Chapter 1: Letter-Writing

Before I start anything, I would like to share on how me and my dear husband met. Our union will bring on a happy family, with Catherine and Carlos, Jr.

It was summer one year, I was joining my family in an out-of-town trip to Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte. The trip was very fun, and our first stop was in a beach. The beach itself is what made me excited for this trip, and there, I can feel the cool summer breeze and the calm waves of the sea.

Sitting in a chair, underneath a beach umbrella, I suddenly jolted at the pat of a stranger. I can’t call my mom or my dad, as they were swimming in the sea. Then that stranger asked for my name, and he introduced himself to me. He was quite good-looking, and there was a part of me that wanted to start a relationship with him. Well, I also introduced myself to him, and we had become friends in just minutes.

However, I was just nineteen, and my parents wouldn’t want me to have a boyfriend at that time. Being sneaky, at least, I requested him to write a letter for me, and we exchanged addresses. It was then time to say goodbye, and he can’t go to Manila anytime soon. He lives in Pagudpud, and he is working in the resort that me and my family just went through.

Getting back home was quite sad, as I had lost contact with my friend and the vacation is already over. Life has come back to its normal state again, I supposed. I could never end every single day without thinking about that stranger named Carlos, and for a while, I hoped that he would write me a letter.

Three long months had passed by, and it was the start of 2nd year college, with a course in teaching. I was then coming in the house, when my mother told me that a letter for me came. What was it? Was it Carlos’ letter?

I don’t want to satisfy my curiosity first, so I slid the letter on my bedside table, and filled up my mind with assignments and tasks I need to do. Hours have passed, dinner has passed, and I am finally ready to sleep. And finally, my curiosity had been satisfied. It was indeed Carlos’ letter, and it asked how am I, and said that things were all fine in his town. I was lovestruck, and I pushed myself to write a letter tomorrow.

Two years later, I had graduated from college, and by the next year, I had finally found a job as a teacher to Grade 1 students. My correspondence to Carlos was never been broken in those years, and now, he is an assistant manager in the same resort.

Five months after I started my teaching job, news came to me that Carlos had arrived to Manila.