Melanie

It was a cool night outside the NAIA. I came with Jorge's nephew to pick her up. With my blurred vision, I scanned the new arrivals going down the ramp across the visitors' area. When a couple of vehicles drove away, I saw her, craning her neck looking for someone. We walked quickly across the pedestrian lane. As always, she stood there, looking like a model, with her long, windswept hair, her clothes still looking as pristine as the first time she put them on, which I knew was 14 hours ago. She had put on some weight but not so much anybody would notice. Except me, who hasn't seen her in 6 years. There was an anxious look on her face when I approached and called out to her, "Hey there!" Her face lit up when she realized it was me and her dazzling smile beamed at me out of the gloom cast by her tall figure against the bright lights shining over the ramp.

Still the same, yet different somehow. Melanie...

Her ten-year-old daughter, Dominique, peeked out from the bulk of the luggage on the cart beside her. After hugs and kisses, I finally got to meet the daughter who was only 3 months old the last time I saw her.

Dominique's complexion was startling. She had that deep tan of the typical Filipina morena, a smooth and creamy brown. Her chocolate brown hair had streaks of copper and gold in it. Her mom told me the streaks were highlights created by too much sun. The girl is a swimmer and has won her share of swimming competitions. Melanie told me both her girls and son are swimming enthusiasts and she's raising dolphins, not kids!

They only stayed overnight and flew to Bacolod City the next day.

One month later, they came back to Manila for their trip back to the US. Again, I met her at the airport, this time at the Centennial. The flight was delayed but the long wait was forgotten when I met up with Melanie and Dominique again. There was a sad look on Dominique's face. I know exactly how she felt at that moment. The many times I have taken a flight from Bacolod and ending up with tears on my face, missing my mother whom I had to leave behind, missing my family, missing my friends, missing my hometown the very second the plane lifts up from the tarmac.

The next two days before their flight back to the US was a whirlwind of activity. Saturday was spent at Picnic Grove in Tagaytay. We followed the half-kilometer Adventure Trail and Dominique had her pic taken at the hanging bridge. We took pictures of the famed Taal Volcano and its surrounding lake. Although the weather was really cool, it was not foggy, so we had a good view of the volcano.

Sunday, the day before their trip home, we spent at the Mall of Asia. The day was spent in last minute shopping, meeting Melanie's high school friends for lunch, then more last minute shopping. Melanie confessed she was tired out but the whole time she spent in the Philippines was the best month she's had in a while. This is probably the first time in ten years that she came home for a happy occasion and not for the sad and tragic task of burying a parent.

On the other hand, Dominique is sooooo excited about coming back to the country. She told her mom, after spending a week in Negros, that she will come back in 2 years. After spending a couple of weeks here, she declared that she will definitely come back next year. Just before she left with her mom for the States, she told us she'll be coming back in six months. She really loves it here. I just wish she has a deeper desire to learn the dialect though. Whenever her mom and I talk to each other in the vernacular, she would always yell, "Speak English!" Her mom and I would just laugh and tell her to learn how to speak Filipino instead.

All in all, it was all about experience for Dominique. And while she may think she got all the best experiences during her stay here, I got my fair share of experiences, looking at my country and my hometown anew, thru the eyes of a ten-year-old Fil-American girl.

Thanks for the company, Dominique and Melanie. Hope to see you both soon, hopefully with Lindsay and Jalen and Dwight!