The Shotgun buy

Hallooo, haloooo! Good day my fellow readmates. How are you all doing. Praying all is well with you and your family. Praying that you always have food on your tables and safe together with your families during this trying times. With the things going around let us still try to be positive and look for the good in everything.

I wish to share to you on this post about how we acquired our second land. The previous post was about how we acquired our very first property, here is the link https://read.cash/@lovejoie/our-very-first-property-investment-fruits-of-a-hard-labor-a-blessing-from-god-a1eb765d. a surprise from my husband.

This parcel of land is just 20 minutes hike from our firs. This is an uphill hike so going there is a great form exercise but since we are used to the flat lowland in the city so it is a bit arduous for us.... haha. Hubby and I always tease each other that we are getting old because we have to make few stops here and there because it is going uphill and our knees needs lubrication, haha, also we need to stop to catch our breathes. I told him we are not as strong as when we go to the gym, we do brisk walking and when my hubby was a cyclist. Then he replied, Ha? who said I am getting old, only horses and carabaos grow old but me? nah!...... ahaha...... I love it when we have so much time together now. I am his shadow and he too is my shadow. Where he goes, I go, same with me as well. We are so much closer to each other now that one cannot go anywhere without the other. We basically are partners in crime.

We were not really planning on buying this piece of land since we have just purchased our first property months ago, you may read my previous post. We were still focused on doing some renovations on the house because we wanted it to be in harmony with Feng sui. We had to change the design and the structure of the house. This was not really a one time project. We were doing it like on weekends just so we have some place to go to, something to do. Doing it slowly because we don't really have that big amount of money to finish the house right away. Until now it is still a work in progress.

🚶 The Ocular

During the construction, Our neighbor offered us some lumber to be used for the roofing because it is his means of livelihood as a lumberjack. He became our regular visitor every time we go and visit because that is the time also that he will bring the wood we ordered from him. One time during his delivery He asked us if we were interested on buying another piece of land. The property is around 3,000 square meters. He said he knew the owner and was helping him find a buyer. Since we haven't explored the area, I told hubby why not take a look so in a way we can explore and go to other parts of the community.

So, we did look at the property, at first I could not visualize the land because it was filled with much tall grasses, shrubberies and trees everywhere. Still on its jungle state. We spoke with the owner, an old man in his early seventies, His name was Tatay Arnulfo. That was our first meeting with him and it was on a Sunday. He owned a total of eight hectares of land. He wants to sell portion of the property so he can have some money for his daily expense since he is old and alone in the property. His adopted family seldom visits him. What I admire about him was that for all of his life he just stayed on the property since the 80's when everything was still a jungle. He planted all the trees on his eight hectare land. It was awarded to him by DAR, The Department of Agrarian Reform because he was able to till the land and planted a lot of trees on it. He even won a prize back in the 80's for having developed the land, planted almost all the different varieties of bananas on it. Together with many other fruit bearing trees like avocadoes, Jackfruits, Sour sop or Guyabano, Papaya and many others. There were a lot of lumber trees as well like the Gmelina Arborea.

The wood of this plant is used in furniture shops for making cabinets, doors, tables, beds and many other furniture. A lightweight hardwood, Gmelina produces good quality pulp for the production of writing paper and carton board. Sawn wood is mainly for building purposes and boat-building, packaging and woodcarving, making musical instruments, particle board and decorative veneers. Gmelina wood is cream to yellowish brown in color but turns reddish brown with age and has a silky luster. Each piece of wood has beautiful marks which will be made even more prominent after the furniture is varnished.

Tatay Arnulfo has a lot of them all over his property including on the land that he was selling. It was like an adventure going to his place. He has lots of goats as well. I I was like a reporter when I spoke with him because he was like a hermit, living up the mountains all his life. He was on his thirties when he first ventured on this land and now he was already Seventy Two. He was not really that old if you look at him maybe because he has a lot of regular exercise from tending all his animals and his vegetables. He had a very lush vegetable garden as well. He really has a gift when it comes to tilling and planting. He was not feeling well when we spoke because he was in pain due to a lump on his knee. He was sick for a week already and have not gone to the doctors for a check-up. We agreed that the following weekend which was a Sunday again we will meet and he will personally show us around the property. He said he will be well by then.

📞 The Unexpected Call

The following week, Wednesday, hubby got a call from our lumberjack friend and asked if we were interested on purchasing the land because something bad had happened to the old man. He needed to be brought to the hospital and the family needed the money. Hubby then spoke with one of Tatay Arnulfo's children, his eldest and told them that we don't have the cash to purchase it right away. We were just there to have a site inspection no plans of purchasing it yet. They told hubby that they would agree to have a down payment just so they can bring their Father to the hospital. They needed help so badly and pleaded if we can help Tatay Arnulfo.

Thursday, we met with them and discussed about the price of the land in front of their father. Gave them the money that they asked and we helped them bring Tatay Arnulfo to the hospital.
Friday night, around ten pm we received a call from his son saying that Tatay Arnulfo died already just half an hour ago. We were really shocked. The family then asked us for another financial assistance. Just so they can arrange for Tatay Arnulfo's wake and for his burial. Hubby and I were stunned because we were thinking where to get the large sum of money just so the family can buy his casket, the arrangements for his burial and other expenses needed. We have some savings but we cannot give everything to them.

👼😇Divine Intervention

I told my husband this is beyond our hands, we needed divine intervention. I always pray to God for whatever assistance we need so Hubby and I asked for guidance and prayed to the Lord. We immediately got a reply. Hubby got an idea to have his big bike pawned to one of his friends who owns a big motor shop here in our city, Yokohama Automotives. He told his friend about our dilemma why he needed to pawn his motor bike, for what cause. His friend gladly extended his help. So we were able to produce the money for Tatay Arnulfo's wake and burial. Then a month after his burial we paid the balance to the family. Everything went on smoothly for Tatay Arnulfo's repose. His family was so grateful to us because they don't have the capacity, no financial means to do so.

❤️️Grateful Heart

This was how we got to have this property. It was what we call a shotgun buy. We were glad that Heavenly Father guided us gave us the wisdom to know where to find and seek help because it was already beyond our physical capacity to help out Tatay for his smooth repose. It felt like we were his children and it was in our hands just so he can lay to rest peacefully. It felt like we lost a dearly beloved father as well even if we just met him twice, first during our ocular inspection, the second was when we spoke about the price of the land. Life truly is so fast. You'll never know when our candles would run out of flame.

After we have paid everything to the family. We went back to the property and did our measurements together with his eldest. Sharing to you photos when we did the measurements of the whole lot. The man wearing a black muscle shirt is Tatay Arnulfo's adopted son. The family which he considered a family is not really his children because he and his partner never have children plus they were not married. He just stood as their father and provided for them since they were kids but they are not blood related whatsoever. That is how kind Tatay Arnulfo was.

There were a few good men who helped us during the measurements. The man wearing white muscle shirt on this last photo was Tatay Arnulfo's right hand. He was the one holding all the papers of the property. They were all so kind and helped us and guided us. They all look up to Tatay Arnulfo as their father.

Overtime we have maintained the area up to now. We go there do to some grass cutting and planted 100 banana trees already. July Last year 2020 we were able to harvest some avocadoes two sacks of them. This was the first time that we knew the avocadoes bear fruits every year. Since we don't go there very often so we did not know. Only then that time last year because we came there to do some grass cutting and that was when we saw man oh man! a lot of avocadoes ready for harvesting. We were so happy. All of the mango trees also bear fruit. They are the big kinds the one's for export quality. I just saw a few of its fruits though. Since our purchase they haven't really bore fruits. Which was okay so our neighbors can harvest them since we don't have a care taker so they are all free to get the fruits on all of our trees.

These avocado tree is tall and it has those big and large fruits. There's three of them the tall kinds. The second photo is what we call the local avocadoes or macapuno, small but the fruit has no roots inside just pure meet inside. The tree is not that tall, see my husband can just reach them. They look like light bulbs.

This year we were not able to go there during its harvest season because we were busy with work. All our neighbors there were the one's who harvested them. We love sharing our blessings because we believe it is in giving that you receive.

Thank you for reading til the end. I hope you enjoyed my article. It's already 2:22am, oh my gosh! I need to sleep now.

See you on my next post. Love you all guys. Remember God loves you and me.

AS always,

@lovejoie