Dear loved ones,

            Pleasant Greetings, Happy Christmas and more Blessed New Year from CA, USA! I am happy to inform that I successfully completed my 9-days Novena Masses to prepare for the Birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, fulfilling my life-long tradition! Yeah, JESUS I LOVE YOU!!!

            Aside from the spiritual aspects of preparing for Advent and the season, kept busy with shopping for gifts, sending out greeting cards, keeping up with health appointments, meeting up with friends, and the series of holiday parties.

            The first of a series of pot luck dinners was with our BCBP Sacramento outreach group held at the home of our leader Art and Rose Romanos at Elk Grove, fetched by neighbors Robert and Odette P. Our regular coffee and doughnuts are held every Sunday after the morning Masses, sponsored by various parish ministries, in addition to the regular Wednesday after Mass ‘coffee Joe’. These times allow parishioners to know and bond with one another, develop closeness with those who share common values; I have met many more friends through these gatherings.

Then we had our ‘green’ Christmas party held at the residence of Teddy and Glenda Regala at Gold River, near our place. Our group look forward to the ‘White elephant’ gift exchange, ‘bring me’ games, sumptuous potluck buffet, photo-ops, news updating, and many fun activities which lasted from 4pm to midnight. I had been attending this themed party for the past 10 years. We missed Jojo who usually hosted the party but had moved to Pinas, but we managed to keep it going with Daniel Z. and everyone cooperating; Jojo was virtually present vis skype/internet the entire party.

Other highlights of the month:

·      Stull enjoying watching Dr. Shawn Murphy and his clever skills on the The Good Doctor. With the season finale, I am looking forward to the next season’s episodes in January 2018; The life drama is very interesting!

·      Keeping up with Doctors’ appointments.  I am so happy to meet my new primary physician, Dr. Rodney Acuna (from Davao, Pinas). I asked family friend Dr. Edna Tanegra to refer me to a good doctor specializing on my case. She assured me that I will be comfortable with him since he has bubbly /energetic personality and we speak the same language. True enough, during our 1^st meeting, I truly felt at home and trusted him completely. We interspersed our conversations with ‘panalo’, ‘wagi’ ka Ate’ and ‘high fives’ and fist bumps. I was so impressed by his energy and good humor friendliness.  Dr. Edna was 100% correct. And GOD is truly GREAT! In one of our Wednesday morning coffee session, I was seated beside a lady with 3 kids she was dropping off at St. Mel’s school. She introduced herself as Maria Acuna, turned out as the doctor-wife of my Dr. Acuna. She studied at Velez in Cebu and love our place Panglao, Bohol. What a great small world it is, and GOD is truly great, working on HIS creations as in a puzzle, arranging them in proper places /fit, Truly amazing and wonderful !!!

·      Happy to be back to my contemplative life, more prayers and gym exercises, commitments to Church activities – Adoration chapel schedules, after-Mass coffee Joe’s on Sundays and Wednesdays, BCBP meetings, meeting new GOD-sent friends, Opus Dei Recollections, Meditations, and Confessions/ Benediction;

·      Movies watched: Jumanji, Star Wars (The Last Jedi);

·      Enjoying using my new MacBook Air, amazed its fast it  processing and giving information, compared to my slow ASUS which I enjoyed for 4 years. I am glad that Sean insisted on this upgrade – wonderful!!!

Much love and Best Regards!!!

SUSAN BG

Dear loved ones,

            Pleasant Greetings from Manila, Philippines and CA, USA! I returned to USA on Nov. 5 after a safe and smooth flight via PR 105, Much Thanks GOD! My month-long stay seemed so fast with the many missions and activities accomplished, with the early days of  November spent in Bohol with family and friends.

Returning to America means immersing to the regular routine of housework, commitments in church, living the quiet contemplative life as in the monastery. Likewise, I was focused on my health requirements, like attending diet lectures on diabetes and kidney protection offered by health insurance provider Kaiser Permanente. Appointment at KP, 1650 Response Rd, Conf. Room 1 with Ms. Regina on Nov. 10; then Diabetic Nutrition Education on Nov. 13; and got my re-fills at various KP locations which is very convenient.

For Thanksgiving, we received several invitations; Sean decided to stick to our Tradition of having dinner with the GERESOLAS of Elk Grove to remain connected with them and other friends of many years. The fine dining table setting Tess sets up yearly is exciting to see and enjoy, and the sumptuous ‘potluck’ dinner. I always bring Honeybaked Ham, one of 4 I always buy annually – 1 for Lik and Gene Schroeder, for another family, and for home.

            Some lessons / realizations for the month: Life has taught me that you  can’t control someone’s loyalty. No matter how good you are to them, it doesn’t mean they’ll treat you the same. No matter how much they mean to you, it doesn’t mean they value you the same. Sometimes. the people you love the most, turn out to be the people you can trust the least. By Trent Shelton.

Other highlights of the month:

·        Sean and I started watching the new hit TV show The Good Doctor, starring and produced by Freddie Highmore. It is about a high-functioning autistic child who developed into a gifted Surgeon. The life drama is very interesting!

·        Attended forum and evaluation at UC Davis Medical Center at Stockton / I50; Dr. Bryan Gallay, Nephrologist, conducted the examination, while Ms. Liza Gutierrez was the Nurse Educator;

·        I enrolled with covered CA Dental coverage, Liberty Dental, paid initial premium

·        For Thanksgiving shopping, Bought Apple MacBook Air at Best Buy, then Bath & Body Works stuff at Sunrise Mall;

·        Happy to be back to my contemplative life, more prayers and gym exercises, commitments to Church activities – Adoration chapel schedules, after-Mass coffee Joe’s on Sundays and Wednesdays, BCBP meetings, meeting new GOD-sent friends, Opus Dei Recollections, Meditations, and Confessions/ Benediction;

·        Movies watched: The Ragnarok, Murder on the Orient Express, Justice League;

·        In the process of learning and enjoying the features of my new MacBook Air, amazed at how fast it is processing and giving information, compared to my slow ASUS which I enjoyed for 4 years. I am glad that Sean insisted on this upgrade – wonderful!!!

Much love and Best Regards!!!

SUSAN BG

Dear loved ones,

            Pleasant Greetings from Manila, Philippines! A week after my New Jersey sojourn and back in SAC, CA, I flew directly to Manila by PAL105 from San Francisco on October 8, then settled at my El Jerdin del Presidente 9J condo unit with the best balcony view of Bohol Ave. (Sgt. Esguerra), QC, especially with its active nightlife scenes.

The following days were a series of meet-ups with friends and relatives over lunches and dinners, and catching up on free movies like The Kingsman, Seven Sundays, Last Night, and Thor (The Ragnarok); meeting with Architects couple Tess and Chito Santiago for the floor plans of our proposed 5-storeys building on Padre Faura St. (near Paco Park) for expansion of our business operations. To help negotiations on this project are our lawyer Atty. Salian and CPA Ms. Doray for a business meeting over lunch at the new Ceda Vertis Hotel located at the Ayala complex, QC. In that area too, inside Landmark in Trinoma, I discovered the Out Mary Mother of Hope Chapel, which became my refuge / hang-out place attending the daily 11:30 AM Mass, then after praying at the Adoration Chapel. Many of my local friends are amazed how I discovered the Church (it is so huge) they did not know existed. It was opened only in late May 2017, so everything is modern, cold, comfortable pews, and state-of-the-art audio / video amenities. I feel so blessed to become part of the congregation!!! M y regular eating places after Mass is Via Mare, Italiani’s, or French Baker.

One of my missions is to accompany my husband Gerry to the U.S. Embassy to give up his Green card, to change for a Non-Immigrant U.S. visa. He was the only person seeking that status, that the clerk made sure to ask: “Are you willing to give up the benefits and privileges of U.S. citizenship and not claiming any further benefits?” to which we answered ‘No, definitely not!”. The reason for giving up: ‘Could not find a stable job’, since Gerry was definitely enjoying the perks and benefits of running our international shipping business, aside from the blessings of helping our countrymen improve their lives and their families earning US dollars for the Philippine economy.

Our trip to Bohol was a major highlight of my Pinas travel since it allowed me to visit my family – my brother Kuya Rudy / Salia, and clan, visit my parents graves in the Cloma Mausoleum in Panglao. I was accompanied by husband Gerry and C/E Julito Fuego, our new FSAC Crewing Manager. After we checked in at Kew Hotel in Tagbilaran, we had dinner at Juli and wife Geraldine home, who served Lechon, many seafoods, and many delicious food array. The following day, we had bonding over lunch with the Mijares (Salia’s) family. Then we toured around new beautiful sights in Panglao, like the Be Grand Hotel with its 5-star amenities, nice view and beach, at the Tawala side of Henan Resort. We had snacks of coffee and blueberry cream pie. For dinner, C/E Efren and Zenaida Cloma were host at their home, who served another Lechon, native chicken, seafoods, and many more; in addition, we had a live entertainer of 2-men guitars who performed vocal and danceable tunes to the enjoyment of everyone, including the diamond ladies teachers. It served as Reunion with my contemporaries. Fun the entire evening of songs and dances!!!

Other highlights for the month:

·      Continuous planning on the proposed expansion of FSAC business operatgion. SEC approval for the Name  of the new holding Company: Starshine Corporation (my choice name);

·      Gerry and I, invited by Capt. T. Palenzuela, attended dinner-dance for the New Governance Installation of the BCBP Manila Chapter; were introduced as guests from the Sacrmanto/ San Fancisco Chapter, greeted by BCBP Pres. Abellana, and many others. Gerry and I enjoyed ballroom dancing as exercise with our DI partners that Gerry referred to me as the Dancing Queen thereon; Venue was The New World Hotel in Malate, Manila.

·      Nordic Ventures sponsored me to attend the Nordic Ambassadors Luncheon: Corporate Sustainability, held at Shang-rila The Fort Hotel in BCG on Oct. 26; Got to visit The Green Energy Exhibit at the Lobby with many European/USA/ASEAN companies – grand time for Networking!

·      Meet-ups, lunches, bonding with Ms. Agnes R. at Robinson’s Magnolia; lunch with Redgie and Cecille Caballero at Via Mare (they introduced me to Landmark church – much Thanks!); lunch with Cruz family (Gammy, Grace, Gustav, and Jannine) at Italiani’s;

·      Our favorite Sunday morning breakfast place is Lin’s Kitchen (across Hi-top) on Bohol Ave., serving all Congees, siomai, chicken feet, siopao;

·      I was disappointed, upset, and sorry to lose the plants that I cared for more than 20 years. Apparently, the FSAC staff do not share my value for love of Plants, and care for other living things; they are just self-absorbed on themselves; well, time for detachment, letting go, and moving forward! St. Thomas Aquinas, Pray for me!

Much love and Best Regards!!!

SUSAN BG

Dear loved ones,

            Pleasant Greetings from Montclair, New Jersey, USA! I am on my periodic visit to my daughter Sarah’s family to bond with them, especially with my 15 year old grandson MAX who calls me Mama Sue. Actually, I took good care of him for 8 days while his mom was on field work in Dublin, Ireland as Project Manager of Bristol Myers Squibb.

The month was a series of birthday celebrations of Love babies (made in December). Celebrants include: Sarah – September 7; Mama Mary/Blessed Virgin – Sept. 8; Fr. Aldrin B. – Sept. 8; Fr. Cormac L. – Sept. 12; myself – Sept. 20, and many more. For Fr. Cormac, after Mass, his Mommy Fe L. hosted breakfast at Coco’s Restaurant with 10 ladies and Fr. Giovanni. On my birthday, Fr. Cormac offered special intentions at his 12:00 noon Mass, then we had lunch at Red Lobster with Tita Philomena S. and Ate Fe L. where the crew sang the Birthday song as I blew candle on ice cream cake. Later, Sean and I watched American Assassin movie, followed by dinner at Visconti’s in Palladio, Folsom. With all the greetings of best wishes and gifts, my birthday was truly memorable!!!   

For my health insurance coverage, I returned back to Kaiser Permanente from Anthem Blue, where I was covered several years ago, so I chose doctors with the help of our friend Dr. Edna Tanegra. Effective Oct. 1, I will be busy adjusting to my new coverage.

Significant impressions on my MAX visit: He is a very high-functioning ADHD kid, with very photographic memory, needs minimal supervision, and does all tasks that he had been trained well, especially on maintaining personal hygiene. On our 1^st night together, he expressed appreciation that I was there to take good care of him, followed all the routines that his Mom listed as guide / reminders. On Wednesday when his Speech Therapist Ms. P. came, he was very focused and cooperated well. At the end of their session, Ms. P. gave feedback, that MAX was so focused and did very well in their exercises, showed me the remarks on their worksheet: ‘Excellent, 100%”. I am just sad that with the current situation of Max going back and forth on schooldays, he is moved like a puzzle. There is no consistency, no regularity / permanency that affects his self-confidence! I am really sad about this!!!

Sean followed me to New Jersey on Thursday, so we spent time visiting  our relatives Francis and Tita Dompor family in Clifton, went shopping to the Mills, New Jersey Gardens Outlets in Elizabeth, sightseeing;

Other highlights for the month:

·      Continuous planning on the proposed expansion of FSAC business operations, consistent with the idea of Yorozu San and company;

·      Our parish has moved the weekly Coffee Joe to Sunday after Mass to allow parishioners social interaction. We shared table with our new Musical director Aaaron, who truly use his artistry in piano and voice to make people look forward to our Masses. Good decision Fr. Aldrin!

·      I continue with my support to our Vocations ministry where I suggested that my monthly donation be allocated as follows: 50% goes to Diocesan Vocations (c/o Fr. Jovito); 50% for St. Mel’s distributed to: 30% for Sem. Benjamin Condon, and 20% for other Ministry projects;

·      Our Opus Dei resumed meeting where Fr. Turlock is back to hear Confessions, Recollection, Meditation, and Deidre’s talk;

·      When Sarah arrived from Ireland, we spent Saturday enjoying and relaxing at the Six Flags Adventure Park in Jackson, New Jersey. Sean and Eric took all the breathtaking thrill rides, while Sarah and I settled for the less-risk rides like cable car, Hall of Justice, Houdini, while I went alone on the Ferris wheel.

Much love and Best Regards!!!

SUSAN BG