I visited Tita Cory’s wake yesterday with my mom and 2 of her friends. My Mom was one of the chosen few who were asked to speak during Tita Cory’s necrological services.
Listening to some of the speeches brought me back memories of my days in Cebu and visits in Manila when Mom and I would be in Tita Cory’s company. Those were the days when I was Mom’s constant companion, her shadow. But Tita Cory never made me feel like one.
As the shadow, I saw how their friendship developed. I saw the common thread that tied both of them together – their simplicity, their joy in little pleasures, their ‘cheap thrills’ when they go shopping and find good bargains or when they get latest scoops of showbiz chismis. Most importantly, it was their shared love for family, for shared memories of their husbands who have gone before them and for their unquestioning faith in God and the undeniable power of prayer in facing adversities in life that solidified their friendship.
Together, they were mothers who consoled each other when their child went astray. They were doting grandmothers – they would ‘show and tell’ pictures and stories of their beloved apos. They were simply two friends enjoying one another’s company. With Tita Cory, you did not feel ‘small’. She was real. She was human and very, very genuine. She was pure. She had no pretenses. She was the good in every human being. You just knew that her friendship with God was real. You knew she had a direct line to Mama Mary.
I am fortunate to have seen how Tita Cory was up close and personal through the friendship she shared with my Mom. I am blessed that she stood as our Ninang during our wedding. I cherish her gifts. I am grateful that she considered Mom her close friend. I am thankful I was given the opportunity to have been touched by her… even only as a shadow.
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