I have two fathers, one is my own biological father who became an orphan due to World War II, both of my paternal grandparents were guerillas defending the Philippine nation against Japanese Imperial Soldiers. My other father is my father in law who survived the Bataan Death March, and walked for three days and three nights and counted how many folks died each night. When asked the highest he counted, he said, 134 each night. Why did you count it, he was asked. Because I want to dignify each life. Imagine the woman who helped the Bataan Death March survivors...her name is Lulu Reyes Besa, perhaps the first Filipina to receive US Medal of Freedom. I hope a second Filipina gets it and that might be Chef Cristeta Comeford. I am wishing for a third and a fourth Filipina to get it... -@Prosy Delacruz, 2014. Betty Ann Besa-Quirino ________________________________ positivelyfilipino/magazine/lulus-fifty-peso-christmas-gift Christmas was her loneliest holiday. Her father’s ship sank on December 24 as he headed home to his young family. She was five; her brothers were aged three and two and another sibling was on the way. Her pregnant mother, Luz, was 21 and devastated to hear of the boat sinking. The children never forgot the image of their mother sobbing by the Christmas tree. This was the story of my mother, Lourdes “Lulu” Reyes Besa. Her father, Judge Ponciano Reyes Sr., the first judge of Zamboanga City, died on Christmas Eve. It was the sad memory of Christmas that made my mom, Lulu, then a young woman in 1947, walk around the Escolta, Manila’s shopping mecca at the time. World War II had ended. It was liberation in Manila. Lulu hoped to find solace in the tinsel and glitter at the stores. As jolly carols resonated from nearby, Lulu checked the crisp 50-peso bill she had, a gift from an American serviceman given in gratitude. During the war, she was helping American and Filipino soldiers who survived the Bataan Death March by bringing medicine to soldiers in concentration camps. Her own brother Willie was incarcerated and survived the ordeal. Lulu did not feel right about spending the money on herself. The country was recovering from the war, and people had lost family and property. She wanted to make sure the money went to something important. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks. She saw a family staring longingly at a brightly decorated window. The mother looked tired. The nine children of different ages, obviously hers, peered into the store display. They were dressed simply, a sharp contrast to the smartly dressed shoppers bustling about, carrying brightly wrapped packages. Something about this family made Lulu sense they were not buying. They were just looking. An idea lit in her heart. Lulu approached the family. Maam, are these your children? Lulu smiled at the woman. After exchanging pleasantries, Lulu found out the woman was a widow. A sympathetic chord struck Lulus soul. The woman reminded her of her own widowed mama; the children brought back images of herself and her brothers when they were little. There were sad holidays when funds were scarce and her mama had to find creative ways to stretch the budget to give the family a happy Christmas. Lulu then decided the 50-peso bill belonged to this woman and her family. She handed it to the widow. This was given to me by an American officer in gratitude for the charity work I did for prisoners in concentration camps. I want you and your children to have it. Merry Christmas, Lulu told her.
Posted on: Sun, 28 Dec 2014 00:09:24 +0000
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