Monday, November 9, 2020

Celebration of Life: Macrine J. Katague via her Favorite Music (Choral)-Part 7

This is Part 7 of 14 on the series Celebration of Life of Macrine J. Katague via her favorite music.

Macrine and I loved choral music. Our first activity in UP Diliman during our college years was our participation with the University of the Philippines Student Catholic Action Choir. *( see photo of UPSCA Choir with Macrine and I as participants on bottom of page in 1953)

In this episode I am please to post a UP Concert Chorus rendition of Bayan Ko ( My Country)-a patriotic song. This patriotic song is dedicated to President Elect Joe Biden and VP Elect Kamala Harris. It is Philippine version of My Country 'Tis of Thee'.

Bayan Ko (English translation)

My Country

My country The Philippines

Land of gold and flowers

Love bestowed to her

Offered beauty and glow

Due to her beauty and grace

Foreigners are tempted

My country, they enslaved you

Gave you endless suffering

Even bird that fly freely

Will cry once caged

My country, they enslaved you

Gave you endless suffering

KORO

Even bird that fly freely

Will cry once caged

My land so fair

Yearns to break free

Philippines that I so adore

Nest of tears and poverty

All that I desire

To see you rise and free

(Koro)

While searching for the best arrangement of this song, another song that I enjoyed are from the Madrigals- another UP group who had won several International awards in Choral music-May the Lord Bless and Keep You and the UP Singers Ambassadors rendition of Maalaala Mo Kaya ( Can you Remember)

University of the Philippines Student Catholic Action Choir, 1953. Macrine sings soprano and me in the Base section! We have 300 members from various college chapters of the university.

Macrine and I loved singing in the choir here in Northern California. In the late 1980's, we sang in our church choir on Sunday masses in Pinole, as well as with the UP Alumni, Berkeley Chapter Choir based in El Sobrante, California.

Twelve years ago, we sang in our Church Choir here in Fair Oaks. We even sang a duet of Silent Night in Tagalog at the concert before the Christmas midnight mass.

Macrine and I had also organized the Marinduque Association of the Capital Area( MACA) Christmas Caroling Group in Colesville, Maryland in the late 1990's.

Macrine used to be a soloist. She sang soprano coloratura in her younger days. Today her voice is ruined by her cigarette smoking. Her last singing activity was being paid to sing for a friend's wedding in the Philippines as well as here in US.

Madrigal Singers- Dahil Sa Iyo ( Because of You)

https://davidbkatague.blogspot.com/search?q=upsca+choir

Meanwhile enjoy this photo of Macrine and her Lemon tree in Our residence in Fair Oaks, CA 2016

Meanwhile, here's the Transition News of the Day from the New York Times:

Joe Biden during a campaign event last month.Erin Schaff/The New York Times

Biden has said he will undo several Trump administration policies — on climate change, the pandemic, labor unions and more — on his first day in office.
European diplomats expressed relief that the next U.S. president would treat them as allies instead of rivals, while Vladimir Putin of Russia seemed to be preparing for a more acrimonious relationship.
One White House tradition will return: the presidential pet. The Bidens have two German shepherds, Champ and Major.
and the Breaking News

The S&P 500 jumped 3.6% and is on track for a new record after positive news about a coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer.

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Joys of Retirement

I have been retired from USFDA since 2002. At first, I feel I have lost my identity as an individual or have lost my contribution to society. However, within a few weeks all these feelings were gone. It started when my wife and I started baby sitting one of our grandchildren. As some economics professor states: "Your children are your capital investments, but your grandchildren are your profits. That is why you love your grandchildren more than your children". I really agree with the statement. Retirement also gives you lots of time to do things you like to do, such as your hobbies and of course travel. In my case, I turned my hobby of gardening and landscaping into a small business in the Philippines. This endeavor was planned about five years before 2002. That year my wife and I started construction of our retirement home in Boac, Marinduque , Philippines. The next year we built a beach house, followed by a Conference Hall two years later. Needless to say, planning and executing the landscaping was a challenge and very enjoyable. With the help of local labor, I not only enjoy the time gardening and landscaping, but also help improved the economic situation of the province by providing work and jobs to the local residents. With plenty of time, I have engaged into two specific activities as follows: First, I created a website for my small business. By trial and error, I created and design the website, www.chateaudumer.com I have never been a computer nerd or expert. But with plenty of time and patience, the fruits of my labor could be enjoyed if you visit the website above. The second activity, I have not done before was to utilize on-line activities, such as shopping, paying bills ( save you stamps) and playing computer games in the Internet. I really enjoyed playing duplicate bridge on line. You play with players all over the world and can chat in between games. But be careful, you are not spending too much time in the computer. It is very addictive. With a lots of time, my wife and I devoted more time on our favorite humanitarian project. For the last 15 years, we have been involved with medical mission to the province of Marinduque. For details please visit the website: www.marinduqueinternational.org As a summary, the joy one gets on retirement is very specific for an individual. Some enjoy their free time by learning new activities, getting involved with humanitarian projects or spending more time with their grandchildren. Others hate it, since they missed their former jobs and co-workers. Others with no children still enjoy retirement by traveling, turning their hobbies into business or more community involvement. Of course those that retire and hate it, is believe to die earlier than those that enjoy their retirement years. So, plan your retirement as early as you can. The happier you are on retirement, the longer you will live.