Nagsisiliparan na yaong mga paniki,
hudyat na magsisimula na ang gabi
‘Di nakatakas ang kiliti ng paru-paro sa aking tiyan,
gayong maggagabi naman
Nakahanda na ang tinola,
para sa mga bisitang nais ay ang kamay kong nangangatog
Ngunit ‘di lang naman ako ang nanginginig,
kundi si Mario rin naman
Oh kay malas!
Tumilaok yaong manok,
nanaginip nanaman pala akong may irog,
na liligawan kagaya noong unang panahon.

Served warm,
Like your love for us;
On a deep bowl,
As bottomless as your trust.
A bit spicy but healthy,
Like your lectures on things;
Seasoned with care,
With your sharp instincts.
Calm like a river,
Of your boundless patience;
In waves of flavor,
Like your ocean of common sense.
It's a dish I'd long,
Surely from time to time;
Because there's more to it,
Than these verses that rhyme.

nana,

my love for you is immeasurable. i hold you with fierce love, packed into a brief and firm hug. i try to put all those years of pure love you've had for me and this entire family in a quick brush of my lips to your cheek. i hold you as if it was the last. i've never felt more joy than seeing you at the dinner table, smiling when i gave you some of the hot cocoa i made. hot cocoa, i know. it probably meant nothing to you, just another night at the dinner table. but in that moment, i understood.

i made that hot cocoa with love and i understood why you spent all those years on your feet, hunched over a huge *** of tinola. sinigang. mungo. pancit. i understood the love you put into everything you do, paralleling the love you have for this family.

i remember your face lighting up after taking that first sip. you're diabetic, believe me, i know. sugar is a privilege and your diet is strict. seeing you, with your hands wrapped around the mug and your smile lighting up your eyes. i saw youth. i saw happiness. you laughed. and i did too.

i know i haven't been the greatest granddaughter to you, and i'm sure i'll think of 500 ways i've wronged you in the future. but i just want to immortalize my sentiment, even if you'll never read this. i know i've strayed from tradition. i know i've took the opposite fork in the road. i know i'm not who you hoped i would be. but i also know that regardless you're still proud and that you love me. i just want you to know how much i love you too. and how i hope you understand. i love you.