​                        After majoring in Philosophy, and learning about Oriental and Western Political Thought in college, I always believed that it was wise for a political leader, and head of a state or government to hire a philosopher in his circle of power as one of his or her trusted political advisers, in order to grasp the first causes and highest principles of all things, that only an astute, morally grounded, and experienced philosopher can give through correct thinking, common sense, and intellectual humility, before making a decision.

               In the case of China, there is no doubt that Pres. Trump (who was no dummy in dealing with USA's number one competitor  as the world's superpower, both economically in the trade war, and militarily in South China Sea,) was outsmarted by the CCP or Chinese Communist Party, by ruining the glowing US economy, and the way of life of its citizens, not to mention the 65,000+ American lives lost, while putting a dent on his easy reelection bid this year, through the Wuhan coronavirus, which leaked from a lab in China, spread to the US and the whole world by Chinese tourists or world travelers from China, and devolved globally into a pandemic, and an economic, social, and religious disaster. 

                Was it an accident, or premeditated?  First of all, we know for a fact that the virus was not concocted in the lab, or intended as a biological weapon because its DNA was intact; so that US investigators initially thought that it came from a bat in the Wuhan wet market.

              Secondly, Chinese scientists and doctors knew that infection from this virus caused a Sars-like disease since November, and tried to relay this knowledge to authorities, and online to fellow professionals internationally, but were suppressed by their superiors. 

                Thirdly,  the Chinese authorities did not let their people from  Wuhan where the coronavirus started and people got infected, to travel within China because they knew that the virus could spread from human to human, but allowed them to travel abroad by denying that it was so; which was seconded by the WHO or World Health Organization, and calling the virus officially as COVID-19, to erase any attachment to Wuhan or China, or label a person racist if they persisted in doing so, because the president of  WHO was also under the influence of China. 

              Next, the human to human transmission was first reported in Thailand around mid-January; Wuhan was put on lockdown; and Pres. Jinping acknowledge the presence of the virus while vowing to help and show the world that they were the greatest in combating it, compared to the US under Pres. Trump, who was fumbling and caught unprepared, just like everyone else, in the midst of his impeachment hoax by Democrats, but was eventually exonerated.

               Anyway, we already know that CCP lied by revising their statistics on how many of their people got infected, cured, or died from the coronavirus, and also denying that they spread the virus worldwide, especially in the US, in order to hurt Pres. Trump, who was a thorn on their side for world supremacy, by telling the world that the US military athletes brought it to Wuhan during the Games, and also because they prefer Biden, who is pro-China, to be the next US president.

                However, the question still remains, whether the leaking of the Wuhan coronavirus  from the lab was an accident, and when did the CCP found out, or was it premeditated?  

                Economically or GDP-wise, China, because of its size and almost 1.5 billion population, will surpass USA in 10 years, or 2030, whether America likes it or not.  Which means, China will be ready according to its timetable at that point, to dominate the world as the number one superpower, after reigning in and ruling Hong Kong through its authoritarian rule, annexing the whole South China Sea and getting permission from other countries to pass through its trillion dollar maritime trade route, invading Taiwan, and the Philippines, while exerting enormous economic sphere of influence over Asia and the ASEAN countries, Africa, and Europe because of its 5G, AI & Space technology, the Road & Belt Trade Routes & Economic Initiative, and Pre-existing loans, and trade deficits, including those in the US and Australia.

               But because of the US economic & military comeback under Pres. Trump, the CCP's timetable had been delayed for 4 years; and the prospect of 4 more years of Trump's presidency had become an anathema to their ambition and resolve.

                Besides, it is in China's psyche to restore its ancient splendor and prestige when everything revolved around it, including the gods, the whole world, its philosophy, and people, after having been humiliated countless times, and losing some of its territory, not just from the West, but also from Imperial Japan during World War II.

              Unfortunately, the US rested on its laurels after defeating USSR during the Cold War under Pres. Reagan 40 years ago, with the subsequent collapse of the Berlin Wall, while the former Soviet Union lost its Warsaw Pact satellites to the NATO and EU, and Russia was reduced to its oligarchs and humble beginnings.

               Not anymore, because today Russia has plenty of oil revenues, and is more powerful under Pres. Putin, who annexed Crimea, and prevented Ukraine from joining the EU & NATO, and wanted to keep the country from its sphere of influence, by attacking Ukraine in a protracted war along its border.  Russia is also a threat to American way of life and value system because of its authoritarian regime.  But, Russia is miniscule compared to China in terms of size, population, and economic might.  Besides, the CCP is more cunning, unscrupulous, atheistic, and wise, not just in stealing US intellectual properties, but in convincing the US and the West to give up their manufacturing jobs, and let China produce its goods cheaply, efficiently, and economically, including its pharmaceuticals, by giving them the formulas to come up with inexpensive generic drugs and medical supplies, and assuring them that they will eventually embrace capitalism, freedom, and democracy wholeheartedly, and give up their authoritarian form of government, and its triune god of wealth, power, and intimidation.

               Of course as an Asian immigrant, I learned from my Dad, and past experiences since I was in elementary school until I migrated to the US that that was not true, because I knew about CCP's history, philosophy, and its ruthlessness, ever since.  It's not that the majority of Americans were naive or stupid that they bought Chinese lies, hook, line, and sinker, including the past administrations from Presidents Bush, Sr. & Jr., Clinton, and Obama, who were motivated by Wall Street, who in turn were full of greed, and only saw dollar signs in dealing with China, at the expense of the United States, and embraced Communist China, by giving it the benefit of the doubt, and ignored its human rights abuses in Tianemen Square, and accepted its rhetoric, since I came here in 1981, when America was full of promise, success, freedom, and Christian values during the Reagan years.

               Thank God for Pres. Trump!  But sadly, China was forced to re-calibrate their timetable by releasing this Wuhan coronavirus in the US, and on the whole world. 

              But where is our moral compass, the Vatican, the Vicar of Christ, or Pope Francis during this pandemic?

(TO BE CONTINUED...)  

              

                My perception of China had always been a dichotomy, good and bad, through all the years, because that's how it started.

               When I was in elementary school in Macabebe, Pampanga, Papa used to take me to the city to see an EENT specialist, a Chinese doctor in Divisoria, Manila, who was the only physician who cured me from an ear infection called otitis media after years of suffering, which got me into thinking that the best doctors in the world were Chinese.

                 Then, he hailed a taxi that took us to his Chinese furniture finishing suppliers who gave him credit for his orders, and would count each item individually to make sure that he was getting the right total for each number of items before they wrapped and had them delivered in Sta. Cruz, Zambales, were my Dad's furniture business was.

               I thought that was very cool for them to trust my Dad by giving him credit; but why did he have to count each and every item on the invoice?  My Dad said that you couldn't really trust the Chinese because they're dishonest, when it came to business, especially if you're not looking.  And according to him, if he didn't check the order one by one, then something would be missing after getting them later.
               
            Afterwards, we walked a few blocks and ate lunch in a Chinese restaurant, which I thought  had the best food in the world.  He told me to watch out and eat only in clean and reputable Chinese restaurants because some of them use rat and cat meat in their cooking to make more money, instead of chicken and pork that you ordered.

               A review of Philippine history didn't help either because even when we credit the Chinese for their advanced civilization in ancient times by inventing gun powder, printing, compass, and paper, and who spoke highly of Filipino natives for being honest in trading or bartering during Pre-colonial ages, the Chinese merchants were excellent in numbers, had patience, and took advantage of them.

               I had no proofs if any of these were true, but took them as gospel truths because my Dad and teacher said so.  And when Mama asked her friend and neighbor to buy us a transistor radio in Manila from the money she saved, my Mom reminded her to check the label that it was Made in USA, and not from China that was flooding the market, which were cheap, but crappy.

               But, my ambivalence with the Chinese people became sympathetic when we moved to Sta. Cruz, after learning from our hardworking Chinese neighbor and fellow store owner, who had a wholesale grocery business and used an abacus adroitly for computing, was a great cook, and lent money to Papa and Mama when they had huge furniture deliveries (and vice-versa when he needed cash,) about their plight and suffering, while leaving some family members in mainland China in order to cross South China Sea, and came to Sta. Cruz, Zambales, Philippines, after their country was taken over by communists.

               Later in college, I began to detest communism, and the Chinese Communist Party, but not its people, particularly during the Communists' Cultural Revolution, but was shocked when the United States established diplomatic relations with Red China, while maintaining relations with non-communist Taiwan, (their renegade province according to Chinese communists.)

               Soon, my window to Communist China became blurred when the Philippines followed the US initiative during the Marcos regime by sending Imelda Marcos, and started courting China by establishing cultural and trade relations with them also because of its enormous population and market potential, which can no longer be ignored according to American officials.

               I learned how to watch and enjoy Chinese movies with English subtitles, not only from Hong Kong and Taiwan, but from mainland China as well, despite of its censorship.

            And when the opportunity to quadruple my salary as a full-time Instructor II in the Catholic University of Santo Tomas, a few years after getting all my Master's credits both in Philosophy & Developmental Education, I grabbed it by taking an administrative position in a private Chinese Catholic Parochial School in Metro Manila as Assistant Director to the parish priest, in-charge of running the school, together with the High School & Elementary School Principals, Preschool & Chinese Language Head Teachers, who all reported to me.

              Everything went smoothly, while I conducted regular In-Service Training Seminars with the teachers on the Catholic Philosophy of Education, and participated in School and Parish activities, such as, in celebrating Chinese New Year and Foundation Day. 

              The only question that came up between me and the person who hired me, or I was answerable to (my boss/parish priest/school director) didn't emerge, until prior to the DEC's (Department of Education & Culture) school inspection, because my boss didn't see eye-to-eye with the lady elementary school principal.  I was put in a dilemma: to lie and submit an alternative false curriculum to DEC to please my boss, or forward the actual curriculum being followed showing more hours spent in learning the Chinese language that was submitted to me by the principals & head teachers, which were detrimental to the school's rating because it was contradictory to the school guidelines. 

                So, that was the reason behind the new position my boss created, and hired me for a lot of money-- total obedience or absolute loyalty.  I decided not to lie and keep my boss happy, by adding additional hours for learning the Chinese language (which was paramount to the Chinese-Filipino parents in sending their children to our Academy,) after school hours and on weekends, while submitting the curriculum that was in compliance with DEC's guidelines.

               I never heard from my boss again until after I saw him the following day. Why?  Because after school hours on the day before that, I went to the birthday party of one of our prominent Chinese-Filipino parents in the school, with one of the male teachers. 

               Sure enough, we were served the best Chinese buffet lauriat I had ever tasted in my life, that the Chinese were known for; and our gracious host even volunteered to drop me off in nearby Ermita to pick up public transportation or jeepneys, instead of driving me all the way to my boarding house because of the heavy traffic caused by the slight rain.. 

               He probably thought that I was drunk, because I drank a lot of beer during the party.  A little tipsy, yes; but definitely not drunk, because I was twenty-five years old and used to drinking plenty of beer in college, when he tried to sell me for sexual favors to a rich Chinese in the red light district of Manila.  I ran away as fast as I could, took whatever available taxi I could get, and resigned from my job as Assistant Director the following day.

            I decided to come to America and finish my MA thesis after that, applied and was given a Visiting Scholarship and audited classes at Teachers College, Columbia University in New York City, and never told anyone what happened that night, until after I married my wife Gie 39 years ago. And although we are avid cruisers,  have visited 69 countries, would love to see the Great Wall of China, and yet have never set foot in the Forbidden City (although our daughter was amazed after visiting Beijing and Shanghai,) not even in Hong Kong or Macau.              

               And then came the coronavirus pandemic that started in Wuhan, China. It is now present in 7 continents, has infected almost 3 million people worldwide, and killed more than 203,000 humans in our planet.

               What hapened?               

            In fairness to Pres. Trump, the whole world was unprepared about the Wuhan coronavirus, even after the WHO belatedly called it a global pandemic and as COVID-19, because people all over the globe, and not just in Wuhan, China where it originated, were dying from it, especially the elderly, those who were obese, had diabetes, lung or heart disease; while the poor countries of Africa and homeless people of our planet had become the most vulnerable, in the absence of a vaccine, lack of testing and other medical equipment & facilities, and unwillingness to follow social distancing, wearing mask, and the necessary personal hygiene..

              From Italy to Iran, Spain, South Korea, England, Turkey, Australia, Japan, India, Russia, Philippines Sweden, Singapore, Vatican City, and over 100 countries had been infected, or were put on lockdown which ruined their economies, turning this pandemic not just into a global economic crisis, but also an unparalleled suffering due to lost lives, especially in the richest and most powerful nation on earth-- the United States of America, with over 40,000 of its citizens dead, or who are still dying from the Wuhan coronavirus.

           And what would have been an easy reelection for Mr. Trump this coming November because of the glowing US economy, after surviving the Russian Collusion and Impeachment Theater of the Absurd's failed performances of the Democrats in Congress, had become a toss up against Mr. Biden, who won his party's unfinished primary election easily against Mr. Sander's socialist agenda.

               On the other hand, after plenty of rest, aggressive medication, and feeling better when our children called, while we were celebrating New Year 2020 with a midnight supper, and having overcome what I thought was my usual allergic rhinitis which was exacerbated by another flu strain, I was back in my old element, pretty much until the next two and a half months, or March 18 to be exact, the day after I delivered a personal testimony on Suffering and the Cross, where I received an excellent feedback, not just on the tray of Pancit or Rice Noodles that I cooked and served that night, but also regarding my talk.​

               However, I felt dismayed inside when I learned through Sis. Shirley who was told by our Charismatic spiritual adviser & St. Joseph Church pastor, Fr. Ameh, who approved my talk, that we can longer meet in the church premises where our Charismatic Prayer Group was based, followed by an email regarding the same the following week from Fr. Bill, our parish priest in Holy Spirit Catholic Church, which was only 1/3 full that Sunday, with no chalice of the Blood of Jesus Christ but only His Body in the form of unleavened bread during Holy Communion, because the Bishop put all the Catholic churches in the Diocese on lockdown due to the coronavirus, a week before that (with exceptions, I guess, because ours was still open for another week,) until Nevada's Democratic governor Mr. Sisolak put all non-essential establishments like casinos & restaurants,  or houses of worship (really?) on lockdown, but not abortion clinics, liquor stores, and marijuana retail stores, which were considered essential.
   
               And although, we already cancelled our flights and month-long cruise from Australia, to New Zealand, Tahiti, Samoa, Maui and other South Pacific & Hawaiian islands which we already paid in full (and received vouchers from them to rebook, instead of a refund according to the DOT,) in order to celebrate Gie's birthday this month, I did not realize the gravity of the situation, and still booked a transatlantic cruise from Lisbon, to Seville Spain, Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Brazil, Uruguay & Argentina, after a pilgrimage in Fatima, Portugal, and Thanksgiving with our children & grandchildren in New Jersey this year, after we were told by our children to get serious about the pandemic, because they were shocked to see our Facebook pictures, and not social distancing while attending Sis. Yolly's birthday party, with 20 people singing, dancing, eating & drinking.  I immediately cancelled our other cruise for my December birthday and our 39th anniversary, which should have been fully-paid in August, after our daughter Claire-Voe cancelled also our round-trip flight to New Jersey which she booked for our granddaughter Violet's Christening this coming June, and resolved to ourselves not to travel outside of Las Vegas this year.  Thank God, Gie and me already did a Catholic Lay Baptism of the love of our lives, Violet and Xio, when we saw them for the first time after they were born.

               However, self quarantining while waiting for the results of our coronavirus testing was easier said than done because, although Gie was a homebody, she always came along with me during our weekly prayer meetings & Bible study, Valentine's dinner & party, Dennis Bono Shows in South Point Casino every Thursday followed by movies & nightcap dinner, healing services in St. Sharbel Church every Tuesday, Confession, Adoration & Holy Mass every 1st Friday at Holy Redeemer Shrine or Las Vegas Cathedral, Cirque du Soleil and Susan Anton Shows, or any other celebrations or spur of the moment restaurant dinner & special performance at the Las Vegas Strip-- the Entertainment Capital of the World.

               But now, like everyone else, we're on lockdown until next month of May, or God knows when Gov. Sisolak deems Nevadans ready to welcome back their annual 42 million guests again, in Las Vegas alone. 

               If only someone from the CCP or Chinese Communist Party did not commit this blunder of accidentally releasing  this Wuhan Lab's coronavirus into the Wuhan wet market, allowed their people to travel all over the world, and accidentally infecting humans in other countries, which accidentally resulted into a global pandemic, then this would have never happened.

               Or, was it?

(TO BE CONTINUED...)          
                            

                I have no doubts that I caught the Wuhan coronavirus at Changi International Airport in Singapore while we were there waiting for nine hours because of the timeline, severity of the flu-like symptoms, dry cough, inability to breathe, the medicines that I finished taking before I recovered, namely: Z-Pack, Prednisone, over the counter & prescription cough medicines, Ventollin Inhaler 3 times a day, and 8 caplets of extra-strength Tylenol every 24 hours, until my fever subsided.  But why was Gie free and clear of the virus when we sat next to each other the whole time inside the confines of an airplane, at home, especially in our matrimonial king-size bed, until I got sick when we put one pillow between us, without knowing anything yet about the coronavirus?

               First of all, unlike me, she didn't talk to strangers or people she didn't know, and didn't walk around except when going to the restroom. Also, she reminded me that aside from the flu vaccine that we both had in the fall of 2019, she was given 3 other shots-- the pneumonia vaccine which I'm getting this year, and 2 shingles vaccines 6 months apart which she never had before. Plus, she's healthier, has a better immune system than me, and for every little ailment goes to her favorite Filipina lady doctor who was very caring like our daughter Claire-Voe, a graduate of the premier College of Medicine at the Catholic University of Santo Tomas (where I went and taught Pre-med students,) and also very religious like Gie (her waiting room in the Catholic hospital had piped-in praise and worship music and a religious painting.)

               And, because of the Las Vegas lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, 
Gie's doctor couldn't see her,  and was sent to a laboratory for an x-ray after she coughed blood last month.  While waiting for the result of her x-ray, I also developed a fever, which got me into thinking that maybe, I only had the flu around the holidays right after the cruise because the pharmacist who gave us the flu vaccine in October of 2019 said that it was only 40% effective because there was another strain of the flu virus that was going on then.  Which means that we had to be tested if we had the coronavirus, considering that we were both senior citizens with preexisting conditions-- I had a history of asthma, while she had pneumonia before.

               We both called our doctors who told us the same thing; that is, to call the number at UNLV Medicine for testing, which we did immediately. That was Friday, March 27; but unfortunately, they were only open from 9 AM until 3 PM,  so I had to call back on Monday, the 30th.  

                I called first thing in the morning, and was put on hold for half an hour because there were many people calling to be tested, and they didn't have enough people to answer the calls.  Anyway, the guy who answered the call was very nice, asked us a few questions, and told us that we're qualified to be tested.  He gave us directions for the testing in 2 days, which was April Fools Day, but not the time because we had to wait for their phone call the following day, or March 31st.

               We waited the whole day for a phone call but nobody called us.  So, on April 1st, I told Gie to get ready because we're going there whether they liked it or not. We got there before lunchtime, and called them again because there was a long line of cars, and told them that we took the chance to go there because nobody called us when they were supposed to.  The guy on the other line was very apologetic and told us to go back home because we were not on the list for that day, and there was just a number of testing they could do everyday, so we just had to wait for a phone call, and they would tell us what time we're supposed to go there.

               Sure enough, somebody left a message on my voicemail that day, and told us to come for testing at 3:40 PM on Friday, which we did.

               Finally, we were tested for the coronavirus a week after we called, but the results were not available until after another week.  I called them the following Friday, but they told us that they will call us after 7 business days, or just wait for the result online. We kept checking online to no avail, until the night of April 15, when we watched the local evening news which showed us how people where complaining because of how slow they were about the testing, and in  getting the test results.

               Osbert & Claire-Voe kept calling us because they were worried, and I told them that  we had not received the results yet, but the good news was that my fever was gone, and Gie's x-ray was negative for tuberculosis or any abnormalities.

                Anyway, just to give you an idea of how unprepared we were, from Pres. Trump to any other officials or mortals like us, about this pandemic: we could have been dead in three weeks-- from the time we got sick to the time they gave us the test results.

(TO BE CONTINUED...)
​                           

               Surprise!  Unlike June 2019 when we got back from our previous European & Scandinavian honeymoon cruise that took us all the way from London to Iceland, and saw the hidden ground on the right side of the house overflowing from water leak of the irrigation drip, and Southern Nevada Water Company charged us $1,550 for it afterwards, there were no surprises, good or bad, when we checked our home after we came back from our our Asian cruise, and thanked the Lord for our wonderful and unforgettable vacation. 

               It was nine days before Christmas, when we got home from a 14 & 1/2-hour direct but packed like canned sardines Boeing Dreamliner flight from Singapore to San Francisco, where we took a 2-hour layover before flying again for 1 hour & 36 minutes to our final destination, on a smaller Boeing 737 filled with Californians and Chinese tourists, who were so excited to get off the plane, and lose their shirts in the Fabulous City of Las Vegas, where we retired seven years ago. 

               We couldn't wait to unpack, buy more groceries for the holidays, and decorate the house because Christmas was around the corner, and Osbert was coming home in 5 days, before celebrating the Lord's birthday with Claire-Voe, Kendra, and our cute and adorable granddaughters Xio & Violet in New Jersey.

               Other than the jet lag (although we dozed off mostly during the long flight because we were so tired,) Gie & me were both upbeat, slept for more in between house chores for two days on the 16th & 17th of December, and we didn't go out until the following two days on December 18 & 19, in order to get into the Spirit of Christmas by attending the Simbang Gabi or 9-Day Novena Masses leading to Christmas in St. Joseph and our Parish Church of Holy Spirit respectively, after seeing for a regularly scheduled check up Dr. Calderon, my new Medicare primary physician, who told me that everything was fine.

                However, the following day, December 20, or the 6th day after disembarking from our cruise ship in Singapore, I woke up with a fever, took two extra-strength Tylenol every six hours, ate chicken tinola soup, and told Gie not to attend the Simbang Gabi and Reception in St. Anne's Church, so I could rest. 

               The next day Saturday, I still had the fever, but the doctor's office was closed, and instead of going to Urgent Care, I took 2 puffs of my Ventollin Inhaler which I always carried with me (except when I forgot to bring one during an asthma attack in Monaco, and had to ask our tour guide to take me to a pharmacist during lunchtime without any prescription, and bought it cheaper with no fuzz over there,) and 2 tablets from Gie's Z-Pack (which she got from her doctor before our cruise in case of an emergency,) which my previous doctor prescribed when I cannot breathe because of severe allergic rhinitis due to sudden change in temperature, from  warm Singapore to cold Las Vegas in December. 

                 I felt so much better, so we went to the Simbang Gabi, followed by a sumptuous luncheon in St. Joseph Parish, before we picked up Osbert at the airport. I was seated next to one of our Charismatic sisters, and conversed with her animatedly when I noticed that she was coughing and sneezing a little bit, which I didn't mind because I was sick myself but didn't show it, while Gie and our other sisters picked up our food in the buffet.

               We took Osbert for Sunday Mass the following day, and brought him with us to our fun & food-filled, joyous Charismatic Christmas Party where he won the raffle top prize-- an authentic designer bag, which he gave to Gie, together with our Christmas presents and my birthday gift. He left the following day after eating dinner with us his favorite gourmet Filipino food-- the oxtail kare-kare, which I cooked for him, then brought all our gifts to her sister and family in Edison, New Jersey. 

               The next morning on Christmas eve, I messaged Dr. Calderon because I developed a dry cough the night after Osbert left, then picked up an over the counter cough medicine recommended by Walgreen's pharmacist because the prescription cough medication that my doctor faxed them was out of stock.

               I finished my Z-Pack that night, didn't know what I was thinking the next day, but I took 3 Prednisone tablets, as prescribed by my allergist before the cruise, on Christmas day in order to feel better because I was scheduled to lector, while Gie was serving as a Eucharistic Minister.  We went to the movies afterwards, and capped the night by opening our Christmas package from our grandkids Xio & Violet.

                After Christmas, I just stayed home for a week with Gie, got rested, ate a lot of chicken soup, drank a lot of liquid, and finished the Prednisone, Cough Medications-- first, the over the counter, followed by the prescription one which became available, the Ventollin Inhaler, and Tylenol if necessary, aside from my maintenance meds for my high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

            Praise God! I got healed, and we had a glorious New Year's Eve celebration at home, followed by the Feast of Mary, Mother of God Holy Mass in St. Sharbel Maronite Catholic Church on New Year's Day.

               Looking back, and knowing what I know now, I thank God for surviving the Wuhan coronavirus, or Covid-19.

              However, why did I get a fever again after 2 months?  And, why did Gie cough blood, the week before that, and her lady doctor had to send her for an X-ray because she can't see her in person.  Why?  Due to the coronavirus which spread worldwide into a pandemic, causing the lockdown in the US, and Las Vegas, of course!

(TO BE CONTINUED...) 

     

              It would have been an opportune time to reminisce the Christmas of my youth with all my siblings and relatives present, especially during Simbang Gabi (dawn Masses leading to Christmas in St. Nicholas Church across the Municipal Town Hall, followed by Pampango mouth-watering breakfast delicacies outside the Parish Church,) or the children Christmas caroling, and coming to our ancestral home on Christmas day, while paying respect and kissing our hands with 'mano po' by holding them on their foreheads, then waiting for us to give their 'aguinaldo,' either in dollars or pesos, like I always did when I was a young boy visiting my godparents, aunts, and uncles in our barrio of Sta. Rita, Macabebe, Pampanga, Philippines.

               Gie was right though by reminding me to skip a Christmas side trip to the old country because we'll be attending our high school reunions in Guimba Nueva Ecija, and Sta. Cruz Zambales in early 2021. 

                On second thought, we can go to the Philippines early for Christmas and New Year in 2020, followed by our Ocampo-Diaz family gathering in early January, move Gie's flexible high school reunion in late January 2021, keep my high school reunion in early February, and no more cruise afterwards because we'll be doing pilgrimages around the country in between reunions (including meetings with my former students & colleagues in Acoje & Don Bosco, and Philosophy classmates & fellow professors in the Catholic University of Santo Tomas,)  in celebration of the 500-year anniversary of Christianity in the Philippines.

               Besides, I didn't want to insist, and spoil our recently-concluded 3-week marvelous and unforgettable 38th honeymoon cruise, and my 65th birthday celebration on board Norwegian Jade, after getting her to agree in attending my golden jubilee & reunion with my high school classmates in February of 2021. 

               How?  First of all, I believe in the hierarchy of values; and my wife, children, and grandchildren come first (after God, of course,) before anything else.  That is why I had to cancel my participation, not only during our high school reunion in San Diego, California at the middle of 2019, but also the 50th Anniversary or Reunion in the Philippines of Sta. Cruz Academy's Class of 1971, in February of 2021, because there was a conflict in perception between the two of us; and Gie and me ended up deleting each other's friend on FB, in order to avoid any misunderstanding.

               In doing so, and unbeknownst to me initially, I was able to realize, and get rid of my unrequited concupiscence in high school, my intrinsic prejudice against Zambalenos as a Kapampangan, because of stark inequality between the rich and poor people when I lived there, favoritism in school, political patronage, and social bullying, which were not right; but that was 50 years ago, and it's more prevalent in Pampanga now, than in Zambales.

               However, today's real problems in the Philippines are coming from China (and I don't mean the Chinese people, but the CCP or Chinese Communist Party.)  I saw this first-hand, twice in the last four years, not only in the Philippines, but also more recently in Thailand, Malaysia,  Singapore, and Sri Lanka, which were being dominated by their rich, powerful, and unscrupulous neighbor, in business & trade, science & technology, infrastructure, tourism & culture.  Nowhere is this more pronounced than in the Philippines where Communist China seized some of its maritime properties and rich natural resources, which according to the International Court of Justice are within the economic zone of the Philippines; while some Chinese citizens manufacture or smuggle illicit drugs into the country.

             At the World's Best Aviation Hub in the last 7 years, Singapore's humongous Changi International Airport, which has more amenities than any other airport, I was struck with the number of  Chinese tourists on their way to different countries all over the world, including Europe and the United States, because we were there all over the place for nine hours, while waiting for our flight back to the US.

                Finally, at 10:25 PM of December 15, 2019, we departed Singapore for San Francisco, USA, which we know now, as reported by South China Morning Post that "Chinese authorities had identified at least 266 people who contracted the virus last year and who came under medical surveillance, and the earliest case was 17 November - weeks before authorities announced the emergence of the new virus."

               And, while we were cruising Asia the whole time, near Wuhan, China, where the Chinese coronavirus pandemic started.

(TO BE CONTINUED...)

                    Don't be a real estate salesman if you can't take rejection.  Having retired from the business after 30 years, I realize that not many people are cut out to show properties to clients, and find out along the way that they bought a house from another agent, went for a FSBO-- For Sale By Owner, or decided to sit tight, and just keep their rental apartment, after spending so much time, money, and extra-effort with them to purchase a home.

                   It caused me a lot of grief, headaches, and sleepless nights, when I was new in the business because you don't actually earn your commission, which is a lot of money (customarily 3% of the asking price, or $15,000 on a half a million dollar house, and double that amount if it's both your listing & sale-- meaning, you get both sides of the transaction,) until you closed the deal.

                    Overtime, after a number of honest transactions closed, I decided to work full-time as a realtor, got by broker's license (instead of the basic salesperson's,) and GRI or Graduate Real Estate Institute designation, while training and learning from successful real estate professionals, and being confident enough to gain self-esteem, not just personally, but in the business as well.  I also slept soundly at night because if a client of mine bought a house from someone else, then it's their loss, not mine.  In the same manner, if you unfriend me on Facebook, which is another form of rejection, it does not bother me, whether you did it with or without malice (like some of my classmates, relative, and in-laws,) because it's your loss, not mine. 

                   Unfortunately, not everyone can take rejection, much more, being unfriended on FB, like Kuya Bert, which bothered him a lot when I did so, according to his wife Jobbelle,  And, he is not alone, just like some of the people that I know who I deleted from my 'friends' list, even if I tell them that I did it without malice, which means that if I unfriended you on social media like Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, it's because I did not want enmity, judgement, bitterness, resentment, unforgiveness, hatred, or anger to exist between us, because I love you, or I care about you. In fact, I even unfriended my own children because they were bothered by my Trump postings; while Claire-Voe unfriended me also when she was pregnant with Violet, in order to avoid getting stressed.  And yet, we continue to video call each other, and they know that I will always love and pray for them, no matter what happens.

               Besides, there are many forms of communications out there other than Facebook or Messenger, not the least of which is through direct contact, which is even better, or video calls like Skype, WhatsApp, Hangout, etc., which does not cost anything, unlike the long distance call of yesteryears which was not only cumbersome and expensive, but also frustrating, because my own brother would not let me speak to our Mom & Dad, sometimes, which I thought was selfish.

              However, if my siblings prefer to contact me via Messenger, they can do so through Gie, who is their friend on FB, and I can communicate through her account because we are a couple, and I can't contact them, or don't know their cell phone numbers.

                  That is why we I had to unfriend one of my favorite cousins Ruby, who always brought flowers in Mama & Papa's grave on All Souls Day, because she kept contacting me on Messenger to friend my siblings on Facebook (through Ate Fel's insistence, I guess, because she always called me on my cell phone to pray for relatives who were sick, before she retired in the Philippines,) and connect to them via Messenger "before it's too late" according to her, and would not listen to what I was saying, that I already contacted them many times through Gie's Messenger, and they were not responding.  Besides, we already know that Kuya Bert contracted the Wuhan coronavirus or COVID-19 through our cousins and nieces, and we'd been praying for him every night, but we're not telling her (although I believed that she already knew) because Kuya Bert was very secretive.  So, we never told anybody, and deemed the information confidential, until after his recovery.

            Kuya Bert is my brother, so I know his strengths and limitations; and that is why I named my son Osbert after him, and myself, because I'm also imperfect, like everyone else.  Besides, he lived with us in a one-bedroom apartment in New Jersey, together with my wife and 2 kids for three years, after getting him to the US by applying him for a Visiting Scholarship at Columbia University (which I did previously in order to come here,) and got him his first job at Prentice-Hall, where I was working, until he settled down, and got married. 

             After several years, and a flourishing career in real estate, our home was always open to him for rest and relaxation, while Claire-Voe babysat his children PJ & Robbie; and he even sought my advice when he was having problems with his first marriage, until he got divorced (which was a no-no for us,) and I sold him a studio coop in Fort Lee with my persistence (which he still owns today,) while he was renting alone in his apartment.

              And guess what?  I was the only one who came all the way from Las Vegas to the Philippines just to be one of his sponsors to his Catholic Church wedding to Jobbelle, four  years ago.  That is why his letter to Gie complaining about me didn't bother me a bit.  Otherwise, I would have had a second thought about seeing him and his family for Christmas, while Gie and me were at the airport in Singapore for nine hours, after our cruise.

               Neither did we ever have any sibling rivalry, or I became envious of him in high school. And, he knows that that was a cover up in deference to Gie's feelings, (she's ok now, and looks forward to both our high school reunions in the Philippines in 2021,) when  I wrote in my Blog that I was jealous of him for being a cadet officer, with the beautiful Myrna Maniago as his cadet sponsor by his side, because they were two years ahead of us.

               And, thank God! for healing Kuya Bert from COVID-19 or the Wuhan coronavirus, because I know how it is.

(TO BE CONTINUED...)  

                "Do not be too happy, or else the gods will get jealous, and they'll do something to make you sad!" so the old folks say.  Or maybe, I heard this in my Oriental philosophy class in college.

                      I really didn't subscribe into that; but the perennial optimist in me believed in the glorious sunshine & starry nights whenever the storm clouds disappear in the horizon, because clouds are like people-- they either bring clear sky or rain, good or bad omen, like wind & fire, or floods & tornadoes.

                     But I'm a Christian, a disciple or follower of Jesus Christ who do not care about superstitions, and therefore: no amount of rain from Phuket Thailand, Penang Malaysia, and Singapore (where we couldn't even go out during the last leg of our City Tour on our way to the airport because it was pouring like cats & dogs,) could dampen my spirit to proceed to the Philippines for Christmas (we did it in Italy, and extended our stay for Easter two years ago,) after overhearing an American couple who decided to take a side trip to Manila & Cebu after getting off in Singapore, which is only 3 hours away by plane.  Besides, there were inexpensive flights available, which were cheaper than the storage fees for our luggages, while galivanting, shopping and dining twice at Singapore's Changi International Airport, Park, Food Court, Restaurants & Shopping Center for 9 hours, and aside from the fact that it does not rain in the Philippines around Christmas time, which is the happiest time in the only predominantly Christian country in Asia.

                    Actually,  we already had so much fun before we even stayed and embarked in Dubai  for our 18-day cruise which took us also to Abu Dhabi UAE, Kasab & Fujairah Oman, Male Maldives, Goa India, Colombo Sri Lanka, and other Southeast Asian countries, when our son Osbert celebrated early  Christmas with us and our Charismatic Prayer Group's Christmas Party (where he won a brand new designer lady's bag, which he gave to his Mom, together with our Christmas, my birthday, and our 38th anniversary monetary  gifts,) followed by another birthday and anniversary celebration with an exclusive slow dance for just the two us, and the presence of my high school classmate Delia Minas & her daughter, other friends, Charismatic brothers & sisters, members of the Voice of Emmanuel Service Ministry & Choir, and Sis. Shirley, who brought us a delicious and decadent Mango Cake.

               As if that was not enough merriment & celebration, here I was again trying to convince Gie to spend Christmas in the Philippines, instead of serving the Lord as scheduled Lector & Eucharistic Minister in our Parish Church, and attending the remaining Pilipino Simbang Gabi in our Diocese of Las Vegas.

               Aside from being an extrovert, a Type A personality, who gets easily bored, was I adamant because I felt guilty for missing our Family Reunion which I spearheaded in order to get Ate Fel & Kuya Arthur to go home and retire in the Philippines after 20 years in America without seeing their children & granddaughter, and take care of our eldest brother Kuya Muling who was incapacitated and lived in our ancestral home by himself?  After all, he took care of their children in the Philippines, and acted like a father & mother to them, while they were in the US. Was I right in encouraging them to retire because they were past the retirement age, and already had a single & full-time registered nurse son working in Dublin Ireland, while their eldest was already married, and had a great job as a supervisor in  a Call Center in Metro-Manila?

            Or, was it wrong for me to cancel our Family Reunion (together with my 3 siblings for the first time since Papa & Mama's Golden Anniversary 30 years ago) with the Ocampo & Diaz clans, when they lied to me about not having any money after having just retired in the Philippines from the USA, and put our eldest brother in a charity ward with no air conditioning, while unbeknownst to me, my nephew or their nurse son Michael from Ireland came by to visit, and they had the funds to renovate their rooms without telling me. Fortunately, I have friends and relatives in our village who tell me what's happening with my siblings, even if they try their best to keep me in the dark, and just unfriended them, so that I don't get upset with what they're doing, after bringing them to the US and getting them jobs, and acting as an errand boy to their children for them (such as: drop off their package in Las Piñas, make him a speech in school, take him to Laguna, Ilocos, etc.,) when I visited Mom & Dad in the Philippines for 13 times, while they were in New Jersey.

​               Gie was not buying it-- I mean, spending Christmas in the Philippines because we were not prepared.  Not only that, but she's tired, and did not want to be seen 5 lbs heavier, or 10 lbs more for me.  So, I invited her to have an early lunch at a French Cafe at the airport lobby, that was serving chicken bagette sandwitches with creamy asparagus soup in a bread bowl, and fancy fruit drinks in real cups, plates, and utensils. She loved it because it was less crowded compared to the Food Court; and although we ate a heavy breakfast in Norwegian Jade before leaving the ship, and went on our final tour which ended at the airport, yet still, we were famished.

                  Afterwards, I walked her to the gigantic Christmas trees and took some of our selfies, so that she could feel the holiday ambiance, which was so much better in the Philippines, especially in our town of  Macabebe, Pampanga. How much more in my former village of Sta. Rita, where I was born, and where my siblings were all retired now, especially Kuya Bert, who built a new home for his second wife Jobbelle and daughter Maja, just across from our ancestral home.

                 Gie reminded me that I was not welcome in their home, after convincing her to let me read Kuya Bert's letter he sent her via Messenger because they were friends in Facebook, and we're not.

(TO BE CONTINUED...)

           " Hi, this is ___ Medicine.  This message is for Mr. Ocampo, I just want to let you know that your lab (COVID-19 test result) is all back.  You can get them from __Lab.com, it should be on the paper work that you got when you went to the drive-thru for the testing. Alright, have a good one. Bye."

             As I sit here cogitating about my COVID-19 test result, I have a confession to make.  But first, my stream of consciousness goes back to where it started.

(TO BE CONTINUED...)