My mother is a woman ahead of her time. She is spiritual and secular at the same time.
She is a woman of deep faith. She wanted to enter religious life and become a contemplative nun. But she met my dad. She was intrigued and challenged by him and his womanizing ways (Oh sorry, Dad. Nilaglag ba kita?) so she decided to marry and make a virtuous man out of him. And she succeeded.
By the time I was 13, she let go of our yayas and all the household help. She said, jokingly of course, that she did not want any of them to be her future daughter-in-law. Her real reason was to prevent us, her sons who are now entering puberty and Dad, from having our way with these women. She knew too well the horror stories of her friends. She did not want the helpers to be a victim of our raging hormones.
She was the coolest mom. She gives you her complete trust and teaches you independence. When we were old enough to go out at night for parties, we no longer had a curfew. And she did not wait up for you in the living room like a security guard. We became the envy of our friends and when some of their mothers talked to her about it, she simply said: "I trust my boys. I raised them well." And then she would joke, "Wala namang mawawala sa kanila. And besides, ayaw kong magka-eyebags or worse, mamatay ng maaga sa puyat, waiting for them to come home."
During one of our talks, the subject of her wanting to become a nun when she was still single came up. I asked her, if she ever regretted making that decision. Do you know what her answer was?
"Kung nag-madre ako, eh di walang ^Travis!"
Nanay, I love you very much!
By the time I was 13, she let go of our yayas and all the household help. She said, jokingly of course, that she did not want any of them to be her future daughter-in-law. Her real reason was to prevent us, her sons who are now entering puberty and Dad, from having our way with these women. She knew too well the horror stories of her friends. She did not want the helpers to be a victim of our raging hormones.
She was the coolest mom. She gives you her complete trust and teaches you independence. When we were old enough to go out at night for parties, we no longer had a curfew. And she did not wait up for you in the living room like a security guard. We became the envy of our friends and when some of their mothers talked to her about it, she simply said: "I trust my boys. I raised them well." And then she would joke, "Wala namang mawawala sa kanila. And besides, ayaw kong magka-eyebags or worse, mamatay ng maaga sa puyat, waiting for them to come home."
During one of our talks, the subject of her wanting to become a nun when she was still single came up. I asked her, if she ever regretted making that decision. Do you know what her answer was?
"Kung nag-madre ako, eh di walang ^Travis!"
Nanay, I love you very much!
