Memories Left Behind Tells How Time Flies So Quickly

I never did thought that I am already two weeks now staying in the province. My mind was always thinking of what I must be doing daily and finished it by all means as my strenght permits. Being so focus on the things that must be done and how to do it consumed my time , & energy that while resting for awhile is just enough and go back again to work . I just stop when its suppertime to eat, then rest and sleep.

For that two weeks already, I have finished and accomplished things. But there are still yet pending tasks to do. I have to cope up with the times I have left the house , for staying almost three years in the city with the family of my two children who had their own family. With the pending tasks that I have, I realized how time passes so quickly that I feel I am lagging behind because of unfinished tasks.

Looking back , to the time I spent with my two children in the city, I never did thought that I had already spent that long. It seems just yesterday I was with them and now I'm home in the province.

What I Did With My Time With Them

With my Eldest Daughter Family

I stayed with my eldest daughter family , Feb. 2019 to March 2020. A year before the pandemic started.

Get Busy With My Work

It's not actually being a senior that I forget what the day is nor my mind was really in a forgetful stage that surprises me how soon the days or weeks or months passed by.

Maybe I was not just mindful of the days ,but being mindful of my work to be done at home and in store.

At the time I stayed in my eldest family, I worked as a reliever to my son in law who manages the store. My daughter was a working mom and had one kid and soon to have the second one when I get there Feb. 2019. And by May 4, 2019 when the second child was born, the busier I get.

Enjoying what I am doing daily

Being with my eldest family and what I am doing for them, was my joy & feeling satisfied with the help I could give them, rather than the help they can give me. For I thought it's my time and opportunity to be with them, taking care of them as they are taking care of me.

I am a senior but then I feel so energetic.l can do the things in store and in the house taking care of the kids when it's my turn and still doing the household chores of cooking , cleaning and washing.

My accomplishments for the day seems my inspiration to work more and do more. I have my half day off Sunday, for my daughter is off from work. I used it to attend church service in Bible Baptist Church Caloocan.

Baby Sitting My Two Grandchildren

Baby sitting with my two grandkids were bonding moments for me. Though it stresses me physically, yet they are my stress relievers. The feeling that I can have the opportunity to spend my time with them is like a prize to me. I had lots of pictures of my bonding moments with them. I intentionally took photos with them so I can have something to throwback of memories I had with them, for I know I can't be with them forever.

Feb . 2019 - March 2020 because of pandemic, we all part ways . They left for Bicol at once. I still stayed there in the house till Aug. 2020 till my youngest son took me to be with his family.

To think of one year with my two grand children was as if just a week long for me. It was so sudden that pandemic had stopped my bonding moments with them The youngest was just 9 mos . Old then when they left Caloocan for Bicol. So I had the opportunity to take care of the newly born child for nine months. She celebrated her first birthday in Bicol. And now she turned three years old , last May 4, 2022. It's like just yesterday that I hold her as a baby and now she is three years old.

With My Youngest Son Family

I stayed with my youngest son family , Aug. 2020 in Pasay City. I celebrated my 66th and 67th birthday there.

I didn't also was mindful of the time during my stay there. I don't feel how slow time passes by. I was even surprised to know that I was there with them for more than a year and eight months.

Here in Pasay , my mobility was affected. I am not as busy as going to and fro from house to the store where I work. I just stayed inside the room. If ever I walk , I exert not too much effort because the space to walk on requires on few steps. I just sit, stand, walk a little , work a little and lay to sleep at night.

Doing simple tasks at home

My focus on work was on house alone. I just cook, clean the house , and only washed my own clothes. Not like in.my eldest daughter's house, I do the laundry of all our clothes. Here my son do the laundry of their clothes, & marketing. It was daughter in law who works. It was her own choice, because her salary was bigger compared to my son's salary.

Babysitting my two grandchildren

My two grandchildren sad to say had disability. Both were unable to speak at their age , werein normal children like their age can do.

So it was my intention to focus on them. How I could be of help to these two kids. I gave the love and attention I could possibly give to them. I wanted them to feel they are like the other kids living a normal life.

Starting with the eldest, I continued what her parents started teaching her , the Alphabet, Numbers, and Writing them as well. In writing her complete name too. She has just turned 8 yrs. Old last May 2. I had the time spent with her during her birthday before I left, May 4.

I am happy that she has learned well the alphabet and numbers. Before I left she has learned and improved in her writing skills and in communicating with us.

She is very fond of drawing and not in writing letters. But I encouraged her to do both so as she could communicate well. And good enough she is now doing fine.

When she draw a picture just as I told her to put some tag on it using the letters if alphabet, describing what her draw means or tells about. When she draw an apple , she would also write capital A and small a beside it. She would even write the word apple in right spelling.

On her own she will draw a thing and write the letter to describe it. When she doesn't know the spelling of the whole word she could come to me and will spell it for her. She writes down correctly all the letters that I will tell her. And she would remember it from that time on. I knew it , because when she draw it again she will show it to me with the word in right spelling.

When she want something like food , she will draw the kind of food and show it to her mother.

One time she draw something like a girl having an ice cream.on her hand and the tongue of the girl touches the ice cream. She out letter L in it and show to her mother. Her mother can't tell what it is. When it was shown to me I told my grand daughter the word lick and spell it for her. She wrote it correctly. My daughter in law was surprised that she knew it, only she can't spell it. I was surprised too because her mom doesn't know the word.

What amazes me with my grand daughter was she knew a lot more English than Tagalog and she is more comfortable using english words than Tagalog.

Focusing with my grand daughter and her younger siblings on how to teach them how to communicate and express themselves to us I find my time with them fun and enjoyable though stressful sometimes because of having their respective tantrums. But instead of getting irritated with them the more I was challenged to deal with them with patience knowing their condition.

Both the children taught me how to deal with them. To adjust to their level of understanding, to adjust to their incapability and not them to my instructions.

Somehow, we learn from each other, so that they were comfortable being with me and we're closed to me which made me happy as their grand mother.

How I missed my youngest grandson. When he wanted milk he will approach me handing to me his empty feeding bottle. Hugging and kissing me just for me to do it for him. Even though his father was there he would insists me to do it for him.

I never did expect him.to learn easily the alphabet and numbers for his condition.I remember he wanted to play with the alphabet chart. I will sing the alphabet while pointing each letter over and over again whenever he wants to.play with it.

One time his father bought an alphabet flash cards. We scattered the flashcards for him to play with it. Watching him.whst he will do with it. I saw him.gather every letters and arrange it accordingly. I was really surprised he did it.

And we know he learned how to count when he was playing the puzzle mat. He gathered only ten puzzle mats. The alphabet chart with numbers was hanging on the wall. At first I ignore what he is doing. One time I watch him doing that routine. I counted the placemats he hold in his hands. It is ten pieces. Then he separate the one and pointed to the number one in the chart. Then again he took another one and added it to the other then he pointed to number two till he finished it to number ten. I was really happy that he had his own way of learning it. I didn't teach him that way but he was able to do it by himself.

I just find my time passes so quickly doing things in the house. I made visuals for my grandchildren out of available materials I can see around. If there are Cardboards available I will cut it to different shapes to teach it to them. I never ran out of ideas to make them enjoy the day with activities to learn from.

I am happy that I had the opportunity to be with them . And those are my memorable and cherished moments with them. Each day full of activities with them makes time flies so swiftly.

My almost three years spent with the family of my children were fulfilling for me, as a mother and a grandmother. The opportunity to be with them were exciting, challenging and fulfilling for me. I was able to express myself fully, my worth and what I am capable of doing at my senior age. I am happy to be a blessing to them as they have been a blessing to me. I am happy to take care of them.as they take care of me.

I thanked God for the time He allows me to have to be with them . I did all my best as far as I can do with the strenght , health and wisdom that God gave me. There will be no regret for me though we part ways for I have done what I have and can be done for the.

#14 Article for month of May, 2022

Memories Left Behind Tells How 
Time Flies So Quickly

Published: May 19, 2022
Thursday - 2:00pm