Quality time

Thanks to the world wide web, our long lost classmates have now been found.

At first, it was just touching base.

The congratulations on achievements and the birthday greetings that popped up as reminders of how old we have become were happy reminders that we celebrate another fulfilled year or another year battling with some chronic disease.

A fair reminder are the pictures that accompany these greetings in both our Yahoo group photo buckets and in Facebook.

As we rekindled our acquaintances, we found out that like a double-edged sword, it also brought bad news as well.

Some of our classmates have met their maker - sooner than most of us who still get to read the news trails.

Lately, the group messages have become morbid.

The father of so on and so forth, the mother of so on and so forth, the sister or brother of so on and so forth have passed away. One of my batch mates in med school (Beth Solang) had posted in the email trail a startling, but real message - "some of our parents are in final stretch of this journey on earth."

That struck a nerve. Many, if not all of us, owe a lot to our parents. Not only because they sacrificed so much for us, but because they are (or were) the foundation and bedrock and inspiration for us all (to quote Evelyn Musni). They are the reason why we are where we are today. I guess, it's also the reason why we remain inspired to do good and to take the road less traveled...in rearing our children and providing for them in return for the care and love they shared with us.

Today is Tuesday. It's my regular day off. It's the only day of the week that I don't work and I kick back from all the stress in my very busy career to spend a day with my mom, whom I fondly call INANG. I have done this since my dad passed away over 15 years ago. One of my fave students, Rhona, coins my day off as TUESDAYS WITH NANAY!

When I read the email message of Beth, I was having lunch with INANG in the mall. I took a second look at my mom's feeble hands. The white hairs sprouting out of her head. The wrinkles on her peaceful face. The gusto when she put that spoonful of Arrabiatta pasta in her mouth. That was when the chord struck.

How many of us still spend some quality time with our parents who probably are in that homestretch of their journey?

While we probably are embroiled in the busy schedules we have in our successful careers, it's a fair reminder that we are all travelers in the journey of life. That we need to stop and smell the roses. That what we earn today, we will never bring to the after life. That life is beautiful and each day is painted more colorful by the quality of time we give to those whom we love the most.

Tomorrow? Well, tomorrow is another day. No one knows if we will still live another day to make amends for all the regrets when we or our loved ones are gone.

As the song goes, yesterday is dead and gone.

[photo from guardian.co.uk]