I am 50+.. I came to the U.S. when I was 24. It was June 1979. It's been almost 30 years ago. Although I am not there yet, I am content with where I am--I am not lacking in any thing, in fact, I am overflowing with blessings. I am married for almost 30 years to Val, the same man I dated and loved in college. He started out as a U.S. Navy seaman recruit in the Philippines, now a Captain in the U. S. Navy Medical Service Corps. My daughter, Hannah, 25 yrs old, single, graduated from Georgetown University School of Nursing, now a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps. My son, Joshua, 21 yrs old, also single, will soon graduate this April from University of Pittsburgh, College of Business Administration and will also be in the U.S. Navy as a Naval Flight Officer. I am the only one in my family who is not in the military---but, “Navy wife and mom, the toughest jobs in the military!!” I work @ Kaiser Permanente as an on-call Clinical RN. My nursing career started out as a nursing assistant in a California convalescent home when my husband was stationed in Long Beach in 1979. Within 6 months, we moved 3X. My career was put on hold because of the needs of my family, raising my 2 children, and supporting my military husband. It was also dependent on where and when my husband was stationed and how long was our stay in one place. It was and still is my pleasure to serve and support my family... From 1979 to 1983, we were like gypsies. We packed and unpacked our household goods—to Long Beach; San Diego; Guam; Denver, Colorado; Portsmouth, Virginia; Denver, Colorado again; Germantown, Maryland; Bethesda, Maryland---here, there, and everywhere--- then finally in 1983, we settled in one place for 6 years and started to put everything together. What a struggle and what a long wait!! I began my career with Kaiser Permanente as a nursing assistant. By God's grace, in 1985, I passed the RN board exam, began working as a Urology Clinical Nurse. While I was working as a nurse then, I was also studying for my Master’s degree, as well as busy taking care of the family. Again, because of God’s goodness and mercy, I finished my master’s degree before we packed up again for a new duty station in 1989. This time, our tour of duty was for 3 yrs in the Philippines. While in the Philippines, I took a Spouse /Child Abuse counselor position, that required a nursing background, in the Social Work Dept of the U.S. Naval Hosp Cubi Point, and later became a School Nurse in one of the Dept of Defense Dependents Schools inside Subic Naval Base. We were there when Mt. Pinatubo erupted. We were forced to evacuate back to the U.S… From 1989 to 1998, we moved 4X again--Philippines; Ft. Meade, Maryland; Seoul, Korea; Monrovia, Maryland and now, Ijamsville, Maryland...We have been in this area since 1998. Thank God!! I went back to work @ Kaiser Permanente and had to start all over again....I took an on-call position for awhile, then got a permanent position as Obgyn Clinical Nurse, became the Lead/Charge Nurse after a year, then took a promotion to become the Peds/Obgyn Clinical Coordinator….Desiring to simplify and de-stressed/uncomplicate my life, I resigned 3 years ago as Clinical Coordinator and went back to work as an on-call Clinical Nurse. I love it!! God is good that I am able to do this. HE gave me a loving, hardworking and a very considerate husband who has a good and stable military job. What more can I ask? Need I ask for more? Just one more, Lord, that we, as a family and as individuals, will finish well and will fulfill each of our destiny in You.....This is my hope and my prayer.
So, yes, I am 50+, and I am not a finish product yet (no one will ever be a finish product anyway until we come face to face with our MAKER and then we will be changed!). I am a clay, still being molded. God is not finish with me yet. But I know I am maturing, continuously growing and together w/ my husband, Val, we are reaching out to other Filipino families in our area who also express the desire, the hunger, the thirst to know God more and to make Him known.. I am very open to knowing more about God but more so to knowing God more intimately in my life, in my being..I want to know more about life, about people, about anything, about everything!!.. I am a life long learner....This I am confident though: That HE, who has begun a good work in me, in all of us, will bring into completion what HE has started until the day of His return..
For the past 52 and the coming years in my life, all praises, honor and glory be to Jesus-- my God, my Savior and my Lord-- alone....
