Look, who's here?

Hello classmates!

I got so excited when I heard Eva's message, bumalik ang mga alaala 30 some years ago. I don't feel that old but it's been that long long ago. Hay... I can't wait until we all get together.

Kudos to all your hardwork. Yung mga pinagkakautangan ko hindi ako mahanap pero si Marianne na tumbok ako. Magaling na detective, nasa audit ka ba?

Wala bang email address si Dolly?

Sige umpisahan na natin ang planning for our reunion. I suggested to Eva na mag cruise tayo, I work for Princess Cruises so puwede kayong lahat sa Friends & Family plan namin.

Here's a picture of me and my apo Kaila. I will dig up some of our pics and email to all.

Ok, I will go to Eva's blog now. Talk to you all later!

Tina

Welcome aboard, Tina.

Yahan completong completo na tayo. Kailangnan umpisahan na ang plano for the reunion.
Eva

Hello Lola Tina. Si Eva ang auditor sa totoong buhay. Malakas lang ang pang-amoy ko. He he he Actually, Belle deserves most of the credit for gathering us together. She started the ball rolling. Nahanap niya si Eva sa Facebook. Sinabi naman agad sa akin ni Eva. Tapos nahanap ni Belle ang phone number ni Emma, na tinawagan naman ni Eva. Belle also found the address of Baby’s brother, Emer, na sinulatan ko naman. And, I found your address and phone number. Siguro, talagang tadhana na pagtagpuin ulit tayo after all these years. Ito na iyong tinatawag na “in God’s time,” di ba? Hu hu hu…teka kukuha muna ako ng Kleenex.
If you get a chance to read our earlier e-mail exchanges, Eva, Belle and I were talking about a reunion next year. Sabi ko pa, sana by then mahanap na namin si Emma, Eleanor, at saka ikaw. I didn’t think that we’d find all of you this soon and this fast. Okay…plano na tayo ng reunion. Dahil si Belle ang pinakamalayo…we will work around her schedule. Tina, mag-suggest ka sa amin ng cruise na mura na, maganda pa (kuripot ano?). Kahit takot akong sumakay sa barko (karetela nga lang takot ako, barko pa kaya), sasama ako sa inyo…basta may Dramamine. And, I don’t have to worry, may RN tayong kasama.Nandito pala sa Canada si Dolly. Baka nga nagkakasalubong kami, hindi kami nagkakakilalanan. Although, I seldom go to Toronto because I live and work in Mississauga, which is about 50 km west of Toronto. Ilonggo ba siya? Kasi baka member siya ng mga association dito. Meron kaming kaibigang Ilonggo, baka puwedeng ipagtanong. Teka, ano na nga ba ang apelyido ni Dolly? (haay, may senior moment na naman ako)

Ang malapit sa akin ang bahay ay si Miranda Tonolete. Kabarkada niya si Hedelisa Santiago at Jocelyn Panes. (Wow…natatandaan ko pa pangalan nila ha. Alam ninyo ang memory ko, it comes in spurts.) She and her husband own a money remittance company. I’ve seen her only once dahil napadaan ako sa isang branch ng remittance company niya. She hasn’t changed a bit. Siya pa ang unang nakakilala sa akin. Attached is the completed list of our addresses and phone numbers. Oh, I’m very, very happy to hear from all of you again…Kleenex moment ulit.Regards,Marianne


Tina !! Kumusta na ? huli na naman ako sa reply . Sabi ko na kasi pag tulog ako, dun kayo nagkukwentuhan eh.Everyone has already given an overview of what happened in our lives when we parted ways after graduation, now it is your turn. Katatanong lang ni Baby kung may grandma na sa atin , eh heto na ang sagot sa tanong nya ! Di ba nga ikaw ang unang nag asawa sa ating lahat.I dont know how we could find Dolly dahil maski yung pangalan ng kapatid niyang madre sa St Paul ay nakalimutan ko. All I know is she moved to Toronto sometime in 1982 or 1983. who knows, she might have crossed path with Marianne but you just didnt know !Emma, where's your photo ? The photo of you which I sent to Marianne and Eva was taken in 2002 (in the What's Up newsletter of Corona County), wed like to see your most recent one. God bless,Belle
I'm so excited, now we can have the re-union,

Welcome Grandma Tina, I like your idea of the cruise, especially with the discounted fare. We went to a Mexican cruise once (with Norwegian) I can't believe that one of my classmate from elementary school recognize me.Sige gawa na kayo ng plano. Belle, please send me the newsletter regarding my Kumare Emma, na nawawala, hindi pa nag- re response sa voicemail ko.

Tina, I am having a small party for my son, you're invited so we can touch base with one another. I will party will be on May 9 at 5:00OPM. I will give you a call for the details

Emma, Please give me a call kahit anong oras, promise I will answer my phone.

Talk to you soon

Baby

Next target: Tina Cartera

Sa palagay ninyo this is “the” Cristina we are looking for? Nasaan na ba si Emma? Hindi sumasagot…tinataguan kaya ang inaanak?

Cristina C Gubatan
Castaic, CA 91384-3597

I forwarded your email addresses here at work, para pag may quick updates , I can see it straight away. But do cc my email at home.

I’m excited about the reunion we are planning. Remember nasa other side of the world ako, near the South Pole, kaya pag winter diyan sa inyo, summer naman dito.

We want to escape the winter months here (June-Aug) next year kaya yan ang panahon na plano naming mag Europe, when it is summer over there.

Kung next year pa tayo mag reunion, the rest of us will have plenty of time to sort out our schedules, whereas if this year we are short of time.

But who knows if I see a cheap airfare, I could negotiate with my husband na ako lang ang lumipad this year. He knows how I excited I am, kasi nakikibasa siya sa emails natin. I work out natin, now that we know at least 2 of us wont be able to make it up until September this year , at least.

Pag uwi ko sa bahay i-forward ko sa iyo Baby yung article about Emma . (Emma do you remember that article? baka pati ikaw nalimutan mo na yon ha )

Hello, Emma !! Where are you ? Pahinga ka muna from work.

Ang lagi naming iniisip na mag asawa, ang tao pag nagkasakit, or worse pag namatay madaling palitan ng employer, but his/her family could never replace that person.

Keep those photos coming !!

Love,

Belle

Belle and Lalo

Here's one photo I found in my files, taken not long ago.(with my husband here at home).

Regards,

Belle

Eva's family pics

With my son, Jet, daughter Trina and "my apo", Renji.

Baby's Family Pics

Hi Everybody,

Here's our family pictures from 2008 Christmas. Please send me your current pictures.

I remembered, Emma and I went to see Tina in Valencia, CA long time ago. Emma, do you remember that?

Baby

Baby's on board!

Surprise Response

Hello Baby.
I'm very happy we found you!!! Belen got Emer's address in the white pages. It's good that she still remembers your middle name. Emer's phone number was not listed so I resorted to sending a letter.

We have so much to catch up on...30+ years. This is a great start...there are 5 of us now. Maybe, we can plan on a reunion sometime in the future. Si Belen lang ang malayo sa atin (she's in New Zealand) but she's a world traveler kaya she can meet us wherever.

We've been recalling bits and pieces of our college years. Kaya lang because of our age and the long years since we left St. Paul, madami nang events na hindi namin maalala.

My family moved to Canada in 1996. Before that, I worked at Bangko Sentral for 19 years. Sabi ko nga kay Belen, nagtataka ako kung bakit wala akong na-meet na classmates during those years. I have always envied my husband who's been in touch with his La Salle classmates even here. His best friend lives near us.

I've cc'd Eva de Jesus-Tobias, Emma Catindig-Sircar, and Belen Garzota-Arcenas on this e-mail. Sana mahanap din natin si Cristina Cartera.

Regards and we'll be in touch,
Marianne


On Mon, Apr 27, 2009 at 6:23 PM, Eleanor Dizon wrote:

Hi Marianne,

My brother in Sacramento, CA called me and read your letter to me over the phone. He will send your letter to me. Yes, I am your long lost classmate. i am now currently residing in Los Angeles, CA with my husband of 25 years and 2 grown up sons.

Our eldest one is currently taking up Law at California Western College of Law in San Diego and the youngest one is in junior college at University of California Riverside taking up Business Administration.

I am at the office and really got excited about your letter so I responded right away.

You now have my email address and we will chat later,

Thanks for getting in touch.

Eleanor "Baby" dela Cruz Dizon

Baby !! how are you na ??

This is really a team effort. Kung hindi nag respond si Eva sa facebook email ko, we wont reconnect again .

Gaya ng sabi nga ni Marianne, I was really sad when we lost touch with each other one by one after graduation. The last time I got to see you was when we went out to have lunch (with Emma and Amy), bago ka lumipad papuntang US. By the way, have you got any news from Amy. She is married to a kababata from Paranaque, and like me and Emma, member din ng DIWKS. When I went home in 2008, I nearly caught up with them or her husband dahil nag reunion ang elementary friends namin, kaso umulan ng malakas and nag baha, they were not able to make it to the venue.

Si Cristina ang susunod nating hanapin. Im working on that, starting with locating some relatives in Paranaque, if any.

Anyway, kwento ka naman ng konti and try to catch up with some of our stories. We have exchanged a few photos already, past and present, now it's Emma and Baby's turn.

Baby, glad to hear from you!

Ladies, we are almost complete. We should credit Belle for all of this. She started the ball rolling, but like what she wrote, talagang team effort kaya tayo naka reconnect in such short period of time.

Excited na ako magkita-kita ulit tayo. We should plan ahead para lahat tayo, including Tina, could be present to our reunion after 30 years.


Eva

more college pics

Belle,

Actually, I did scan the picture you were looking for. I am not sure if I have some more with us in uniforms.

Meron din tayong uniform. I can't remember why we all decided to get the Snoopy tshirt.

eva

Marianne,
that was you that made those ears for Angie and Didith, right?
pati sa palengke sa Baguiou nag-kokodakan tayo. hehehehe

On Fri, Apr 24, 2009 at 10:00 AM, Marianne wrote:

Oo nga…ang salbahe ko naman. Buti ka pa Eva, you remember their names. I know all the faces but it will take me some time to remember names. Sayang kasi, naiwan sa Pilipinas ang Yearbook ko.

Para ngang innocenteng-innocente and mukha mo. hehehehe

Kakatawa nga ang memory natin. Very selective... yung iba mong kwento, I can't remember pero once I read about it, parang bumabalik ulit.

I think these pictures were from our retreat in Tagaytay. Hindi naman tayo considered the "kikays" pero I can't remember why we had these seminarians with us in our pictures.

I can't find my picture with Chuchu who is the real kikay. Do you remember Chichi, I think Belle said she passed away from an accident.

On Fri, Apr 24, 2009 at 10:37 AM, Marianne wrote:

Oh my God, hindi ko na matandaan ang mga ito. No recollection at all. May boys pa tayong kasama huh! Kailan ito? Cute naman natin nuong magkaka pareho tayo ng tshirt.

Bakit nga kaya…I could remember vividly iyong Santa Rosa vacation natin. Siguro kasi talagang nag enjoy ako nuon.

On Fri, Apr 24, 2009 at 5:54, Maribel wrote

Thank you again !!

This is bringing back lots of good memories. Yes these photos were taken when we had our retreat Tagaytay. Pero nag swimming ba tayo noon ? Di ba malamig sa Tagaytay (for us , then), pano tayo naka pag swimming ?

Nasan si Dolores that time ?

siguro yung mga Seminarians na kasama natin na pictures eh mga pari na , maybe naka assist na tayo sa mass nila , or who knows some of them hindi nagtuloy sa pagkapari. Nung time pa naman na yon hindi tayo associated kahit sinong boys ano ? No touchie , no talkie sa boys then.

I remember nung mag punta tayo for our retreat sa Tagaytay eh 3rd year na tayo, and I remember ang faculty na kasama natin ay si Mr Garcia , accounting professor , remember him ?

Teka bakit ba tayo my T-shirt na Snoopy at may tatak ng St Paul college? Officially recognized ba yun ng school or pakana lang natin ? di ko na matandaan. Dapat ako sa lahat ng may matalas na memory dahil hindi pa ako nanganak at hindi pa na-anaesthesia.

I am saving all these photos in a disc, para di ko na mawala talaga.

Hindi si Chuchu ang namatay Eva, si marilyn Francisco na laging kasama ni Chuchu. Remember yung hindi nag tatagalog, laging English ang salita?

Nakasulat na ba kayo kay Emer (kapatid ni Eleanore ), otherwise ako ang susulat this weekend para maitanong ang contact details ni Baby. Sana mahanap natin sya.

College pics

Ladies,

Here are two of the pictures I scanned for now. Can you imagine bakit nahirapan yung kabayo when we took a ride sa karetela noon sa Sta Rosa, Laguna? We were all to thin and sexy then.

Eva

Uy, thank you. Wala akong kopya nitong pictures na ito. Sexy nga natin nuon ah.

Eva, sino iyong nasa gitna ninyo ni Emma duon sa second picture. Si Annabel ba?

Sige hintayin natin ang vacation schedule ni Belle saka tayo mag plan ng reunion. Sama kaya tayo kay Belle sa Europe, ano?

Thank you for sending those photos.

You know how much it means to me to have a few of those back on my file dahil nga nasabi ko na nasunog lahat ng gamit namin including some of those college photos of ours.

Sana may natabi rin kayong photos nung JPIA induction natin. I want to have a photos of us in uniform.

Cheers

Maribel

Emma's reply

dearest friends,
I'm so happy that we are in one way or another can communicate again, so we can start to update each other after 30 yrs.
I hope we can have our own reunion soon. I'm looking forward to see everybody.

emma

EMMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

KAMUSTA KA???? I’m at work and I’m grinning from ear to ear. Mabuti na lang na-contact ka ni Eva. Hayan…4 na tayo. Dapat mahanap na rin natin si Cristina at Eleanor.

Hindi ka ba nasasamid…panay ang kwentuhan namin tungkol sa iyo. We were reminiscing about the time we went to your house in Sta. Rosa.

Kailan tayo magre-reunion?

Yay!!, Im right.

The 2 Emma's in the white pages are one and the same. And tama ang theory ko na nag asawa ka din Emma.

Kakainggit ka Eva, nakapag usap kayo ni Emma, alam ko naman hanggang ngayon Emma's giggle is so contagious.

I had time yesterday to research kasi I took a day off. I attended a Eucharistic Convention conference ( I am Eucharistic Minister sa parish namin) all weekend kaya I decided to take a couple of days leave from work to catch up with all my housework. Ang internet surfing is what I did in between cooking and cleaning the house.

Buti na lang sumagot ka Emma when Eva called your number. Kasi sa US parating answering machine ang sumasagot and I dont want to speak to a machine. As what Marianne said ang huling kwentuhan namin eh yung pagpunta namin sa inyo sa Sta Rosa after our final exams. We talked about how we ate unlimited balut and brought home puto and kutsinta from your place (pati na ang buko pie on that we bought on the way home).

I am so excited and specially with the thought that maybe one day we could all see each other again. Looks like I am the only one living in another continent from you guys, but had I known that you're all there we could have caught up in one of our travels to the East and West coast of the US. Sayang, nung 2007 nasa California kami (SF and Las Vegas).

But next year , God willing , we are planning our itinerary to pass that way on a trip to Europe.

thanks Eva for sharing Emma's email and contact number to us. Now we have a task for Emma since nasa California ka din. Ikaw Emma ang mag contact kay Emer, yung brother ni Eleanor. His address is below :

Emerito Angco Delacruz

Sacramento, CA 95828

Phone Unpublished

Emma, the 3 of us have caught up with some stories of our life since we parted ways after graduation, now it is your turn to tell us your love/life story. Naalala ko na naman tuloy nung manood tayo ng "The Way we were" starring Barbara Streisand and Robert Redford. Do you remember na our schedule was afternoon lahat ang subjects natin non, so we watch the movie early in the morning, and since we still had enough time, inulit pa natin ang movie hanggang pati yung putol na kuko ni Barbara streisand eh napansin na natin. Hay! those were the days..

till next time.

to ms. marianne,

I'm back....... I'm glad we found each other again. I saw Cristina in CA, may asawa and anak last 15 yrs ago.
About Baby dela Cruz, my latest news was the whole family were in Las Vegas.
I like the idea of our reunion. More next time.

emma

Next mission: Baby dela Cruz

Ang maiden name ng mother ni Baby is Angco, so I am pretty sure the details below is Baby's brother. Ang bunso nila ay si Carina.

Emerito Angco Delacruz

8236 Gwinhurst Cir
Sacramento, CA 95828

Phone Unpublished

Belle, talagang nag-research ka ha. Sige, ako ang susulat sa kanila via snail mail. I’ll mail the letters tonight before I go home.

Sorry, hindi ako nakatawag duon sa kay Ronald Catindig this weekend. Dami ko kasing inasikaso. Alam mo naman ang nanay – grocery, laundry, luto. Natapat pa sa weekend na nakatoka sa akin sa volunteer work ko sa parish church namin (I assist the priest sa binyag ng mga bata).

Buti na lang you and Eva have very good memory. Pati pangalan ng mga kapatid nila natatandaan ninyo.

I’m excited…sana meron tayong ma-contact kahit isa sa kanila.

Regards,

Marianne

Eureka!

Hi guys,

I think I've got a lead to Emma. I found the below details in the white pages. There are 2 Emma's living or lived in this address and I suspect both Emmas indicated here are one and the same. It could be that Emma got married eventually, after the article I forwarded to you was published in 2002. That's possible, alam nyo naman si Emma, pihikan and perfectionist din when it comes to lifelong partner.

Emma Catindig

Corona, CA 92879

Phone Unpublished

Emma Sircar

Corona, CA 92879

(XXX) 735-1614

Melvin S Sircar

Corona, CA 92879

Phone Unpublished

If we find Emma, she might know where Baby dela Cruz is. Nung umalis kasi si Baby sabi niya di nya muna sasabihin yung address niya sa amin dahil alam nyo na naman nung year na yon puro TNT and pagpunta sa US. Pati nga ako di ba ang tawag sa akin ni Emma denial queen. Dahil sabay kaming nag apply sa US embassy noon pero siya lang ang nabigyan ng visa kasi may ninang siya doon. After two tried, decline pa rin ako sa tourist visa. Si Baby naman, nag asawa kasi ulit yung father niya (yung napangasawa taga BIR din, a very lovely lady , I've met her), tapos yung mga step sisters niya hinikayat siyang mag tourist sa states. Hanggang ang updates ko na lang ay from Emma, basta ang kinukwento lang nya eh busy si Baby decorating her new house because she got married na nga. Then after that naging busy na siguro si Emma sa studies nya, hindi na ako nakwentuhan.

Ay may isa pa pala tayong lead, yung brother ni Baby sumunod din sa kanya sa US a few years later. Yung pangalan ng brother niya ay Emerito dela Cruz. Baka makita rin natin ang details niya sa white pages.

till next time.

Regards,

Belle

The search for Emma continues

Searching BASIC databases for "EMMA CATINDIG"

People Search Results

Make your selection below Addresses available instantly!

People found: 1 that match EMMA CATINDIG in CA.

= Available Information

first name mi last name (req) city - Any lived in state - Any lived in age
Select a StateAlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareWash. D.C.FloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSo. CarolinaSo. DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyoming

#	Name	Age	Phone	Address	City/State	Relatives	Premium Information
1	Emma Catindig Emma A Catindig Emma Sircar Emma A Sircar Emma C Sircar Emma Catindig Sircar	54			Corona , CA Garden Grove , CA Long Beach , CA Glendale , CA Los Angeles , CA Diamond Bar , CA Nashville , TN	Ronaldo A Catindig	View Details

I tried to search Emma through US postal service. Marianne found one of our HS classmate using this tool. I think this is her, since her brother, if I remember correctly is named Ronnie(Ronaldo), her Kuya who became a doctor, if I remember right.

I found some of our pictures and I will try to scan them one day to share. I brought one of my albums with graduation pictures, but I know I still have more left at home that I did not bring with me when I went home last Dec 2006.

I am so amused and quite surprised that your Dad worked at one of my previous client. Pero sa totoo, I could not remember meeting him or working on that client. I am sure I did, but for whatever reason, nabura yata sa memory ko. Kailangan talaga yata uminom ako ng memory pill, because I can't remember your story about Marianne's mishap at the oven. I do remember going to their place and enjoying probably pancit, most likely pancit Malabon.

The after graduation excursion to Laguna was one of our cherished happenings in college. We had unlimited fresh balut at the table thorought our visit. The picture you shared was taken during our retreat in Baguio, as I too have a copy of the same picture. Besides, the clothes hanging behind us were my clothes I brought at the retreat.

I will email again and send some of my pictures since you mentioned that you have lost some of your pictures. Buti na lang hindi memory mo. Mas malala yun. hehehehe....

Take care,

Eva

I also did a search for Emma through the white pages. Her name did not come up but there was a Ronald Catindig listed. He’s from Vallejo, CA. I’ll try calling his number this weekend. Who knows, we could get some info.

I could never forget that oven incident. Until now, I have a fear of gas stoves. What happened was I turned on the gas and then started yakking with you guys…alam mo na naman tayo, konting kibot, tawanan. Meantime, the gas was leaking out. So when I lighted the oven, there was already too much gas and it burst into a big fire. Sunog ang buhok ko pati ang braso ko. Buti na lang my cousin’s dad, who’s a doctor, had a very good first aid spray for burns. Kagagaling lang niya from training in Houston, Texas specifically for caring for burn victims. Ang naging after effect lang sa akin ay parang very bad sunburn.

I also remember our Santa Rosa vacation. Di ba gumawa tayo ng pandesal, which turned out to be hard as stone. Kahit tayo hindi natin makain sa tigas. Tapos sumakay tayo sa karetela, halos hindi makalakad ang kabayo sa hirap. Ang papayat pa natin nuon…paano pa kaya ngayon. I could not forget iyong kilawin na niluluto ng tia ni Emma…sarap nuon. (Pag iyon ang baon ni Emma, lagi akong nakikikain sa kanya.) Nuong umuwi tayo, meron pa tayong balut at itlog na maalat plus puto at kutsinta.

Remember nuong nag board si Eva kila Nini Unalivia? We used to go there to eat our lunch, parang picnic. Also, when we wanted to watch a movie, duon tayo nagbibihis. Tapos minsan, nasuntok ako sa mukha ng isang luko-luko habang naghihintay tayo ng bus sa Taft Ave. There was also a time when Eva, Emma and I liked the same style of shoes at Syvel’s…sige bili kami. We did not care kahit pareho kami ng suot.

Dami nga nating happy memories nuong college. Sayang we got so involved with our careers and family afterwards, we lost touch. Anyway, now’s our chance to catch up and fill in the blanks. Sana mahanap din natin si Cristina Cartera. Mahirap kasi maghanap ng babae dahil nagpapalit ang apelyido pag nag-asawa.

By the way, you haven’t changed a bit Belle.

Regards and have a nice weekend.

Marianne

Sharing my pics

I was trying to look for some of my pictures to share with you and I forgot I have this family album online.

http://www.eva.sja1971.info/pictures/v/My+pictures/?g2_page=2

Actually, I maintain the website for our high school class of 71 in Malabon. Kaya nakapiggy back ang personal album ko, so I don't have to pay extra for the domain. I pay for it anyway.

Here's one of the pictures taken when Marianne and I last saw each other. This was taken at their home in Mississauga, Canada last July 4.

http://www.sja1971.info/litrato/v/Update/Canada/IMG_2719.JPG.html

Siguro when we reconnect with the rest, ie Emma, Baby, Dolly and Christina, I can create something smaller where we can share pictures and updates on each others' lives.

Memories of our Baguio retreat

Can you remember when these photos were taken ?

maski ang asawa ko di alam kung saan ako dito.

Marami tayong photos noon, but too bad hindi ko lahat nadala when we moved overseas. Then when I went back after five years hindi ko na mahag

Those were taken when we went on our retreat in Baguio (Mount St. Paul)…senior year. I have copies of those pictures, too. Hahanapin ko din iyong konting pictures na nasa akin dito. Paunti unti kasi, naipadala ko dito ang iba. Ako din kasi, I did not bring any of my photo albums when we moved here. Pati nga pictures ng anak ko, di namin nadala. Kawawa naman iyong bata, nuong time na hinihingan ng baby pictures sa school, walang madala.

When we left the Phils, our hearts were not into moving here permanently. Literally, damit lang ang dinala namin. We told ourselves that we would stay for a year and go back home. Pagdating dito, ako iyong ayaw umuwi. I’ve been here for 13 years now and no turning back. I have not been back home since.

By the way, your guess was right. Eva is the third person from the left and I’m the one wearing glasses. See, magkakakilala pa din tayo if we bump into each other on the street.

Are your mom and dad still alive? I could still picture them in my mind. Remember, we stayed overnight at your house on your 18^th birthday?

Glad you still remember when these photos were taken. I thought the other photo (wearing our night dresses) were taken when we went to Emma's province in Laguna after our last exam prior to graduation.

How can I forget when you spent the night at our place (that was my sister's 18th birthday, not mine) kasi martial law pa yata noon at curfew hanggang 5 am.

My parents are no longer with us. My dad passed away in 1993 and my mom just recently, in June 2007. I still miss them a lot. My dad was 73 when he died of gastrointestinal bleeding (a form of cancer daw, typical for accountants who suffer from ulcer due to stress), my mom had a stroke and she was 81. Eva my Dad still remembered you after graduation, he told me one time that you were one of the external auditors of their company, E Razon. Nasa Carlos Valdez ka yata noon.

Thank you Eva for sending me the link to your family photos, I enjoyed looking at them. Hindi pa nga ako tapos sa dami eh. Marami din sana akong photos na naitabi over the years since our graduation, pero due to a fire tragedy years ago, nawala lahat ng pictures namin na only memories naming mag asawa. You see when we decided to move back from Australia to New Zealand, our furnitures and things were left with the moving company's warehouse. Unfortunately, the warehouse was broken into and some arsonists set fire on it. So kasamang nasunog ang mga gamit namin which were scheduled for shipment a few days later. Imagine ang dala namin pabalik dito ay one suitcase each lang dahil nga ayaw namin ma excess baggage. So at that time we had to start all over again, lahat ng naipundar namin naging abo. Fortunately we did not sell our house in Auckland kaya may nabalikan pa kaming bahay (wala nga lang mga gamit). In spite of that we were still thankful that we were still alive and only the material things were gone. Imagine kung yung plane na sinakyan naman namin ang nag crash at di kami nakasurvive and yung furnitures namin ay hindi nasunog, what good are they if wala na kami.

See marami tayong dapat i share with one another, after 30+ years of not seeing and hearing from each other. I remember when we were in college lahat tayo may kwento tungkol sa mga families natin whenever we arrive at the school. I remember Eva that you have an elder sister tapos Marianne naman you have a younger brother. I remember the time we went to your house in Malabon to do some baking, tapos nag explode yung gas oven mo, yung dulo ng buhok mo ang nahagip ng apoy.

And I could still remember us going to Emma's house in Sta Rosa, Laguna. Emma's aunties treated us like queens.

By the way, I have contacted the magazine that published the article where Emma's picture was, they tried their best to point me to the right direction but no one could tell me where Emma is now. That newsletter kasi was way back in 2002 pa. But I am trying to locate her and our other barkadas.

till next time.

Marianne's reply

That was definitely Emma on the article that you sent. Hindi siya
nag-asawa.
Look at this picture...do you recognize anybody?

Hey Marianne,

I definitely know that Eva is the lady in blue, thrid from left, but you, omigosh, dont know for sure.

But I am guessing you are in front of Eva, the lady with glasses ? I know your height , you are taller than me but shorter than Eva and fair skinned too. Pero kasi tumaba tayo lahat eh, kaya mahirap, kaya nga dapat mag reunion tayo.

I will try to get in touch with Angie Dandan. For some reasons marami siyang balita tungkol sa mga classmates natin. She knows who among our classmates have passed away. Siya kasi ang last contact ko before I left for NZ kasi officemate kami sa BPI. She was the branch Cashier of Zapote branch.

Like one schoolmate, hindi siya accounting major pero classmate natin until second year ( Si Marilyn Francisco, close friend ni ChuChu, do you recall ? She died in a car accident going to Baguio ) Also si Teresa Reyes sa isang investment house sa Makati nagtrabaho, alamin ko kung nasa PI pa kasi last time magkausap kami nagbabalak din mag abroad. May contact ako sa kanya thru some mutual friends from Paranaque.
Yun dalawang yon ang hindi rin nag asawa, puro career ang inasikaso.

Next time tell me more about what happened to you after we all parted ways in 1975 and I'll tell you more of my adventures. Trabaho pa kasi ako hanggang bukas. Over the easter weekend mag email ulit ako.
Who knows we might see each other next year, inaayos pa naming mag asawa ang itinerary for next year's travel.

Regards,
Belle

Looking for Emma

Belle googled Emma and this came up.

Hello Ladies,

Im glad we finally got in touch again.

I came across a googled article, please check out the attachment.

I am 100% this is Emma in the picture.

We should find a way to reconnect with the rest of the barkada and this attached article is a way to start the ball rolling. Im sure when we reach Emma , she will point us to the direction of Baby dela Cruz because she was the one updating me with Baby's status when I was still in the Philippines.

Like what Marianne said , nakakainggit yung ibang schoolmates natin na may connection pa sa alma mater natin one way or another. Some batches even have their own website.

I always visit the SPCM websites, and think of the happy memories we had in college.

I'll write again. In the meantime, happy google-ing.

Marianne, you should sign up for facebook so we could see some photos of you and your family. Who knows , the rest of tje barkada might be looking for us as well. (we are all in our 50's, kaya medyo dali dalian natin. )Do you guys have skype or yahoo messenger ? We can talk thru those.

until later.

Belle

Hi Eva,

Nice to hear from you. I think it happened so fast that after graduation we were all so eager to find jobs that we somehow lost touch though we were all still in the Philippines.

Well yes, I remember now Tina got married first, then you.

During the early stage of our working years Dolores and I regularly caught up with gossip via phone and letters, kasi alam mo naman she went home to Iloilo once or twice a year. Then she went to Canada as all her brothers and sisters were already there. I did not even know if she ended up getting married.

Then Eleanora, Amy, Emma and myself still got together for some Friday drinks since we worked in the same area in Makati (Amy & me were with Comtrust and Eleanora with Bancom. I forgot where Emma worked but it was also an accounting firm). Baby then went to the US as tourist in 1981 or 1982 can remember exactly, did not come back anymore, (we said good on her because her boyfriend then was a jerk), but got some news thru Emma who was also planning to go to the US then to pursue a Nursing career. When Emma was studying in Virginia she still sent me some photos and letters. Then all communication from the rest of the barkada were cut off, I think mainly due to my fault as I was enjoying my single life then, disco-ing and dating guys, meeting new friends.

Suffice to say I enjoyed my single blessedness so much that it did not dawn on me that the clock was ticking. I ended up getting married at 29 (nearly 30 na nga). Si Amy Inlong ang last na contact ko, because she got married to my kababata from Paranaque and also our officemate at Comtrust (now BPI bank).

Then my husband and I decided to test the waters abroad, after the Marcos downfall. My husband (also a CPA) was then working with the company who was administering all the sequestered Marcos properties, but we thought after all these properties are sold he probably would not have any job thereafter. Kaya nag migrate kami sa New Zealand in 1987. As we are blessed with no children, we decided to try moving to Australia in 1998. We only lasted 18 months there, didnt like the Australian way of life, missed the quality of life in New Zealand so we decided to come back here in New Zealand. From thereon, we just spent our time travelling to the US, Europe and Philippines of course (we try to go home to PI every other year). Had I known you are in New York, I could have called and seen you when we went there in 1995 and 2003.

Now here we are in Auckland. Career wise, I started as an accounts receivablez clerk with Societe Generale de Surveillance (SGS, NZ, Ltd. ), left the company, worked in a coffee lounge as a cashier, enjoyed meeting people and the thought of not taking any paper work home that I stayed in that job for 4 years. Then moved career to Insurance here in Auckland and Australia where I worked with AIG. Went back to NZ and my previous company re-hired me as Customer Service Consultant. Moved roles within the same company. I am now with the same group of company but on the bank side, in the IT department. I am now a qualified software tester, testing all sorts for banking and insurance software systems.

My youngest brother , with his family , also lives here. My sister ,Joy, is in Virginia with her husband and only son.

Last year we went home and caught up with some old high schoolmates from St Paul Paranaque. And yes, Carol Conti owns Conti's , a famous cakeshop and sells yummy , rich all sorts of cakes. A business she first ventured with Ruby (bakery named Dates and Nuts), but later they decided to split.

Ok haba na nitong story ko, ikaw naman magkwento. Tell me about your parents, are they still alive ? When was the last time you went home to PI ? Tell me more about Marianne, how do I email her ? Did she get married ? When ?

Sana we can also reconnect with some of our classmates in college. I'll try to search, for a start I'll visit the SPUM website. Hey do you know that SPCM is now a university, a co-ed university at that.

Talk to you soon.

Regards,

Belle

How it all started

I started with a simple "hello"

hello

Between You and Maria Arcena

Maria Arcena

March 16 at 1:34pm

just wondering how you've been. It's me Belen !

Where are you now ?

Between You and Maria Arcena

Maria Arcena

March 26 at 3:24am

Eva de Jesus

April 4 at 9:39pm

I am in New York. How about you? Have not heard about you and the rest for sooo long.

Maria Arcena

April 5 at 12:23am

omigosh it is you !. I knew it's my long lost friend from college. You havent changed a bit.Send me an email on lalo59@xtra.co.nz. I am in New Zealand.
After we attended your wedding the rest of us still got together every once in a while, attended Cristina's wedding, thereafter she moved to California,thereafter Dolores Diaz moved to Canada, thereafter Emma, Eleanora , Amy Inlong and myself got together for the last time before Eleanora moved to LA. Then Emma & I exchanged letters and photos when she moved to the US( she shifted to Nursing there).
Last communication I had was with Dolores Diaz, we used to write each other while I was still in the Philippines and she was already in Canada , then i got married and we lost touch.
Tell me how you've been. I'll wait for your email !!