Wings Of A Nightingale

When you ask where the Dela Rosa’s residence is, you will never miss it, as almost every native Lezonian will point you to the right direction. For over a century and six generations, my ancestral home has been standing on the same spot, although the facade has been renovated through the years.

While growing up in this house, there were countless memories that I treasure in my heart. Some were stories that happened even before I was born and were shared to me; others were memories that I personally witnessed or have been a part of.

It was in this house that my paternal grandfather Simeon la Rosa, lived during the time that he was an active political figure under the banner of the then Liberal Party. He was the first elected town mayor, thus the street where we live was named after him; he hosted caucuses with prominent politicians such as former president of the Philippines Manuel Roxas when he visited Aklan, and former Governor/Congressman Godofredo Ramos, known as the Father of Aklan, to name a few.

Being an active Roman Catholics, my grandparents and parents welcomed in this house almost all parish priests assigned in the church of St. Isidore the Farmer. My aunt, Sister Mary Ignatius, SPC of the order of St. Paul of Chartres (my father’s only sister) lived in this house before she studied to be a nurse, and later on became a nun. It was in this house that I learned to pray, embraced and strengthened my faith in God.

When my father got married in January 1955, he brought home his new bride (my mother) to live in this house. I was born and raised here, together with my three siblings; created new memories while we were growing up, until all four of us spread our wings and made a new home with a family of our own.

Although now that distance stand between my siblings and I, and home, we still make it a tradition to come back home, together with our children. And who knows, in the near future, I will finally come back to this house in Dela Rosa Street, so that memories shall continue to be created, a treasure that I will pass on to my child and future grandchildren.

-Lark-

07.19.2017