Life begins at Forty...

(note: this article was written in December 2010 when i celebrated my 40th birthday)

"Life begins at forty." A popular saying that i have now to see for  myself as today, i now belong to said age group.

I always wondered what's the rationale for said phrase. Upon browsing the net, i learned that one's 40th birthday welcomes you into the beautiful "middle age." as eighty is known as the expected life expectancy of a person, generally speaking.  This age does not have the casual immaturity of the youth, nor does it have the constant dependency of old age. You can enjoy your 40th birthday in quiet reflection on the four decades of a beautiful life. It is the time for you to enjoy the little moments rather than focus on bigger events.

The number forty has many Old Testament Biblical references:

•the forty days and nights God sent rain in the great flood of Noah (Genesis 7:4);
•the forty days Moses spent on Mount Sinai with God (Exodus 24:18);
 

•the forty years the Hebrew people wandered in the desert while traveling to the Promised Land (Numbers 14:33);
•the forty days Jonah in his prophecy of judgment gave the city of Nineveh in which to repent (Jonah 3:4).
•the forty days and nights Elijah spent walking to Mount Horeb (1 Kings 19:8);
AND, Jesus retreated into the wilderness, where he fasted for forty days, and was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-2, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-2).

So what are the significant events in my four decades of existence? Perhaps, this piece is a sort of biographical journey of where i am now. Just click the underscore to see the links of the blogs and pictures thereof.Come leap with me through time..

DECADE ONE: (1970 to 1980) THE GORECHO UKAY UKAY KIDS

 I was born December 21, 1970 to Ponching Gorecho and Linda Reyes, second in their five siblings. A Sagittarian under the Year of the Dog.  Mama said that among her children, she had the most difficult time in giving birth to me because i have a "big head."  Before i was to be baptized in January 16, 1971, they said  that my lolo wanted a pinoy name for me using the calendar, which he wanted to be PROCOPIO. Thank God lolo's suggestion was not granted by mama and papa or else i will have the nickname "PROCKY" . My Reyes clan seriously practiced the biblical saying "go and multiply" as we were 40 plus cousins. On the other hand, i attempted to make the family tree of the Gorecho clan as i usually tell people that i am proud of my Boholano roots. The Gorecho is a Galician surname meaning it was patterned from the inhabitants of Galicia , Spain .

We are  five kids, four boys  and one girl  .  Papa too had the same number of siblings: they are four boys in a row and the youngest was also a girl. I was the counterpart of Papa being the second to the eldest. People wonder why we have several stuff in our house which Papa did not want to dispose, especially the shoes. Papa justified this by saying that while he was growing up, he never had the luxury of owning new ones since both he and mama came from a family with very modest means. He tried to instill this in us such that long before ukay-ukay became famous, we were already wearing second hand clothes and shoes, sleeping on beds, sitting on chairs and sofas that papa bought from the secondhand shops in Bangkal. Seldom did we wear brand-new clothes, except maybe during Christmases when our Titas bought us clothing on an installment basis - one Tita would buy us pants while another took care of the shirts. Never mind the shoes, andyan naman ang Bangkal. We became the walking models for ukay-ukay.

DECADE TWO: (1981 to 1990) THE BAGETS NERD AND UP AKTIBISTA

 In 1984, I finished  primary school at Gen. Pio Del Pilar Elementary School as salutatorian. Four years later, I became the Valedictorian of  batch87 of TAKLA , the slang for Sta. Clara Parish School, which at that time  is known as the "only catholic school for boys" in Pasay. It was our growing up period, aptly depicted by the then BAGETS movie. In 2012, our batch will celebrate our 25th year silver anniversary, which will coincide with the 50th year of TAKLA.

Then from 1987 to 1991, i became one of the so-called "Iskolar ng Bayan" as  part of the UP Diliman studentry when i took BS. Economics.  Basically, I became attached to three main organizations , Economics Society or ECOSOC, Philippine Collegian or KULE, and SAMASA Alliance as well as the College Editors Guild of the Philippines or CEGP .My relatives and friends usually asked me "bakit ka ba naging aktibista". Perhaps my answer will be because UP is the perfect place to grow in all aspects, whether it be politically, socially, etc. Yes, I myself became part of UP Activisim movement. And i am proud that it made me a better person. Perhaps, members of the various generation of activism has their own way of reminiscing such so era."Iba nung panahon namin"...My passion for photography likewise developed.

DECADE THREE: (1991 to 2000): THE LAW STUDENT - JOURNALIST

I entered UP College of Law in 1992 and earned  my law degree in 1998. I shifted from the day class to the  evening class to be part of the  "working student" species of lawyers. I write for TODAY as one of their regular reporter as well as international news agencies like Reuters, AFP, AP, UPI and others covering a wide range of topics such as environment, human rights, politics, peace process, agriculture, agrarian reform and many more . Take note: my daily schedule is writing in the morning and the afternoon before going to UP to attend my classes in the evening. Then I go home where I read the assignments for the following day during the almost two hours trip of the bus going to Las Pinas. In between my work and classes, I still go hiking with my friends called the Squakings or SKWAKS

In August23, 1997 i was kidnapped  which i wrote in my piece "Face to Face with Crime"  “SIGE, tumakbo ka na ng mabilis at huwag kang lilingon at baka barilin pa kita (Run, Run fast and don’t turn back or I’ll shoot you).” The words could be apart of a movie script, but these were in fact words of my abductors . To me, words of freedom.

In April 1999, i am officially Atty. Dennis R. Gorecho, the lawyer,  after the Supreme Court posted the successful passers. I chronicled my experience in taking the 1998 bar exams in "Notes in Bar Exams."

In the same year. my elder  brother, my Kuya Welthy  or now Fr. Philip,  was ordained as priest.  Two of the Gorecho  sons entered the priesthood, the other the youngest son Melvin/ Beng or now called   Fr.Stephen. At first Mama could not accept the fact that two sons chose to serve the lord but later realized, according to Papa, that they gave up two sons but regained the whole religious order as their new sons and daughters. Tuwang-tuwa sya pag tinatawag sila na Papa and Mama Gorecho.The story has it that if there is one priest in the family, the whole clan is blessed up to the third generation. In our case, we not only had one but two brothers into priesthood who belong to the same order, Oblates of Allaince of Twin Hearts (OATH). In some instances, they celebrate latin mass. Indeed, our faith and their vocation guided us.

DECADE FOUR: (2000 to 2010): THE LAWYER AND THE FROG PRINCE

In 2001 started collecting frogs which were  featured several times in different TV programs such as Mel and Joey and SaPulso, thus earning me the several titles such as Frog Prince, Atty. Kokak and now Kapitan Kokak.Perhaps this froggy character is perfect for my penchant to travelling and taking of jump shots.

May 17, 2002, my mother died of lymphoma, three days after she celebrated her 61st birthday. One and a half year later, or on November 16, 2003, Papa followed after he died due to complications of diabetes. I wrote a piece called "Kamatis Love Story of Ponching and Linda" to immortalize their love to one another

In 2001 i joined the  law firm, Sapalo Velez Bundang Bulilan Law office  which is now on its 34th year with a battery of eighteen t lawyers : four partners plus seven in manila, three in iloilo, one in cebu, one in cagayan de oro and two in davao.. Hoping for a more prosperous 35th year in existence. 2011 is my tenth year in the office. I am now head of the seafarers' department wherein one of my focus is delivering paralegal lectures on seafarers' rights to the various stakeholders, the seafarers and their families as well as the maritime schools.  Ironically, even if our firm deals with intellectual property, i am an afficionado of Quiapo DVDs.

As Cicero said :  This wine is forty years old. It certainly doesn't show its age. (Latin: Hoc vinum Falernum fannorum quadragenta est. Bene aetatem fert.).