This was my speech that I gave on March 24th, 2012 to our loving Lola on her viewing in Long Beach, Ca.
Hello everyone, thank you all for coming. My name is CJ, one of Antonina’s grandchildren. My Lola was born on March 2, 1925 in Indang, Cavite, Philippines and is the 3rd child of 6 children. At the age of 17 she fell in love through a love letter and married our Lolo, Florencio Cemania on August 27, 1942. She moved to Tanza, Cavite where they quickly began their life together and had their first child in 1943. They had a total of 13 children of which 2 passed away at an early age. Lola and I once calculated the total of years she was pregnant for…she was a few months shy of 10 years. She devoted her life to her family and was a stay at home mom. And when her husband fell ill, she took care of him until he passed away in 1981 of cancer. In 1987 she was given a chance to come to the United States through my dad being in the military. In November that year, she hopped on a plane with only 2 luggages…and this is where my journey with Lola began.
At the age of 3, I was introduced to a lady whom they told me to call Lola. Little did I know that Lola would change my life forever. She was such a great teacher to me: she taught me how to speak tagalog, count, spell, sing, dance, color, everything I needed to know even before I went into Kindergarden. Where ever she was, I was right there. We had a schedule everyday, there was a time for learning, housework and playing. She would tell me stories, showed me how to cook, would bathe me then sprinkle baby powder all over me, took the time to sing and dance with me, but most of all would scratch my back and butt when I wanted to fall asleep every night. And in return, I made her crawl up the stairs to play, stick gum in her pockets and hairbrush, decided that our staircase would be my new coloring book, slid pennies in the speakers of the tv for her to pull out, and would put all my dolls in the sink cause I told her I was giving them a bath. We loved each other unconditionally and were partners in crime.
In 1989, my sister, Maggie joined our pact. Everyday they walked me to the bus stop. Lola would bundle Maggie up and would put her into a stroller and she would tell us a story. And everyday she waited with me and stayed until I ran to the back of the bus to wave bye to her through the window. And every afternoon I would see her waiting at the bus stop for me. There’s one particular day that Lola will never forget. I was in a really bad mood from school I guess and on the way out the driver said to me “See you later, Alligator!” and on my way down the stairs I replied “Shut up, You give me a big Big headache!” My Lola was surprised but wasn’t mad at me. Instead as we walked home she taught me about respect, appreciation, how to be kind and to be good to others around you. And from that day on she turned that situation into a joke and up until the last weeks of her life every time we parted we would say “See you later, Alligator…Shut up, I LOOOVE you!!!”
That is who she was. A loving grandmother, mother, sister and friend but most of all an amazing teacher. I would like everyone in this room to close their eyes for a few seconds and picture Lola in your head….I can bet you that what you just pictured was her head slightly tilted to the side, her eyes twinkling and a huge smile beaming at you.
She was sentimental. You’d be surprised to know that if anyone of you has ever written her a birthday card, Christmas card or get well card she has kept it. We have found cards dating back to 1970s. She would read the print on the card and everything you wrote…twice…maybe even three or four times throughout her life. What is even more amazing is that she has requested for them to be buried with her. That is how much she cared what you had to say to her, that is how much she cared that you took the time to buy and write her a card.
She loved telling stories and knew every detail. She once told me the story of how she fell in love with her husband. She described his love letters down to his penmanship and to the type and texture of paper he used.
She was smart and educated. Though she never finished high school she was one of the smartest people I have ever met. When she would watch tv and hear a word she didn’t know she would open her dictionary and look it up. She watched Jeopardy to refresh her history, watched Wheel of Fortune to keep up with the current sayings and slang. If she were to take the Citizenship test a week ago she would’ve passed with flying colors…how many of us can say the same?
She was loving and caring. She loved her family so much there were nights she couldn’t sleep! She made sure her family in the Philippines always had food, clothes and a home. Every person she met, they fell in love with her. Why wouldn’t you…she greeted people with open arms and had her famous smile. She was a great listener and advisor. You can count on it that if you were in arms distance, she always had one hand on you while you spoke.
And of course she was a jokester. She was quick witted and enjoyed making people laugh. There was a time when she was at the doctor’s office and they were doing a stress test on her on a bike. The doctor said “Wow, Antonina you’re going so fast!” and she quickly replied “It’s cause I’m running late doctor!”. And if you’ve ever taken a picture with her you probably have one with her either sticking out her tongue, making a funny face, laughing hysterically or throwing up gang signs! She made us all laugh by her singing and her famous shoulder shrugs dance. If you said “I love you” she would say “I love you too!” then look at the next person and say “I love you three…I love you four…” and tilt her head to the side and give you a smile.
She appreciated everything in life. When I was in the first grade I bought her a mug that says “Best Grandma in the World”. Up until her last sip of juice…she preferred her mug to be the one I gave her almost 22 years ago. One of the last things she ate and enjoyed was Halo Halo ice cream. She could barely speak but asked us who bought it and we said Uncle Andy. She looked over at him, smiled and gave him a thumbs up.
But most of all she was a devoted catholic. She prayed every day and night. And whether you asked her or not she has probably prayed for you at least once in her life. If she wasn’t telling a story or being comedic she was singing religious songs.
She was kind, warm, generous, sweet and beautiful. Her last message to us was “Mag babaet kayo” (Be good). It wasn’t “Get a good job, finish school, get rich or make sure you do this or that.” It was “Mag babet kayo”…and it was only the other night that I realized that if each of us just do one thing that Lola was known for…everything else will fall in place. So tomorrow, write someone a card and say “I Love you” or read a card that someone has written to you. Tell a loved one a story or listen to someone else’s journey. Tell someone a joke. Dance and sing with your heart out. Say a prayer for someone. Eat a bowl of ice cream and enjoy every spoonful. But most of all…tell someone “I love you, I love you two, three, four”.
She and our Lolo built an empire and left a legacy. Together they had 13 children, 11 son & daughter-in-laws, 32 grandchildren, 18 grandchildren-in-law and 33 great grandchildren. For a total of 109.
I am not going to say good bye to my loving Lola, but will say “See you later, Alligator…I will love you forever”
bowed to me while simultaneously saying " ohaiyogozaimasu tomodachi" meaning " good morning friend" i greeted her with " kamusta kanapo" she smiled again. My heart melted and i asked for a hug! Magz wes lola and i were talking ( i was taking wes out to eat that day ) but we stayed to talk a little. At that moment sammie came running up to me and had her hands in the air! Her eyes read deep into my soul and they told me " pick me up" so thats what i did and she laughed and giggled. :))) lola spoke tagalog which obviously i didnt understand. But she was still smiling and thats all that mattered. Its how i will always remember her. :D
