The sun never sets
Life in the Golden Years
Dr Abe V Rotor
“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.”- Sophia Loren
House guest Norman Perriam (right) a British married to a Filipina,
visis the author at the Living with Nature garden in San Vicente,
Ilocos Sur in 2026
Two old gentlemen from opposite sides of the globeexchange pleasantries on the golden sunset of life,meeting at a common point, indeed the greatest giftis wisdom to restore unity and peace in times of strife.
"Getting old is like climbing a mountain; you get a little out of breath, but the view is much better!" — Ingrid Bergman
Fr. James B. Reuter, SJ, spiritual icon for two generations - like the soldier who never dies but just fades away. And yet in his way past ninety he continued to touch people's lives through his writings, TV shows, stage plays, and countless faithful seeking for advice. Author joins well-wishers on his 94th birthday, two years before his death.
"Caring about others, running the risk of feeling, and leaving an impact on people, brings happiness." – Harold Kushner
Dr Juan M Flavier - man behind "Doctor to the Barrios" legacy,
health secretary and senator.
"I believe the second half of one's life is meant to be better than the first half. The first half is finding out how you do it. And the second half is enjoying it." — Frances Lear
Dr Florentino H Hornedo, Filipino historian, educator, anthropologist and UNESCO Commissioner poses with students at Batanes State University. The late Dr Hornedo is a native of Batanes.
Left, Dr. Domingo Tapiador, a retired UN expert on agriculture and fisheries, helped initiate the introduction of Spirulina in the country. Spirulina provides food, medicine, clean environment, and as a whole, a better quality of human life for the people today and the coming generations. Right, Ka Dell H Grecia, veteran journalist: columnist, Women's Journal; co-host, Ating Alamin, a popular and far reaching TV program managed and hosted by Ka Gerry Geronimo.
"The best tunes are played on the oldest fiddles!"
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
Dr Florentino H Hornedo, Filipino historian, educator, anthropologist and UNESCO Commissioner poses with students at Batanes State University. The late Dr Hornedo is a native of Batanes.
"Old people have wisdom but not energy; young people have energy but not wisdom; energy and wisdom must be in the same body to create a much better civilization!" – Anonymous
Retired Judge Argel and Educator-Businessman Gerry Singson pose with the author before an enshrined icon of the national hero at the Living with Nature Center, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur, 2025
“The longer I live the more beautiful life becomes.” ~ Frank Lloyd Wright
Candle Man. Photo by the author, San Vicente, Ilocos Sur
Town Fiesta, circa 2010
He sells candles near a church on a sidewalk,talks soft and clear, his eyes communicating;in his sunset years, this friendly native folkgoes on with his craft that gives life a meaning.
Author (left) and Dr Cabigan, long time best of friends and co-professors, examine a flowering liana growing on windy Tagaytay ridge. Calaruega, Cavite, 2006
Angels Just Pass By
Dr Abe V Rotor
All the years, to describe you, let me count the ways:
But first, admit your age, and heed the one who says.
Our roads crossed time and again - perhaps the eighth,
Under any umbrella, any fort of service and faith;
A tree you planted, its boughs filled with children,
In its shade, old and young call each other brethren;
A field of grass undulating in whispers and in song
Of hopes and dreams among the beloved throng;
A plow, you're the man behind a home and nation,
A computer, cyberspace its eye and its bastion.
Nata to leather, fruit to wine, microbes to food,
Work of a goodhearted genius working under the hood.
Busy feet, busy hands, bound in thought and sinew,
Work, work, work - whatever may be your view.
And play? And jokes? You've got a lot, too.
Cracking one, and I saw how a whole class blew.
Child of Nature years ago, but never getting old,
Though your hair is vanishing, laurels in its hold;
The span of time and space, your now sit on its shed,
Furrows on your forehead, your vision dims ahead.
If for any reason you keep on searching, never tiring,
It's because the stars shine far out into the morning,
And ideals and truth are not the same, are they?
There are no answers - yet you wish there may.
In a perfect place and time, here and beyond SPUQ,
Angels just pass by Sel, we can only guess they do.~
But first, admit your age, and heed the one who says.
Our roads crossed time and again - perhaps the eighth,
Under any umbrella, any fort of service and faith;
A tree you planted, its boughs filled with children,
In its shade, old and young call each other brethren;
A field of grass undulating in whispers and in song
Of hopes and dreams among the beloved throng;
A plow, you're the man behind a home and nation,
A computer, cyberspace its eye and its bastion.
Nata to leather, fruit to wine, microbes to food,
Work of a goodhearted genius working under the hood.
Busy feet, busy hands, bound in thought and sinew,
Work, work, work - whatever may be your view.
And play? And jokes? You've got a lot, too.
Cracking one, and I saw how a whole class blew.
Child of Nature years ago, but never getting old,
Though your hair is vanishing, laurels in its hold;
The span of time and space, your now sit on its shed,
Furrows on your forehead, your vision dims ahead.
If for any reason you keep on searching, never tiring,
It's because the stars shine far out into the morning,
And ideals and truth are not the same, are they?
There are no answers - yet you wish there may.
In a perfect place and time, here and beyond SPUQ,
Angels just pass by Sel, we can only guess they do.~
In the central place of every heart there is a recording chamber. So long as it receives a message of beauty, hope, cheer, and courage – so long are you young. When the wires are all down and our heart is covered with the snow of pessimism and the ice of cynicism, then, and only then, are you grown old.” ~Douglas MacArthur
