Sleigh what? December already? How time flies by and the last month of the year is here.
December is the most wonderful time of the year for some of us. From the Christmas lights and decorations to the hustle and bustle of holiday shopping and most of all, the jolly feeling this time brings, most of us cannot wait to welcome this month.
This last month of the year, not only our house but the whole world has become a magical place. How? We hang Christmas lights with vibrant colors and we decorate our house or workplace with colorful Christmas decorations. It is also the perfect time to get together, share laughs, and create memories with family and friends lasting a lifetime. Have you made your house a magical place? Visit us on our Facebook page and share with us pictures of your Christmas lights and decorations at www.facebook.com/filamvoicemaui.
Shout out to all the December babies! Happy birthday to Maricel Butay and Guadalupe “Oping” Bautista. Pada-pada kam nga kumablaaw ti naimbag nga panagkasangay yo amin! (Happy birthday to all!)
Happy, Happy birthday to you! Maligayang bati sa inyong kaarawan! (Tagalog) Naimbag nga panagkasangay mo! (Ilokano) Makapagayaya nga aggaw na nikeyana mu! (Ibanag) Masayang kebaitan queca! (Kapampangan) Masadya gid nga adlaw sa imo pagkatawo! (Ilonggo)
Here is how to say Merry Christmas in different languages. Maligayang Pasko! (Tagalog) Naragsak a Paskua! (Ilokano) Maayong Pasko! (Cebuano) Malipayon nga Paskwa! (Ilonggo) Mapalupaguiya nga Pascua! (Ibanag) Masayang Pasku! (Kapampangan)
Let’s see what is going on with our story this month and where Michael and Angel will be going next, shall we?
He walked to his living room with a bottle of beer each in his kamay (hand). “I can be lasing (drunk), lasing (drunk), lasing (drunk) and not to worry the next day” he sang smiling, feeling like a fool.
Ray put down the bottles of beer on the la mesa (table) and then plopped himself down on the sofa.
He opens the laptop and starts typing Angel’s ngalan (name) in the search button.
He types “Angel Ramos Corpuz.”
No search results were found.
He tries it again and it is still the same.
“Let me try Lena’s lagyu (name),” he says to himself.
He types “Lena Ramos Corpuz.”
He holds his breath while the hourglass icon keeps spinning around.
A minute passes and the hourglass icon is still spinning.
“I guess there’s a lot of info to download,” he whispers.
His mata (eyes) are glued to the screen of the laptop as the hourglass icon disappears and information starts to download.
His puso (heart) beats fast as it starts to download pictures and profiles of “Lena Ramos Corpuz.”
There were thirty-four profiles matching that pangalan (name).
Ray scrolls on each profile, one by one. He carefully looks at each picture to see if it looks familiar to him.
He is frustrated because he does not recognize any of those rupa (faces).
Ray stands up, grabs another beer, and opens it.
He is halfway through the bottle when he decides to bring out his phone.
He dials … Ringggg … Ringggg … Ringggggg … No answer.
He dials again … Ringggg … Ringggggg … Long pause….
“Uncle Ray … it’s 3 o’clock in the morning … ” Michael says, he is inaantok (sleepy).
“Michael, I have something to tell you … ” Ray says nervously to Michael.
“Is it so important, Uncle, that you have to tell me at this hour? Can it wait until later in the day,” Michael asks with his eyes still closed.
“Angel is my daughter,” Ray says to Michael seriously. His puso (heart) beats fast waiting for Michael to respond.
“Stop joking Uncle Ray, go to sleep, you are nabartek (drunk).” Michael hangs up the phone.
Ray calls Michael again. “I am serious, Michael Walker.”
Michael says, “Go to sleep” and hangs up the phone. He opens his eyes and realizes his Uncle called him with his full nagan (name). He has called him Mikey since birth. The only time he called him by his full ngagan (name) was when he was 10 years old.
Ray was cleaning his gun in his “man cave,” one of the rooms in his three-bedroom house. He left the gun on the dulang (table) to get the special cloth to clean it. When Ray returned to the room, the gun was missing. He panicked. His korason (heart) beat fast. He was not sure whether it was loaded because he did not see the bullet on the kan anan (table). Ray was babysitting Mikey at that time and he left him watching cartoons on the TV in the living room.
He called, “Mikey, sitaw (where) are you?” and it was silent. Ray went to the rooms and yelled aout Mikey’s nagan (name) over and over. “Mikey, nokarin (where) are you?”
Ray was shouting at the top of his lungs and still no Mikey showed up. His kasingkasing (heart) beat so fast, he thought he was going to have a heart attack. “Mikey, inno (where) are you?” He yelled one more time and the door at the pantry slightly opened.
“Michael Walker, get out of there and halika (come) here now!” he said firmly.
Michael, shivering, slowly walked to his uncle.
That was the only time Uncle Ray called him with his full pangalan (name) and that is when he knew he was serious.
Michael was magkaturug (sleepy) but he forced himself to sit down at the edge of his bed. He took a breath and dialed the phone. He closed his eyes, as he was waiting for Uncle Ray to answer.
Ring … ringgg … ringggg …
“Hello?” Ray answers the phone calmly.
“Uncle Ray?” is all that Michael could say.
“Did you hear ana (what) I said?” Ray asks.
Michael nods. Even though Uncle Ray could not see him, he knew he nodded.
“How?” Michael asks.
And there is a long pause on the other line.
Anyways, that’s all I have. Keep an eye out for my column in every issue. I’m Dulce, helping you to master your Filipino Language. Like always, let’s laugh, let’s makinig (listen), and Let’s Talk Pinoy! Hanggang sa muli! (Until next time!) Ingat! (Take care!)
Dulce Karen Butay graduated from Maui High School and received her Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Arts from Maui Community College. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, specializing in Accounting, from the University of Hawai‘i – West O‘ahu. She is currently the Administrative Officer at the County of Maui, Department of Finance. Butay is the owner of Maui Balsamic Vinegar and is a licensed Resident Producer of Life Insurance with World Financial Group and an Independent Consultant of Saladmaster. She is a part of Saladmaster’s Travel Club and won an all-expenses paid trip to Cancún, Mexico. Butay has traveled to Texas, the Philippines, and Thailand as one of the delegates from Island Healthy Solutions, a Saladmaster dealer here on Maui.