My Beginnings

I was born during a typhoon. In the Wikipedia online, this meteorological event was recorded and says: Typhoon Wanda (Diding) Duration April 23 – May 4 Intensity 140 km/h (85 mph) On April 23 Tropical Storm Wanda began its life to the east of the Philippines. It tracked over the archipelago, and emerged into the South China Sea on the 25th. It turned to the northwest, and became a typhoon on May 1 just off the coast of Vietnam. The westerlies brought Wanda to the north and northeast, where it weakened until dissipating on the 4th near Hainan Island. The storm caused 56 deaths (with 39 missing) and $700,000 in damage (1971 USD) from the heavy flooding. Thus, I was nicknamed Diding. I got it from the typhoon that struck our area.

My earliest memory is living in a house with a huge door and large windows. It seemed to look like those Gabaldon type buildings in the schools in the Philippines. I also remembered hearing the ringing of the phone a lot of times. This memory that I have was confirmed by my Nanay (Mother) and my aunt who told me that we indeed lived in such type of a house when I was very young and that there was a telephone in that house.

One story, which I don't really remember, was the story of how the house we were staying at (which is my grandparent's house) was struck by an eighteen-wheeler fuel tanker truck when I was very young. This story was related to me many many times over by my mom and my aunties that I thought it best to add it here. My mum used to work at this time so she came home very tired. Feeling very tired that day, she wanted to have a nap. Normally, I would be with her when she comes back home but that day, I was put under the care of my aunties because my mother had to rest. Luckily for me, I wasn't with her. That spared my life as the eighteen-wheeler truck plowed through the house and rendered my mum unconscious. After the accident, she was found under the truck buried in a pile of her own books. Luckily she survived.

One of the things that I really enjoyed when I was young was going to the beach. I enjoyed frolicking in the sun, and making sand castles. I also enjoyed the food. We usually have rice with broiled fish, sea shells, crabs, prawns, clams, and other seafood. My dad used to have two jeepneys and we used them for our trip to the local beach which was quite often, especially in the summer time. I used to have the interior of the jeepney tires used as life saver floats.

My Mother's History

My mother was born at Kabankalan, Negros Occidental, Philippines, at the house of her maternal grandmother, Faustina Verzosa Apla-on Abadiano. She stayed in Kabankalan for a few years and later on moved to Bacolod City. This was because of an eye infection that she had at three years old. She needed to have an eye specialist see her so their family moved to Bacolod City.

I grew up with my mothers brothers and sisters close by. She had 3 sisters and one brother. She also had a half-brother named Oscar Castel (deceased) and a half-sister (whom I do not know the whereabouts). My mother was quite close to my uncle Oscar as we visited their family every now and again but I have never met my aunt.

Being the eldest, my mother was quite hardworking and responsible. She had to learn to assist my grandmother at an early age because my grandfather was always away working as a sugar broker. I remember her telling me stories about how she would go my grandmother at only about 8 years old because sometimes my grandmother was at work or was sick. My grandmother has really trained her well at a very young age. I also remember her telling us stories about how she and her siblings would help each other doing household chores regularly because my grandmother was busy as a school teacher. They didn't have the modern machines those times so they had to do things manually. It's always fun hearing them recollect those childhood memories they had.

When my mother was a teenager, she worked at the Governor's office. She did some typing work and that has helped her to be trained early to work in an office, something that has really helped her in her later years. That has prepared her to become a working student which she has done later to help her get into the university because her parents could not afford to send her there. She was very serious in life at a young age, probably because she was the eldest child in her family and was quite responsible and hardworking at a very young age.

After high school, she went to Colegio De San Agustin de Bacolod and took a Secretarial Science course. She finished with the highest honours. Later, she went to the University of Negros Occidental Recoletos and finished Bachelor of Science in Commerce, major in Accounting. Because she was married with kids when she was in the university, it took a while before she finished.

She worked with SPCMA, Sugar Producers Cooperative Marketing Association, when she married my father. That is where they met each other. Later on, she worked with the city government of Bacolod. Around the late 70's, she moved on working for the GSIS, Government Service Insurance System, where she worked until she retired in the late 90's.

I have learned so many things from my mother. First and above all, her love and devotion to God was a priority. She has also taught me hardwork and responsibility. She has always taught me to do my best in everything that I do. She doesn't always tell me what to do but she says it best with the example she gives me. My mom was quite affectionate and always showered me with love and attention. She was very encouraging and was always proud of the accomplishments that I have made.

As an adult, I spoke to my mother often. We can talk for hours and never get tired of doing so. We shared a lot of discussions over the years. We were very like-minded so our conversations were always fun and engaging. Hopefully this will keep on going for many more years.

My Father's History

My father was born at Silay City, Negros Occidental, Philippines. He grew up in Silay City with his parents and siblings, consisting of 4 boys and 2 girls. 2 of his brothers died while they were young. Their names were Ciriaco Jr. and Jose. He had an older brother named Ernesto or Erning (deceased), a younger brother named Rolando or Lando (deceased) and 2 younger sisters. He also had an older half-brother called Bernardo Alegre (deceased) whom we called Tiyoy Narding.

My father used to help his mother in a lot of household chores. One chore he disliked doing was pounding unhusked rice using a large mortar and pestle. The pestle was quite high and my father was very short when he was a child so it was a hard chore for him to do. My auntie used to tell us that oftentimes my dad was in tears when he was given the pounding chore. But he obeyed nonetheless because he was just that, obedient and industrious.

My dad was quite good looking as a young man. He was a bit short though which is quite typical for Filipinos. He was very friendly. He was also very athletic. He joined lots of basketball tournaments during his time. He played basketball until he was in his 70's. My dad was a hardworking man.

After finishing high school in Silay Institute, he went to Bacolod to find a job. Later, he worked during the day and went to school at night. He studied Banking and Finance at the University of Negros Occidental Recoletos. He was a part time student but after about a decade, he finally finished his course and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree from the university.

He started as a janitor, then a clerk and later on became a salesman of fertilizers catering to the needs of sugar farmers in the region. A lot of the sugar farmers were fairly rich and were called Don or Doña. Don means some kind of Lord. It is an honorific title used in the Philippines. It is often used as a mark of esteem for a person of personal, social or official distinction, such as a community leader of long standing, a person of significant wealth, or a noble. I used to wonder how my father knew Dons since he came from a poor family. He told me that it was because he dealt business with them in his job when I was very young.

My dad used to work at the SPCMA, Sugar Producers Cooperative Marketing Association. He was working here as a clerk when he met my mother who was new in the firm. They dated and later on got married at the Lupit Church in Bacolod City.

My dad loved all his children. He always found ways to shower us with his love and affection. He wasn't good with words but his actions always say it all. For instance, he knew I love basketball very much. So, one day, in my teens, even with a tight budget, he had a mini basketball court constructed in front of our house. Then, when I used to travel for work, he would have my favourite food prepared whenever I came back. Whether I would be gone for a week or a month or several months, whenever I come back, there was always crabs or prawns or broiled fish waiting for me.

He was always proud of our achievements. He had my name published on the local paper when I passed the Civil Engineer's and Geodetic Engineer's Board Exams. He also had a box of business cards made for me with my name and titles as Civil Engineer and Geodetic Engineer.

He always wanted people to unite, whether it was our home or in the community. There are a lot of experiences that I had with my dad. One of the earliest experiences I had with my dad was that he always took our family to the beach, especially in summertime. He also took us with him when he goes jogging or take us on strolls. I really enjoyed those times. When he worked close to my school, I remember he used to meet me or my siblings at the corner cafe at Awing and treated us with the Lapaz Batchoy noodle soup and Hot Pandesal or some Hot Chocolate and Hot Pandesal. I always looked forward to those times.

My Mother's Ancestry

My mother's ancestry has been traced 3-4 generations back, thanks to my grandmother Josefina Abadiano who was very faithful in doing her family history work. I remember, I used to go with her when she would visit her hometown to update her family history records. My mother's ancestors, are a mix of Filipinos, Spanish and Chinese people as evidenced from our family history records. Also, my grandfather (Rafael Castel) seemed to speak more Spanish than our dialect because that is the language that they probably used in their own family. I grew up with my grandmother close by. Although vague, I can remember my grandfather a little bit. He used to visit us at home. I was 4 years old when he passed away in December 1975 and was buried in January 1976. We have always joked that he wasn't buried until after a year later because of the difference in years of his death date and his burial date.

My grandmother was a school teacher, something that I wanted to be at one point in my life. One of the most prominent member in her family was a senator by the name of Esteban Raymundo Abada. He was the 2nd cousin of my grandma's father (Tomas Abadiano). A few public schools in the Philippines were named after him because he was a leader in the education sector. I was never aware of schools being named after him until I met Mary Jane, who later on became my friend in the university. She mentioned going to a school named Esteban R. Abada. From there, I researched and found out that there were actually many public schools named after him.

My maternal grandfather's family were fairly well off. I remembered stories told about how they went about checking out their lands riding on horses. They had to be on horses because their lands were vast. However, due to some mismanagement and gambling problems of some family members, they slowly lost their wealth over the years.

My maternal grandmother's family were farmers. I learned that they had vast lands in the early days but because they were not very well educated, they also lost their lands of inheritance to someone who borrowed the legal documents and changed ownership of their vast lands to his relatives. It's a sad story but it's a lesson to learn from.

There was also another prominent member of my mother's ancestry. His name was Andres De Los Reyes Castel. He was the brother of my grandfather, Rafael De Los Reyes Castel. He served as an official in their hometown. I don't think I met him in person but I remember, we went to his funeral service when he died. There was a Philippine flag draped on his casket. I wonder why that was and my auntie told me that he actually has served as a vice-mayor of their town a few years back, that is why he had a flag-draped casket.

My Father's Ancestry

My father's ancestry has been traced 3 generations back. According to stories from older people in our family, some of my father's ancestors might have come from Spain. The Philippines has been occupied by Spain for more than 300 years so it is most likely that Spaniards have intermarried with some Filipinos. My father's ancestors were from Antique in the island of Panay. When my father's father was young, he decided to go to Negros Occidental where he later on had his own family. They settled in Hacienda Bagroy, Silay City, Negros Occidental. My grandfather was a truck driver and his wife was a homemaker. They were not well educated but they have encouraged their children to go to school and get some education, especially the boys, as they usually come out as the bread winner in their own families. However, only my father persevered to obtain a university education. He received his Bachelor's Degree in Banking and Finance after about a decade of being a working student. My father's mother died before I was born but I have lived to see my father's father until he died in 1994. I remember he was a very tidy person and his clothes were always carefully folded in his wardrobe, a quality that my father also possessed.

My father was a young boy when the World War II broke out. Their family used to be friendly with the Japanese soldiers during the war, probably so as not to get into trouble. My father used to tell me how their family would share their food (sweet potatoes) to some soldiers during the war.