in a post, Mawic escribió (wrote):
"i think we (the cousins from manila) went to romblon when we were 7 yrs old or something, baby brother Junix was still being carried all the time. unfortunately, i do not remember anything at all. maybe when we go for the tree planting, i will visit all these places with you. btw, i met the mayor of romblon sometime in august. i told him we had relatives there in the past and he said he remembered an engineer. he didn't look that old though?"
Mawic escribió
"it was a brief mtg with the mayor - i just chanced upon a friend who was having a mtg.with him. i do not have a way of contacting both, since i lost my phone na. anyway, am sure your members of the rhs58 group can do something. i don't think the guy will even give me time. i beg to disagree - am sure lolo and lola were proud of all his children and grandchildren -you all brought honors to the Acejas name! all accomplished lawyers, engineers, accountants, not to mention being board placers. come to think of it, it seems most cousins from rhs are either lawyers, engineers, accountants, etc. - all following the footsteps of their idols...."
but as we can see, the mayor of romblon only remembers an Acejas who was an engineer in romblon... he does not remember an Acejas who was a lawyer, or a tenth-placer in the bar exams or an accountant, or a nurse, or a teacher...or a board placer or a successful business owner...
that engineer is no other than engineer salvador j. acejas, jr...which is why i said that that is the reason why papa and mama loved him so much... for the reason that he has brought honor, fame and dignity to the name "Acejas" in romblon... not only in romblon, romblon but the whole province as well because his work in the provincial public works and highways department called for him to inspect and supervise public works and highways projects all over the province of romblon...this is the reason also why our mother had the old
house in moro, romblon repaired and improved because she wanted the house where kuyang salvador and family were staying to be more respectable in keeping with his professional standing as an engineer of the province...so people in romblon will look up to him with due respect and deference...
in fact, that house will always be considered as the house of engineer Salvador J. Acejas, jr...which is why our mother expressed her verbal wish that it should pertain to him when she and our father are gone...precisely, to keep the name "ACEJAS" in the memory of the people of romblon, romblon as part of their legacy by which they too will be remembered with respect and admiration by the people of the town...
it was meant for him, to have and to hold forever, but was not supposed to be sold...it was after all the family or ancestral home...
when impong bibiana cuevas madrid stayed in romblon, romblon during her old age, she would walk from the pantalan store of our mother to this house in moro, romblon and i would be the one assigned to walk her to the place...and kuyang pepito and i would sleep there during those times when we would spend our summer, semestral or christmas vacations in romblon during our college days...and i would even sleep there by myself alone when i was drunk enough not to be scared of ghosts...but when i was sober i couldn't sleep there alone....and the one time that i tried, i ended up running down the stairs to go back to the pantalan store because i got so scared feeling there were ghosts all over the place...
when i was in the elementary school, this house was rented by the engineer who was the manager of the CEPOC marble project in romblon, romblon, where our father worked as cashier and paymaster and later on as caretaker when the project was closed down...i used to wake early to go to the compound of the project to climb the aratillis tree there in a little park in front of the administrative office of the project... i had to go there as early as possible because berting, oldest son of ate rosing, would always get there earlier as they lived in another house of mama and papa right beside the house which later on became the residence of engineer Salvador J. Acejas, jr. and family....and just before the gate of the compound... and i would run out of aratillis if he got there first....
i also recall that we spent sundays in this old house when the pantalan store might be closed...and mama would do her sewing there...i remember also as a little boy that i was the only one sleeping with mama and papa in the pantalan store, while kuyang salvador, ate ester, kuyangs ted and pepito were all sleeping there...
mama and papa had the place renovated when we were all in college although there was nobody staying there anymore... i think she was preparing the house for the day when kuyang salvador would return to romblon as an engineer... i think she had looked forward to that day with so much anticipation... when that time came, she again had it renovated as i explained above...
when kuyang salvador and family moved to manila to work in the regional office of the department of public highways, kuyang salvador rented the house to the wife of his high school classmate, who remained as lessee thereof up to the time i think when kuyang salvador passed away...
i really had hoped that ate zeny and the children left behind by kuyang salvador would keep the house for its sentimental value...as a constant reminder to the people of romblon, romblon, if not the entire province, that it was once the residence of engineer Salvador J. Acejas, Jr., who retired from the service as an assistant regional director of the DPWH, region IV-B...the highest position held by any offspring of Mr. and Mrs. Salvador B. Acejas, Sr. in the government....
there has yet been no formal notice to the other heirs of the rumored sale or other disposition of the house...so, it can be expected that some of them might raise questions as to the legality of the same should the rumor turn out to be the case...
regards,
bomboy
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