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.

19 months with Don Keko Part 2

On his Pedia

"Maton!" That's what Don Keko's pedia calls him. Why? Because all, and I mean all of her patients, when given immunization shots, always cry their hearts out the moment they see the lethal syringe. From the infants to the seven-year-olds, nobody can stand that one-inched killer needle. Except of course, Francis. Oh yes, he gets startled big time, then will do all he can to free himself from us, kicking and swaying. But, he never cries. And once it's all over, he'll just go to his favorite corner, ride Dr. Ortega's playhorse by the door, as if nothing happened. Then, the pedia would recite the usual "he may be irritable later", "put some hot compress over the shot","blah blah blah", which since I've gone to ignore because none of these ever happened. In fact, as soon as we leave the hospital, Don Keko himself takes out the band aid because it "annoys" him. Maton indeed.

On baby talk

"Mimi", "Dada", "Yaya", "Broom-broom", "Fish"... his first words. They said that boys usually talk a little later than girls. Francis' cousin, a girl about a month older, can already speak quite clearly certain words. Don Keko, talkative as he is, cannot speak clearly yet. However, he mumbles pretty well. Sometimes he just talk and talk and talk for lenghts of time without us understanding a word he's saying.

On character

When Don Keko just turned one, he woke up from one of his morning naps and was carried out of the room by his grandma. Once outside, he suddenly wanted to be put down and when his grandma did, he held her hand leading her back towards the room. My mom-in-law thought Francis wanted to sleep again so she followed and opened the door for him. But once inside, my mom-in-law was amazed when Francis went towards the electric fan (which she noticed was still running), turned it off, smiled and clapped his cute little hands. With the cost of electricity sky rocketing, my mom-in-law was more than just happy to have Mr. Energy-Saver on the house...

Next up.. Of Baptismals and Birthdays

19 months with Don Keko

I wish I had it all down. From the moment I held him in my arms until about 3 hours ago, I wish I had a 24/7 camera that recorded his every move, every smile, every single tantrum.. everything.

We kept a sort of a momento album for him. You know, the usual. Pictures, fingernails, first-cut hair, ultrasound templates, etc. But, as sentimental as I am, they're just not enough. And, 19 months is a whole lot of time.

First of all, I thank God for giving us a healthy child. He did get the usual fever and occassional colds but otherwise, his perfectly healthy not to mention, very, very active! Super, super kulit.

On sleeping

Jumping up and down the bed (for a minimum of about a hundred) before going to sleep is his normal routine. He usually sleeps between Lynette and myself but it wouldn't be a surprise if in the middle of the night we find him on our feet, sometimes on the edge of the bed, slumped head first with his butt sticking out! Yep, that's how he is in bed. On his back, sideways or upside down. He fell a couple of times and saved from falling a few times more. I guess we couldn't hold him down even while sleeping. On his milk, no problem. All we have to do is mix a formula and place it beside him. When he needs it, he'll find it wherever it is, even with his eyes closed.

On Sunday Mass

You can never hold Don Keko down at Mass for even a couple of minutes. He has this habit of pointing to each of the images then shouting "Eeesu!, eeesu!" (yep, Jesus.. Jesus) while making his version of the sign of the cross. The pews and the confessional are his favorite playground and, if you happen to see a 36 year old man sweating and running in and around the church (sometimes even in the middle of consecration), it's me running after Don Keko.

On Toy Story

Just like his father, Don Keko is a film nut. As early as now, he has his own favorite films: Finding Nemo, A Bug's Life, Monsters Inc. and of course, Toy Story 1 & 2. I've lost count on how many times we've seen Toy Story (he has preference to part 2). From start to end, his eyes are glued to the screen making gestures mimicking space ranger, Buzz Lightyear. Watching Toy Story is probably the only time we can hold him down (a good couple of hours if Lynette and I need to do something). More important, watching it WITH him is probably one of the most cherished moment of my fatherhood. Me and him and Toy Story to infinity and beyond..

Next up... 19 months with Don Keko Part 2

Francis, the name

Francis. Picking the name was the easy part.

Very early on, in my High School days in fact, I'd already planned to name my first-born, Francis (doesn't matter if the baby was a boy or a girl, it will be Francis and it was non-negotiable).

I got it from several of my favorite personalities:

St. Francis of Assisi - My personal patron saint. The BROTHER SUN, SISTER MOON dude (the Franco Zeffirelli film which inspired most of my youth).

Francis Ford Coppola - Director of The Godfather films, The Conversation, etc.

Frank Sinatra - Who doesn't know this guy?

Frank Herbert - Author of Dune and other science fiction classics (The Jesus Incident, The World of FH, etc.)

Just a single name, Francis. While most couples name their sons with a two-name combination: John Paul, Paul John, Michael Andrew.. not us. Francis was enough. It's simple and yet there's a nice saintly and quite notorious sound to it. Profound if you asked me, quite deep.

After a year and a half though, the name kinda evolved. From Francis, it became Kiko. And then, because we spoil him a little bit, it became Don Kiko. His yaya eventually called him Keko then Don Keko (hence, the name of this blog). But recently, we call him Kokiks, and now it's simply KIKS.. and he's only 19 months old. I wonder what would we call him years from now.

Kids are like that. Full of wonder and surprises. As Gump said, life is like a box of chocolates.. well, you know how it goes.

Next up.. 19 months with Don Keko.