For Rosanne Romero (seated on the wheelchair). I have known Rosanne ever since I was a kid at St. Theresa's. She is my older sister, Sophie's barkada. I remember how deeply in awe I was of her beauty. Rosanne will kill me for saying this. We've never had a discussion about this but I sense she minimizes her physical attributes. From her chosen profile picture of her dog to her FB albums which hardly
has any nice pics of her. I don't know if she does it on purpose. I imagine she is weary of a lifetime of people telling her how beautiful she is. I'm shallow. Tell me all you want. Heck, I'll even pay you to lie to me and tell me forever how beautiful I am. :)
Rosanne is also a published author of this gem of a book 'Amusing Grace', one of the few religious books I love to read. Like all amazing books, hers made me laugh so hard and cry so hard..Rosanne's book as well as Anne Lamott's books are about the only contemporary religious books I love to read. The rest I think are just written by sanctimonious blow hards. Rosanne is the real deal.
She also has Multiple Sclerosis--a monster of a disease that has ravaged her and robbed her of a life of the simplest of functions--things we take for granted like the ability to hold something without it slipping off your fingers and breaking to pieces. I love that Rosanne has not romanticized this disease. And I love that she asks God such hard, heart wrenchingly honest gut questions---ones I've asked god myself, ones I've wrestled with--to the ground, muddied and bloodied.
Whenever I post pictures of me running a race or climbing a mountain, Rosanne will be there aching to know what that feels like. 'Is Pulag really as beautiful as this picture of it that you've posted? Can I reach its peak kaya if I walk real slow?'. I can feel her ache for the things lost to her forever (No wait! No such thing as forever! There' still research!). 'I want to climb Pulag..I want to run..or even just walk." It got to a point where I almost didn't want to post about anything about my running or climbing because Rosie's pain was too much for me to bear. It made me immensely sad that the things I loved doing had been taken away from her. Cards dealt, sorry. But then I got that Rosanne loved so much to hear about my exploits precisely because I could tell her about it.
So I asked her to choose her NYM kilometer for me to run. She chose km 42. The last km. I almost cartwheeled and whooped with joy. Km 42 is the Victory Km. You have run your race so well that you got to Km 42. You will breast that tape. "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.", from Scriptures. This is my Rosanne Km. I want to tell you Guber Romero how amazing it feels to run through the finish line of a full marathon. As accurately as I can describe it to you, this is how it feels: It feels like giant hands have scooped you up and swung you through. IT FEELS LIKE FLYING! No need to run and walk and climb, Rosie! We will fly through that finish line together!
Rosanne is also a published author of this gem of a book 'Amusing Grace', one of the few religious books I love to read. Like all amazing books, hers made me laugh so hard and cry so hard..Rosanne's book as well as Anne Lamott's books are about the only contemporary religious books I love to read. The rest I think are just written by sanctimonious blow hards. Rosanne is the real deal.
She also has Multiple Sclerosis--a monster of a disease that has ravaged her and robbed her of a life of the simplest of functions--things we take for granted like the ability to hold something without it slipping off your fingers and breaking to pieces. I love that Rosanne has not romanticized this disease. And I love that she asks God such hard, heart wrenchingly honest gut questions---ones I've asked god myself, ones I've wrestled with--to the ground, muddied and bloodied.
Whenever I post pictures of me running a race or climbing a mountain, Rosanne will be there aching to know what that feels like. 'Is Pulag really as beautiful as this picture of it that you've posted? Can I reach its peak kaya if I walk real slow?'. I can feel her ache for the things lost to her forever (No wait! No such thing as forever! There' still research!). 'I want to climb Pulag..I want to run..or even just walk." It got to a point where I almost didn't want to post about anything about my running or climbing because Rosie's pain was too much for me to bear. It made me immensely sad that the things I loved doing had been taken away from her. Cards dealt, sorry. But then I got that Rosanne loved so much to hear about my exploits precisely because I could tell her about it.
So I asked her to choose her NYM kilometer for me to run. She chose km 42. The last km. I almost cartwheeled and whooped with joy. Km 42 is the Victory Km. You have run your race so well that you got to Km 42. You will breast that tape. "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.", from Scriptures. This is my Rosanne Km. I want to tell you Guber Romero how amazing it feels to run through the finish line of a full marathon. As accurately as I can describe it to you, this is how it feels: It feels like giant hands have scooped you up and swung you through. IT FEELS LIKE FLYING! No need to run and walk and climb, Rosie! We will fly through that finish line together!
Part 2 of "Who Am I Running For in the NY Marathon?" (paki-cue ang yuchub bidjo at fundraiser to :) )
(Photo by Pio Fortuno)
For the kids of Kamp Pagkakaisa--kids who've been dealt the most awful cards in life, in my opinion. Abandoned at birth or neglected or abused---or all 3. And on top of that, these children have special needs--additional obstacles they need to hurdle in a society that judges them as less than human and where they are ignored and forgotten in the most awful and saddest of way
For the kids of Kamp Pagkakaisa--kids who've been dealt the most awful cards in life, in my opinion. Abandoned at birth or neglected or abused---or all 3. And on top of that, these children have special needs--additional obstacles they need to hurdle in a society that judges them as less than human and where they are ignored and forgotten in the most awful and saddest of way
s.
But oh, no smiles could be brighter, no belly laughs so mirthful, no dance so given to total abandon, no embraces so complete and oh-so warm! There is a reason our 10 day summer camp for them is the high point of their existence as it is ours, their ates and kuyas. They have shown us places inside ourselves we didn't know existed until they touched us there. They redeem us.
And for them, their day in the sun, to let them remember their worth, that they are loved and that they are worthy and able and that they stand head and shoulders with the rest of us. A different kind of healing and remembrance.
Amazingly enough, we've been able to do this for close to 35 years now out of the generosity of family and friends. How 'bout it then? What do you say we give these kids something good to remember next camp? Pledge a thousand pesos at least for every kilometer I run in the NYMarathon and that kilometer is yours. Sharing of kilometers might happen ha?
I will write your name on my dibdib come Nov 4. Seriously. I'd do it. Geym? :D May Sharpie/pentel pen ako, ready to write your name. :D
Thank you, my friends for rockin' and rollin' with me this way ♥
But oh, no smiles could be brighter, no belly laughs so mirthful, no dance so given to total abandon, no embraces so complete and oh-so warm! There is a reason our 10 day summer camp for them is the high point of their existence as it is ours, their ates and kuyas. They have shown us places inside ourselves we didn't know existed until they touched us there. They redeem us.
And for them, their day in the sun, to let them remember their worth, that they are loved and that they are worthy and able and that they stand head and shoulders with the rest of us. A different kind of healing and remembrance.
Amazingly enough, we've been able to do this for close to 35 years now out of the generosity of family and friends. How 'bout it then? What do you say we give these kids something good to remember next camp? Pledge a thousand pesos at least for every kilometer I run in the NYMarathon and that kilometer is yours. Sharing of kilometers might happen ha?
I will write your name on my dibdib come Nov 4. Seriously. I'd do it. Geym? :D May Sharpie/pentel pen ako, ready to write your name. :D
Thank you, my friends for rockin' and rollin' with me this way ♥
Part 3. "Who Am I Running For in the NY Marathon?"
Joey Alcaraz. I never got to meet Joey. He, however, is the brother of my grade school best friend, Yellie whose heart is badly broken because Joey died suddenly at the age of 52. Joey was a runner as well. And running the NYMarathon was one of his dreams.
I asked Yellie to choose a km for Joey and I've been trying to rewrite what she wrote for days now. But really, sometimes one needs to step back and let other people do
what they do best. In Yellie's case, it is to talk about the brother she loves so much and aches to still have with her.
This is what Yellie wrote:
Hi Wee! I really thought about what mile you'd run for Joey. I even discussed it with my siblings . . . Doing the NYM was also Joey's dream (that he was not able to do). So we figured that the 21st km would be a good km to remember Joey. That's the midpoint. A place where you say, "Ok, I'm halfway." Where you go the same number of kilometers to make it to the finish line. The line where you might want to quit, or where you'll now push to the end. At this halfway mark, I want you to think that you shared this dream with Joey . . . Running the NYM. And as you run the next 21 kms home, think of Joey running alongside you, cheering you on, pushing you to the limit. Picture him running the greatest marathon of his life in heavens' streets of gold with the strength and the glide of eagles. That should make you finish strong! Thank you Wee! Here's to the halfway point, and beyond the finish line!!!!"
Yellie Alcaraz-Nonato ♥ Salut to Joey running the NYM with me! :)
This is what Yellie wrote:
Hi Wee! I really thought about what mile you'd run for Joey. I even discussed it with my siblings . . . Doing the NYM was also Joey's dream (that he was not able to do). So we figured that the 21st km would be a good km to remember Joey. That's the midpoint. A place where you say, "Ok, I'm halfway." Where you go the same number of kilometers to make it to the finish line. The line where you might want to quit, or where you'll now push to the end. At this halfway mark, I want you to think that you shared this dream with Joey . . . Running the NYM. And as you run the next 21 kms home, think of Joey running alongside you, cheering you on, pushing you to the limit. Picture him running the greatest marathon of his life in heavens' streets of gold with the strength and the glide of eagles. That should make you finish strong! Thank you Wee! Here's to the halfway point, and beyond the finish line!!!!"
Yellie Alcaraz-Nonato ♥ Salut to Joey running the NYM with me! :)
For Suzanne. Suzanne is my high school batch mate in St. Theresa's. We weren't even close then but like a lot of wonderful, magical things in life, I rediscovered her in midlife and she is one of the wise, compassionate, and yes, fierce women who surround me aka goddesses.
Suzanne is also a breast cancer survivor. I suspect a lot of her wisdom and strength and compassion and fierceness comes from staring this monster in the eye and saying, 'Not this time. Not right now! Go away!"
Km 5 goes to Suzanne David Villanueva. For you, honey bunny ♥ and for the many many many years we will travel together in this wonderful adventure called life. Salut!
For the kids of Hole in the Wall Gang.
These are kids who've been dealt one of life's toughest blows that threaten to rob them of this time in every human being's life that passes by once and goes by too quickly, the gate that swings one way, this magical place we call 'childhood'.
With serious illnesses that will try even the hardiest of souls--like cystic fibrosis, congenital heart ailments, sickle cell anemia, leukemi
a, these kids soldier on from one grim medical procedure to another. For most of them, this is the only life they've know.
Because of your open-palmed generosity, I was able to raise over $3,000.00 for them--and in no time at all. It was just like asking for Chocnut.
So yes, because of you, some kids are going to know a different kind of healing. Where they get to be regular kids for once in their lives--carefree, pain-free, laughing and playing without a care in their lives.
From the deepest recesses of my heart, thank you. And from the children who cannot thank you themselves, thank you.
Because of your open-palmed generosity, I was able to raise over $3,000.00 for them--and in no time at all. It was just like asking for Chocnut.
So yes, because of you, some kids are going to know a different kind of healing. Where they get to be regular kids for once in their lives--carefree, pain-free, laughing and playing without a care in their lives.
From the deepest recesses of my heart, thank you. And from the children who cannot thank you themselves, thank you.
Part 6. "Who Am I Running For in the NY Marathon?"
For these wonderful human beings I birthed and who caused my rebirth so I had to blink twice when I looked in the mirror.
I looked the same (with giant eyebags though--oh, ok and super frazzled hairstyle and yes, giant hips) yet my inner landscape had irretrievably changed because of them. I don't even feel the same--like I can paralyze in an instant anyone who tries to do them harm---with just one karate chop.
They are
my deepest joys and deepest sorrows. My songs of victory~ my hallelujahs! and my mournful songs of defeat. They've kept it oh-so real for me. They are my salvation, my redemption.
Km 1 for you Rafa, Luis and Matina. Because I was with you when you first saw light but most probably will not be with you at some point. And because so much of what I do, so much of what I feel passionate about, so much of what I start is, in some big way, related to you. Like my fight for social justice and equality, for a better world for you.
No Km 42s for you--not from me, at least. You will need to earn your victories yourselves.You will need to craft a life all your own, to be true to yourselves and to heed the yearnings of your souls.
I have deep faith you guys will get there. You make me so proud to be called your mama.
I love you, Luis. I love you, Matina. I love you, Rafa.
Mama proud of you, my little puppies. ♥
Km 1 for you Rafa, Luis and Matina. Because I was with you when you first saw light but most probably will not be with you at some point. And because so much of what I do, so much of what I feel passionate about, so much of what I start is, in some big way, related to you. Like my fight for social justice and equality, for a better world for you.
No Km 42s for you--not from me, at least. You will need to earn your victories yourselves.You will need to craft a life all your own, to be true to yourselves and to heed the yearnings of your souls.
I have deep faith you guys will get there. You make me so proud to be called your mama.
I love you, Luis. I love you, Matina. I love you, Rafa.
Mama proud of you, my little puppies. ♥
Part 7. "Who Am I Running For in the NY Marathon?"
For WOMEN. ALL WOMEN,because I am fully cognizant of the power of women.
The goddesses in my life who I love and admire deeply, these self-defined, feisty, compassionate, funny goddesses who laugh in the face of ignorance and hatred.
Most of all, for disadvantaged and marginalized women. I run for what is rightfully theirs--their power to choose! The power for self-determination!
The shameless and cruel way society tre
ats women who are poor and uneducated burns me. The way society's institutions--the church, goverment,financial institutions, family, women themselves--collude to keep women in their place burns a hole through my soul. I could shake a fist at all these forever.
I am sticking the 'RH Bill Now' sticker on me when I run the NY Marathon because I believe in the transformative powers of a woman's reproductive rights--how it can mean the difference between her being poor, ignorant, marginalized~forever begging for scraps for her and her children, forever impoverished in body, mind and soul-- and being the goddess she was meant to be.
And I deeply believe that a nation's salvation lies in the yet hardly-tapped abilities of women.
Memo to the corrupt clowns in Senate:
PASS THE RH BILL NOW!
I am sticking the 'RH Bill Now' sticker on me when I run the NY Marathon because I believe in the transformative powers of a woman's reproductive rights--how it can mean the difference between her being poor, ignorant, marginalized~forever begging for scraps for her and her children, forever impoverished in body, mind and soul-- and being the goddess she was meant to be.
And I deeply believe that a nation's salvation lies in the yet hardly-tapped abilities of women.
Memo to the corrupt clowns in Senate:
PASS THE RH BILL NOW!
Part 8."Who Am I Running For in the NY Marathon?"
This man.
This classy, elegant man.
This kind man.
This intelligent man.
Friend of my soul.
Kaholding hands in life.
Worthy companion of me.
And because he is a terribly private man, 'nuff said. :)
Part 9. "Who Am I Running For in the New York Marathon?"
For my host city, New York. Home to millions of feisty inhabitants to whom individuality and coming together are both sacred covenants. Where diversity is the norm. Where differences are not just tolerated but celebrated.
You will rise from this, NY. Nothing to it. You shall overcome with the indomitable spirit you are known for.
2 words: immigrant stock.
I ♥ NY.
For my host city, New York. Home to millions of feisty inhabitants to whom individuality and coming together are both sacred covenants. Where diversity is the norm. Where differences are not just tolerated but celebrated.
You will rise from this, NY. Nothing to it. You shall overcome with the indomitable spirit you are known for.
2 words: immigrant stock.
I ♥ NY.
(photo by Humans of New York)
And finally, part 10. "Who Am I Running For in the NY Marathon?"
For this woman.
She who lived a mere 29 years.
She who never pounded the 'concrete jungle where dreams are made of.'
She who never walked the streets of Manhattan.
Never felt the power in her limbs propel her towards her dreams. Never felt the wind in her face. Never felt her body be anything but a painful burden and a betrayal.
She and I will sail through the streets of New York City, November 4.
And we will breast that tape together in Central Park, mama.
You and I. :)
For this woman.
She who lived a mere 29 years.
She who never pounded the 'concrete jungle where dreams are made of.'
She who never walked the streets of Manhattan.
Never felt the power in her limbs propel her towards her dreams. Never felt the wind in her face. Never felt her body be anything but a painful burden and a betrayal.
She and I will sail through the streets of New York City, November 4.
And we will breast that tape together in Central Park, mama.
You and I. :)
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