One is the famous Byrds song, “Turn, turn, turn, To Everything There Is a Season,” which is based on verses from the bible in the Book of Ecclesiastes.
This has certainly been a season of the “celebration of life,” as a number of people have passed away in recent weeks. We carry two Obituaries in this paper — that of Charles Domnick of the Marshall Islands – the founder of several businesses from construction to retail to shipping — that his family runs today — and of Justice Janet Healy Weeks – who was my neighbor down the street before she left Guam.
Both of them contributed significantly in their careers and lives. I was also sorry to hear of the passing of Elaine Cruz Jones, who I remember at meetings at Jones and Guerrero, at the Guam Business Magazine Executive of the Year Gala and frequently at Meskla. Elaine was interested in everybody and everything, and she is also missed.
My mother-in-law — Merced Camacho Maratita — also passed away at the end of April. She was a great believer in the value of serving in the U.S. military and would tell her children that after their 20 years they could take the education they received by serving and then do great things. Indeed, she saw two sons, a grandson, a granddaughter, and a son-in-law do just that.
When I first met the Maratitas they were a small family, and when I began to travel to the Northern Mariana Islands people would ask me which Maratita’s in Rota and Saipan I was related to and how. I had to learn, and Mom was ready to teach. Other people in the community would also help with my education. These days, the Maratita’s and their relatives have spread far beyond Guam and the NMI — to Hawaii, Montana, Texas, Florida, Colorado, Oklahoma, Las Vegas and Japan.
One of the consolations of masses and a funeral is that many of those relatives came to Guam, and the people in Guam who came to the funeral and brought with them the stories of their relationship with my mother-in-law.
Her three sons accompanied the hearse from Ada’s Mortuary to St. Anthony’s Church in Tamuning and to Guam Memorial Park.
Mom was very close to her 30 grandchildren and her 32 great grandchildren, and always mindful of them. She frequently traveled to see them. I don’t think my daughter ever left Guam without a frozen block of her chicken kelaguen.
So it was entirely fitting that eight of her granddaughters carried the coffin to the graveside. That was a break with tradition, but one that made us all proud, and an image I will always remember.
As the last of the grandparents have passed, that means that we who remain are now the older generation.
When I became a grandparent, my daughter said, “Mummy, now you’ll have to act like an adult.”
I said I would try but would make no promises.
Despite the typhoons, and despite the economic challenges, one thing that shows the enjoyment of living in Guam and the islands, is that there is always an opportunity to meet and to greet people at meetings, lunches, dinners, ribbon cuttings and more.
And sometimes to fully enjoy the chance to “Party like it’s 1999,” or “Party Like It’s Your Birthday” — whether you are a grandma or not. mbj
— Maureen N. Maratita is the publisher at Glimpses Media. Glimpses Media includes the Marianas Business Journal, Guam Business Magazine, The Guam Guide, Wave 105.1 FM, Power98 and Route99.
