FAAWIS Picnic

It had been two years since I went to the last FAAWIS picnic. And with the new location, I didn't quite know what to expect.
The weather held up though it was a little cool. It did sprinkle a little bit but it did not turn into a full-blown rain.
There was a good turnout. So many people were there that my dad had to constantly call me on my cell phone just to find out where I was! People stopped at our booth looking for me while I'd be somewhere else but eventually we found each other. I got re-acquainted with people I haven't seen for a while and met some new ones. If there was one person that stood out for me at the picnic, it was Renee (Inday) Mondano who really went out of her way to make people welcome. She was everywhere, tending to people, helping organize and just saying 'hi.' Thanks Renee for making everyone feel welcome! Everyone else was friendly and had a smile ready for everyone.
What gave me the goosebumps (besides the cold breeze blowing on my skin) was when the Philipine national anthem, "Lupang Hinirang" ("Beloved Land," I think is a fair translation) was sung. It just stirred the patriotic emotions inside me...not enough to bring tears to my eyes though!
The food was delicious as usual and there was so much of it that it was almost overwhelming. My favorite was the lechon (pig roast). It was especially good this time. I'm not a lechon person so if you get me to eat it, it must be good! Then there was a young-jackfruit-with-coconut-milk dish. It was pretty yummy! I never did catch who made it and couldn't find it the next time I went through the line.
I presented Connor and Colin with the T-shirts that I ordered for them. Printed on them was: Filipino, from East to West, We Stand Proud. It had the Philippine Flag and the Statue of Liberty on it. Colin was so excited that he wore it right away, over his sleeveless shirt while Connor was so-so.
Tommy liked being passed from one person to another: from Lolo to Lola to uncles, to daddy, to mommy and Connor. He watched his older brothers who had fun playing with the giant chess under the FANHS-WI tent and guarded the captured pieces. Then the boys played kick ball with their uncles afterward. They cheered on as they watched their Uncles Ondo and Ray play tug-of-war, who lost twice. "The Marine was defeated," we teased uncle Ondo. They wanted to watch them play volleyball but we could not stay any longer. We had to leave early for it had been a long day for everybody with Tom taking the boys to baseball practice the entire morning then running an errand on the north side of town before stopping at the picnic.
It was a great day and I'm so glad I went. The experience exceeded my expectations.