Cory

I was born a little less than a month after EDSA People Power Revolution, so I never really had much of an experience about that revolution. All I know from it are the things I heard from my parents and my grandmother and from school. I’m ashamed to admit this, but those stories never really inspired me nor drove me to care about current events; I’m just mostly relieved that I wasn’t born then.

Now here I am at home, in front of the TV, crying my eyes out while watching Kris Aquino’s interview in The Buzz. The last time I cried like this over a death of a public figure was probably during all those Rico Yan tributes…and Former President Corazon Aquino is definitely so much bigger than Rico Yan.

Cory Aquino
Photo from PCIJ

I remember the one time I got a close encounter with Cory. I was sitting at the edge of one pew, waiting for the First Friday mass to start at the Holy Family Chapel in Eastwood during June last year. As I was looking at the altar thoughtfully (back then I was praying for my supposed WYD Sydney trip), someone approached me and said, “Excuse me.” As I moved to let them pass through to sit, I realized that it was actually Cory, clad in a yellow dress, off to hear the mass with the rest of us in the chapel.

That’s probably the closest I could ever get to her, and I remember noting how healthy she seemed then. When I found out about her passing yesterday, I wasn’t surprised but I was definitely saddened. I’m not exactly a big Cory fan unlike my best friend, but I know she was a good leader, a loving mother and most of all a prayerful woman.

It’s because of her that I was born in a freer country. And for that, I thank you, Cory.

Rest in peace, Corazon Aquino.