Of Baptismals and Birthdays

One of my favorite events in the bible, along with the Wedding in Cana and JC’s Passion (specifically, the part where Simon helped him), is the baptism of JC by John the Baptist in the river Jordan.

Through the centuries, artists around the world have pitched-in their own interpretation of the event through paintings, movies and novels. But for me, no one has really captured the beauty of the event.

The bible says, as John was baptizing JC: “as he was coming up from the water, John saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descended on JC like a dove”. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

Heavens torn apart and the Spirit, like a dove, descended upon JC. Wow! The description was so simple yet so powerful and exquisite. Magnificent isn’t it? I don’t think all the colors in the world are enough to capture that particular moment.

Well, I didn’t expect that to literally happen when Francis was baptized. In fact, it was just a fairly typical “Baptismal Day” for any other month-old Roman Catholic Filipino child. A perfect Kodak moment, if you will, in the late afternoon at the St. Peter’s Church in Commonwealth, QC.

Godmothers and Godfathers carrying their wonderful gifts for the baby, family and friends gathering around the crib, making faces, trying hard to make the baby smile and putting on their best for the day. A share of guests who kept calling our cells “we’re here na, where are you guys?”, or “saan nga ba ung St. Peter?”. And siemps, the usual late-comers, eat and runners and the inevitable no-shows. Ready, 1-2-3, smile… Click! Click! Click!

But what made the occasion extraordinary was the fact that it was my son who was baptized. And for me, that typical occasion was one very special and important day. As a Christian, my son will now live his social and religious life in the light of JC. On my part, as the father, I hope I can provide him with enough guidance and wisdom to enjoy the pleasure and at the same time face the challenges of being a Christian.

As I was holding Francis during the ceremony, I didn’t saw the heavens parting or any Spirits descending from above, but am dead sure JC was around, as he always was, with a big smile on his face. Thanks, JC!

Next up… Of Baptismals and Birthdays Part 2

Sooner or Later

I knew this would happen sooner or later. I just prayed it wouldn’t be serious and thank God it wasn’t. With his hyperactive attitude and super likot tendencies, I knew one day, Francis would get in trouble.

Last Sunday, while I was washing Silver Bullet (our old reliable Honda City), I heard Francis crying and Lynette, calling me to come up. When I got there, she told me that Don Keko somehow got hold of a Johnson’s Cotton Buds and accidentally poked his right ear. We immediately looked for signs (blood, etc.) to see if the damage was severe. We found none and after a minute, Francis went back to his hyperactive mode as if nothing happened. We observed him throughout the day, checking once in a while his right ear if it’s swelling or if he feels any pain in and around the area. Again, none.

However, when we woke up the following morning, we noticed dried blood in his right ear (red, brownish flakes). We called the office right away, told them that we won’t be able to report that day and immediately went to St. Luke’s to have it checked.

Diagnosis: Tympanic Membrane Perforation. Shit! My heart almost sank when I heard the word “perforation”. It means holes. When you use a puncher against a paper, the hole is the perforation! You know the holes on the sides of computer papers (the dot matrix printers)? They’re perforations! Geesh, even the image of Yakisoba instant noodles with perforations on the lid came flashing on my mind!!! God, what happened to my son’s eardrums???

My sanity slowly came back when the doctor explained to us the extent of the damage. Probably noticing the shock and panic in our faces, the doctor started by saying, “don’t worry, it’s common among children of your son’s age to get poked in the ears. We get a lot of these. THERE’S NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT. In a week or two, the wounds would normally heal.”

Tympanic Membrane is what we normally call “eardrums”. It is located between the inner and outer ear and one of its purpose is to act as a protection to the inner ear. It is a tissue-like substance, just like skin. Depending on the extent of damage, if it gets poked or perforated (God, I hate this word!), just like our skin, it could repair itself and regenerate. On Francis’ case, the damage was not severe. He also told us that the healing process is immediate among children and it usually doesn’t leave any permanent damage.

What we need to watch out for is infection. Since the wound is still open, it’s very much prone to infection. We got the prescriptions and was told to go home and come back after a week.

We headed home, somehow relieved about the whole situation. Heck, it could've been a lot worse.

Oh btw, while at the hospital, Francis had managed to make friends with several trainees and a patient, tour the whole E.R. courtesy of a pretty orderly, almost toppled a side table and even got to kiss two pretty young nurses and the resident doctor. All of these he did within the hour, with a perforation in his Tympanic Membrane.