Last month my wife and I attended the 83rd birthday of my mother-in-law,
Mrs. Damiana Farao Faigao, in Los Angeles. She is quite lucky having
surpassed the average life expectancy, which is 75 for Americans,
and 70 for Filipinos. She deserved a tribute considering how she and
my late father-in-law, Tatay Canong, managed to bring up their lucky
13 children and enthused them to pursue the American Dream. Nanay
Maneng supported the studies of her younger children in Manila by
babysitting in Chicago. One of the successful Faigao children is Rene,
the incumbent president of RDL-CLEAR.
As she blew the
candles, everybody wished her more birthdays (her doctor said she
could live 25 more years despite her diabetic condition so we're hoping
she would reach the century mark). I remembered an old saying that
as we age toward the century mark we go back to the stage known as
second infancy. This reminds me of a centenarian lady I saw in a remote
barangay of Looc who had not only a new set of teeth but also a newly
grown hair. Obviously, she also had a mind of an infant because she
couldn't remember her past and she had to be spoon-fed by her daughter.
My thoughts shortly
focused on that long journey to longevity. If I were to choose my
life span, I don't want to reach the stage of second infancy. That
second infancy is not the same as our first infancy because instead
of growing stronger and wiser everyday, we become weaker and duller
despite the pills and multi-vitamins we take many times a day.
Longevity is a
rare commodity. Everybody wants to live forever but longevity is not
really long enough as our bodies slowly and surely weaken due to the
process called aging. Many scientists have begun studies on aging
but they too passed away before they could find a way of reversing
the process. Everything in the universe undergoes the process of aging
or decay. Aging is irreversible because living things need oxygen
to live and it is oxygen that causes living matter to oxidize and
decay.
One interesting
scientific study was predicting longevity by statistical methods.
There are so many variables that it is practically an inexact science.
Predicting one's longevity is as good as the doctor's guess of the
remaining years of cancer patients, which may either fall short or
go beyond expectation.
Longevity in Filipino
culture has a more significant familial value than that of other cultures.
In the traditional Filipino culture children don't drive their aging
parent to nursery homes. They take care of their parents in their
home sweet home in return for what the parents have done for them.
Nanay Maneng has no intention of going to a nursing home. Her children
prefer to take turns in caring for her. Presently, she is under the
care of her eldest daughter, Ronie Jacolbia residing in Lancaster,
California.
As candidates
for senior citizenship in the very near future, my wife and I are
beginning to think about how and where to spend our retirement. We
can't expect our children to return the favor of changing diapers
and spoon-feeding when we reach the stage of second infancy. We seem
to have no other choice but to take care of ourselves in an empty
nest setting. Like old birds that abandon their empty nest we might
also end up abandoning our empty nest and fly to old places where
old birds gather. The place we are looking forward to retire is our
beloved province Romblon.
In America there
are community centers for seniors, which is similar to day-care centers
for toddlers. Nanay Maneng enjoys the company of her peers at the
senior center. She even asked me to teach her English and Tagalog
songs so she can sing when her turn comes to display her talent. It's
lamentable to note that while there are day-care centers for children
in the Philippines there are none for senior citizens. Perhaps, RDL-CLEAR
can initiate moves on encouraging government to appropriate funds
and enact appropriate legislation on aging both in the national and
provincial levels. We cannot attract senior balikbayans to stay long
in Romblon or any place in the Philippines if there are no support
services to make retirement life easier for them.
Our lifespan is
not ours because our life is only borrowed from the Creator. He will
take away that life from us so we have to enjoy it while there is
time.
