Before and After Classmates

In the twilight of age all things seem strange and phantasmal,   As between daylight and dark ghost-like the landscape appears.My heart goes back to wander there, And among the dreams of the days that were,   I find my lost youth again.     And the strange and beautiful song,     The groves are repeating it still:   "There a place for us somewhere” , And the thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts." I should not be withheld but that some day into their vastness I should steal away, Fearless of ever finding open land, or highway where the slow wheel pours the sand...RF

Ah me! the forty five years since last we met Seem to me forty folios bound and set By Time, the great transcriber, on his shelves, Wherein are written the histories of ourselves. ”Those were the days my friend” What tragedies, what comedies, are there; What joy and grief, what rapture and despair! What chronicles of triumph and defeat, Of struggle, and temptation, and retreat! What records of regrets, and doubts, and fears What pages blotted, blistered by our tears! What lovely landscapes on the margin shine, What sweet, angelic faces, what divine And holy images of love and trust, Undimmed by age, unsoiled by damp or dust! ……HWL

I have collected tidbits and stats from  our college years from colleagues, mostly  pictures  depicting our field trips from Balara to Bagiuo, to our oath taking as newly registered chemical engineers, and finally to our latest pictures of today in our 60's. It did not seem much before, as I mused over the letters and e-mails, but collectively the combination of the pictures and the words became alive. Now, in my mature years, I  look back to the days gone by. I relish the memories, and then marvel at how far we have gone forward the milestones and challenges. These we should be proud off to share with every classmate .......... The year 2011 makes the 45th anniversary of our class. From this inauspicious beginnings we rose as one group of individuals  in our chosen profession within the mother country and our beloved USA. We became a part of a huge extended family, no matter the miles that separate us, yet find unity in a common experience and purpose.. Forever classmates.... Time waits for no one....it passes us by, and on to the golden years. While maybe, the forty five years since graduation, was challenging in a new strange land, we prevailed the struggles, temptations, and retreats. My retirement since 2005 has been wonderful, and hopefully, you are successful in yours. I thank God for this gift, that we were given the chance, for the education and training on our special profession; The chance to prosper in a land of peace and plenty. It was not easy and now with the economy on the rocks, it is far arduous and difficult to get to where we are. I find it compelling or my duty to give, contribute for the next generation and the global community that made my life worthwhile. To whom much is given, much is expected. - Luke 12:48. It is therefore fitting for us blessed, to organize, protect, nurture, keep faith with our beloved country, to end destruction of natural habitats, appreciate nature and the environment in whatever we can...ASC

 

To The Class of '66, We are  on to the next or maybe the last chapter of our life. As we age and the time passes us by, on to the golden years, it is best to embolden our friendship that was put on hold because of our immediate priorities to our  families. It is for this reason, that we need to reminisce the old days  even more,  first with  letters and pictures then join together like the classmates of old, with a common goal. I thank God for this gift, that we were given the chance, for the education and training for our special profession; The chance to prosper in a land of peace and plenty. While maybe, the forty five years since graduation, was challenging  in a new strange land,  we prevailed  the struggles,  temptations,  and retreats. As the poem said above, it was not so easy. Now with the economy on the rocks,  it is far arduous and difficult to get to where we are. In retrospect, I find it compelling or my duty to give, contribute for the next generation and the global community that made my life worthwhile. To whom much is given, much is expected. - Luke 12:48. It is therefore fitting for us blessed, to organize, protect, nurture, keep faith with our beloved country,  appreciate  nature and the environment in whatever we can. Bringing in the enviroment into light, we also can only hope that the alarming climate change and the ecological responses are 50 to 100 years away. But it's not 50 to 100 years away -- it's happening now in forest ecosystems through fire. The facts are unequivocal, and point to a troubling future ahead. Over 2100 fires, scorching some 900,000 acres, have set a new 2008 record for early-season wildfires in California.We are certainly in the midst of Global Warming;crisis of floods and droughts through out the planet. Skeptics, the debate is over, join our goal to STOP using fossil fuels as quickly as possible, to PLANT trees and end all destruction of natural habitat and PREPARE for what cannot now be stopped. Even small things make a difference spread over a large population.There are three levels of action: Personal, Political and to Prepare. They all require enormous personal and governmental commitment. The third, to Prepare for the impact of what cannot be stopped........ It is a premiere topic of our generation, about saving our wonderful planet earth, and also ourselves too. In my efforts to emphasize my solutions and prevention of the catastrophe ahead, I recall the quotation. "Tell people something they know already and they will thank you for it. Tell them something new and they will hate you for it." With that, I hope not to fall in the latter category. My goal is to keep everybody abreast and involved to prevent the future dim scenario in the mother country. If we do not implement the gentle methods to placate our environment, the Philippines and all areas in "the tropics with its few resources and growing population will resort to war and violence to satisfy the hunger of the populace in this climate catastrophe." What we have sown in this planet will bring forth a harsh aftermath and gone will be the pleasant existence of our past. This topic has become a moral issue. The havoc and destruction will be more than the combined effects of WWI, WWII and the 1929 depression. It is about, how the recent generations could destroy all what man has created in the past 10,000 years............ASC

Before and After Classmates