U.P. NAMING MAHAL
(
Handa...Awit.)
U.P. naming mahal
Pamantasang hirang
Ang tinig namin
Sana'y iyong dinggin
Malayong lupain
Amin mang marating
Di rin magbabago ang damdamin
Di rin magbabago ang damdamin
I have known this hymn by heart since I was six years old, a first-grader at U.P. Integrated School. And yet these words would never ring truer than they did three decades later, during
UPIS Batch 84's Southern California 20th Reunion, held last Labor Day weekend in Lake Elsinore, CA.
(
FRONT ROW: Sonia, Augie, Mara, Sharon, Belinda, Emily and Lisa. BACK ROW: John, Gobbie, Paul, Karl, Mon, Junjun, Deng, Gucci, Andrew, Manny)
First things first. Sometime in the middle of April, Carmela Santos, better known to us as "Tayit", left a message in my
Prada Mama Tagboard, inviting me to join
upis84@yahoogroups.com. I wasn't even aware that our batch had an e-group. For a while in 2000, Ludwig Lagunda and I were exchanging e-mails, and we discussed starting a website for our batch. Little did we know then that there was already one in existence, and a very dynamic one at that!
Anyway, I guess someone in Batch 84 stumbled upon my websites and posted something about them in the e-group. Tayit might have mentioned John Panlilio when I asked her about it, but don't quote me on that. (If it was, indeed, you, John...THANK YOU!)
I wasted no time in joining the the
upis84 e-group, and entered an alternate universe. There I was, communicating with my batchmates, envisioning them as I remembered them thirty years ago. Many of the personalities remained unchanged. The funny guys were still funny (hi Raffy!),
makulit pa rin si Hali, Ney was still her lively self, and Ben Vallejo still sounded smart. It was hard to believe that these people, many of whom I still remember from my U.P. Elem days, now have elementary school-aged kids of their own!
I was flooded with e-mails from all over. There was Christy Ranada, who e-mailed me from Singapore; Joy Mendoza, who is now in New York; Verlynn Ferrer, who lives at the foot of Mt. Makiling in Sto. Tomas, Batangas; and even my sorority sis from U.P. Delta Lambda Sigma, Katz Llamas. I cringed when I found out that Ben Vallejo was in Australia when ABC ran a segment on ballroom dancing in the Philippines, featuring me as their subject. Whatever it was you saw, Ben, I'm sure it wasn't pretty!
When I gave birth to Reanna last May, congratulations came from Karl Muego (who was based in Italy), Paul Salamanca from Chicago (who was my Junior Prom date), and Bric Bernas from NYC (my Senior Prom date). I got advice from Doc Flint, who told me to show red, black, and white images to my baby, and from Doc. Ney (who seconded it). Nadine Carino e-mailed me, extolling the virtues of DHA and ARA in infant formula. I also heard from Myrna Agno and Pam Agabin, who both left messages in
Reanna's web page.
I felt like I was in the company of old friends. I guess, at least within the confines of the worldwide web, I was. These people still knew me as "Rima". Aside from family and former radio colleagues, nobody's called me that since I joined
Channel 9 News in early 1990.
It was nice to be in touch with everyone again, but it wasn't enough for me. I wished I could see all of them in person. I was more than a bit envious when I heard that our batchmates in the Philippines already celebrated our 20th reunion in early March. It was held at the UPIS Multi-purpose Hall (indeed, what place could be more memorable?). I hungrily pored over each and every picture that was e-mailed to me. Oh, how I wished I were there!
I also learned that my batchmates in North America were planning a reunion at Disney World in Orlando, FL. I wanted to join them, but with a kindergartener, a toddler and an infant in tow, I knew it would be difficult, even with my husband, Lorenzo, there to help. It was also financially prohibitive, considering we weren't given much time to prepare for it, so I opted out.
I did know, however, that a lot of our batchmates now live in California, so I sent out a message to my Northern California neighbors, telling them I would love to meet with them sometime, even for a day trip. Junjun Espejo and Sharon Hufana, both UPIS 84 alumni and now married to each other, were thinking along the same lines. The Espejos graciously offered their home as a venue for a "mini-reunion", aimed at those who couldn't make it to Florida. And so plans for a SoCal Reunion were underway.
The reunion drive soon caught fire, with some twenty batchmates pledging to attend. We agreed to meet during the long Labor Day weekend, with the party itself scheduled to begin at 4:00 PM on Saturday, September 4. In the end, eighteen of us were there, along with our spouses and kids. Karl Muego even flew in all the way from Italy. As usual, I was the last one to arrive, having made many stops along the way to nurse my baby daughter Reanna, but I was glad I made it.
As we pulled up to the Espejo residence, I heard someone call "Hi Rima!". It was Andrew Macatangay, who was getting ready to leave. Andrew had flown in from Canada with his wife, Rubeth, and they were catching a flight to Taipei later that evening. I was glad I caught Andrew before he left. The last time I saw him was at the Mandarin Oriental in Makati, where he was (I think) Guest Services Manager, and I (or to be more precise, my ex-husband) was the resident Pain-in-the-*ss. (Andrew Mac knows what I'm talking about.)
(
Andrew Mac with another Andrew, "Gucci" Gutierrez, in the background)
Our hostess, Sharon Hufana-Espejo, was also outside to send Andrew and Rubeth off. She instructed Lorenzo and me to go straight to the backyard, where everyone was. She also told us that they were starting to get worried. They were expecting us to arrive hours ago.
Throughout the day, I had been calling Junjun and Sharon, advising them of our slow progress down South. We left Modesto around midday, after boarding our dog. We wanted to take Spot the Pit Bull with us since it was his birthday (we found him Labor Day weekend last year), but we didn't think the Espejos would appreciate a 70-pound dog in their brand new casita.
As I was saying, we tried calling the Espejos from Bakersfield when the party started at 4:00 PM. I wanted to know who was already there but unfortunately, we got their machine. We called them again two hours later from Tehachapi, deep in the Mojave Desert. I was curious to know what was going on but again, all I could get was a recording. When we called to leave our final message, telling them we were already in nearby Rancho Cucamonga, but we STILL got the machine, we knew they were having a heck of a party!
(
Manny, Gucci, Mara and Emily.)
(
L to R: Mara's husband, Boying Pimentel; Lisa, Mara and Sonia)
And sure enough, Junjun, Sharon and the rest of the SoCal Reunion Planning Committee outdid themselves. The Espejo's backyard was transformed into a huge Hawaiian luau. No detail was left uncovered:
from the "Welcome UPIS Batch 84" banner
(
The not-so-ladies of UPIS Batch 84)
to the sumptuous Filipino fare,
(
Emily, Lisa and John in the buffet line.)
to the well-planned games,
(
The adults took over the kids' sack race!)
and even a bounce house to keep the kids occupied!
(
From Batch 84 girls to Batch 84 moms.)
Actually, there's a side story to that bounce house. We heard that it was briefly commandeered by Lisa Salvana, who ordered all the kids out so she could work out all the calories she gained from the delicious food. (My mouth still waters when I remember the sisig, the closest to Trellis' that I've ever tasted.)
Nobody knew that the Espejos had a surprise in store for all: a Hawaiian dance presentation. Everyone was entertained by the dancers, who pulled people in front for an impromptu dance lesson at the end of the show.
(
Aloha UPIS 84! Group picture with the Hawaiian dancers.)
Manny Garcia also had a treat planned for all of us: a jazzed-up rendition of "UP Naming Mahal" which brought us all down memory lane once again. Manny later confessed that he was so nervous about his upcoming performance that he accidentally walked through the Espejo's screen door, effectively putting it out of commission.
After some more games (adult ones this time, like Name That Tune and UPIS 84 Trivia), we all settled into the Espejo's family room to watch the UPIS Batch 84 Manila Reunion VCD, produced by our batchmate, Ardie Lopez. We all stared at the TV screen, transfixed, as we tried naming all the familiar faces we saw. I noticed that the girls in our batch didn't change much in appearance, but the many of the boys were unrecognizable. I made a mental note to watch it again at home, keeping the PAUSE button handy.
(
Waiting to watch UPIS 84's 20th Reunion VCD)
After viewing the VCD, I remembered that I did NOT have a picture with the group, so I requested that another one be taken. Someone joked that they would just "Photo Shop" me into the group picture they took earlier. Of course, that wasn’t good enough for me. So, at my request, everyone huddled again for another group picture.
(
Group picture, this time with ME included!)
It was the end of the day, but many of us didn't want the party to end just yet. We were having too much fun, and we still hadn't had enough of each other. Unfortunately, some of us had to leave early, like Sonia Gutierrez, who was there with her husband, Louie. I snapped a quick picture with her before she left.
(
To quote an old Prell Shampoo ad, "Sino si Rima at sino si Sonia?")
And so we lingered in the family room, some of us running after our kids, some of us catching up on old times, and some of us making plans to meet again the next day. I was introduced to everyone's spouses, and met all of their children. Lorenzo, my sweet husband, was thoughtful enough to look after our brood the whole time, leaving me free to mingle with my batchmates. (Thanks Babe!)
(
Augie, Emily and me with our 20th SoCal Reunion souvenir.)
(
Gucci and Junjun.)
(
Paul S., Manny and Karl with Belinda in the background.)
(
Gobbie and John P.)
When the party finally dispersed, I was glad we were guests of the Espejos. It would've been tough to pull myself away from it all. Three couples lingered behind after everyone else had left: Junjun and Sharon (since it was, after all, THEIR house); Augie Matta and her husband, Chris Yulo; and me and my husband, Lorenzo, who found something in common with the two other men since they all served in the US Military. We laughed a lot, sharing life stories and getting to know each other all over again.
The next day, we all agreed to meet at Goldilocks in Cerritos. We carpooled to the place with our hosts, Junjun and Sharon, after taking pictures in front of their home.
(
Our hosts, Junjun and Sharon Espejo, me and my kids Lance and Troy.)
(
New friends: Junjun and Lorenzo.)
(
The Sereno family: Troy, Rima, Lance, Lorenzo and Reanna.)
When we got to the place, we saw John Panlilio at the door, with his son, Lewis. He and his wife, Humby, were taking turns with their kids. Lisa and Gobbie were a tag team with their son, Gabriel, as well. The Espejos' older son, Justin, instantly hooked up with Paul Salamanca's son, Paul Jr. (a spitting image of his father). My kids, Lance and Troy, quickly found a friend in the Espejos' younger son, Paolo. Mara Torres' son was also named Paolo, and he impressed Lorenzo with his fluent Tagalog at the tender age of five.
(
Three Spidermen all in a row: Lance, Troy and Paolo.)
You couldn't miss Batch 84's table at Goldilocks. It was, by far, the longest and the noisiest one in the whole restaurant. The food was good, but the company was even better. I thought the party broke up way too early, but Mara's family had to leave to catch their flight back to Oakland, and the Chicago contingent (the Salvanas, the Panlilios and the Salamancas) wanted to check out nearby Legoland. They invited my family to join them, but we were scheduled to meet two of my aunts, who were already on their way to the Espejo residence.
And so the party broke up, each of us going our own way. Of course, I couldn't resist taking one more picture with the girls...
(
The Goldilocks Girls: Belinda, Augie, Rima and Sharon)
My aunts were already waiting for us when we got back to Lake Elsinore. Junjun and Sharon made them welcome in their home as well, and we all had a lovely afternoon together. My aunts even got to partake of the yummy leftovers we had from the night before. They left when it was starting to get dark, both of them not wanting to be on the road too late.
(
My Auntie Olive and Reanna, 3 1/2 months.)
We were also scheduled to leave that night, but Lorenzo and Junjun started talking about working out and next thing you know, they were moving the Espejos' exercise equipment to the backyard for an impromptu workout session! Junjun suggested that we stay another night, so Sharon and I ended up in their dining room, poring over their wedding pictures while the men got busy.
We woke up the following morning to a delicious brunch cooked by Sharon: longanisa with fried rice and tomato with salted egg. By this time, we had already been together for three days, but we still didn’t run out of things to talk about. I was glad that Lorenzo and Junjun hit it off. Lorenzo was born in 1969, and is not much younger than the members of our batch. By the end of our stay, the two were already talking about moving their families to Merced, just a short drive from Modesto on Highway 99.
When it was finally time to leave, it was still hard to say goodbye. Sharon and I couldn't stop hugging each other, and we were both teary-eyed at times. It was difficult to accept that the reunion was finally over. We lingered in the driveway, promising to meet each other again in Monterey this October. Lorenzo also told Junjun he'd look into housing prices in Merced. It would be wonderful to have them move so close to us. Hopefully, this will soon be a reality.
(
Junjun and Sharon Espejo with batchmate-in-law and UPIS 84 "ampon", Lorenzo.)
(
The UPIS 84 SoCal 20th Reunion: Three thumbs up!)
And so the UPIS Batch 84 SoCal 20th Reunion finally came to an end. As we drove back home, past the picturesque Mojave desert and through the fertile fields of California's Central Valley, I couldn't help but take another trip in my mind. Back to the time when I was young and carefree and safely cocooned in UPIS’ hallowed halls.
In my mind's eye, I could still see younger versions of the people I'd just seen: Belinda de Guzman, who rode the same school bus with me in elementary school; Lisa Miranda, whom I can still remember reciting "Little Lamb" in English class; Sharon Hufana, who made me take my piano lessons more seriously after I heard her play "Tarantella" in the Music Room; and Mara Torres, who was part of "Ri-jen-jing Ma-li-et" in fourth grade. I used to play Chinese Garter with these girls. I don't think any of us can jump above waist-level anymore.
As I recall, John Panlilio, Gobbie Salvana and Lisa Miranda already spoke English with a twang in elementary school, long before they moved abroad and Gobbie and Lisa got married. I used to go to cousin Emily Kimwell's house when I was little, and was happy when she moved to UPIS from Maryknoll in seventh grade. And of course, everyone knew Augie Matta, who was the daughter of Mrs. Matta, our health teacher.
I am somewhat proud that I can still recite my sections from memory, although I'm not too good when it comes to class advisers:
Grade 1–Loro, Miss Magno; Grade 2-Mangga, Miss Matangguihan; Grade 3-Talon, Mrs. Resuma; Grade 4-Labanos, Mr. Villablanca; Grade 5-Makiling, Miss Valencia (now Mrs. Felix, she was supposed to attend the SoCal reunion, but didn't make it); Grade 6-Topas, Miss Brillantes (whom everybody had a crush on); Grade 7-Saturn, the late Mrs. Ordona; Grade 8-Butterfly, Grade 9-Manganese and Grade 10-Acacia, Mrs. Flores.
Perhaps my former classmates in 8-Butterfly and 9-Manganese can supply the names of our Homeroom teachers because I really can't remember at this point.
What I DO remember is Manny Garcia handling the keyboards for the Jammers and Gucci dancing with the Sapphires. I can even recall Mon Virata singing "Magic to Do" when their class did "Pippin" at multi. Gucci is now a realtor based in Daly City, CA, living a stone's throw away from Mon, who lives in San Francisco. Mon is now the Art Director of "Filipinas" magazine. He recently informed us that his artwork is currently on display in two exhibits in the San Francisco Bay Area. Now THAT is impressive.
To think that this same guy helped me illustrate my picture book for my Creative Writing in English class, no thanks to Gobbie, who flatly refused to help me back then! (Yes, Gobbie, I STILL remember that!) If I could only find that book, it should be worth something today. I remember reading it aloud to my sister Haya’s kindergarten class at the UPIS Annex, part of Ms. Hermosa’s requirements.
And now, Ms. Hermosa is retired and Haya is a doctor, recently passing the medical board exams along with Junjun’s younger sister, Karina. Ouch. All of a sudden, I feel my age again.
As I write this in the confines of my home in Modesto, I can't help but feel thankful. Thankful for the time we spent together (both now and then), thankful for the opportunity to renew old ties and strengthen old bonds, and thankful to have been a part of UPIS Batch 1984. It was nice growing up with all of you, and I can't think of a better group to grow old with.
Lorenzo and I would like to express our gratitude to our hosts, Junjun and Sharon Espejo. We would also like to send our kudos to the SoCal 20th Reunion Planning Committee. You guys throw a mean party!
Luntian at pula
Sagisag magpakailan man
Ipagdiwang natin
Bulwagan ng dangal
Humayo't itanghal
Giting at tapang
Mabuhay ang pag-asa ng bayan
Mabuhay ang pag-asa ng bayan
