Sari Santiago, My Diva Catholic Movie Mate Bitch of a Friend

I miss Sari Santiago!  She was my very good friend who passed away due to Leukemia last July 25, 2012.

***************************************

HERE'S SOMETHING I WROTE LAST AUGUST 2, 2012, TO GIVE MOMMY NORA (Sari's Mom) AN IDEA OF HOW WE KNEW AND APPRECIATED HER DAUGHTER.

You know what, I really don’t recall how I met Sari! She was just there nalang, in the ZNXS group. Then again, I also don’t recall
when I officially became a part of them! I remember literally (through writing essays) dueling with Veca as to which group was better: Duran Duran or Menudo (I’m cringing now!) on a bulletin board. This feud of sorts got me to notice (and respect) Veca’s talent with words. My best friend at that time was Mari Brias. We’d been close since 5th grade but she was transferred to Section B on our Freshman
Year (Povedans since Nursery). Later than sooner, I started hanging around more with Veca and Sari (because they were always together).

I do remember that Sari sat to my right, right next to me in class. She was the new, quiet girl with a slight accent from a country I didn’t know. When Sari and Veca were busy talking or quietly making wise cracks about the teacher (and there were many with substandard grammar and diction), I remember shushing them (Sari and Veca, not the teachers) complete with pointed stare (I tried to listen as much as I could, as well as, read the teacher’s lips, because on hind sight, I was already a little deaf then). I do remember that Sari was a little miffed at me for the katarayan, but true to form, Sari let me be, accepting that I needed their cooperation to pass high school.

Veca, Sari and I started a tradition of posing as a threesome, with the same positioning, back in Anna de Vera’s house. I was in the center (the Leo in me dictates that I be the center of attention), I was wearing my black half shirt and I’d curled my hair using my Vidal Sasoon electric curlers. Ever since then, we always made a point of doing this at every possible occasion! This tradition was done for about 20 years. I MUST find all our threesome shots! These will be sent to you on the occasion that I find the most number of pictures. Surely 20 pieces for the 20 years, could be unearthed?!

Sari did complain and mourn the fact that being the bunso (sorry to Gladys!), you (her parents) got tired of taking pictures of her for posterity. She remembers so few shots of herself growing up. Maybe and most likely THAT WAS WHY she was a picture-hungry monster with a camera! She must’ve wanted to make up for a “lost” childhood, and while she could, she seemed to want to record a lot of HERstory!

It was so SUDDEN for us to lose Sari. It NEVER OCCURRED TO ME that leukemia could take her life. I was maybe both too busy to think the worst for her and too dense to believe how dangerous any cancer could be. And then, when I heard Noel say that the leukemia just took nine months to do this to US, I was taken aback by its lethal fierceness!


 She never gave us any reason to fear or stress. She did mention (July 21) on Facebook that the doctor advised you all that alternative medicine was something you could look into for the moment since her liver was not strong enough to take the chemo medicine. This entry was her gentle way to let us know her plight. I was just too dense to understand how critical her system must have been at that time. Then again, she was the type to take it all in, for as long as she could. She must have not wanted to burden us with her burden. I think she knew God would help her through it all. Her God was enough. I liked that about Sari. She had a strong, solid faith in the Lord. I remember that she did say the Rosary very often with you.

I am a slightly-practicing Catholic but still afraid for my soul, aware of the commandments and I do know I am a constantly thankful person with a personal relationship with Him. God and I do talk a lot! Now, Sari and I can continue to talk a lot, without the assistance of Globe Telecoms. The only upside to her passing I’ve recognized so far is that I’ll save on calls! Bad joke, I know, but she would have snickered at this one!

Her death is yet another wake-up call to speed up and do something more and memorable during this lifetime. Had I the long legs of Liza Berroya-Salud, I would’ve joined all the beauty pageants that would take me and would’ve found a way to insert this motto, which I surprisingly got from a teeny-bopper movie, into the answer of the Q & A Portion:

“The ultimate secret of life is the true knowledge of death. For without this knowledge, man would not strive to leave his mark upon the Earth”.

I have as yet no children with my superior genetic imprint as a legacy to mankind, but I have my word and my body as a body of inspiration for all fat women out there.  And speaking of my body, her passing is also reminding me to slow down, to remember my health. Without this machine I live in, I cannot spread light and magic! I’ve been living a life of work and more work. I am only home to sleep and shower. I have scheduled a complete health check-up before I turn 40 (August 7) and I have bought (yet another) book entitled “How To Deal With Stress” by Stephen Palmer, PhD. I’m hoping that these will point me towards a healthier direction and lengthen my life so that I can continue to be a blessing to and for others.

BTW, Did my “beauty queen motto” make you think?! Will it become a measure of your success on Earth? Will it define how fast you want to run this “race”? Will it heighten your standards to live and die, with passion in your heart? Will it inspire you to be the best friend, child, teacher, confidante, citizen and parent you can be? It had. Now, Sari has replaced this motto. Her gentle voice (at times, haha!), her steadfast faith, her patience…these are what I now strive to acquire. And when I do.... PERFECTION! Bwahahaha!

By Rosanne Araneta Pitt
(Until he is married to Angelina Jolie, I live in hope!)

***********************************************

It is days before her first death anniversary.  Our group, ZNXS, has not watched a movie together since she passed.  We may have gotten together around five to six times for dinner.  It is so different without her calling the group for a "G" or gimmick.

On a lighter note, I DID get my full physical on my 40th Birthday.  Gallstones, fatty liver and possible lumps in my humps were sighted.  I was given Crestor, advised to take Liverine (?).  After my wrist was fractured, I was prescribed Calcium Aid.  Yes, we are hitting midlife (since I plan to live at least until I'm 90) and we are starting to feel and hear the aches and creaks (sp?) in the machine.

But I continue on.  For me, for Sari, for all those I've yet to inspire and well, piss off.

I've yet to encounter the bucket that I am to kick.  Haha.

So I Believe In The Saying "Ask And You Shall Receive"

A relative thrice asked God for the things he wanted in life.  He got them too!

1)  He wanted a job or a business opportunity that would give him, in his own words, "limpak, limpak, limpak, limpak, limpak, limpak, limpak, limpak na salapi."  Loosely translated, "ooooooooooodles of money" or maybe "serious wads of dough".  Sooner than later, he had a billiard hall that was situated outside a university and so the students came in droves, to shoot some pool.  At the end of the day, he did have his wads of money OF 20 PhP BILLS.

2) After months of hard work, same relative wanted a break.  He prayed for an opportunity to go on vacation for say, about two months, where all he needed to do was laze about the whole day.  Sooner than later, he needed an operation to remove either his gall bladder or a gall stone because he had suddenly turned yellow.  Long story short, what was supposed to be at most a 6-inch cut turned out to be double that.   He proceeded to recuperate from such a wide cut for a month.  Having lain for so long, he developed fat deposits in his back.  Those needed surgical attention too.  So he spent the 2nd month on his stomach.

3) He'd always said he liked Tagaytay.  He wanted to live there.  In fact, he became a licensed real estate agent just so he could broker his own land deal in Tagaytay, and save himself some serious money.  As fate would have it, he turned to drugs and his family found him a rehab center.  In Tagaytay.  With a nice view of the Taal Volcano.

What is the lesson in all these instances?  What were this relative's short comings?  One must ask for what one wants in life.  When asking, make sure you ask for the moon, and include the most specific details!

I myself made a huge mistake in my request.  I made a list of what I wanted in a man (as you know I am unattached).  I had a liiiiiiist!  It was specific!  I mentioned "drug free", "great lover", "someone who likes to dance" among at least 20 other attributes that my man had to have.  On hindsight, I did get everything on that list cramped into one person!  What broke my heart was that I forgot to ask that he be single.

It was a painful lesson to learn.  But it was a lesson truly learned.  It has passed and I'm back to my happy, positive, if not bitchy, witty, sarcastic self!

I had a Multiply.com (now defunct) site entitled "Rosanne The Busy".  I called myself that for years.  While I was truly busy, with rackets here and there for theater, parties, commercials and seminars, I realized that being busy was NOT NECESSARILY PRODUCTIVE.  Busy could mean "running around in circles", "having no time for oneself" aside from the fact that one is working non-stop.  I was out of the house.  I was everywhere with a full calendar.

I changed that title to "Rosanne the Productive" and then I started seeing the products of my work hours.  Since I NAMED or CALLED "IT", I turned my reality around.  Why not go a step farther?!  I then decided to use the title "Rosanne The Productive, Rich and Happy".  If I'm asking, I'll go ASK!  Right?

I've been using "When you say you can, you can.  When you say you can't, you're right!"as a motivational thought.  I've been choosing words that will help me PROPERLY FILE memories and data into my brain, such as "Please remember to...." instead of "Don't forget to...." and "Not yet" instead of "No."  I've become LITERAL in my words.  I try not to generalize and use "everyday" when I mean Monday to Friday only.  I will try to refrain from using negative words such as "Traffic" (since there is never a pleasant or good traffic to be had), and "broken", "late", "ugly", "problem"....

What WORDS you use or think, YOU CALL FORTH. You attach an energy or an awareness to them that becomes a reality.

One may say I'm into the New Age stuff.  I must admit I've found "The Secret" and "The Law of Attraction" to be very appealing.  The bottom line is that you ASK (through thought, prayer, letter, pleas, orders, etc.) and that you THINK (through lists, judgments, pictures, dreams, etc.).  The more you do these, the more you want these, the more these come into your reality.

What's wrong with asking God for the moon?  He never said we couldn't!  We've always thought we couldn't.  He loves us.  He wants us to be happy.  Why couldn't and wouldn't He give us our heart's desires?

It is up to man to decode, to decipher, to discern, to discover what would really make us happy and what would make others happy.  We have the power of thought and prayer.  We have HOPE.

Remind me to post my VISION BOARDS here.  I'd pasted my face on top of thin bodies in bikinis, dancesport champions on that 1st Place Stand and seminar speakers whose audience looked enthralled.  I'd cut up cars, trips, rings, houses, dresses that I wanted to own, wear, etc.  It is truly amazing what I've acquired and achieved over time.  We can focus on goals and make things happen.