The ocassion was also an opportunity to meet some relatives and friends as it was also a reunion of some sort. Among others, I chanced upon a couple (husband and wife), one of them is my wife's first cousin. Both of them are Doctors of Medicine. The reason why I was most interested in them was obvious. I can talk to them about a lot of things, one of them is a consultation for free - hehehe!Other relatives were curious at the fact that the couple had no 'ride' of their own which was quite amazing considering that the medical profession has been considered a lucrative profession. "Yeah, why indeed you still did not buy a car; any particular model from among the popular brands that you're waiting to come out?" I asked. "Not really", the husband replied. "We're just waiting for the right time, and that time is when we shall be able to buy a brand new one on cash basis." Good idea. You'll save more if you buy in cash.
Then I touched on the issue that most Doctors, if not all, do not declare their true income with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). "Like for example, I know one," I said. When I was admitted in a private hospital, I got curious with my attending physician - who was always on the run whenever he made the rounds to check on his patients. So, he has only two minutes at most to talk to me or interview me. Sometimes, less than a minute. "Doc, I wonder how many patients, on the average, do you attend to everyday?" I asked. "Not less than 30 in three hospitals", he answered. The time he saves for the day is spent in his clinic. So, if this doctor's fee each patient is P1,000 per day, he earns P30,000 per day or more than P1M a month including the earnings from his clinic.
After relating the story to the couple, I told them that they can also do the same. "But make sure you'll be honest enough in declaring your real income," I jokingly warned. "That is someting that we have to think about." the husband retorted. "Why do you say that Doc?" "Doesn't it sound more practical if we are the one pocketing our extra income rather than some crooks in the BIR?!!" the male doctor in the couple answered. He went further, "This is the reason why most of us in the medical profession are hesitant to declare our true income. We are sure that if things don't improve in the present situation we are just contributing to satisfy the greed of some crook officials in this government.."
"Sounds like there is some sense in it", I sighed to myself. On the other hand, my favorite by-line quikly came to my mind. "A wrong cannot be corrected by another wrong." A crook official in the government, or anybody for that matter, cannot be straightened by another crook act. As a law-abiding citizen, we just have to do our sovereign responsibility dutifully and honestly and God takes care of the rest. Of course, we don't do this praying only but acting or doing something after we had asked the Lord to intervene for the good of this country. Amen!
And as always, we start cleansing this country away of the crooks with ourselves. If charity begins at home, forming a mindset for some sort of a national socio-cultural values must start with the self. The more drastic one is the recommendation of one 'fool' who said that we can only make this country great again if we kill all the older generations of Filipinos and allow only the toddlers and the innocents to survive so they start forming a whole new generation free from the impurities of society and sins of antiquities!
Sounds like I've gone too far. Well, back to that birthday party. My bilas (the husband of my sister-in-law) asked me why are apos so distinctly special from our own children. I told him it's because in the apo, we see that we are given the second chance to correct our shortcomings for our own children, or do the things we should have done for them and avoid those that we should not have done for them. That's why we are so intimately attached, delicately caring and protective for our apos because we cannot afford another mistake this time around. This is also one of the reasons why we grandparents are dubbed as "spoilers" by the apos' parents. My bilas quickly seconded everything I said with affirmation.Before I forget, I have to mention that the party was to be attended in 'costume' by the children 
who were invited to come. So, there were those who came in Batman costume, some in Wonder Woman, others in Angel, Spiderman, Catwoman, Superman, etc. My apo came in a ballerina costume which was the choice of my wife. My daughter, the favorite tita of my apo protested, "Maaaahh.. Famfam would look great in Tomb Raider costume because of her tomboyish look!" "Besides," I seconded, "Famfam doesn't look becoming as a ballerina because of her big tummy", hehehe! This has been the result of pampering the apo in the kitchen. "Yooow are not authorized to object!" my wife grinned. Everybody was silent.
who were invited to come. So, there were those who came in Batman costume, some in Wonder Woman, others in Angel, Spiderman, Catwoman, Superman, etc. My apo came in a ballerina costume which was the choice of my wife. My daughter, the favorite tita of my apo protested, "Maaaahh.. Famfam would look great in Tomb Raider costume because of her tomboyish look!" "Besides," I seconded, "Famfam doesn't look becoming as a ballerina because of her big tummy", hehehe! This has been the result of pampering the apo in the kitchen. "Yooow are not authorized to object!" my wife grinned. Everybody was silent.Then, I realize that the best time to start off with a good looking body figure for your girl is while she is a little baby. I overheard some doctors say (or was it nutritionists) that fats that have accumulated over the years are harder to slim down in the child's late adolescense - one lesson that must be learned in pampering apos. Grandparents, more often than not, commit the mistake of showing love for the apo by tolerating everything that the child wants to eat, or more appropriately - can swallow, like there is no tomorrow! Second lesson: don't oblige children to attend in costume when the price of rice is rising. Parents who cannot afford to buy costume for their children won't come. This was what happened to some of those invited to this birthday party. And third, don't attempt to correct cheating by some crooks in government by another cheating.
Sometimes, cheap talks can touch on 'cheat talks'!
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