Looking back: Four decades of life in Canada

I was sitting in the waiting room of the family court in Toronto working on some puzzles when a duty counselor called my attention. “Are you the court interpreter in Tagalog? “Yes” I responded, “but not in the actual hearing. I am here for the conference of the lawyers and their clients”. After a few minutes, an elderly… Read More »

The haste to pin down a critic

I am an avid viewer of NCIS, the popular series on CBS about naval crime investigators. Although Gibbs and company are sticklers for the integrity of crime scenes, I have yet to see them haul away husbands or relatives from dying victims’ deathbed for jeopardizing or contaminating the crime scene. They do suspect ill motive for wiping bloods… Read More »

Usurer’s Ultimate Urgh

Up to now, it is still a puzzle as to who came first the usurer or the borrower. It is probably as puzzling as determining who came first the egg or the chicken. In the barrio during the yesteryears, there was such a userer or “loan shark”. A widow of about fifty with no children, Aling Goreng was… Read More »

Need help against lawyer

Q. I’ve written to you before for legal view and it was a big help for us in making our decision. I am writing to you again to solicit for legal information that can course us through to the right direction. My sister bought a 2-bedroom unit in a walk up condominium in Manila sometime in 1996. A… Read More »

My friend McDickenson

Noel Copiaco, Lansing, MI One of the earliest friendships I made upon moving to Michigan in the summer of 69 was with a guy I will simply refer to as McDickenson to protect the innocent. He was a few years older than me, handsome, educated, politically conservative and proud of his Irish heritage. Why he liked me, I… Read More »

Lenten Legacy

Taller and heavier than most of his friends of his age in the quiet barrio, Turing grew up with his younger brother Atoy under the care of their grandparents. No one in the barrio seemed to know the parents of these two boys and their grandparents refused to talk about them. Some said that the parents of the… Read More »

Laments of Young Filipino-Canadians

Rosalinda Cerrudo-Javier President and CEO Filipino Centre, Toronto Some members of FSAT (Filipino Students Association of Toronto) and SOFU (State of the Filipino Union) invited me to attend their 5th Annual Filipino Awareness Week ‘s panel presentation at William Doo auditorium, U of T campus last February 26. The theme for that evening’s panel presentation was “Building a… Read More »

Si Celia Mansibang, Atin pong tulungan!

Sa nangag – Pabasa nung Semana Santa, Awit na may saysay. Ale – aleluya! Panghabang panahon. Papuri sa Kanya. Nakagiginhawa. Lipus ng pag – asa. * * * Lawiswis kawayan! Doon sa Square One! Wah! Umpok – umpukan tantos naragdagan Dahil sa spring na! Hirit walang humpay! Kanya – kanyang bangka! Kahit walang sagwan? * * * Yung… Read More »

Now who’s ‘A nation of servants”?

That controversial Hong Kong journalist Chip Tsao who called the Philippines as a “nation of servants “ must be suffering from “historical Alzheimer”. Did he forget that the word “Amah” originated from his country of origin which means, a servant or a nanny ? Today, Filipinos all over the world serving as caregivers or nannies have given the… Read More »