FRIENDS FROM CYRENE

After the 2010 Ligaya Triduum, where I served as the Coordinator-in-charge, I asked for the list of brothers and sisters in Ligaya who helped in one way or the other make the Triduum the success that it evidently was.  I was amazed that there were 294 individuals … not counting those who volunteered to serve as lay ministers and lent their crucifixes.  Easily, we must have had 320+ brothers, sisters, and their children who made the Triduum possible;  that’s equivalent to nearly two Ligaya districts combined!!  (See a related post in the Ligaya website entitled “A CAST OF HUNDREDS SERVE IN THE TRIDUUM” for a list of those names.)

Many of them must have felt the same way as Simon of Cyrene did, when he was forced to help carry the cross of Jesus.  Forced or not, I could see how these men, women and children, joyfully carried their crosses. 

Without meaning to leave any one out, I’d like to just cite a few illustrations. 

The set up of those 2,000+ monoblock chairs had to be done on a Wednesday.  Few brothers could take off from work on that day, being a workday.  So, who shows up?  Several older brothers from Central A who have retired and had time on their hands.  Eli Agsalud was first on the scene ready and raring to give it his best!  Mind you.  This is no mean feat — unstacking, and lining up those hundreds of chairs, and then wiping each one of them — in the heat of the Holy Week sun.  Yet they did it, with a joy in their hearts, a sweat in their brow, and an aching back to remind them of the pain of the cross. 

Someone had to do the oftentimes thankless job of looking for volunteers, and producing the warm bodies to serve.  Alan Santos, Sector Servant of Central, filled the role.  He’s the Simon of Simons.

We aspire to produce a manual that will detail all the necessary tasks and guidelines for future Triduum teams.  But some work is the result of seasons of service, just like the service put in by the Punzal family.  They tend to the eucharist service with quiet honor for the elements of the Eucharist celebration.    Then, too, as I observed how well executed the acolyte service was, I remember seeing Peter Legaspi quietly rehearsing his young wards.  The less the community notice them, the better they are at their task.  And they were excellent.

As everyone went home to have their easter feasts, there were several brothers (and their wives and families who had to wait in the wings) who scoured the entire covered courts not just once, but twice, and maybe thrice, to scrape off all the candle wax drippings.  I realize that no matter how often we advise others to watch their drippings, some either forget or fail to pay attention.  And so, the tedious task of cleaning the covered courts and leaving it as blessed as we had first received it lay on the hands of these brothers.  Eric Santos and his team handling physical set up carried the heaviest physical burdens of all.  First in, last out.

There were many more.  Like the men and women who prepared their sharing, but who did not make it to the Recollection short list.  Those hidden in the wings of the stage, poised to act if and when something unexpected occurs, like those who scrambled when the power circuit for the projector failed midstream in the recollection.  Those who transported and carried heavy jars to decorate the altar of repose; they could have hired others to do this, but chose to take off from work and do it themselves.  The sisters who stayed up until past midnight to tweak the stage lights.  And the dozens of hired men, who, though not members of community, gave up their vacation time, for a small fee to sustain their family’s needs, to make the stage and the sound system look and sound perfect.

Of course, there was my Core Team.  They led the troops.  They set the standards.  They obeyed.  They waited.  They prayed.

  Let me acknowledge them:

• There were three event directors who took charge of each of the three days and everything that went into those three events, from conceptualization, to organization, to execution:  AU SANTOS (Thursday), MANDY VILLAREAL (Friday), LESLIE SULIT (Saturday).  This was Au’s first Ligaya event, and she did it like a pro.  Mandy had to restrain his anxiety while waiting for me to complete my recollection concept and script.  Leslie, well, had the largest team of participants to contend with (because of the dances), and most of these were assembled a few days before her event.    Though these two are seasoned event directors for Ligaya, until I came along in their service life, I’m sure they haven’t worked with anyone like me who prayed that this service life would be difficult for them.  (Leslie said it so well in her blog:  “A TRIDUUM MARTHA”.)
• Making sure that everyone who came to the Triduum had a meaningful experience, JUDITH ALPAY had to set up sufficient multimedia aids at or on the days themselves, given the limited budget, few volunteers and long nights.  She led the Sounds, Light, and Multimedia Sub-Teams.  She painted the black, gray and white stage with color, and together with the Sounds crew made sure that the people in the back of the covered courts were connected to the front with good audio and screen displays.
• You would think that the Triduum liturgy is fairly straightforward.  But because this is what people came for, the Liturgy Team had to make sure that everything was done flawlessly.  This job lay on the shoulders of JON NISPEROS, Team Head for Liturgy.  He had to coordinate with the most number of sub-team leaders, including each of the event directors and Fr. Herb himself.  So, though straightforward, the execution of all the three liturgies was complex.  No one else could do it better than Jon.
• ERIC SANTOS took the lead in the physical set up.  Blessed by the generous contributions of time and resources by Jo Tecson and his company, Eric had to deal with budget constraints, with last minute changes, and with advance preparations.  He had to begin work earliest of all, because his output required the longest lead times.  Truly the first man in, and the last man out.
• Administering the entire Triduum from the Core Team’s point of view rested on MARLENE NISPEROS who made sure we were all informed, and empowered with resources.  With the invaluable assistance of Leni Plaza and the entire LNP office, Marlene and Leni provided the “oil” that made this machinery running well.  Despite an illness that required treatment that threatened to sideline her during the Holy Week, and other work as secretary of our District, Marlene made the Triduum her priority and put the community’s interest above hers.

It was wonderful cross training for each and everyone of them.  And, true to the example set by Jesus Christ, I am certain that each of them experienced a glorious rebirth.

You can see why I am so blessed to have an army of Simons by my side, picking up their crosses for the sake of Christ and His Ligaya community.  They are the unsung heroes of Ligaya, and I present this humble blogpost as my song of thanksgiving to the Lord for all of them and my exaltation of their response to “give more”.  I pray that the victory of Jesus on the cross is theirs as well, and that they would each experience victory in their lives today.

People see the face of Jesus.  I’m blessed.  Not only did I see the face of Jesus in these brothers and sisters.  I saw His face, His hands, His feet.