A Tribute to Inang, the Greatest Mother

Today, I would like to focus on a different type of wealth, a wealth that is more precious than any amount of wealth one can have. Being Mother's Day, let me be indulgent even only for a brief moment to pay tribute to all mothers, but most of all, to my mother whom we lovingly call Inang.

I will confess that this is the first time that I have ever truly paid Inang a nurturing, nourishing, honoring, even pampering written homage in all her eighty-six years of nurturing, nourishing, honoring and pampering shower of love and care for her nine children.

At the mighty age of 86, she is still comparably strong and capable as we walked the stairs of the Five Wounds of Jesus Church in Las Pinas City. With her hands in my arms, she was like a bride leading me instead of me guiding her as we proceeded to our pew. I felt the coarseness of her palm as she clung to my bent arm and I could not help but imagine this roughness as a product of all those toilings she has done to keep us all up.

At 86, Inang is the equivalent of a sixty-two-year-old, or even younger. I will not compete with her for visual competence: she can still run the thread into the eye of a needle! Her hair, richly flowing down to her waist level, is a woman's cherished dream for its grey white streak that is all natural.

She can hear me at distances that I have difficulty coping if I do not crane to adjust my antenna. And her mind is as sharp as ever, probably even sharper and more capable of depth and grasp. The only part of her body that goes with her age is her skin, which only shows what years can do to a once beautiful complexion.

But years cannot hide what Inang has done for her children. She has kept herself as a symbol of strength and steadfastness in the face of the seeming insurmountable odds of life. Even to her more than a dozen grandchildren, she is always longed for and missed for her warm cuddles and kisses whenever she is around.

I had not been expressive and demonstrative of my caring for Inang until much later in my life, because I grew up in that home environment that did not encourage expression. I know it was a feeling shared by my brothers and sisters. But we have slowly transformed that as a consequence of our maturing process. In the past, it was unusual for Inang to embrace her children as a demonstration of her feelings, but that is all a thing of the past.

As we celebrate Mothers' Day, I can feel a sudden rush of excitement and joy to embrace and kiss Inang, the greatest mother of all times! May you continue to be loved and cared for by the Lord! We love you!