Now We Are (Sixty) Nine

I have always said that the greatest gift my Celia ever gave me was ... grandchildren.

I met them in the Philippines four years ago at Christmas. The little boy, Luic (pronounced loo-EEK, a Filipino variant of the Spanish "Luis") became eleven years old last month, and is hardly a little boy anymore. He loves video games, dinosaurs, and drawing manga characters, and when he comes to America, wants to see three things; snow, Disney World, and going camping. It's gonna be fun taking him everywhere, watching him grow up.

IMAGE: Scarlett as a princess of the Igorot, an indigenous people of the mountains in northern Luzon.

Then there is his little sister Scarlett, who turns nine years old today, on the same day I turn sixty-nine. Together, they call me "Lolo" (pronounced "LOW-low," Tagalog for "Grandpa").

As is obvious to anyone who knows the family that she takes after her mother. In her younger days, Sarah was a professional model of national renown, gracing teen magazine covers and all that sort of thing. That being the case, our little one has been choosing her own wardrobe on a daily basis since before she was three, about the same time instinctively poses as a model for photos. She is precocious, whimsical, and occasionally likes to pick on her "Kuya" (prounounced "KOO-yah," a title for the oldest brother), who is very protective towards her just the same.

We will talk on video tonight, comparing notes on who had the biggest birthday (and it won't be any contest). But why the name "Scarlett"?

IMAGE: Scarlett and Luic "on the town" in Bali, Indonesia.

In the Philippines, children are often traditionally named for the saint on or near whose feast day they are born. Today is the feast of the Holy Innocents. This called for improvisation by her resourceful parents.

The name "Scarlett" is reminiscent of the blood of the little infant boys, martyred on the order of King Herod in an attempt to eradicate the threat that a newborn King might pose to his rule. Having been raised to the altar of sainthood with their sacrifice, our little princess enjoys the patronage of a throng of special little angels to protect her, much as her older brother would do, at times in spite of her boldness.

At the end of the day, she is adorable, just like her mother, not to mention her grandmother. What's more, our little one certainly loves her Lolo, as can be seen in this video from New Year's Eve four years ago (at the family home in Malabon City, Metro Manila), given her fear of the sudden noise of fireworks.