Dear Loved Ones,
Pleasant
Greetings from Sacramento, CA, USA and Manila, Philippines! I wish you more Blessed
New Year 2017 - to my family and friends!!! Following my tradition, I spend
part of winter in Pinas to be with my beloved husband – a third of my
multi-located family, the other two being in Sacramento, CA and Montclair, NJ,
both in USA!
Actually, I just delayed
my Pinas trip in order to witness the various activities of the Trump – Pence
Oath-taking and Inauguration. Within the 1st week of the new
Administration, many things had been done in accordance with the campaign
Agenda, more than the 8 years of the past Administration. What fascinates me most is the Family Trump –
their demeanor and stature. As Mike Huckabee said during the campaign, Trump
impressed him by the way he has raised his children/family. The rule is: No
alcoholic drinks, no drugs, no cigarettes, no tattoo, and they are truly
pro-Life. Donald Jr. Has 5 kids, Eric has 2, while Ivanka has 3 – more to come.
Together with their spouses, and with Melania as First Lady and her son Barron
– they are just so fabulous and Beautiful! So proud of this Gorgeous First
Family!!!
The New Year 2017 started
with many Blessings – Our Opus Dei Recollection went smoothly (I was 1st
on Confession as again, organizing the queue and Collection; on our Tuesday
Bible Study, we started with MARY – Biblical Walk with the Blessed Virgin
Mother, by Edward Sri, headed now by Frank Abi-Nader, replacing Claude who had
moved to Peoria, Illinois, and my Adoration Chapel commitments. Since our
pastor Fr. Aldrin is on vacation in Pinas, the sub-priest on Tuesdays is
another Pinoy priest, Fr. Cormac Lacre from Bohol, my kababayan. Since I helped
his seaman nephew be employed in one of our vessels, we go out for brunch after
the Mass, as I ask for special Blessings. And the rains had kept pouring in
daily that Northern CA is no longer in drought category – GOD’s Blessings!
Sean and I spent bonding
time on week-ends as he is always kept busy at work with year-end deadlines and
court hearings to catch up; while Sarah continues to enjoy commenting on her
victories with her Trump Circle. While our family shares so much Joy in our
triumph, we are careful to limit within our circle. We also have our own Republican
friends in Rob and Odette Pumares, our neighbors from Sunridge Park, just next
to Anatolia.
Significant highlights for the month:
·
On our Opus Dei group (2nd Saturday of the month), Fr. Turlock
is back as he is cleared to drive again, so we got nice counsel on our
Meditations while Deidre delivered humorous anecdotes on her Talk; On our Bible
Study class, the familiar faces are back together with a few new ones, while
some others are missing too;
·
Since I made a small donation to the Trump campaign (Sarah made her own
donation too), I received a Cap with the slogan “Make America Great Again” from
Pres. Trump!
·
Book read for the month: Resisting Happiness, by Mathew Kelly,
distributed to parishioners, Movies watched for relaxation were: and Why Him? A
comedy starring James Franco, La La Land, good movie musical, starring Ryan
Gosling who won Best Actor, and Emma Stone; Meaningful get-together with
friends, and trying new places to dine also comes with additional calories,
needing more discipline and Resolution to control weight gains for the New
Year!
·
Rose Icararangal-Davies and I are travelling together by PAL for Pinas.
She is returning home, after 12 years absence. We were officemates in NAPOCOR
(she is a CPA). Then, while here in America, she and my son Sean worked
together in the same department at EDD. And we are neighbors here in Rancho
Cordova. What a small world – Serendipity!
Much love and Best Regards!!!
SUSAN BG
