New Year

... is about fresh starts, clean slates, new beginnings. It is about the road not yet taken. It is about continuing journeys and making new ones. May your new year be as happy, exciting and promising as you imagined it to be. Just make sure to be ready for those rainy days too... And as they say in that 1993 bob-sled movie - "Cool Runnings, Peace Be The Journey!" Feliz 2011!

photo by Andrew

I want to end the year with a different photo, so I thought I'd share this one...

My nephew Andrew, whenever asked what he wants to be when he grows up, answers "I want to be a grown-up". Yes, folks... He doesn't say he wants to be a doctor or an architect or a fireman. Not even a profession involving cars and trucks, given his love for them. Of course, he's barely five years old. But that's what he wants: to be a grown-up. Now, if only grown men would have the same aspirations, huh?

But once in a while, when he sees my camera, he eagerly asks if he can hold it and take a picture. Or should I say, pictures. He doesn't do that a lot with point-and-shoots. He likes the massive beast that I call my "office". Anyway, this photo was taken by Andrew with my camera... Hey, who knows if we have a future grown-up photographer in the works? ;-P


Note: Crocs are his favorite footwear... We have a photo of last year's Crocs too.

Images From My Mama's Last Two Days...

My Mama went to Heaven on October 30th. My Papa, sister Aline, brother Albert, nephew Andrew and I were there as she drew her last breath at exactly 12:25 p.m., marking the end of a brief but painful struggle with cancer.

She was diagnosed with a very aggressive type of colon cancer which had already metastasized to the liver (90% of which was affected). We were told that based on findings, she might have been carrying the disease for about two years now although it didn't manifest until a couple of months prior to her passing. She and my dad even visited me in Spain over the summer and aside from the aches and pains and other things that one would associate with aging, there was no clear indication that she was sick. We had a great time together. Little did we know that there was this dark cloud looming over us.

She had surgery on October 14th but the surgeon (who happened to be my uncle - my mom's cousin) found that it was already inoperable. The tumor in the colon was already attached to the pelvic floor and that the liver was already riddled with lesions. She was administered her first and only round of immunotherapy (a type of chemo) on October 19th. Unfortunately, her body didn't respond to the treatment. By October 24th, we were told that we were looking at one to two weeks and to prepare ourselves with what was to come. To know that a loved one is terminally ill is already heartbreaking. To be told that you have such little time with them is indescribable. To have to choose her casket even before she died was something that I never imagined doing, I wanted to run out of the funeral home when we got there. The day before her she passed, we started saying our goodbyes.

Even in pain, she was still a "mama"... She would ask us if we had already eaten or would tell us to get some food when she knew that we still hadn't. She would share her popsicles and ice creams with us. She would tell us to get some sleep. She would ask "pagod ka na?"/"are you tired?", worrying about my comfort, as she leaned against me during those times when she wanted to sit by the side of the bed after lying on her back for a long time. She said she'd cook my favorite food and some molo soup when she got better. She would notice the tiny stains on Papa's shirt (that he got from cooking meals). She even worried about the expenses at the hospital. A "mama" 'til the very end...

The following photos were taken during the last two days of my dear Mama's life.

October 28th: We set up the computer so she could Skype with family in the Philippines...

Her sister Carrie and niece Kitkat on Skype...

The tag that the nurses scanned whenever they had to take her vital signs, get her blood sugar reading, administer pain medication, etc.

October 29th: Asleep... She started sleeping a lot as her state declined...

with my Papa...

Me holding her hand...

Mama and Aline...

with her youngest, Albert...

one and only grandson, Andrew, kissing Mama...

with her younger brother, Tito Butch...

Tito Butch and sister-in-law Tita Minda saying a prayer...

I miss you already... But I know that from your special place in God's house right now, you know that you were, and will forever be, loved.

********************

On behalf of my family, I would like to thank our friends and relatives for the prayers and show of support, love and concern. Many thanks to Tito Butch, Tita Minda and the rest of their family for taking care of us while we were in Virginia; to Fr. Gaudi for the spiritual guidance and the help with coordinating with the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C.; to the Singleton Funeral Home for their services and for making the arrangements for her transport back to the Philippines; to the Filipinos in Virginia who came to the small viewing we had and to Tita Daisy and Tita Marissa for the food they prepared for our small gathering after the viewing. To all the doctors (Dr. Mario Stefanini, Drs. Joseph and Daisy Claustro, Dr. William Hunter and the rest), nurses, nurse aides, respiratory technicians and other medical staff assigned to my Mama at Clinch Valley Medical Center, our heartfelt gratitude for the care you gave her (and us) during her stay at the hospital.

Happy Birthday, Leng!

I was hoping to take/post another image for this entry, but the weather here has not been cooperating. So in the meantime, this will have to do... Happy birthday, sis! (",)

Aline at her favorite spot in Madrid

Flower Power & an Hommage to Three Great Painters

Hola there! It’s been a while since my last post. I've been quite moody lately (loads of things on my mind), I’ve also been occupied with obligations that needed to be fulfilled. The blasted weather didn’t help (yeah, blame it on the weather). It had been really crappy, rainy and cold, the kind that makes you just want to crawl under the covers, and stay there! But yay, por fin, the sun has decided to come out of its hiatus, hallelujah! So anyway, to those who are wondering and even to those who don't really care, I’m still alive, people!

Well, now being spring and all, I’ve been seeing a lot of flower pictures on blogs and Facebook, so I reckon I should post some too, right? But “Raissa-style”, of course! Which is what, exactly? I don't know... Crazy, unusual and sometimes a bit of a mess, I guess, albeit a hot mess, hehehe! ;-P

These fotos remind me of certain things that I've seen in the paintings of Van Gogh, Monet and Degas. So it is only appropriate that this post be an hommage to them. Let me be clear though... I don't profess to be an art expert, OK? Just in case someone feels the need to bash my "observations"... So, here they are, flowers by moi...

In 2007, my sister and I were fortunate enough to see a collection at the Thyssen Bornemisza showcasing the paintings Van Gogh made during the last 70 days of his life. The thing that made a huge impression on me was the intensity of his brush strokes, like he was in an hurry. Perhaps he knew he was on a deadline of some sort... Well, the first two images here remind me of that intensity. They also make me think of the swirls he used in Starry Night (which I have yet to see!).

flowers4VanGogh1

flowers4VanGogh2

In what seems like a gazillion years ago (six really, but it seems like forever already), I sat across one of Monet's waterlilies paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC and I stared at it for, well, I don't really know how long. I wasn't analyzing it, I just sat there and stared. You would have to be a serious dumbbell not to know that Monet's use of colors is amazing, and let me tell you... I was mesmerized. Anyway, while these are obviously not waterlilies, the colors in this foto remind me of that brilliant work of art that I couldn't take my eyes off...

flowers4Monet

Tutu! Doesn't this image look like tutu 2 Ü? It does to me! So of course, Degas and his ballerinas come to mind when I look at this...

flowers4Degas

Well, there you have it! That's my take on flower power in this merry/moody month of May... If anyone's interested in prints, let me know. I hope you're all having a great spring season! (",)

Feliz 2010

Hello, everyone! Sorry for the absence of posts lately. I was in the Philippines to visit my family and friends during the holidays and I just got back here. It's been quite a challenge adjusting to the change in temperature and getting over jet lag. Anyway, I just wanted to let you all know that I'm back in Madrid. Give me a ring if you have any events or sessions in mind you want photographed. Meantime, Happy 2010 to all!

¡Hola! Siento no haber puesto ninguna entrada últimamente. Estuve en Filipinas durante las Navidades y acabo de llegar a Madrid. Ha sido bastante difícil acostumbrarme al cambio de temperatura y recuperarme del "jet lag". En fin, ya estoy aquí, así que si necesitáis una fotógrafa para un evento o estáis pensando en hacer una sesión un día de estos, dadme un toque o mandadme un correo electrónico. ¡Feliz 2010 a todos!

Why I am a photographer today

My parents (Manolo & Marissa) during their Madrid visit in 2008...

This may come as a surprise to my father, but he plays a significant role in why I am a photographer today. I believe I got my love for photography from him. You see, we both love photographs. We love being in them, looking at them, taking them. We both like to organize our photos in albums. I dabbled in scrapbooking before I went into photography full time while Papa is still at it. If he isn’t working on some legal matter, you’ll find him in his tiny workroom, pasting pictures on scrapbooks at 4 o’clock in the morning. I recall how excited I was when he and my mom gave me my first camera when I was 10, just in time for my first and only trip to the U.S. as a child, just a small black one, the kind that needed a cube bulb as flash (ooopppsss, did I just reveal my age?). I don’t think there was ever an occasion, a trip or a gathering that wasn’t documented by him with a camera, a task that was eventually handed over to me. We even resisted the digital format for as long as we could because we preferred (and still do actually) looking at tangible prints to images on a screen. I bought my first DSLR just two years ago and he stopped using film and bought a compact digital camera only because his trusty old Advantix got stolen (stupid thief too, who on earth steals an Advantix???).

It is said that a parent’s legacy is his or her child’s future. Today, on my father’s birthday, the only gift I can think of is to thank him for paving the way, albeit unknowingly on his part, for me to discover my true professional destiny. I am what I am today – a memory keeper, an image-maker, a photographer – because of you. Happy birthday, Papa!

Happy Birthday, Ma!

To the woman who bore all 7 lbs. 4 oz. of me, who brought me hot lunch every single day of my school life ‘til high school (much to the envy of my classmates), who helped me review for my tests (I wasn’t a bright student), who proudly said to the aunt of the 3rd place winner in an elocution contest that I, HER daughter won 1st place (my one rare moment of glory), who still somehow takes care of me even from thousands of miles away and still puts up with me today… Woman, daughter, sister, teacher, wife, mother, and yes, she's a cancer survivor too… Happy birthday, Ma!

Feliz Cumple, Brooke y Mateo

Esta foto está dedicada a Brooke y Mateo...

This photo is dedicated to Brooke and Matthew...

"June 18, Happy Birthday to me!"

This was the response of my sister, Aline, every time she was asked when her birthday was when she was a kid. Already so eloquent at 2...

Well, as you can see, today is June 18th so let’s talk a bit about the birthday girl.

Aline is extremely intelligent. I think when God showered the world with intelligence, she had buckets surrounding her (I, on the other hand, had an umbrella over my head, hahaha!).

She was a great “mom” to her two dachshunds – Cupcake and Francis. Sadly, both of her “babies” already passed on. They’re at the Rainbow Bridge now. :-(

She's an excellent writer. Her letters (emphasis on the “s”) to our ISP when she complained about the one-cent discrepancy in our bill are testament to this fact. ;-P

She's a great support not only to me but my photography as well.

She loves Egyptian culture. In fact, her dream vacation is to go to Egypt.

Well, since I can’t afford a plane ticket to Egypt just yet, here’s the next best thing – some photos of her favorite place here in Madrid… Happy birthday, sis!

"June 18, Happy Birthday to me!": Esta era siempre la respuesta de mi hermana, Aline, cada vez que alguien le preguntaba sobre su cumpleaños cuando era niña. Ya tan elocuente a los dos años...

Pues, como hoy es el 18 de junio, hablamos un poco de ella.

Aline es muy inteligente. Creo que cuando Dios colmó al mundo de la inteligencia, ella tenia cubos a su alrededor (Yo, por otra parte, llevaba paraguas, ¡jajaja!).

Ella era una mamá estupenda a sus perros – Cupcake y Francis. Desgraciadamente, los dos ya murieron y están en el Puente de Arco iris. :-(

Es una escritora excelente. Sus cartas (énfasis en la “s”) de reclamación sobre la discrepancia de un céntimo en nuestra factura de Internet son evidencias de esta realidad. ;-P

Es un gran apoyo no solo a mi sino a mi fotografía también.

A ella le encanta la cultura egipcia. De hecho, su deseo es irse de vacaciones al Egipto.

Bueno, como aún no tengo el dinero para comprarle un billete de avión, aquí está la alternativa – fotos de su lugar favorito en Madrid… Feliz cumple, hermana!

Ghostly Lights

Ventanas de un edificio cerca de mi piso…

Windows of a building near my apartment…



Estaba jugando con la cámara y me salieron estas imagenes. ¿Quién dice que no puedes hacer fotos interesantes de ventanas sencillas y antiguas como estas? (“,)

Just playin’ around with my camera… These are the resulting images. Who says you can’t make interesting photos out of plain old windows? (“,)

You say "tomato", I say "tomate"

To all my English-speaking friends/readers who follow this blog, wherever in the world you may be… I’ve been asked several times now if there’s an option to translate the blog entries to English. People tend to overlook this, but, in fact, every post HAS an English translation of the Spanish text and rest assured, all future posts will include an English version. I hope this clears things up for everyone! Happy viewing and reading! (“,)

A quick shout-out!

Before I place my first official post in this blog, I just want to give a quick shout-out to Matthew for your help with the text, Ray for customizing the blog header, Elia for your expert guidance and all those who have been very supportive about my photography (you know who you are)! Mil gracias a todos!