“Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies.”-Proverbs 31:10
Every year there is one special day put aside for mothers. What else could it be called but “Mother’s Day.” On this day we remember our mother who mattered to us and have also affected us in some profound, meaningful & permanent way. A mother is one person in our lives who has done more for us than anyone else.
Photo#1 -was taken at Boracay, Aklan (Philippines). During our sentimental journey to the Philippines on February 2010, my husband & I wandered by this lovely landmark called Villa Lourdes Resort. This place suddenly reminded me of our mother whose name was Lourdes Villa Dirige. At 76 years old our mother passed away in April 4, 1991 after she had bout w/ bone cancer. Although it had been 20 years ago since her passing, I vividly remember her.
It seems that almost everyone thinks that their particular mother is the best one, and they cite lots of reasons. It is undoubtedly true that there are many wonderful mothers out there, and they are all very important to the people that love and care for them. Even though I believe that our mother is the best, I never mean to imply that she is better than other mothers. She is, however, better for me & my siblings.
The relationship & memories that I had with my mother as I got older was actually more important to me & the most remembered. One of my greatest joys in life is my mother’s approval of my becoming an artist. Often times she bragged to friends & relatives that she had a daughter who is an artist.
OIL PAINTING BY Evelyne D. Resella -"50th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY
Describing my mother in such a short space is virtually impossible. It’s difficult & unfair to write about just one positive personality traits. As an artist I’d like to sketch her in seven strong strokes. I am sure that’s the way our mother wanted to be portrayed. I like to use her name LOURDES to paint her as best as I could.
LOURDES was Lovely/Loyal, Orderly/Optimistic, Unique, Dynamic, Resourceful, Expressive, and Strong.
L-Lovely, Loving & Loyal- Lourdes was a lovely woman & mother. She had the fairest skin among her dark skinned sisters. She’s not the simple type. She preferred wearing makeup, lipstick and jewelries. She dressed up very well & had a queenly bearing despite of limited wardrobe budget. As long as I can remember, our mother has always been there for us. She was a loving mother & loved being full time housewife.
Compared to my father who was also dark, it was like coffee & cream joined together. She was also a very loyal wife. The long and stable marriage of our parents was an inspiration to all the children, grandchildren & relatives. It gave me a security in my emotional life. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary which was one of the memorable events in our family history. We are blessed to have parents who had an enduring marriage.
GOLDEN WEDDING ANNIVERSARY OF ATTY & MRS. GREGORIO DIRIGE
O-Orderly,Organized & Optimistic- Our mother is actually an ordinary woman but her tiny physique was sculpted with an orderly, organized & optimistic soul & heart. Lourdes liked an orderly & clean house. During those hard times in Manila, when we couldn't afford to hire a maid, I helped Mamang cleaned our house by waxing the floor & scrubbing w/ bunot (coconut husk.) We believed that cleanliness is next to Godliness. Although we lived in a small house in Manila, it was neat & clean. When we immigrated to the U.S. our houses got bigger and beautifully decorated but still being orderly and clean.
During countless family get-togethers & parties, our mother was always an organized planner. Cooking was her passion in life. She had the natural ability to plan exceptional and delicious banquet menu. She prepared and executed from scratch, all the home cooked gourmet Filipino dishes and desserts w/ perfection. No wonder it was always over or beyond successful. We admired & raved about her cooking which no one of us could surpass.
She was also very optimistic & looked at the bright side of life. Despite many financial problems in the past and challenging illnesses, she was a winner. She carried her cross & faced her toughest challenges w/ great optimism.
U-Unique- We are all unique and so is our mother. As a unique individual she stood among her peers & relatives. She’s unique in many practical ways & less in theories/academics. But it didn’t mean she’s not smart. She had what Filipinos called “ma-abilidad.” Her greatest joys in life was her wonderful family & the academic successes of her seven children. She was not a perfect woman. She had many positive traits as well as negative characteristics. But what I remembered most was that she was a praying & Godly woman. She spent lots of time praying for her children, grandchildren, relatives & friends. She also practiced what she preached. When she immigrated to the U.S. she was active w/ the women’s fellowship at church & liked to do mission work too.
R-Resourceful-Lourdes was a very resourceful & creative mother. This was her ability & talent that I deeply believed I inherited mostly from her. I remember when I was a young girl, my mother sewed many of my pretty dresses. She browsed on beautiful children’s shops to get ideas & would copy them at home. When I went to school & Sunday school my friends would raved about my dresses. My mother couldn't paint well like me but she had many creative ideas. She was resourceful and not wasteful. She had a champagne taste on a beer budget. A wonderful trait to live a good life w/out having a huge inheritance.
D-Dynamic- Our mother although small in stature was like a dynamite. She was forceful & energetic when calamities hit us unexpected. Back in Manila, when we encountered numerous earthquakes, floods & fire, she was very quick as lightning. First she would gather her family to safety and then grabbed whatever belongings we could take along.
E-Expressive – She had a life engulfed w/ kindly soul & heart. She expressed her love, generosity and kindness by her willingness to help everyone’s misery though she did not have much. When we were in the Philippines, I saw countless of relatives, lived w/ us while pursuing their education in Manila. We didn’t have a big house but some relatives had no place to stay and so she let them lived w/ us, free of charge.
She’s also very hospitable. When we brought home many church friends from our youth group, she always cooked for them. She never thought about the expenses as long as everyone enjoyed. That’s her happiness & she was doing it for the Lord.
S-Strong- Her strong character encouraged & inspired me to overcome hardships later in life. She was the kind of woman w/ strong will power to face the toughest challenges in life. Growing up in the Philippines with less money was tough. I vividly remember the misfortune poured down our family when our father lost his job for many years. We had to sell our land, car, jewelries and began from zero. In financial poverty our mother demonstrated fortitude, perseverance & determination to go on by having faith in God. With six daughters in our family the women are the “Speakers of the House.” Our late father & only brother are the silent minorities.
“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts. “~Washington Irving
Mr. & Mrs. Rhod Resella beaming with joyful smiles. It was a dazzling "Once-In-A-Lifetime" experience to ride & parade on a Cinderella carriage around 
Hermana Mayora 2011 Dr. Ofelia V. Dirige and sister Ebb
Dr. Ofelia V. Dirige with escort Mr. Jay Montenegro (One of the Ilang-Ilang Awardees))
