COMPLIMENTARY

It had been a long time since I last attended a medical meeting, so when I went to join the meeting of Phi-lam life Medical Examiners I did not expect to see anyone until a lady physician came in pointing her finger at me.

I recognized her as someone who was with me when I worked in Nigeria, Africa. I came back to the Philippines in 1978 when my father died. I didn't return to Nigeria because I discovered that when I left, my wife worked again, contrary to our agreement that she would stay at home to take care of the kids. I couldn't allow my children in their formative stage of growth to grow up only with the maids. Three maids could never substitute for a parent.

It was my "staying" back home that triggered several misunderstandings between my wife and me. Ever since, she became very assertive and most of the time illogical and unreasonable. I just kept my patience, hoping and praying that finally all my children shall understand our "quite abnormal" family set up. The children shall someday realize my point while my wife shall finally acknowledge her own shortcomings.

My wife continued in her almost maniacal way in providing our children with material things, while I tried my best to be carefully guiding them on the right path to a better and more relevant life. It should have been the other way around but perhaps God allowed us to be together in matrimony because we would compliment each other somehow.

It did hurt me to see my wife worked so hard but it was that kind of lifestyle that kept her strong, healthy and youthful. In the course of our relationship I somehow discovered so many things that complimented us together. For instance in the choice of viand I always picked the back part of the milk fish while she would go with the belly. She likes the head portion of the lapu-lapu while I picked the tail part.In bread, she would rather eat the inside of a ban while I always enjoyed the outside more "cooked" part. Well, after 37 years we were still doing well as husband and wife... parents to our children and grandchildren.