in the river and when he comes afloat he will have some fishes betwen his fingers...throw them on the banks and div again until he caught just enough for day's consumptions.

Father's side;

He is a Medical-Dental officer in the Red Cross. He will come and visit us with his full uniforms...high boots and all that uniform brass which impressed me. He wears a well trimmed moustached. He very seldom visit us but when he comes, my mother will be cooking his favorites. He loves my mother's cooking. Also that there will be some money that he will give me and my sister.

TELL A FOND MEMORIES OF YOUR GRANDMA:

On my father side I did not have the chance to meet my grandma. She died before I was born. My Grandfather re-married but I can't remember having any relationship that bonded me to her. On the other hand, I practically grew up and had my formative years with my maternal Grandmother. She is a devout Catholic. A very fastidious woman. She never succumb to wearing the western style clothes but always with along skirts. On ordinary day and in the house she will be wearing a "kimona" a short blouse on top of the skirt. The skirt is on top of another long undergarment "nagwas" which have embroidered hems... going to church and in some other occasion, she will be wearing the Filipina dress of "Baro at Saya" complete" with the "alampay." The 'Baro" which serves as the blouse is made of sago-stiffened abaca fibers, woven loosely like a compacted net. The butterfly sleeve and the shawl "alampay" is always with embroideries. These blouses comes on different colors to match the skirt... yet she was a very simple woman. She married my grandfather when she was sixteen years old. My mother was the oldest of the eight children's. She is very loving and I was pampered because I think I was the first grandson. What can I say...?

TELL ABOUT YOUR FAVORITE AUNT AND UNCLES:

All of my maternal aunts and uncles treated me very well...spoiled me, the same reason as my grandparents because I was the first in the family. So they were all favorites in my early years. It is different with my paternal side of the family. It was only my uncles that I can relate to. My paternal aunts, in the language of today, had ATTITUDES! They are convent-bred Spanish speaking brats...very snooty in my book.

DID ANY RELATIVES LIVE WITH YOU?

Yes, during the early days of the war...a couple of my fathers classmate...one was fro Guam.

DID YOU HAVE ANY IMMAGINARY FRIENDS?

I can't remember. I was kept preoccupied that I did not have a chance to have an imaginary friend.

WHEN YOU NEEDED PUNISHMENT AS A CHILD, WHICH PARENT CORRECTED YOU?

My father...I think he got the idea of child punishment from his father, who is a very strict disciplinarian...QUICK WITH THE BELT.

TELL ABOUT THE NAUGHTIEST THING YOU EVER DID.

Gave a kitten some sleeping pills.

DID YOUR MOTHER WORK OUTSIDE THE HOME?

My mother was a home-working housewife. She is a "modiste" (a dress maker). I still can envision the first dress shop in Makati. It is near the tram station. When we moved in Manila, the dress shop was bigger with about six ladies that work for her. We have a mannequin we call "Bosya" and a Shirley Temple replica for children's clothes. We always have a dress shop right where we lived. It was a two story; we have the living quarters upstairs. During her days, she was a very successful dress shop owner that catered to women of all walks of life. It was an era when dresses were made to fit someone. There was no "off the rack" items yet in those days.

WHAT DID YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTER FIGHT ABOUT THE MOST?

There was no problem here. I can't recall any fights...just teasing most of the time. Child psychologist nowadays might find this wierd...but we survived without any serious fights at all.

Okay, I basically answered all the relevant questions from the January pages. I was surprise of myself that I was able to remember things that from many years past. I might go back to add some more details here and there to complete the scenario...till then.