paalam po

i was part of the crowd who gathered and lined up in ortigas to pay their respects to President Cory Aquino. it took me three hours to finally get my chance to tell her "bayani po kayo"silently in my head. that was all that i got to say in the one second i stood in front of her. but it was worth every millisecond of it.

being part of a community, a family, a nation in grief for the death and in celebration for the life of an amazing human being is an emotionally overwhelming experience. of course, i get the amazing part only from the news ive read and the stories ive heard. but these stories about her are so compelling that i feel that if they were extended much longer, someway somehow i would personally play a part in them. my point i guess is that i would like to think that i- we as a people - was part of her plan.

consider this a stranger's eulogy and a contribution to what has been termed as a virtual wake.