QOHELETH AT THE EDGE OF THE EARTH!

By: Bro. Geminiano V. Galarosa, Jr.
Dagohoy Lodge No 84
(HM- LL 185, JS 169 and RP 147)



Would it matter if this writer use the word Ecclesiastes instead of the name Qoheleth?! But the former is simply the Greek translation of the Hebrew word that made famous the 3rd degree parambulation which starts with the phrase “Remember now thy Creator, in the days of thy youth, etc. etc.,” that in fine sums up the biblical treatise on old age and more importantly, on man’s ultimate destiny which is death!

We, Freemasons learn in the third degree ritual that Ecclesiastes is a lesson on old age and of impending demise, and that on the latter there is no escape. And this short article is about three brethren of Dagohoy Lodge No. 84 that all reside in a sleepy town called Guindulman, and curiously, are all related to the lion tamer by affinity.

The first is their next door neighbor in their new habitat which her stubborn and aging husband chose as their adopted residence in the sunset of his years. This neighbor is the husband of her aunt who is the half-sister of her deceased mother and is now aged ninety two and an American citizen. He has six grown-up children, all professionals, and whenever life in town becomes dull to him, would simply purchase a one-way airline ticket bound for the States and there spend life unmindful of the possibility that he may no longer return alive. When he came home last June, he casually mentioned he has a prostate problem and that it’s now bothering him. When asked how serious it was, he just shrugged his shoulders and replied is not a bit worried if the Grim Reaper finally catches up on him because at ninety two, he felt he has already exceeded his life-span and that each day is, for all intents and purposes, already a bonus to his existence. Just the other day, he left town in a huff after four months stay and only time will tell if he will be back again. Of the four stated meetings that he was supposed to attend, he managed to be present in three, which is already a very good record considering the distance of Guindulman to Dagohoy Lodge No 84 at the city of Tagbilaran.

The second is another ninety-two year old retiree who has been subjected to a previous article and who also spent more than a quarter of his life in the States. Also an American citizen, he is an uncle-in-law of the lion tamer, also has six grown-up children, all girls, who likewise are all professionals. All of his children are married and except for one who decided to return to the country to care for their aging father, are now permanently residing in the States. Annually however, most of the children together with their respective husbands, would take a brief vacation to the country to join their beloved father celebrate his birthday.

And the third is the aging lion, aged sixty four, with three children, all married and are residing in the metropolis. The lion is the youngest of the three.

All three are migrants to the place who made Guindulman their residence because of their respective spouses. The first came from the neighboring Candijay town who during his fruitful years worked as a PACD employee and sometime after retirement went to the States and resided there.

The second is a resident of Valencia town, some fifty kilometers away from Guindulman who likewise decided to make the latter his residence during the sunset of his years but only after migrating to the big city and later to the States, where all his six children and together with their respective spouses have likewise migrated..

And the third, as we all knew, is a Bicolano who originally planted his roots at the metropolis but when he realized upon retirement that his meager pension could not sustain him, opted to make Guindulman his last stand confident that balancing his budget in this rustic place will not be as problematic as walking the tightrope in the asphalt jungle we all call the metropolis.

Let’s get a glimpse of their respective masonic data and their other personal circumstances in comparative form:

MASONIC DATA
MAPUTOL PALAC THE LION
Date of Birth 02/12/12 10/13/12 09/01/40
Age on last birthday 92 92 64
Date Initiated 10/15/62 12/23/33 04/15/89
Date Passed 02/09/63 02/24/34 05/13/89
Date Raised 12/28/63 04/28/34 06/10/89

KNOWN PERSONAL LIFE OF BRO. ANTONIO B. MAPUTOL

Edging Bro. Palac by a full eight months, Bro. Maputol’s physical frame betrays his actual age. He still stands erect and walks about five kilometers each day for his exercise, a habit he has acquired during his active years at PACD. This habit he took with him to the States when he migrated in the middle eighties, and out there when winter comes, he would substitute by walking at the edges of the imposing malls, or so he claims.

His vitality (he would only smile when asked of his virility) is traceable, no doubt, not only to his sustained daily exercise but also to his rigid food habits. His breakfast fare consist largely of root crops of cassava, camote and gabi while in town (he did not mention what he ate for breakfast in the States), his viands for noontime and evening meals are vegetable and fish that abound in the community, while meat which is luxury to many, is food that he distaste. For drinks, he prefers tuba from wines or beers.

He said his “sideline” in the States include making or repairing furniture which he can still do expertly, a task that provides him a good source of income. Just the other week, he again left the country after about four months’ stay, no doubt bored at doing almost nothing in town, save for the fact that he was able to attend three of the four stated meetings while in the country.


KNOWN PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES OF UNCLE DADO PALAC

Although the husband of their godmother when the leash was attached to the neck of the lion by his tamer during their wedding in 1970, the latter hardly knew Bro. Palac’s personal life. The reason is it was immediately after that time that the Palac brood (wife, six daughters and their respective husbands) migrated to the home of the brave and the land of the free and established permanent residence there. While the family sometimes return for a brief vacation, the socials did not allow close relationship and wider communication.

In 1990, however, Bro. Palac returned to the country and handed over to the lion’s father-in-law a xerox copy of a book titled “Ancient Secret of the Fountain of Youth” (originally issued in 1939 and reprinted in 1989), a book that contained an exercise program that allegedly originally originated from a monastery in the Himalayas, to which Bro. Palac became an adherent. But while the exercise program which consisted of six simple exercises is in itself not too strenuous, the food requirement intakes will discourage many, especially the food connoisseurs. Take a look at these apparently harmless eating instructions.

1. Never eat starch (or carbohydrate) and meat at the same meal, though if you are strong and healthy, it need not cause you too much concern now;
2. If coffee bothers you, drink it black, using no milk or cream. If it still bothers you, eliminate it from your diet;
3. Chew your food to a liquid, and cut down on the amount of food you eat;
4. Eat raw egg yolks once a day, every day. Take them either just before or after meals- not during the meal;
5. Reduce the variety of foods you eat in one meal to a minimum.

And how does one do all those, aber?! But apparently, Bro. Palac in the nineties did. Suffice it to say, however, that the crouching grasshopper finally caught up with his knees because when he came home two years ago, he was already more or less permanently glued to his wheelchair or in bed..

AND NOW FOR THE LION

If the lives of the three are compared to vehicles, then the two would be comparable to the vintage and sturdy Volkswagens while the lion would be the equivalent of the sleek Nissan Sentra of the modern world. Admittedly faster than the former, it was recklessly overused (or more appropriately, abused) by its owner it’s now sorely dilapidated thus unduly shortening its life-span.. He did try the exercise and food regimen that were required by the exercise program that was contained in the book titled “Ancient Secret of the Fountain of Youth” but finally decided against it because he felt it takes out much of the fun of living.

At sixty four therefore, his head turning silver and now almost toothless, each night before he slept he give the GAOTU thanks, never worrying if on the next day he won’t have the chance to rise again.

POSTSCRIPT

Some much now for RHETORIC (remember the second of the seven steps?!) as this article has now exceeded the usual two full pages.

But it would indeed be fun to know who would be first to buy his one-way ticket to the grave!!