Ben Contreras
THIS day signals the start of the “-ber” months.
Many songs have been written about the month of September, one of which my daughter Kacy posted on Facebook just to make fun of me. It was my fault though. I thought that song was popularized during my generation, and she couldn’t have known it.
It was during our private conversation when she told me that she’s coming home in September. I responded with “I’ll see you in September... when summer is gone....” She responded with the next stanza. She had a good laugh.
Indeed, September is memorable--wedding anniversaries, the death anniversary of my father, the birthday of my daughter Kacy and close friends, big events like 9/11, etc.. It is also a month when we begin to feel how fast time really passes by and soon, it would be another new year.
Staring at 67, neither young nor too old, this thought comes to mind. What more can I do for my family and our society? Would I still have the strength to work? At the end of the year, have I accomplished enough to merit a star for achievement?
The last four months of the year is a crucial period for everyone. It is a period when one can write and rewrite one’s annals, and how we choose to leave our marks within this period.
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A relative recently passed away. Call her “my mother, my best friend” or “my daughter, my best friend.” She made the sacrifice of not telling her mother of her illness until the last hours. She didn’t want to her mom and siblings to worry and so, she kept everything to herself. Even her friends and officemates were taken by surprise.
She passed away with hardly a change in her looks as she was when she was alive. She was always smiling, jolly and full of life. According to an uncle, in her last few moments, the family around her looked more worried than her who still managed to crack a joke.
Indeed, I never saw her in a foul mood--not even once. She was always very positive on anything she did. Her smile gave an aura of hope, of joy and every bit positive. She’s one in a million.
Karen Garrido Cuenca will always be alive in everyone’s heart.
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Being the author of the Cagayan de Oro City Traffic Code, Councilor Ian Mark Nacaya is in the position to see to it that his baby project is implemented. He should do this rather than engage a radio anchorman in a debate over trivial matters.
Our traffic situation in the city has not shown any improvement. We have traffic lights worth almost a P100 million but these function intermittently. Why? Is it because the city government still owes Cepalco millions of pesos? Or is it because there is something wrong with our traffic lights?
Nacaya can choose whether to make good marks or not. Time is of the essence.