Echoes of a Generation

1. Pablo Tan
2. Rosalia Salvatierra Tan
3. Emiliana T. Fiel
4. Ramon Tan
5. Teresa T. Derecho
6. Carlos Tan
7. Jose Tan
8. Lino Tan
9. Vicente Tan
10. Consuelo T. Segovia
11. Jorge Tan
12. Nieves T. Segovia
13. Concepcion T. Y ngson
14. Carmen T. Meji a
15. Milagros T. H izon





CARLOS VICENTE
TERESA CONSUELO
NIEVES
RAMON CONCEPCION
EMILIANA
CARMEN
MILAGROS



he task is done. The hop e is realized. This Family Book has finally come to be. But
how did it all beg in? What force moved us to record the family histories? When a
PABLO TAN CLAN GRAND REUNION was suggested and accep ted by some Manila-
based Tan cou sins, the idea or was it an inspirati on to produce a Family B ook was not far
behind.

Why not chronicle the significant events, the joys and sorrows, the hopes and achievements
of Lo lo Pablo, L ola L iling, their chi ldren and preserve these "forever" in printed pages. A gain
the idea was supported by the cousin s who assured me that t he project was viable.

Thus began the quest for materi al to enflesh the inspiration. Fortunately, I came ac ross
NINA TAN G OMEZ' work, T HE T AN F AMILY OF O RMOC L EYTE, 18 40-1986. There 1 d iscovered a
treasure, the story of TAN BUCO, the firstTAN to settle in ORMOC in mid-nineteenth century. On
becoming a Christian the Chinese TAN BUCO assumed the name ANTONIO TAN whom our parents
called "ANGKONG", Chi nese for grand father, 1 believe. This heartwar ming account has been
condensed and reproduced in the chapter" THE PROGENITOR". For PABLO TAN and his children
there are still living witnesses who can provide anecdotes, reminiscences of people and times
gone by. A nd so to them (Generation 4) I suggested a journey along Me mory Lane, to the
parents, family, events and places of their growing years and to send me their stories, the raw
material for this boo k. The differing responses determined to a large extent the length and
content of the individual family chapte rs. For variety , I attemp ted several styles: the third
person narrative, the interview and first person account. Whatever the style, all chapters are
based on the info rmation I received.

This clan history begins with a setting, ORMOC of our ancestors. Then the two pillars of our
ancestry come marc hing in , A NTONIO TAN, T HE P ROGENITOR and P ABLO TAN, T HE P ATRIARCH.
Subsequent chapter heading s refer to L OLO PABLO and L OLA LILING's thirteen children. That
was the original plan for the book. Bu t after October 30 , 1997,1 f elt tha t another chapter
should be added, that of I MELDA YNGSON PAEZ who passed away on that date. Easily one of the
most enthusiastic about the Grand Reunion and the Family Book she attended every meeting
and pledged all-out support for th e projects. She looke d forward to being with us in the
Reunion. Her presence now w ill be f elt in a le ss tangible but more eff ective manner.

Then the pla n for the book's contents grew to include a genealogy, for us to know where
we belong in the family tree and to know at least by name our relatives. Again I asked assistance
from the individual families. To make it more complete I requested the names of spouses and
children; the dates of birth, m arriages, divorce, remarriages and death. The responses came in
various degrees: complete, incomplete and none a t all! That exp lains the blanks in the list.
Indeed, it was quite a task to put this genealogy together!

I w as able to get accurate dates for ten of Pab lo Tan's thirteen children but for Ramon,
Lino and Vicente no exact date of birth was available so I deduced the year of their birth from
their rank among their siblings. It is possible that this book has errors. Can the families concerned

please make th eir own correction.

Many heads, hearts and hands labored to bring this collective memoir into existence. 1 am
grateful to th e TAN, F 1EL, D ERECHO, SEGOVIA, Y NGSON and H1ZON FAMILIES who took the time
and trouble to write down their recollections, reconstruct th eir respective genealogies and
send them to me. H owever for their unique contri bution SPECIAL THANKS are due to:

- JOHN GARCIA TAN (son N icolas Tan and Josefa Garcia)
who wrote the tale of the first TAN to settle in Ormoc.

- NINA TAN GOMEZ whose first, chronicle of the Tans o f Orm oc
provided John G. Tan's account and other sig nificant details about the Ta n cla n

- AURORA Y NGSON D ORIA whose heart held cherished memories of Lolo Pab lo, L ola

Liling, aunts, uncles, and cousins.
She shared these in m uch detail with enthusia sm and affection.
- FATHER DENNIS P AEZ, S DB w ho with humor cra fted some of the reminiscenses into

vivid and interes ting stories.
- our dear T IA N ENING ( MILAGROS TAN H IZON) whose generosity "filled up what was

wanting" and m ade it v iable for this book to be printed

The THANK YOU is long-lasting because GRATITUDE IS THE MEMORY OF THE HEART.

Sr. M. Teresita Tan F iel, RGS
(Celina)

December 8,1997
Feast of the Immacu late Conception
Good Shepherd Convent

Batangas City, Philippines

c'Sr

& CftGiat you hold in your hand now
is a collective memoir
a common anthology
are rivulets of distinct memories
merging into one stream
of a shared ancestry.

This book was born out of a desire
to preserve our stories
for generations to come,
to reach out and touch one another
at the roots,
to interconnect with kith and kin
in this age of globalization
in this shrinking space
that is the global village.

It is our hope
that through this book
THE STO RY OF PABLO TAN-ROSALIA SALV ATIERRA
AND THEIR DESC ENDANTS
will be told and retold
to our children
to their children's children
and the ECHOES OF A GENERATION
will roll on... and on... and on



'Tjabk of Contents 1
3-4
TITLE PAGE 7-8
The Story of Pablo Tan—Rosalia Salvatierra and their Descendants 9-12
13-16
FOREWORD 17 -22

INTRODUCTION 23 - 28
29 -30
TABLE OF CONTENTS 31 -34
3S -40
LEYTE'S PIONEER CITY 41 -46

ANTONIO TAN "TAN BUCO"
The Progenitor with A Vision
China Map and the Family Tree of Antonio Tan

PABLO "ABONG" TAN
The Patriarch
January 25, 1865 - March 30, 1945

ROSALIA "LILING" SALVATIERRA
The Angel at His Side
December 6, 1865 - November 29,1949

EMILIANA "NENA" TAN FIE L
The Eldest Who Wanted To Be A Nun
October 11, 1888 - March 3, 1963

THE FOURTH QUEEN

RAMON "MONING" S. TAN
The Artistic First Son
1890 - May 20, 1953

TERESA " TITANG" TAN DERE CHO
The Doer; Versatile and Practical
January 18, 1892 - June 15, 1979

CARLOS "CARLING" S. TAN
The Politician with A Zest For Life
November 4, 1893 - June 10, 1970

JOSE "PEPE" S. TAN ff-so

The Doctor Who Loved Women and The Poor S1-S2
S3- S6
January 1, 1896 - June 29, 1966 67-69

LINO S. TAN 60-64
1898 - August 15, 1951
66 - 72
VICENTE "T ENGTENG" S. TAN
73 - SO
The Stowaway Who Made Good
81 - 86
1899 - March 12, 1946
86- 87
CONSUELO "SELO" TAN SEGOVIA 88-92

Dial 9 11 - Heart and Hands Ready to Rescue ^

February 24, 1900 - March 12, 1946 % - 126

JORGE "GEORGE" S. TAN

The Lawyer and Gentleman-Farmer

April 23, 1902 - July 27, 1974

NIEVES "BENG" TAN SEGOVIA

The Charming Diva

November 11, 1906 - July 28, 1941

CONCEPCION " CONCHING" TAN YNGSON

The Least Known, The Most Loved

December 7, 1907 - September 9, 1996

IMELDA YNGSON PAEZ

She Shared Her Life To The Fullest

November 15, 1931 - October 30, 1997

CARMEN "MAMENG" TAN MEJIA

The Gentle Pianist

June 27, 1909

MILAGROS "NENING" TAN HIZON

Beauty, Business-Sense, Bingo Luck!

November 8, 1911

TAN'S IN THE RELIGIOUS LIFE

GENEALOGY

8

Birds Eye View of Ormoc City 1990

SuperCat
Short & Sweet an;- liiyahe !

FAST FERRY INTER-ISLAND SERVICE
EFFECTIVE MAY 5,1997

ROUTE DEPARTURE ROUTE DEPARTURE

Cebu-Ormoc trip, two hours by SUPERCAT can be as delightful as a cruise. 'CEBU-ORMOC 6:00 am •ORMOC-CEBU 6:00 am
Comfortable, color/ul seats and hot meals are a far cry from the crowded 8:30 am 8:30 am
overnight boats of yore.
1:30 pm 11:00 am
4:15 pm 4•:l0C0 pPmm
6:30 pm 6:45 pm

(~\Cl upercat 9 docked smoothly in Ormoc's pier. A proud

announcement that could be seen miles away welcomed

the arrivals: WELCOME TO OR MOC, THE CLEANEST

GREENEST CITY IN REGION 8. The Stat ely Don

Felipe Hotel and imposing ORMOC SUPERDOME

were mute witnesses to an urban

Porters, tricycle, jeep and bus drivers shouted their

destinations as they offered their vehicles. Amid these

modern means of transportation a lone rickety

"tartanilla" drawn by a rachitic horse waited patiently A T artanilla: Ormocanons still patronize this old time mode of
for passengers. transportation.

Proud of the SUPERDOME City of ficials expect the site to be the center for the region's sports activities.

tese were the first sights and
sounds that greeted me last July
24, 1997 in the city of my ancestors
after almost half a century. My last visit was in
April 1948. My amiable companion in this trip
was Betty Alburo Derecho, Temi's wife.

Wet Market no more. Gaisano offers Ormocanons wares and commodities in the style This sentimental journey was undertaken
of a mall.. to gather data, stories, and pictures for this
FAMILY BOOK. I was particularly interested in
old vintage photos but was disappointed in
my quest for these. I got the same answer
from relatives, school, government offices, "we

had them but they were all washed aw ay in

SINANGAN, PABLO TAN's former hacienda, now renamed Barrio San Pablo, has a school of
its own.

the flood", referring to the disastrous flash Entrance to Sinangan, PABLO'S HA CIENDA now renamed Bar rio San Pablo. Road on the right
leads to Dolores, on the left to Tacloban.
flood in 1991 during which thousands lost
their lives. A stroll, a ride in this place of my The F ar Ea st Bank and Trust Building has replaced Pablo Tan's ancestral house in Real
birth revealed remarkable changes. The dirt Street.
roads, the few rough streets, the trails of
the first half of the century have given way
to wide asphalted streets. In REAL STREET
where the wet market was located stands
the GA1SANO, with all the glitter of a mini-
mall. The streamlined FAR EAST BANK
Building has supplanted the big ancestral
house of Pablo Tan. To my surprise a street
sign paid tribute to a son of Ormoc. A street
has been named in memory of Carlos S.
Tan. A pleasant ride to Simangan, once
Lolo's (Pablo Tan) vast hacienda reassured
that Ormoc will long remember Pablo Tan.
Simangan has been renamed Barrio San
Pablo in his memory.

But let us roll back the TIME MACHIN E
to the ORMOC of pre-Spanish times. Ormoc
- NO OGMOK the pre-Spanish Malay settlers
called it, a Visayan term meaning lowlands
and the name of a spring between two
barrios. With the ^^advent of the
Spanish con- TfcfS-^quistadores and

neighboring

R1 a c e s
3 J)G M 0 K
tamorphosed

p ORMOC.

An asphalted Avenu e along Ormoc Bay.

11

In March 1521, when Magellan discovered
the Philippines, he passed OGMOK in his search
for food and water, a fact that has come
down to us through the famed Spanish
historian, Pigafetta.

A street named after a son of Ormoc. Spanish Jesuit missionaries, Fathers
Pedro Chirino, Alonzo Rodriguez and
to CHRISTIANITY. Leonardo de Colsi arrived in OGMOK in 1556
and were impressed by the courtesy and
friendliness of the local chieftains. Thus the
beginnings of the OGMOKANONS conversion

Politically, Ormoc was attached to Palompon but in February 26, 1834 Ormoc became an
independent municipality. In September 1947 Republic Act 1179 signed by President Manuel
Roxas raised Ormoc to the status of a City, Le yte's first.

But why this retrospect into the past? Because it was in this Ormoc of unspoiled beaches,
wild vegetation and dirt trails where a Chinese from Amoy and his bride from Cebu settled in
the mid-nineteenth century and from them a clan, our own came to be.

For in the medley of family names that have evolved through the century we all claim a
common root -TAN. And this name took root and was nurtured in the soil of ORMOC.

Sr. M. Teresita Tan Fiel, RGS
(Celina)

The Church of St. P eter and Pau l. Jesuit Missi onaries first brought the Catholic Faith to Ormoc in the late six teen
century.

Yangtze River Gorges - C 1900

O&uco
{S^wxjf&rUlfw wil/i

1840-1895

> Jw the autumn of 1830, in the teeming city of Emuy,
(f^) /(Amoy) China there lived a mother, a grandmother and a boy

v^^twelve, named Buco. The boy's full name was Tan Buco.

(The Chinese place the family name before the first name).
Their home was a dilapidated hovel. The mother had

a temporary job in a paper factory. The pay was meagre

but a least it kept starvation away from the door. Every

morning she cast a misty look across the bay
cluttered with ships bound for the distant south.
That was the direction pointed to her by her

husband when he left ten years ago. He said he

was going to Manila where money could be

earned. An old mansion during Spanish Times.

(Japan!

TAN BUCO in Chinese characters.

> nt h efirst

C Jfew years she

received two

letters annually at long

intervals, with a little

money enclosed. Then the letters stopped

altogether. Thinking that her beloved husband

was out of job and that transportation from

Amoy to Manila was costly, she worked much

harder to be able to send him money to come

home. Her work consisted of applying gold

paint to white sheets of paper. She worked

harder and faster. W hen the brushes she used

wore down she used her bare hands to splash

the paint until her hands bled and peeled off.

Finally through frugality and persistent hard

work she saved enough money for a one way Amoy, China in Chinese characters.
passage from Manila to Amoy. But where in

the Philippines, in Manila was her husband? How would she send the money? In the midst

of this dilemma Tan Buco, fifteen years old and headstrong offered to go and search for his

father. With anguish she allowed him to go. Her husband was gone; would she lose her
only son too?

And so after a few months, we find young Tan Buco, now 16, already in Manila
working as a houseboy in one of the Chinese stores. He had found his father, drunk and
deadbroke in one of the Chinese gambling dens of the city. Sobered by the recriminations

and remonstrations of his son and the help of the Chinese community, he was persuaded to
return to his wife in China.

In the mid-nineteenth century trade flourished between the Philippines and Europe. The
West needed abaca for their ropes, copra for the manufacture of oil and soap, tobacco to
sustain the Spanish monopoly and the Philippines was a rich source of these raw materials. Tan
Buco observed, listened, dreamed and planned for the future. Through his constant contacts
with the Spaniards and Filipinos who patronized the store, Tan Buco learned a bit of Spanish
and Tagalog as well as the customs and manners of the colonizers. These serve d him in good

stead later.

In 1863, Ta n Buco was a robust young man in Cebu. This smaller city offered him more
business v entures and adventures. He was now ready to start his own business enterprise. But
he left Manila for another reason. In 1863 a very strong earthquake destroyed a portion of the
city. Tan Buc o was in a banquet. The roof collapsed on the banquet hall. His fr iends were killed.
He was saved by diving under a b ig table.

In Cebu, Tan Buco tended the store for a Chinese c olleague. It was then that he noticed
and was attracted to a young lady who frequented the store to buy daily needs. She b ore the
features of a Spanish mestiza, light complexioned, rosy cheeked with a shyness th at accentuated
her beauty and sent Tan Buco's h eart somersaulting. Nicolasa Jagunos recipr ocated Tan Buco's
love. But some obstacle stood in the way. He was a pa gan (unbaptized) and she belonged to a
devout Catholic family. Nicolasa u ndeterred frequented the shrine of Our Lady of Remedies
in Cebu to pray for the conversion of Tan Buco. Her prayers were answered. He was
instructed in the Catholic Faith by Father Jose Antonio Carillo and baptized on July 1860 in
Binondo by Father Jose de San Agustin. After two years of courtship and assurances of
everlasting love Nicolasa finally accepted the suit of the Chinese co mmerciante. By becoming a
Catholic, Tan Buco n ow took the name Antonio Tan Yrastorza after the prevailing custom at
that time. When a Chinese was baptized he took the name of the
godfather, at this instance Gregorio Yrastorza, an old family friend.
In later years he dropped the Yrastorza and was simply known as
Antonio Tan. But the younger generation called him "ANGKONG",
Chinese fo r grandfather.

It is not quite clear where they got married in Cebu or
Ormoc. But in his account John Garcia Tan states that the couple
spent their honeymoon on a ship bound for Ormoc, Leyte.

Ormoc City was then a wild frontier in those days. A ntonio Magellan's Cross, Cebu City
built blacksmith shops to supply the needs of pioneers in a f rontier
land. From those shops came the first agricultural implements:
"bolos", "sundang", "polong", "guna", "dulhong", "gaab", "daro",
"plansa", "pin ote", etc... This was an innovative enterprise that
answered the needs of pioneers wrestling with wild vegetation.

IS

He sent his sons to almost all the towns in Leyte to go with the shipment of these implements.
A v ery lucrative business th at filled big earthern jars with "silver reales", the currency at that

time.
He had vision. He realized that if the Philippine products of sugar, copra, abaca were in

demand in Europe, plantations were needed to supply the demand. So he began to buy all the
land from Macabog, by the sea to the mountain ranges. When the Spaniards refused to sell
their land to him, he bought the land surrounding them, therefore closing the exits of their
produce. He purchased a small sugar m ill from Glasgow Scotland which operated twenty four
hours a day during the milling season and built a large bodega where to store the sugar that

would be sold around the world.

TAN BUCO, the impoverished boy in China had come a long way geographically and
economically. Practical. Visionary. Creativ e. Innova tive. Daring. Hardworking. Lover of Family. He
once said "If I die w ith my dream unaccomplished, 1 have a long tail, meaning his children
(they had sixteen!) will accomplish it for me". Having inherited not only material wealth
from their father but his virtues as well, his children carried on the tradition until in time, in the
early twentieth century his progeny, the Tans were looked upon as one of Ormoc's t op ranking

families.

This FAMILY B OOK w ill focus on his eldest son, Pablo and his de scendants. So, on with the

.-fcripc Condensed from JOHN G. TAN's Account

A SALUTE TO THE TAN FAMILY
OF ORMOC CITY

by JOSE GARCIA TAN

HONOR

'» | FRANCtSCOj
ANGEL

Graphics by JOHN G. TAN

C " Cy4> / x m < f y ^)04u/oa " JQilima

SfcvrwcMy 25., 1855 - dMwcA 30., 1945 Qy^n^elal MA/V

S^ecem/iew- 6, 1855 - <S%nwm/wv 29, 1949

"C hey addressed him "Don Pablo" "S enor Pablo", titles testifying to
the esteem which the whole town had for the eldest son of Antonio
Tan (Angkong) one of Ormoc's pioneers.

17

THE Y OUNG M AN

ablo was born in Ormoc on January 25, 1868. His father entrusted him with the
operations of his many business enterprises. Of the sixteen children, Pablo's is
the only name found in the official documents. Antonio, the Chinese pioneer,

realizing the great demand for agricultural implements such as bolos and plows opened
blacksmith shops which turned out thousands of bolos weekly. Antonio's sons were trained to
accompany the shipment of bolos to different towns - an arrangement that sealed the life and
destiny of Pablo. For it was during these trips to Jaro, that he met the young lovely Rosalia
Salvatierra with the lilting nickname of "Liling". The story goes that Liling was engaged to be

married. One night her scapular kept straying to her face. Thrice this happened.
Sensing this to be rather unusual, Liling opened her eyes and saw her
boyfriend standing at the foot of her bed. The marriage was called off.

Meanwhile, Pablo gallantly pursued his quest for the lady of
his dreams and she answered "YES". Ormoc was astir for the

wedding of Pablo and Rosalia. The young bride-to-be was
transported over the mountains on a hammock on the
shoulders of porters not unlike the way the Spanish friars
were carried during their pastoral visitations to the parishes.
This unorthodox means of transportation was due to the

absence of roads. Only mountain trails and footpaths linked
the towns. And on January 25,1886 in O rmoc's parish church,
Pablo Tan and Rosalia Salvatierra pledged to "love one
another until death do us part". A do uble celebration: Pablo's

birthday and his wedding.

.ola Liling wi th Nieves Not long after, the house was alive with infant wails,
toddler's footsteps and children's prattle. In quick succession,
children filled the home and hearts of the young couple. Eighteen of
them! Thirteen survived to adulthood: Emiliana, Ramon, Teresa, Carlos,
Jose, Lino, Vicente , Consuelo, Jorge, Nieves, Concepcion, Carmen, and Milagros.

THE GENTLEMEN-FARMER

Pablo with his inherited business acumen, his experience as his father's right hand and his
own hard work acquired more and more property. He bought large tracts of land and transformed
them to coconut, rice and sugar plantations. He named his first hacienda, "UNION" where he
built a big bam, equipped it with a furnace and big vats to process sugar cane to brown sugar.
Here his grandchildren gleefully stretched the "tira-tira" with their bare hands and had contests
as to whose "tira-tira" was the whitest. His s econd hacienda "Simangan" was a vast coconut
plantation of 40, 0 00 trees which yielded the tons of copra shipped regularly to Cebu.

The gentleman-farmer was also an entrepreneur who envisioned the progress of the little
town. He donated a large tract of land for the public market, foreseeing that where the market

18

was located, a main street (called Ca lle Re al durin g the Spanish times ) would soon follow. A nd
so it happened. Fro nting the market in C alle Real were Pablo's resid ential lots where he built
the ancestral home in the corner of Real and Lopez Jaena streets and deeded the contingent
lots to hi s daughters.

He sa w the need for transporting people and products more efficiently and eventually
came to own the ORMOC T RANSPORTATION, several trucks that eased the movement of the
farm prod uce and people. No fa rm woul d be complete without animals . Pablo's menagerie had
horses, goats, cows, carabaos, doves, and chick ens.

THE F ATHER

Pablo and Liling be lieved that educat ion was the most prec ious lega cy they cou ld bequeath
to the ir chi ldren. The g irls we re sent to the elite Co legio de la Immaculada Concepcion in Ceb u.
Nieves whose singing in Or moc's chur ch choir showed promise spent three years in Italy where
she studied voice cu lture and sang in the opera houses of M ilan. Jose hone d his medi cal sk ills in
the imperial Unive rsity of T okyo in Japan. Carlos to Le tran and the University of the Philippines,
Jorge to Ateneo for his law degree. Other sons went to the United States either for study ,
adventure or perhaps to escape the ir fathe r's strict dis cipline. In deed a disciplinarian he was. W hile
he gav e his children the best opportunities then available, he did not hesitate to use the whip
dipped in water when ever they misb ehaved. Vicente is a case in point He esc aped to the United
States, came bac k and su rprised the fam ily. While abroad, he lea rned to pla y the pia no.

He warned his daug hters. "Your suitors better behave or they'll leave the house through
the window".

Pablo was a good provider. The lands he acqu ired through hard wor k and business savvy,
he left to his sons an d daughters .

HIS COURAGE

Pablo stood out in any crowd. Ramrod straight. A promine nt brow. A vo ice that spoke
with authority . A s erious mie n th at inspired respect, obedien ce and yes fear, too. He was born,
it seemed, to lead and to command. He had loy al frie nds and bitter enemies who wanted no
less than his li fe.

In the early days of the American Occ upation of the Philippines, a certain Faustino Ablen
organized a fanatic group of nationalist s called "pulahan s" afte r the red shirts they wore. Pa blo
had sold CAMP DO WNES his property to the American Military at a cheap price. This did not
stand well with Ab len. He acc used Pablo T an o f aidi ng the Ame rican Military and instructed his
men to ambush him. Fo r days on end the hired assassins hid in a swamp near the canal with
firearms loaded, ready to shoot. As soon as they heard the horsehoofs they wou ld be gripped
by fear, their petrified fingers unable to pull the trigger. After sever al attempts they gave up
and told their leader that Pablo had and anting-anting (a charm that protects its owner from
harm). They wanted to know what was his anting-anting. They observed the interior of his
house from the outside and spied a big crucifix hanging on the wall of his bedroom. They

exclaimed, "THAT is what is protecting him!"
While the "pulahans" were after Pablo's head, ironically h e was also accused o f being a

bandit to the American authorities. Knowing t hat he was influential in Ormoc, the Americans
furtively go t him into one of their ships to bring him to Tacloban for a hearing. As so on as his
wife and brothers heard of this, they quickly boarded another ship and followed the A merican
boat to Tacloban, bring ing with the m Pablo's young son, Carlos. O n th e day of the he aring while
the court was in session, Carlos marched in, d ressed in suit and all. Surpr ised, the American
judge asked him, "And who are you little gentleman?" The young boy replied, "I am C arlos
Tan, the son of Pablo Tan." The judge exchanged some words with him and adjourned th e
session saying: "A man w ho can educate a son like this can not be a bandit.

At anothe r time and place, during th e Japanese occupation, while the family w as h aving
lunch, two men approached Pablo. They claimed they were sent by their guerilla co mmander,
Miranda, to confiscate his car and radio. It w as common knowledge t hat these two items were
the first things that were commandeered by the Japanese. The truth was they wer e se nt b y
their alleged guerilla leader to kill Pablo Tan. But at the mere sight of Pablo, im posing and
serene, they trembled and got cold feet, their heinous task aborted. Again wor d wen t around
that Pablo really had a magic charm. Pablo simply pointed to the image of the Sacred H eart

and declared, "That is my ant ing-anting."

The Grandfather

The grandchild ren experienced the gentle side of Pablo Tan. He loved them. After lu nch
he used to call his grandchildr en to his bedroom, to fan him, pick his white hair, or to tell h im
stories. The longer the story the bigger th e reward. As soon as he began snoring, th ey t iptoed
out of the room and quietly waited outside for the coveted reward. Usually a centavo bu t a
centavo in those days could buy four "Hershey" kisses in the Chinese store below. A s to the
length of the stories, Remy Segovia easily outdid her cousins. While t he less im aginative were
limited to the fairy tale ending of "they lived happily ever after." Remy, gifted with im agination,
could stil l spin a sequel much to our en vy and marvel! One day Lolo announced that he w ould
give ten pesos (a fortune!) to the first child who would cry. The boys particularly Ru ben T an
and Carlitos Tan resorted to pinching each other to bring te ars to the eyes. Nobody g ot th e
coveted prize!

Trips to the hacienda were treats for the grandchildren. Early in the mornings he ro de to
Simangan in his car while another truck was on hand to transport those who co uld no t fit in
the car. There was always a race to the car because all the kids wanted to ride w ith h im.
During harvest time when the newly harvested corn filled the bodega, he encouraged th e
children to earn by helping shuck the kernels from the cob. But th ey only ended up b y p laying
with the kernels. During th e vacation months of Apr il and May the big house would be t eeming
with children who naturally were noisy. Lola Liling complained once that the children w ere
making too much noise, to which the doting grandfather replied, "Liling, a house without
children is a hell."

LOLA LILING: TH E ANG EL AT HI S SID E

Behind every good man is a woman. Who was this woman who companioned Pablo for
65 years ? Who shared his life, joys, pains, successes an d failures? R osalia Salvatierra was said
to have a friar for an ancestor! She was a deeply religious woman who was up at 4:00 a.m.
everyday for mass. Typical of the wealthy families of her times, she owned two "carrosas"
which she lavishly decorated with flowers for the religious processions. Her well tended flower
garden provided flowers for every need specially for the month of May when children needed a
basketful of blooms for the "Flores de Mayo" offering to Blessed Mother.

She was quite strict. No child was allowed to touch her newly-hatched chicks which the
"apos" (grandchildren) found hard to resist. She k ept careful watch over her prized "naranja de
China" tree. Heavy with fruit, the tree was a temptation to the grandchildren. They could only
covet b ut never tasted by dishonest means the forbidden fruit. Lola always found out!

She ab horred idleness, her constant admonition being "la pereza es m adre de los v icios".
Idleness is the devil's workshop. Among her hobbies was processing kapok. She sp ent hours in
the basement of the house processing the cotton-like substance. Kapok from Liling's bodega
was re puted to be the finest and fluffiest in the town.

She was Pablo's faithful companion who always went with him, be it to the nearby hacienda,
to Manila for their yearly vacations or on occasion to Hongkong. She lovingly rolled tobacco leaves
for the cigars he smoked daily until he graduated to the famed "Tabacalera" cigars.

THE WAR

When the Japanese invade d the country in 1942, there was panic in Ormoc and with the
other townsfolk the Tans evacuated several k ilometers inward. When Pablo Tan and his family
returned to the town, the big house on Calle Real a ttracted the attention of the Japanese w ho
asked permis sion to use the oven, th e only one in the town at the time. The Japanese visits to use
the oven or to buy Conching's cakes led to the suspicion that Pablo Tan was a Japanese collaborator.
Some enemies vowed t o wipe out the Tans in a matter of days.

President Jose P. Laurel, president of the Japanese occupied Philippines through the
mediation of Carlos, offered to send a plane to take them to Cebu. His graci ous proposal was
not accepted because the Tans were too many.

Thus t he hasty frantic move to Manila in a " batel" which was like a huge "banca" without
the amenities and facilities of the first class b oats. The trying sea voyage to Manila took about
five days i n contrast to the thirty hours in a regular boat.

In Manila, they settled temporarily in Emiliana's house in Paco. Carlos comfortably settled
in the relative safety of Baguio worried endlessly about his parents in Manila. One day while
roaming around Burnham Park undec ided and in anguish, a n old lady approached him and told
him to fetch his parents to Baguio. On November 29, 1944, Lolo in a car and the rest atop a
truck motored to Baguio.

The peace and security of the mountain city did not last long. The Japanese army under

the command of General Yamashita made their last stand in the mountain province. And so
started the indiscriminate American "carpet bombing" of Baguio City.

Notre Dame Hospital where Pablo was confined suffered a direct hit. Carlos and Pepe
rushed to the wreckage and found him peacefully seated by the grotto where a gentle hand
led him. The family lost no time in joining the thousands who evacuated to the hills. They we re
able to procure a baby carriage for Pablo to ride on, while Imelda and Aurora took turns in
holding up their grandfather's feet to prevent them from dragging on the ground. Liling wa s
transported in a smaller baby carriage. Their escape through the mountains started in March
15 1945. After twenty-four hours of continuous travel, they came upon a lone Igorots house
owned by a certain Francisco. He took one look at the seriously sick old man and generously
vacated his hut while his family moved down river. Pablo's head injury from the hospital debris
turned into an ugly wound. Pepe had to operate without anesthesia. Pablo suffered the ordeal
with the gentle complaint. "Pepe me duelo eso," (Pepe that hurts.).

THE HOMECOMING
On March 30, 1945 in that lonely hillside of towering pine trees Pepe announced to the

heartbroken family that Pablo had gone home to his God. It was Good Friday, 3:00 p.m. He
had a poor man's burial. In the extreme deprivation of place and circumstances, earth received
the body of Pablo wrapped in a blanket.

Meanwhile, Liling's health deteriorated. In her last years she was bedridden and had
become a child again. Conching took care of her with unstinted love and devotion. On November
29, 1949, Liling joined her beloved Pablo. Now, "embraced by the light." Pablo Tan and
Rosalia Salvatierra rest in the Hizon mausoleum in La Loma cemetery, Nening's last gesture
of filial piety. There they repose waiting to rise again and live happily ever after in the kingdom
Of God. THE INE FFABLE REUNION!

Sr. M. Teresita Tan Fiel, RGS
(Celina)

with memories from Aurora Yngson Doria, Sr. Nihita Derecho and Mil agros Tan Hizon

&he &an <S£>ie/

(J/QAo-fyQavUecl to io a ^Yion
(BctoU* 11, 1888 - d%&cA 3, 1983

^ /^ena, born on O ctober 11, 1888 dreamed of bec oming a nu n si nce her
teenage years. Lolo Pablo, a we althy hacendero, sent his d aughters to

0 Colegio de La Immaculada Concepcion in Cebu, an elite school conducted by
the "Hijas de la Caridad" now known as Daughters of Charity.

The joys of Naty Pelegrin. Clockwise from top.- Gene, Tony, Rosarito, /f.piritually inclined, Nena took to the atmosphere
Chit, Tina, Tet, Dominic, Junior, center Chu. ( Y7^as fish to water. She loved the nuns and imbi-
V^ACybed their spirituality. They returned that love
Naty's eldest. Tony Pelegrin w ith Sharon, Gordon and Liza and gave her the privilege to read for them during their meals.
during her First Communion. Her spiritual director Father Pedro Angulo C.M., a Vincentian
priest encouraged her to follow God's call. So all was set. To
Spain she would go to join the "Hijas de la Caridad", the
religious order founded by St. Vincent de Paul and St Louise
de Marillac.

Lolo Abong pleaded, "Come home (to Ormoc) and re­
ceive my blessing before you go". Mama knew it was a ploy
to keep her in the Philippines, but Father Angulo strange as it
seems counseled her to go back to Ormoc.

Ormoc was a small town. Only one small boat left for
Cebu o nce a week. Lolo was headstrong and determined to
keep his eldest daughter out of the convent. So mama was
always accompanied by one of her sisters whenever she left
the house and Lolo placed lookouts in the boat to prevent her
from escaping!

In the meantime Lolo was interested in a match for
mama. An intelligent young man of humble origins, a law
student, the town bard who composed and declaimed po­
ems for the town's celebrations was considered a good match.
They met and fell in love. But Agaton Fiel, Ormoc's first law­
yer failed the first bar exam because he was in love! Eventu­
ally on January 26, 1916 in Ormoc's parish church Agaton Fiel
and Emiliana Tan promised each other "to have and to hold
... for richer or poorer... in sickness or in health..." The end of
a divine romance! No ... not yet.

They were blessed with ten children: Antonio, Araceli,
Arturo, Joselito, Josefina (Nany), Natividad (Naty), Milagros
(Guitos), Carlos, Teresita and Celina. Early in their life together
in the early 1920's papa and mama experienced great sor­
row. A dysentery epidemic ravaged Ormoc. Antibiotics were
not yet discovered. Among the child victims were Joselito (2)
and Arturo (4) w ithin hours from each other. Six months later
Araceli (6) s uccumbed to the deadly disease. Mama and Papa
were desolate. "Who will hinder the Divine Gardener from
plucking the best flowers from his garden?", Father Angulo
consoled the grief-stricken parents.

The Obien Family: L-R-Joel.Jori, Baby, Boy. In 1935 we moved to Manila. Toning who some years

* Picture on page 23. Emiliana with Nany leaning on her and Naty on her lap.

24

earlier graduated VALEDICTORIAN from Dan Beda Col­
lege received his diploma in Civil Engineering Cum
Laude from the University of Santo Tomas in 1937.

December 7, 1941. The bombing of Pearl Har­
bor in Hawaii. War erupted in the Philippines and with
millions of Filipinos we suffered devastation. Tia
Nening stranded in Manila spent the early war years
with us sharing our trials and tribulations.

Toning was a "guerillero", the underground who Junior Pelegrins family. L-R- Pia, Marie,Junior and Gabby.
resisted the Japanese invaders. He was caught in a

"treacherous act", listening over s hort wave radio to

the forbidden news from the United States. He was

imprisoned and tortured. We never saw him again.

We remember vividly that wrenching, miraculous

evening of December 6, 1944, a week after Toning

was arrested. They came at 8 p.m. sixgrim-faced Japa­

nese military police, guns menacingly visible. They

grilled us for more than two hours and finally de­

cided to arrest papa. A pr ospect that spelled torture

and death. Just before they were to take him away

from us, we knelt before the image of the Sacred

Heart and prayed as we never prayed before. In those Tonichi and Chu Trinidad's Family, F ront Row: Angelo, C hu, Adie. Back: Toni chi,
few minutes of wrenching supplications, a miracle Niko.

happened. A ch ange of heart! To Papa's "Gentlemen ,

I am ready," came the gentle answer from the dreaded en­

emy. "Mr. Fiel you stay, your family needs you."

The "Hound of Heaven" was preparing a sweet recom­

pense for mama. OnMay 13,1946 Nany sailed for the Good

Shepherd novitiate inLos Angeles. Seven days later Guitos

joined the Holy Spirit Sisters in Mendiola. Mama was over­

whelmed with consolation. The nun she wanted to be but

did not become was fulfilled in her children. Still grieving

over Toning's fate, she reverently said "The fruits of the Cross

are sweet." The Nufables, back row: Ed, Paul; Seated L-R- Michelle, Mark, Chit,
Mama had three great loves: God, family and cooking! Philip (twins)

She was a deeply spiritual person. Nourished by the Bible, daily mass since her teenage years,

devotion to the Sacred Heart an d Blessed Mother and mellowed by suffering, mama's spirituality

was natural and flowing like a gentle murmuring brook. At home, certain devotions were strictly

observed: Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation, daily family rosary during which Carlitos

and myself would suddenly feel sleepy, special prayers to honor the Sacred H eart on Fridays,

observance of the days of fasting and abstinence, attendance at the Holy Week ceremonies in the

2S

1

let Pelegrin Feliciano and Family. L-R- Vic, Tet, Kara, Lia, Christian. parish church. Christmas of course was very
special. As childre n, we looked forward to
Gene Pelegrin, a Royal Canadian mountie with wife Dency and children Matthew making the "Belen" nine days before Christ­
and Saralyn. mas. Then the high point, Midnight Mass
in Concordia College chosen because papa
Dominic Pelegrin and and mama loved to listen to the "villancicos"
Teresa with Daniel and (Spanish Christmas carols). We would rush
Rica. home to the "cena de media noche" with
the traditional "pesa" "jamon de pina"
Tina, Naty's youngest with Ken and Mia Araceli Pelegrin (To ny's daughter) with sc "queso de bola", nuts, raisins and fruit cake,
lovingly prepared by mama for her app re­
Bernardino Joshua, the lone Generation 7! ciative brood with huge appetites! On the
last hour of the last day of the year, led by
papa we gathered before the statue of the
Sacred Heart which held the most promi­
nent place in the house to give thank s for
the blessings and ask pardon for the of­
fenses of the year gone by.

In the Tan family,mama' culinary skills
were legend. Cooking was her passion and
her business. She specialized in everything:
Viands, cakes, jam s, pastillas of all kinds,
preserved fruit, mazapanes, ensaimadas.
Name it and mama could cook it to per­
fection. It is not surprising then that her
children developed "sweet tooth". Childhood
recollections conjure delicious aromas ima­
ges of us children standing on a low stool
and scraping the sides of the "tacho" (cop­
per vat) while jams or pastillas were still on
the burner, of little ones waitingimpatiently
for the "retazos" of the "mazapanes" and
"pastillas".

Mama was the spiritual counselor of
the family. Quarelling couples, children mis­
understood by their parents, servants com­
plaining about the treatment of their mas­
ters, and bereaved relatives sought her guid­
ance and understanding. Papa jesting ly re­
marked that our house was a "refugium
peccatorum"!

Papa, an avid chess player was a

humble man. He was gifted with wit, humor, intelli­
gence, a p oet's mind and a writer's pen. Talents th at
were inherited by Carlitos.

In that TV-less era our recreations were simple. Carlitos Fiel and C ecilia Capistrano. They were married in 195 2.
Some nights we gathered aroun d the piano and sang
as mam a played favorite tangos, "kundimans" and
Stephen Foster songs. Ocassionally pap a would chal­
lenge mama to a game of "sungka". Instinctively before
the game, mama would make the Sign of the Cross and
papa in a m ock tone of defeat would say tha t he will
certainly lose the game since mama had invoked the
powers on high! Then he would attempt to "cheat" but
could not escape mama's wary eyes! An outing to San
Juan de l Monte, the Augustinian Sisters' resthouse to
visit Sor Monica, mama's friend was a real treat. While
mama and Sor Monica c hatted away, we ran loose in
the grounds climbing the trees and helping ourselves to
the "siniguelas" "duhat" "macopa" and other fruits in the
big orchard.

Before the war, once a year aro und February, we During the baptism of Carlo, Peachy's baby. In the picture Cholo and wife
would be in a flurry, making room, getting the house Maryann, Bobitt and Jackie, Liling, Karia & Lelo and Peac hie carrying Carlo.
spic and span for the arrival of Lo lo Abong, Lola Liling,
Tia Nening, Tia Consuelo, Tia Conc hing, Tia Mameng Rose Fiel Nakpil with husband, Paguito and children, Gino and Carlo.
and the cousins, Imelda, Loly and Remy who came to
Manila for the carnival season. Those were day s of fun
and joy in abundance.

Studies were a priority. Mama provided each on e
of us with a study table which papa bought during one
of his provincial trips. Nany and Naty burned the mid­
night oil over t heir books. Carlitos' table was most of­
ten a "race track" for his ingeniously devise d game "the
race of the paper clips". A lengthwise bond paper for
the track, paper clips as hors es and a controll ed jerk of
the paper for locomotion provided him more entertain­
ment than learning! During th e beetle season, Guito s1
table became the custom-built playground for the frol
icking "salagubangs" she had collected. Mama and papa
were pro udest of their four "Valedictorians", Toning,
Nany, Naty and Celina whose framed diplomas were
prominently displayed on t he wall of the living room.

Since mama and papa grew up d uring the Spanish times, we spoke Spanish at home. Mama
could understand and speak English but was not very confident in it. Papa's English grammar and

vocabulary were perfect but he spoke
the words as in Spanish, pronouncing ev­
ery vowel and consonant. Thus "Tough
Guy", (The name of a race horse) became
"Too-Gooy", t o our adolescent laughter
and embarrassment! He couldn't care
less!

Nena Tan Fiels children ta ken before Guitos in 1965 left for Argentina. L-R- Naty, Nany, RGS, Romance caught Up tOO with the
Guitos SspS, Celina RG S, Carlitos family. On Sep tember 8, 1945 barely six

months after the liberation from th e Japanese, Naty exchanged marriage vows

with Gil Pelegrin. We climbed a six by six army t ruck for the ride to the wed­

ding in Malate Chur ch! Six months a fter the war transportation was still scarce.

Like mama Naty had a brood of ten children: Antonio, Rosario, Gil Jr. Asuncion,

Araceli, Teresita, Cachito (died in infancy) Eu gene, Dominic and Natividad. In

1952 Ca rlos married Cecilia Capistrano ensuring the continuity of the Fiel line .

Six children blessed this union: Corazon, Rose, Antonio, Carlos Jr. Emiliana

(Peachie) and Gudalupe (Lelo). In t hat same year Celina the youngest who

received a scholarship from M arywood College, Scranton, Pennsylvania came

home with an A.B. d egree, Cum Laude. In 1954, ei ght years after Nany and

Guitos entered the convent, Celina heeding the call of the Good Shepherd

Natividad Fiel and G il Pelegrin w ere married enplaned for the Los Angeles novitiate. With three daughters in the convent,
on September 8,1945 in M alate Church. Mama exclaimed, "Lord, m y debt is paid - with interest!"

Naty and Carlitos with their families migrated to Canada
in the 80's and 90's. In June 1, 1991 Naty met a car accident in
Alameda, California. Her death was sudden, swift and shocking.
Carlitos received his "summons" on his birthday, November 4,
1995. He learned he had inoperable lung cancer. The realization
that he was living on borrowed time inspired him to write a
short story "The Fourth Queen", which was printed in several
newspapers and magazines and included in this Family Book.
On June 11, 1996 in a Toronto hospital, surrou nded by his lo ved
ones who were praying the rosary h e peacefully yielded his life
to God. Meeting them in that Great Beyond were papa and mama
who had g one ahead on June 16, 1958 and March 3, 1963.

Eighty two years after they said "I do" Agaton and Nena's
line lives on in th e 3 nu ns, 15 grandchildren, 30 great grandchil­
dren and one great great grandchild. The tribe has increased.

"The best is yet to be"!

Emiliana "Nena" Tan Fie l Family d uring Naty's H.S. graduation Sister M. T eresita Tan Fiel, RGS
in 1940. L- R: Celina, Carlitos, Nany, Naty, Guitos. Back Agaton,
Nena, Toning. (Celina)

28

Z A:

(Carlos, wrote the following story in Toronto, Canada shortly after he learned that he had inop­
erable cancer of the lungs. H e received this life-shaking news on November 4,1995, his birthday.)

ween

Or How I Played Poker with God

by: Carlos T. Fiel

My doc tor didn't even mention the word, but 1

knew what he meant. "It's the kind that spreads

rapidly".
For several nights, I couldn't sleep. Kept tossing in

my bed w ith tears and in my eyes. "How could you do

this to me, Lord?"
Kept thinking hard where 1 could go for help.

Thought o f my three sisters w ho are nu ns. "Bombard

heaven, bring in the heavy artillery," I asked them. I laso

asked help from my saintly Mama who went to heaven

thirty-three years ago.
But, somehow, I felt everything would be useless.
Then, the unexpected happened. An angel (he

wasn't dressed like one but 1 knew he was) appeared to

me and said, "Come, H e wan ts to see you". Carlitos and his three queens, L-R: Sr. Anne, Sr. Milagros, Sr. Celina.
"Jesus Christ," 1 couldn't help but exclaim, for in­ Picture taken in Toronto Canada in 1992.

deed it was Him.
He was seated in a simple chair. There was a bare table. He bade me sit down across Him. He

looked at me gently, but there was no smile in his face. Th en He spoke .

"1 see your t ime is up." 1 said yes almos t inaudibly.
"Your relatives, both living and dead, are pestering me to give you another chance". Then He

said something about me having so many relatives while he only had John the Baptist.
"1 don't have to listen to them," He said. "However," and this ti me I could detect a t winkle in

his eyes, "Just to silence them, I'll give you a chance."
"Thank you, thank you, Lord," I muttered as I prepared to rise. Butit was not as easy as that.

"Let's see. What have you been doing aside from a lot of sinning and a little praying?" My

answer was to look at the floor.

"1 see you play poker?"

"Just penny-ante, Lord, and only with close frie nds."

"All right, let's play poker. If you beat me, I might give you another chance. But if I beat you,

nothing else can help you, not even your relatives."
"Oh no, not poker," I protested. I wanted to tell Him 1 was a born-loser in that game. Oh well,

He probably knew it, that's why He chose the game.
"Bring me a deck of cards," He motioned to an angel. I noticed the cards wer e out the usual

earthly cards of the Bicycle or the Vee brand, but only with a plain letter "C". I thought maybe the

"C" stood for Carlos, my name. Or, maybe, for "Christ". Then, a morbid thought, "Hope it's not "C" for

Cancer".
"Let's play th e Lord's deal."
The Lord's deal ? What kind a deal is that? 1 know the Lord's pray er, but I never played the

Lord's deal.
"We w ill not play for money, because there is no need for money in heaven," and, a fter a

short pause, "if you get there." That's when I realized we were not in heaven. I was probably in a way station

and after judgment, I'd know where to go. As if to remind me, He said, "Money is taboo in heaven since

that man Iscariot ran away w ith thirty pieces of silver."

2?

He explained the deal. Every card would represent a wish. Its value would be weighed by the

cards gotten. Two of a kind will increase the possibility of the wish being granted, and more with
three or four of a kind." But, He said, "we'll borrow one of your rules. A higher card beats a lower

card. So Ace is the highest, the King is n ext, followed by the Queen."
He dealt each one of us five cards.In the meantime, a crowd was gathering and I saw a beautiful

lady in blue coming out of a room. She glanced in our direction but continued on her way.
1 looked at my first card. It was a queen. The second was also a queen. The third was a

deuce, the fourth an ace. But presto, the fifth card was a queen. Three queens! My spirits soared.

Three of a kind out of five cards is almost an unbeatable hand.
"Okay, you declare," He s aid.
1 showed the first queen. "This queen represents my sister, Sister Anne, a Good Shepherd

nun who will celebrate fifty years of service to you this year." Then the second queen. "This one
represents my sister, Sister Milagros, a nun of the Holy Spirit. She is a lso celebrating her golden
jubilee in your service this year. And this third queen," I said somewhat triumphantly, "stands for
my sister, Sister Celina, also of the Good Shepherd, who has been there for forty-two years."

While 1 was talking, He opened four of his cards and I saw two aces. But 1 wasn't alarmed
because 1 had one of his aces and the chances of his last card being an ace was about one in forty.

So, 1 readied for the kill. "Look, Lord," I said, "My three sister nuns have served you for an
aggregate of 142 years. And they are pleading for me. I'm only 67 w hich is les s than half of their
years of service. Maybe you can give me a few more years in appreciation of their faithful service

to you."
"Very good speech," He said. "But before making any decision, let's take a look at my fifth

card." Slowly, he turned the card.
It was an ace.
"I got three aces. They be at your three queens and your wishes are of no value."
He said it was time to proceed with the judgment and called St. Peter, asking for my record.

St. Peter gave him two sheets of paper. One was very long and the other very short. Out of the
corner of my eye I saw that the long paper carried the heading "Sins". I supposed the other piece
carried a list of the good things I did in life. It was no contest. 1 didn't have to be told of the verdict.

"Well," Christ said, "I'm sorry but...." and then there was an interruption.
"I am the fourth Queen." The i nterruption came from the lady in blue who was suddenly at

my side.
Christ was dumbfounded at the unexpected turn of events. His own mother was on the

opposite side. He was speechless.
Finally, He was able to say, "But, Mother, I am your son."
The lady in blue nodded. Then, resting her right arm upon my shoulder, she told Him, "Son,

he is also my son."
There was a moment of silence. Finally, Christ said he wanted to go to another room to study

the matter. He gave Peter t he two sheets of paper. Then they went away, leaving me alone with

the Lady in blue.
Left alone, I asked her what I did to deserve her hel p. She smiled and said, "Your rosaries." I felt

guilty since although I had been praying the rosary, I would pray them as if by rote, so mechanically.
But as they left, something shocking happened before my very eyes. As Peter put the two

sheets of paper in his back pocket, the Lady i n blue so deftly picked up the long sheet. 1 could
never imagine that she would be capable of doing that, even if it was meant for my benefit. The
Blessed Mother stealing? As a matter of fact, I could not help myself and blurted out, "You stole
my sins. You broke the seventh commandment."

With the sweetest smile I have ever seen, She reassured me in a conspiratorial tone, "Son,
sins can be sto!en...if you pray the rosary." All I could mutter was "Blessed art thou among
women".

It's been some time now and Christ hasn't come out yet with His de cision. But I'm no longer
worried and I don't care. Because, standing beside me is the Blessed Mother, with the crumpled
list of my sins in her left hand and her right hand resting on my shoulder.

And, oh, yes, in my right hand is th e rosary!

(On June 11, 1996 i n Toronto, Carlos went g ently into the good night. He died peacefully, su rrounded by
his sister, wife, children, nieces and nep hews who were praying the rosary).

wmcwi <jy/LowvMi

1890 - QMay,20, 1353

Guadalupe Aria's was sixteen when she married RAM ON TAN. 0 Z1 yfather ramon was the sec°nd chi|d a nd
Picture taken in 1933.
( ^ * / |//the eldest son of PABLO TAN. He was an ener-

V J- getic person and a mischievous one at that.

A practical joker he did not hesitate to play one on LOLA
LILING, his mother. One day he went to the cemetery, brought
home a skull(!) and placed it beside her bed. When Lola Liling
woke up and saw those bones and empty eye sockets, she
screamed in great fright. Papa was naughty, and headstrong,
a temperament that made it somewhat difficult to discipline
him. The "skull incident" must have been the climax of his
mischievousness and LOLO PABLO decid ed to send him to the
United States to learn English and to teach him a f ew lessons.
Perhaps aw ay from home and on his own he might become
more tractable. Hetook a Chinesejunket tothe UNITED STATES
and after a month's voyage a rrived in MONTEREY, CAL IFOR­
NIA where he stayed for two years employed in manual labor.
He went as far as Alaska working in the Salmon canneries.

My father was good-looking and he married a young girl
of sixteen whose features easily matched his. GUADALUPE
ARIAS was a lovely Cebuana, a Carnival Queen. People said
that hers was a beauty that made heads turn to take a sec­
ond look. She was civic-minded and involved herself in the
social and civic affairs of the small town OPON(now LAPULAPU)
in CEBU.

Stories have come down to us that my mother was

BEAUTY and GOODNESS. Perhaps that is why heaven coveted

her so early. After bearing eleven children, at the age of thirty-

five mama died of what they called in those days "grano

maldito". ELOISA, ou r youngest was just a week old. Mama's

Conception with oldest son Fernando Luis.: Picture taken in late demise W3S SWift and Unexpected and LOLY YNGSON, my
cousin still remembers papa, grief-stricken and in panic after
40's-

mama's death. With nine children, the youngest just few days old, what was he to do? So it is that

relatives took us in.

TIA NIEVES t ook me under her wings and brought me to ILOILO. ELY w as adopted by T1 0
MANOLO a nd TIA CHARIN G w ho had no children. RAMON JR. was taken by TIO NITO. S AGRARIO,
NENA and the rest of the boys remained with LOLO PABLO . M y father married again TRINIDAD
YLAYA.

Motherless, dispersed, with a father who had taken a second wife was not a situation to
foster family life! Loneliness, yearning for a mother's love, a deep aching for a happy family life
together were strands woven into our childhood days. BUT through it all we survived and w ith

32

God's help made something of ourselves. Ruben Family celebrate a riotous New Year.
So who are the children of RA MON T AN Ruben Tan and his wife Luzbella Fortich
and GUADALUPE A RIAS? Br iefly, ever s o
briefly let me acquaint you with t hem.

NORBERTO (Berting) was appointed
mayor of Mandau e, Cebu during the Japa­
nese occupation of the Philippines, but
he resigned. The family attempted to
leave Cebu and go to Bohol but the Japa­
nese caught up with them. Papa and
Berting were imprisoned. Papa was re­
leased. Berting wa s executed.

DELF1N must have been born with
"wings". After two years in the Merchant
Marine he worked in Phil ippine A ir Lin es
for many years, first a s purser then as
airport manager in many parts of the
world. Currently he is airport manager of
GRANDAIR in HONGKONG.

ROLAND, the "greatest sale sman in
the world"! He was given the Litchfield
award, which is given to the best sales­
man of Goodyear Company worldwide.
He has retired since and resides in USA.
Roland mourns for his son RUSTY who
died in June 1997.

RUBEN, seems to have t he "Midas"
touch. He is a businessman and his ven­
tures and fortune are thriving. Want a dip
in the hot weather? The swimming pool
in his h ouse in ZA MBALES S t., La s Pinas
looks inviting! Hi s fait hful wife and part­
ner is Luz bella Fortich.

SAGRARiO (Gari ng) i nherited my R-L Lloyd Evers, Sagrario Ta n Evers, imelda Yngson Paez (RIP).
mother's beauty. Married to Llyod Ev ers,
she has been residing in the United States
for many years. A t present her address is
in Ha waii.

AZUCENA (Nena) is marr ied to MANNY TOMACRUZ. She is not only a wife but also mother of

33

a lady lawyer, LAURA.
RAMON TAN JR. a lawyer has migrated to AUSTRALIA.

ELY in CE BU is married to a BURGOS.

My b rother and sisters are "lolos" and "lolas" now.

1, CONCEPCION (Naning) the eldest met my husband JULIO ROCHA while

staying in lloilo. I am a lola too, and can you believe it of triplets who are

now teenagers. I am sharing these recollections with you from my bed

A de tail of Lolo Pabl o's Golden Jubilee picture. where I lei paralyzed after a stroke. In my helplessness I remember a tim e­
Ramon with Garing and Berting. less passage from the Bible.

There is a season for everything under

heaven

A time for giving birth

a t ime for dying;

A tim e for planting

a time for uprooting what has been planted.

A time for tears

a time for laughter-,

A ti me for mourning

a t ime for dancing;

A tim e for keeping

L-R: Beling Tan, Nena Tomacruz, Michael Whittington, Ruben Tan, Laura Tomacruz carrying a time for throwing away.
Geoff Bell, Liza T. Latinazo, Ronnie Latinazo and Cara Latinazo. A time for keep silent

a time for speaking.

God has set th e right time for everything

Such has been the rhythm of my life.

Ely Burgos' Family. L-R; ( Standing) Roberto, Pau lo, Antonio, Ramon, Joselito Ah yes, TAN I am, we are in weal and
L-R (Seated) Manuel, Guadalupe, Eloisa, Fatima, Socorro Perpetua and Carlos woe. And to you my relatives I want to say: 1
pray for all of you that you may have G OD
Vicente. always in your hearts. Through this book we
relive our happiness, stare once more at our
pains, spread sm iles, get nostalgic as we re­
call the past. You had a big part in making
me who 1 am today. I cherish all of you and
in prayer and pain will do my best to bring

you closer to God.

Nena Tomacruz' husband, With much love,
Manny and grandson, Naning

Geoff Bell. (Concepcion Tan Roch a)

PS. Nena, my sister, helped me with the remi­
niscences

&e&eda> S&ewecAo

Sew, QJemMUi/e amd *dd?/y<icfc<xz/

tS/fmua^y- 18,1892 - 15,1979

J received valuable information on Tia Titang's family from her children. I have
( 7/ taken the liberty of weaving the facts in the form of an interview.

Interviewer's questions were devised to link coherently the interesting data
which are quoted verbatim.

3S

j5.

FAMILY B OOK: WHAT IS THE GENESIS OF THE TAN-DERECHO BRANCH?
NITANG: One of the sisters in my community Sr. Pudentiana Durano

told me that papa was engaged to her sister. But after he met mama

he broke off the engagement! When papa mentioned to a frie nd
that he was courting Teresa Tan, his friend exclaimed, "You a re
aiming at the very Czar's d aughter!" They were married in Ormoc.
FAMILY B OOK: WHY CZAR'S D AUGHTER?

Teresa's eldest son Temy with wife Betty. NITANG: I think it's because Lolo was influential in Ormoc and his
daughters were considered socialites.
FAMILY BO OK: WHAT WAS YO UR M OTHER L IKE?
NENANG: Mama was born on January 18,1892. She was very active
and energetic. Although she did not have any formal training in

dressmaking, she sewed all our dr esses
including those of her grandchildren. She

was a good cook too.

FAMILY BO OK: GOOD C OOK, U H? TYPICAL
OF THE TANS.

ARNALDO: Mama was indeed Pablo Tan's

daughter. She displayed the inner

strength, pride and courage that was in

Lolo. In our adolescent yearsshe provided

in her own quiet way, the support tha t
allowed us to mature and achieve our

The proud Mother of professionals, Adelina (BSC), Azucena, Arnaldo (Engineering) Augusto goals.
(Law), Artemio (Law). NENANG: Mama was a very prayerful
person. She went to mass almost ev ery
day. And whenever she was in tio Jorge's
house in Ormoc she used to spend much
time in the evenings before the Blessed
Sacrament.

The Church was just across tio

Jorge's house.
NITANG: We prayed the rosary with the

Litany of Loreto daily. Sundays and F irst

Fridays would see us going to mass to­
gether as a family. Dominating our sa la

opposite the stairway reigned a beauti­

ful statue of Christ the King whichwe ven­

Arcemio uerecno ana Betty Alburo and Family. erated devoutly.
FAMILY BOOK: SMALL WONDER YOU ARE

' Picture on page 35. Front row seated: Arnaldo and Azucena; Middle row Adelina, Teresa, Augusta,- Back row Artemio and Antonio.

36

Pabon Family then... Azucena Derecho (S r. Nihita S .PS.S. has been missioned to
Argentina, India and is now in Togo, Africa.

Manuel, Adelina and their eight d aughters...now. Back L-R- Sandra and Amelito Derecho, Front L-R : Ar t and
Cutum Derecho.
NUN. YOUR VO CATION HAD ITS ROOTS AT HOME. B Y TH E WAY YOU A RE A
MISSIONARY TO WHAT PARTS OF THE WORLD HAVE YOU BEEN M ISSIONED? L-R: Theresa, Alfonso, Mark Allen, and Anthony Derecho.
NITANG: I've been to almost all the continents! Philippines was the
cradle of my religious life. From there I was missioned to Argentina,
then to Bangalore, India where I celebrated my silver Jubilee. You
know Augusto and Arnaldo came to India to celebrate with me.
From the exotic East to our Mother house in Steyl, Netherlands and
now I am in Lome, Togo, A frica!
FAMILY BOOK: A GLOBETROTTER! JOIN THE CONVENT AND SEE THE WORLD?
NITANG: I went places but I really did not get "to see the world" I am
a H oly Spirit Sister of Perpetual Adoration, a Contemplative, remem­
ber?
FAMILY BOOK: WHAT CAN YOU S AY ABOU T YOUR FA THER, THE MAN
WHO WOOED AND W ON THE CZARS DAUGHTER?

3/

~

Angeles Sopocado and Azucena Derecho. (Temi's daughters) ARNALDO: Papa Antonio Derecho told us once that he wanted to
Arnaldo's daughter Maritoni with husband David Kane. be a lawyer, but since he was orphaned early and had to support
himself through school he settled for his second choice, Ag ricul­
Arnaldo and Imelda Derecho.
ture.
Jordan Derecho Madison D. Kane NITANG: He obtained his degree in Agriculture from the University
of the Philippines in Los Banos an d was the head of Cebu's Depart­
Arnaldo's grandsons
ment of Agriculture.
FAMILY BOOK: AS WE KNEW HIM, YOUR FATHER WAS HIS FAMILYNAME.

STRAIGHT AND UP RIGHT.
ARNALDO: Yes, by his example, he instilled in us a strong sense of
self-reliance and moral rectitude. He was very conscientious in the
fulfillment of his duties.
AUGUSTO: He was really DERECHO. No sort of intimidation from
anyone could make him swerve from what he considered was the
right course for him to follow.
NENANG: More on mama. She was k ind to the poor. She used to
take the daughters of our tenants in Ormoc to live with us in Cebu
and taught them many useful things: Religion, Spanish, embroidery,
housework so m uch so that these girls were considered well ed u­
cated and some of them married into families of high social stand­
ing.
FAMILY BO OK: ARE TH ERE ANY EV ENTS TH AT S TAND O UT IN YOUR
MEMORY?
NENANG: The evacuations of the Second World War, in the e arly
1940s. We yo ungsters enjoyed our vacation to the mountains of
Danao, since w e did not have to go to school! With coconut palms
for sleds we slid down the slopes in joyful abandon. Later in Sibonga
we spent much time swimming and gathering shells after Mass
and breakfast.
NITANG: I can never forget this event. The Cebu-bound Japanese
ship we boarded in Ormoc run aground and the guerillas pounded it
with mortars and bullets for a whole week. Later we found out
from our cousins in Danao that they were among these gu erillas
and that the day we were rescued had been set as the date on
which our ship was to be destroyed. When we were safely h ome
and unpacked our luggage we found many stray bullets lodged
among the holy pictures given to us by the Benedictine sis ters in
Ormoc. We used these pictures to shield our heads as we spent the
whole day in the ship's cargo hold with the dead and dying soldiers.
FAMILY B OOK: THAT MAKES M E SHUDDER.

38

NITANG: Ah, but I have a happy memory. During

the Japanese occupation, food was getting scarce

in Cebu. Temi offered to get sacks of rice in Ormoc.

The situation had worsened so we had to evacu­

ate again. Papa a nd mama were terribly worried

about Temi and we stormed heaven for his safety.

After the war Temi, safe and sound rejoined us in

Cebu. It was my birthday!

FAMILY BOOK: GOD'S L OVING CARE W AS SO M ANI­

FEST. C AN YO U G IVE O UR C LAN AN UP DATE O N T HE Augusto & Rosita Derecho and Family: Standing L-R Edwin Derecho-, Robert Earnest;
TAN D ERECHO FAMILY Augusto DerechoEric Yuen; Dennis Derecho. Sitting L-R: Celest e Derecho, Abegail
BETTY: Temi (Artemio) and 1 (Beat riz Alburo) Derecho, Jennifer Earnest held by Karen Earnest, Rosita Derecho holding Allison
got married in Cebu. Of our ten children some are Yuen; Robert Derecho, Eloise Derecho, Melissa Derecho, Carmel Yuen holding
Laura Yuen. (Not shown: Meredith Derecho born 4-25-95). Photo taken at Lomita,
CA 12- 24-94.

in the United States. All are professionals. 1 have a

doctor, a nurse. I am widow now. Temi died on

May 1996.

NENANG: Manuel Pabon is the lucky person who

married me! God gave us eight girls and a boy.

Thirteen grandchildren make us feel young again.

AUGUSTO: Rosita Ty and Itied the knot in 1956.

Shortly thereafter having been awarded a Fulbright

Smidt-Mundt grant, we left for the U.S.A. to take

up Graduate Studies at the University of Michi­

gan. W e both earned a Master's degree but our

greatest accomplishments are our children: Den­ Alex, Arnaldo's son and his bride, Michelle.
nis (UCLA gradu ate), Eloisa (AB from Georgia Uni­

versity) Karen Ph.D. Psychology (University of Connecticut) Carmel (AB Economics Standford, MBA

Chicago University) Abigail (MA English Literature Standford). Since 1976 Lo s Angeles California has

been home to us.

ARNALDO: Im elda Loquillano from Bohol is my

devoted wife. I am a structural engineer and

Imelda is a accountant. Alex, my son is a me­

chanical engineer and Maritoni my daughter is a

lawyer. Both are married to Americans. Our grand­

children almost toddlers now are o ur joy.

FAMILY BOOK: YOU AND YOUR CHIL DREN HA VE

GROWN U P IN T IMES A ND E NVIRONMENTS THAT A RE

WORLDS A PART...

ARNALDO: Ind eed yes. But even t hough the atti­

tudes Of people may have changed (generational Leticia (Adelina's daughter), Anthony Padilla and children.

39

Susan Pabon with Children. Lourdes and Leo Logue with sons Louie Michel and Lawrence Charles.

and cultural) and our children have not been immune to these influ­
ences, we as parents have tried to instill in our children the values
we learned from papa and mama. Universal values, Filipino valu es
that are still valid and generally applicable.
FAMILY B OOK: THANK YOU, DAGHAN S ALAMAT FO R T HE M EMORIES
AND UPDATES, THESE CONNECT US TO ONE ANOTHER AS MEMBERS OF PABLO
TAN'S CLAN. WE HOPE YOU CAN BE WITH U S ON JANUARY 25 , 1998!

TEMl'S LINE

Monina and William Cimafranca with daughter, Ann
Catherine.

Armando (Temi's son), Armanda with Seated: A lfredo Derecho with Johann S ebastian.

daughter Adrienne Derecho. Standing: Marie Lou Derecho with Louise Marie.

Cecilia Pabon, George, Gordon and lan Christian.

Annabel Derecho with son Alvin. L-R- Therese, Mark Allen, Anthony and Ellen Derecho.

to

withfew-
<S^Y(wem/>#v- 1f, 18.93 - cJ/«^6 10,1970

_ 1/Q e was born o n November 4, 18 93 in Or moc, Le yte.
C^S/ [ The fifth ch ild o f PA BLO and ROSALIA.

V^/ He earned his B .A. from San Juan de Let ran
and continued La w studies in the Un iversity o f the Philippines.
He rec eived his Bac helor of La ws degree at the age of 19.
Underage he waited two years before he could take the
BAR EXAMINATIONS. He pa ssed the B AR i n 191 5.

j*

utgoing, with an interest
in and a grasp of public is­
sues, politics was a natural ca­

reer choice for him. In 1922, he was elected
Congressman of Leyte's First district and re­
elected four times to this office.

In 1947, he was elected Senator.

He was delegate to International Conven­

tions: to the Inter-Parliamentary Union Con­

ference in Rome, 1948

Carlos and Isabelita's wedding in 1931. In the picture are President Quezon, Doha Aurora and United Nations General Assembly, 1949.

Quezon, Pablo Tan and Dr. Jesus Tan.

He was appointed first Philippine Ambassador to Brazil in 1966.

In January, 19 31 Congressman CARLOS T AN
married ISABEL MIR ASOL, an Iloilo socialite
in a grand wedding ceremony in the Capuchin Church in lntramuros
with PRESIDENT MANUEL QU EZON and
DONA AURO RA QUE ZON
as p rincipal sponsors.

Travel was his pleasure and leisure.
With his wife he visited the great cities
of Europe, the Americas and Asia.
The Taj Ma hal captured his heart and imagination.

A loving pose. Carlos and Isabelita Outstanding was his love for his parents
specially for his father.
His f requent visits, long conversations with them
and during the Second World War,
braving the danger

and risking his life to bring them to the safety
of Baguio and the hills
witnessed to a filial devotion above the ordinary.

He had a passion for roses
and tended a garden of gorgeous blooms
in the heart of the city, in a lot adjacent to his house
in Dakota St., MA LATE, MANILA.

Their children. L-R, Carlos Jr., Lulu and Ricardo. Aptly named "PARADISE" th is garden grew
* Picture on page 41. Carlos at the age of 24. thousands of rose plants imported from
United States, England, France, Belgium and Spain.
42 This hobby culminated in annual ROSE Shows
a social event of the year, opened by dignitaries,
PRESIDENT E LPIDIO QUIRI NO, IMELD A MAR COS

Carlos and Isabelita surrounded by children, in-laws and grandchildren. Lulu, a replica of her mother
Ric, a young bo y in Sa n Francisco.
MRS. MYRON COW EN, wi fe of the American Ambassador.
Proceeds went to charitable causes.
CARLOS and ISABEL had three children
LOURDES w ho studied in Marymount College, New York
worked in the United Nations and assigned
to war torn areas such as Lebanon and Yugoslavia.

R1CARDO e arned degrees in Economics
from the University of San Francisco
and the London School of Economics and Politics.

He s erved in various financial institutions.
For 25 y ears he worked in the Asian Development Bank
and was Deputy Director of the Program Department.

Retired from the ADB, he uses his experience and expertise
as executive vice-president of the Philippine Deposit
Insurance Incorporated.

CARLOS JR. w ith an MBA f rom Harvard University
held positions in the WORLD BANK.
He was the president and CEO of a large tuna producer
BUMBLEBEE COR PORATION in La Jolla, California.

CARLOS TA N SR. die d from Leukemia on June 10, 1970.

He was exuberant. Quick tempered. Affectionate. Generous.
CARLOS TAN , t he politician, the public servant
is remembered by those near and dear to him as a loving son,
husband and father, as a caring brother and a loyal friend.

His big big heart matched his loud resounding voice!

This prosaic biographical sketch
will come alive
with the remembrances of the persons
who knew and loved CARL1NG.

I REMEMBER

Isabelita with sons Ric (left) and Carlos Jr. MEIN PAPA CARLOS

During childhood days, he was a frightfully disciplinarian father. What with his stentorian
voice which could be heard for miles away! In retrospect, Imust admit to having been quite a brat
and thoroughly deserving of the rod, which my father - Carlos was not wont to spare.

As I progressed through my early teens spent mainly in
San Francisco Papa came across as a very "carinoso" father
although still the strict disciplinarian, especially when it in­
volved school grades. I have patches of memory of papa en­
folding my brother and 1 in his tight embraces - and while we
- already in our self-conscious teens made futile attempts to
escape from these public displays of fatherly affection.

My constant reminder of papa's character was his fa­
mous temper, his genuine love of family, his caring affection
for children from all walks of life, and his natural gravitation
towards all human folk.

I recall his countless letters and notes received during

Happy Family. Back row: Ric, Bea, Ricky, Eva Dovid, Front Raul my high school days, on through college and postgraduate
and Robert days constantly exhorting me to excel, excel, and excel...

During my adulthood, I cherish the memory of his unwavering support notwithstanding my

many pecadillos and the continuing bond between father and son on through my marriage and

unto his death.

And when I ran for the first Constitutional Convention primarily to honor his memory, I
discovered the other father through the deep and abiding affection as manifested to me by the
barrio folks in his congressional district when most through moistened eyes, would fondly recall
"Carling" and the countless episodes of his assistance to them over a period of 40 odd years. It
was only then that 1 truly realized the meaning of his constant refrain when talking of his "dis­
trict", that the "people really loved me.."

And so with his sons, whenever we recall the love and attention, which he rained on his
family - that we (I) most fondly cherish the memory of papa, may our children and the children of
their children be half as lucky with their own papa!

Ricardo Tan

JfJf

MY FATHER

Here I amjust a few months shy of sixty and I've been asked to write about my father who's
been gone for over 25 ye ars! Surprisingly this is not difficult.

Papa's presence has re mained vivid and strong all this time and I continue to feel his life
force around me. Again I shouldn't be surprised, for Papa, if anything, was always bigger than life.
I truly doubt if 1 will ever again mee t a man with a greater capaci ty to love (especially his family)
and a never-ending engagement with life. I still see clearly in my mind Papa racing down the aisle
of the Cathedral in Baguio with bombs exploding outside with Ric and myself on either hand and
literally trying to wrestle a mattress from another man to shield us from the shrapnel; of Papa
almost singlehandedly bringing us, his own father and mother (in a bab y carriage) over the mountains
towards the American lines. 1 see Papa in motion along
Market Street in San Francisco w ith his sons in tow
loudly procla iming his favorite phrase "San Francisco
here we be!"

My mind's video of Papa is always of him in mo­ Baptism of Eva's baby. L-R: Eva's husband Eva and family friends.
tion-always alive. He was always fo nd of saying that
children sho uld be better editions of their parents
and spared no effort to provide us with the opportu­
nities to excel. We have carr ied his vision in our lives
but in one thing we have surely failed - we will never
be a better edition of Papa. But if we come close it
will indeed be achievement enough.

Carlos Tan, Jr.

THE DO TING G RANDFATHER

I remember most Papa Carlos' love for children . One Sunday, Ric, myself and our two year old
Evamari visited my in-laws in Bel-Air. After lunch Papa brought Evama ri to th e newly constructed
SYA SUPERMARKET. He told Eva to get any toy she wanted. Eva must have thought she cou ld have
everything because Papa just kep t putting in the cart everything she pointed at. When the cart
was fu ll of mostly dog toys Pap a t old me to go to the cashier and wait for him. I immediately
began to return to the shelves half of the toys. When he joined us he was surprised to see the cart
only half-full. I remonstrated that Eva should n ot have all o f those toys. Pe eved, he to ld me that
seeing Eva happy playing wit h the toys made hi m also happy.

Belen Bantug Tan

THE LO ST H OUSE

Papa Carlos and Mama Isabel visited us in London. One night after dinner he decided to take
a walk. Afraid that Papa might get lost Ric offered to accompany him . Papa refused the offer. It
was impossible to get lost just around the block, he said. One hour had passed and still he had not
come back. Finally whe n Ric decided to go and loo k for him, the doorbell rang. And there was
Papa brou ght home by a policeman! We were relieve d and asked him what happened. His an­
swer: "Carajo, Ricardo your house g ot lost and I could not find it"!

Belen Bantug Tan

IN A PARIS RESTAURANT

Carlos visiting his niece Sr. Ann Fiel in Tio Carling and tia Isabelita were dining in a classy restaurant in the "City of
the Good Shepherd, Los Angeles, CA Lights". Tio Carling wanted to order chicken but did not know the French word for the
fowl. No amount of English explanation could convey to the waiter what he wanted.
Finally imitating a mother hen tio Carling flapped his upper arms, cackling "PUT-PUT-
PUTAK-PUTAK"! Sudden ly enlightened the waiter smiled, nodded his head saying, "Ah,
poulet, poulet". He got his fried chicken.

Tia Isabelita as told to his nieces

AN INVITATION TO HOLLYWOOD

Tio Carling never misse d an opportunity to visit relatives wherever they were. Around 1948,
he visited his niece, Nany (Sr. M. Ann Fiel) then a novice in the Good Shepherd Convent in Los
Angeles. During those times the sisters were not allowed to go out except for medical reasons

and they could never step into their homes again. Tio Carling
regaled the young nuns with stories of his travels. He was
particularly fascinated with Hollywood and wanted them
to see the fabulous spectacles of that fabled moviedom.
Enthusiastically he asked permission from the Superior to
give the novices a treat. He would take them to Holly­
wood! An utterly unimaginable excursion to a most
"wordly" place! He was disappointed by the refusal. That
was tio Carling - spontaneous, generous, irrepressible.

A Good Shepherd novice at that time

THE W AR OF THE ROSES

Happy Times: L-R- Eva , Lulu, Bea. Having been continuously abroad since April 1949

Baby and I met with Papa and Mama in San Francisco in 1958 (Baby fro m Georgetown in Washing­

ton DC and myself from London School) to prepare for our long awaited visit to Manila - now as

young adults. Naturally. Baby and I were keen to bring a good "wardrobe" for our summer stay in

Manila and we were busily preparing our respective suitcases when a t hunderbolt in the form of

a "decree" from Papa mandated that fully half of the space in our suitcases would need to accom­

modate rose bushes for Papa's garden! Needless to say, Baby and I were thunderstruck but failed

to muster the courage to argue with Papa on what we felt was a m ost unfair burden!

And so, the family meandered its way back to Manila via a night or two in Seattle where the
rose bushes were soaked in the hotel bathtub during that sojourn. The longish flight to Hong Kong
left Baby and I less than our usual alert selves, so that after taking the taxis from the airport to the
Miramar Hotel, Baby and I suddenly discovered at the hotel lobby that the suitcases containing
the rosebushes were missing! We saw the slow volcanic wrath forming in our father's counte­
nance and without hesitation, Baby a nd I rushed out of the hotel lobby and out to Nathan road
where we proceeded to flag every taxi we saw and forced each cabdriver to open the luggage
compartment in the futile hope that the roses would miraculously appear.

It was a sad ending to our Hong Kong stay as we were never able to recover the roses. At any
rate, we were able to weather our father's outrage and extreme disappointment and in the end
managed to salvage w hat would otherwise have been a catastrophic homecoming

Ricardo Tan

46