Raissa Gorospe Photography: February 2010

Last year I met a special guy – definitely cute, super sweet, really charming, incredibly smart and to make things even extra special, he was born on Hearts’ Day. The first time I ever laid eyes on him, he was in a white T-shirt, gray shorts and Crocs… Yes, yellow-green Crocs! With head slight bowed, he stuck his tongue out – something he apparently does when he gets shy. He had been told about me though, and when he said my name, the dimples came out. “Tita Raissa!”, he exclaimed, followed by a big hug and kiss. I thought it would take a while before he warmed up to me, but we were fast friends. So yes, one Sunday in November last year, I met my dear nephew, Andrew Manuel, for the first time.

You see, when I left the Philippines in 2006 to go back to school in Spain, Andrew was still in his mommy’s belly. I was only able to return to Manila last year after receiving my residencia. So, during the first 3 years of my nephew’s life, I only saw snippets of it through the stories I was told and the pictures and videos I was shown. This little guy went through a lot even before he was born. My sister-in-law was hospitalized five months into her pregnancy because of some complications and had to remain there ‘til she gave birth to Andrew at 28 weeks. They said he was just about the length of a half-liter soda bottle. His first few weeks were spent in the sterile confines of an incubator in the preemie nursery. Then at barely 5 months old, his parents found out he was suffering from Hirschsprung disease and had to have a major surgery, which thank God was carried out successfully. Now he is doing amazingly well.

Andrew is a lively and talkative kid. He didn't speak right away though, even the common Mama or Dada. Zero, zip, nada. Now there's no stopping him from talking! He sings his A-B-Cs always followed by Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, and just about any song you teach him. Taught by his Papa (grandpa) Manuel of an oldies Eddie Fisher song, he can sing the line "Oh, my Papa" in correct tune. And with feelings! His teacher says he has a vocabulary of a five-year old. His class was recently taught the pledge of allegiance of the United States. Now, every time he’s on the phone or on Skype, he recites the entire thing to anyone who’s listening!

Andrew loves just about any type of vehicle and to him, they’re not just plain old “bus” or “car” or “truck”. This boy is a dictionary when it comes to those things. He can tell you or even CORRECT you should you get it wrong (and he actually did that to his teacher once) which is a bulldozer or a backhoe. Hello! Backhoe? Do 3 or 4-year old kids know that, or even adults, for that matter? But what floored me was the fact that when he sees the real thing, he can tell you the maker just by looking at the logo… Yup, Caterpillar, Mercedes, Volkswagen, Mitsubishi… You name it, he knows it!

I tried to teach him a few Spanish words, like “what’s red in Spanish?” to which he would say“rojo” or the sentences “Me llamo Andrew. Tengo 3 años”. He learned them after just a few tries. I would say “muy bien” whenever he got it right. The funny thing was, he started adding MUY BIEN to the sentences too!

Quite an inquisitive boy, Andrew likes to ask the question, "What's that mean?" A LOT. This is usually followed by, "Why?" and more whys.

Don't call him baby. He doesn't like this B-word. He'll tell you the correct B-words to use by blurting out, "I'M NOT A BABY. I'M A BIG BOY!"

Of course, I took photos of him... Here are some of them:

His favorite footwear...

Being shy...

He insisted there was a "telescope" at the tower... ;-P

He likes to make faces...

Praying... "Mama Mary, please buy me toys at S.M.!" He made that up!

In a fit of giggles... One of my favorite photos...

There are miracles in life. Andrew is one. Bless this child...

Happy 4th Birthday, dearest Andong!!!

And Happy Hearts’ Day to all!

Every couple has a story of how they met, and for sure, each story is special. It is said that most married people (or those in a committed relationship) met because they were schoolmates, they worked/work at the same office, they used to be neighbors or through friends. But random meetings, as I read somewhere, happen less frequently than we think. We just think they're common because of what we see in movies and what we read in books. So when they DO happen, it's even more fascinating. I know a couple who met because they sat next to each other on a 10-hour bus trip, I have friends who were strangers from the same country living in a foreign land where guy helped girl when she ran into a bit of trouble, and then there's the husband and wife who started dating because of bets made... Like I said, fascinating...

Paul is an Aussie who was sent to the Philippines on business. He needed a local mobile service provider while he was there, so off he went to apply for one. His assigned customer service rep was not available to attend to his