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.