||“No man is an island” is not just a saying and a song but a reality. ||
Before each one of us is born into this world, there should have been an agreement between individuals. There should have had at least two people who agreed that a child must be born into this world. This is true to all persons in the world. In special cases where there is only a single parent, that is a mother without a husband, at least that mother and a midwife had agreed to meet somewhere so that a child is born.
Our first parents are not an exception to this reality. When God created Adam, there are more than two Persons planning for the creation of man. Christians believed that the Triune God, the Blessed Trinity, The Father, The Son and The Holy Ghost, created Adam and Eve. That is why, when we read the Sacred Scriptures, we knew from Genesis that God said,
||“Let US make man according to our image and likeness.” (Gen.1:26).||
Obviously, the angels are not Creators for they are just created beings like us. So, when God said “Let US make man according to our image and likeness”, God was talking to Himself. God the Father, the First Person of the Blessed Trinity, was talking to the Second and Third Person of the Triune God.
||“No man is an island; no man really stands alone by himself."||
Even the truth about our existence as individual beings would tell us that this proverb is true. I was not here in this world by accident. I am here because there was a time when my father and my mother agreed and decided to generate a child. We are six children in the family. I am the fifth child.
I was born in Binitinan, Balingasag, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao, Philippines on the Feast Day of St. Louise Marie de Montfort, April 28, 1973 but I was named Rolando in honor of the Catholic martyr, Blessed Rolando Rivi who was killed on April 13, 1945 because of his Catholic Faith. I used to celebrate April 28 as my Birthday but before I was married to the very precious woman named Ellyn, I discovered that the records of my birth in my Baptismal Certificate and in my Birth Certificate did not match. Based on my Birth Certificate, I was born on September 28, 1973, a date which is five months later than the one recorded in my Baptismal Certificate.
When I was still a one week old infant, I was sick and suffered a very high fever. My parents were afraid that I might die so even if it was a dark night, they brought me to the doctor whose clinic was located in the nearby town of Jasaan, Misamis Oriental. My parents were not very pious but they promised to Our Lady of Lourdes that if I should live after that incident, they will offer me to Her. I survived and they fulfilled their promise. I was offered to Our Lady of Lourdes in Binuangan, Misamis Oriental.
I spent most of my childhood days in Binitinan, Balingasag, Misamis Oriental, Northern Mindanao, Philippines. I learned the basics of Catholic prayers from our neighbor Nang Felisa.
||(“Nang” is the shorter form of the Cebuano word “Manang” which means “older woman”.)||
When I was already an elementary pupil, I learned the basics of Catholic Doctrines from Lola Talia, a catechist.
||(“Lola” is a Cebuano word which means “grandmother”. It is quiet common among the Cebuanos to call the older women at their 50’s “Lola”).||
So, from a community of 8 persons in the family, I learned to mingle with the greater community in the neighbourhood and in our school as well. Much of the knowledge I learned about Religion was from other people whom I personally met during private or public conversations, seminars, open forum, and the rest from books, magazines, videos, radio and TV programs and from the social media sites.
I was attracted to the Priesthood but I was not able to join any religious congregation. Instead, I became an ardent lay Catholic apologist since my High School days. During my college days, I had friendly discussions with my classmates and acquaintances at school. We had various topics which usually ended up in Religion. Due to lack of necessary financial support and some problems, I quit studying in college.
I joined the National Speakers Bureau of the Catholic Faith Lay Apostolic Movement of the Philippines (CF-LAMP). I was assigned as a CF-LAMP speaker and lecturer in the Vizayas and Mindanao areas in the late 90’s. In 1995, I transferred my residence in the beautiful island province of Camiguin in Northern Mindanao, Philippines. In this little paradise which I call “Isla Paraiso” (Paradise Island), I met plenty of pious people with the natural “mark” of hospitality and amiability.
When I decided to stay in the town of Mambajao (Capital town of Camiguin Province), Msgr. Abelardo Cabillan, H.P. invited me to work in the parish convent. I was happy and lived in San Nicolas de Tolentino parish convent for almost five years. I became a Sacristan Mayor, a lector, a commentator, a catechist (for 14 years), a choir leader, a “Bible apostle” (who had undergone the trainers training conducted by the Central Committee of the Archdiocesan Biblical Apostolate in the Archdiocese of Cagayan de Oro) and a member of the PPCRV-VOTECARE volunteers. (I used to be a volunteer of the National Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) in 1992 under the supervision of the late Fr. Nilo Aguiman, SSJV, parish priest of Mother of Perpetual Help Parish, Baliwagan, Balingasag, Misamis Oriental.) During the last manual National Elections in the Philippines (2007), I was chosen by the (Archdiocesan) PPCRV Organization Head, Fr. Nathaniel C. Lerio, SSJV to represent PPCRV-NASSA-LENTE in the municipal canvassing.
||(PPCRV-NASSA-LENTE is the abbreviation for “Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting-National Secretariat for Social Action - Legal Network for Truthful Elections”. It is the paralegal arm of the Catholic Church for an honest, orderly and peaceful Election.)||
At the age of 30, I decided to find a girl and marry. I prayed to God through the intercession of St. Joseph. God gave me a very precious woman to last for my lifetime. Her name is Ellyn.
As I already mentioned, the entries of dates of my birthday in the Baptismal Certificate and Birth Certificate did not match. When my wife and I applied for marriage, the Local Civil Registrar officer in our municipality advised me to use the entries found in my Birth Certificate to avoid further problems since we were given only 90 days to complete the requirements for our application for marriage. Nevertheless, my wife and I were married according to the Catholic Sacrament of Matrimony on the 5th day of June, 2005.
We were blessed by God with a daughter in 2005. I am very happy and inspired with the presence of our little princess in the family. We named her Mary Carolyn derived from “Mary” the name of the Mother of God and Carolyn from the combined names of St. PolyCARp, ROLando and ELLYN.
Ellyn has a younger brother, the youngest in their family. We call him Junjun. From Ric 
I hope I can also be a good Steemian who can participate and touch the lives of other people in this global community of communities.
I am Rolando O. Cabanday. I’m proud to be a new Steemian.
