goodbye Monsignor Basiling

Monsignor Basiling was laid to rest today. I will always remember him as the person who never called me Ronald or Ricafort, but Ladrero; and he always did that with a smile even at the time when he was weak with age. The last time I spent a few moments with him - for pictures and the usual pangumusta about Vic and Totoy (my parents) and recollection of Nene and Pescoy (my late grandparents) - was during his last birthday after the Pontifical Mass at the cathedral.

Calbayognons and the religious orders in Calbayog have their various ways of bidding the old man goodbye. One of these is this poster which the Franciscan Sisters installed at the entrance of their convent (pix above) which incidentally is the house of the late Julio Cardinal Rosales.