St. Pancratius Parish

Your mom grew up in Grace Park, Caloocan City, along Rizal Ave. Ext. In an industrial section of the city, the site of the family home is next to a machine shop called Kiwk-way Engineering and flanked on the other side byt a Heavy Truck dealership.

When I was much younger, I remember a bus terminal right next to the entrance to the La Loma Cemetery, a few locations south of us. So, it is Kwik-way Engineering, then a gas station (I think, it was Esso, then changed to Petron), then the bus terminal and then the cemetery entrance.

Inside the cemetery compound is St. Pancratius Church. It is a 3-minute leisurely walk except during Todos Los Santos, November 1, All Saints Day, when the way is jam-packed with vendors and stall vying for space with cars, tricycles and people paying respect to their loved ones who had passed away.

My mom is a regular church-goer. Every Sunday, she would go to the 6 o'clock mass. When I was a kid, she would drag us along, especially the girls. On our visit May-August 2008, she only managed to drag us along a few times as you and I couldn't be ready by this time, too early. Actually, there was only one time we had gone to hear mass at this church, it was during the feast day, May 11th at a 5 pm mass that mom had sponsored. We did not hear a Sunday mass.

But, still that church had always been a part of my life.

You were baptized there when you were almost 2. You had all my brothers and sisters and their spouses, as well as my best friend, Rowena Ong-Cortez as sponsors. Officially, you have Virgilio F. Vergara (my oldest brother, you would later call Ninong Kuya) and Rowena as Ninong and Ninang. Their names are on your baptistmal certificate. Your other Ninongs are Victor Romeo Vergara (later, you would call him, Daddy Guapo), Agripino V. Diestro (Ninong Nonoy) and Rik Gatip (Tita Gina's husband), then the other Ninangs are Gracia V. Diestro (you would later call as Ninang Ate), Edita Ng Vergara (Daddy Guapo's wife, you would later call Mommy Sexy, at her behest), Virginia Vergara Gatip (Tita Gina) and Valerie Vergara (Tita-ba! or Tita Val).