As much as I knew this day was coming, I never thought that it would come this soon. 

It’s never easy to speak about a loved one that has passed away. Come to think of it, it’s also so hard to fully understand and grasp the full life that Grandpa lived when I have barely lived over a quarter of the life he lived…But I can break Grandpa’s life down the way an true educator would appreciate…

Grandpa lived 97 long, prosperous and loving years.
That calculates to…
35,477 Days
851,448 Hours
51,086,880 Minutes (Fifty-One Million, 86 Thousand, Eight Hundred-Eighty Minutes)

And the educator in Grandpa would also be keen to exploring a little history…

Born on March 21, 1913, Grandpa was
only a year old during the start of World War I
26 years old during the Great Depression
51 Years old when the first color television set was invented.
64 years old when computers became a household item.
80 years old when the email and internet was discovered,
And 94 years old when Facebook was invented.

If Grandpa had a facebook account now, you know his current status would read…”Saturnino Somera: watching over you, playing my trumpet with the angels, eating double cheeseburgers, loving life and enjoying heaven”

Grandpa sure knew how to enjoy life and the people around him. It’s so hard to believe that Grandpa was 68 years old when I was born. Even though he’d already lived such a long life as an educator, athlete, coach, father and husband, he still managed to live the remaining 28 years of his life to the fullest. 

As one of Grandpa’s 17 grandchildren, I remember Grandpa taking care of all of us cousins. He loved taking care of all his grandchildren. As a young baby, Grandpa loved to hold his grandchildren, cradling and singing to us until we fell asleep.

Grandpa had such good memory and could easily distinguish each of his grandchildren by voice. His years of playing the trumpet and saxophone caught up to him, causing him to lose most of his hearing in the later part of his life. His vision also became poor.

Family parties would soon turn into…”Guess that Grandchild” as my cousins and I would line up to greet Grandpa by respectively yelling in his right ear as that was his “good ear:”
“Grandpa…hello…who am I?”
…Grandpa would respond “Andrew…”
Aunties and Uncles would laugh signifying confirmation…
Grandpa would then continue to say…”Andrew…Are you done with college…what are you studying now…” asked like a true educator.

This is just one of the many memories that I have of Grandpa.  During Grandpa’s 97th Birthday last March, we played the cousin guessing game again, which would turn out to be the last time. He remembered me and the rest of my family that were present. Even with our loss of him, his memory lives on in us.

As I end, there is another fond memory that I have of Grandpa that I’d like to leave with you all. I remember a birthday that Grandpa celebrated a couple years back, when after we all sang him happy birthday, he greeted us all with a poem that he had remembered. A poem of thanks and gratitude. 

Just like he did to Grandma, he always loved breaking out in poem and song, always brining about smiles to our faces.

And so it’s only fitting that I conclude with one final poem to Ninong, in memory of Grandpa and the life he has given us...

You can shed 1,000 tears now that he is gone 
Or you can smile because he lived 97 years long
You can close your eyes and pray that he will come back,
Or you can open your eyes, see the life he has left, and get back on track.
Your heart can be empty because you can't see him, filling you with tears,
Or you can be full of the love that you and Tatang shared throughout the years.
You can remember him and only that he is gone
Or you can cherish his memory and let it live on,
You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back,
Or you can do what Tatang would want:
Smile, open your eyes, love, learn, sing poems and go on.
Rest in Peace Grandpa…we miss you and we’ll see you soon.

Condolences to all of The Saturnino and Remedios Somera Family at this most sorrowful time...

With deepest sympathies from The Santa Clara Vivit Family:
Sonnie, Novelle & Sons; Laura & Family; Betty; Johnnie & Family; and Deana (Wynne) & Daughters

Please accept our deepest sympathies.
from Edison Chan and family

We were so sorry to hear of your loss. The thoughts of many are with you at this time of sorrow. Please accept our deepest sympathies.

from the SOMERA's of Tuguegarao City, Cagayan, Philippines (Teresita, Gaylord, Gerald, Gary, Maricel, Yuan and Yani)

Like a bird singing in the rain, let grateful memories survive in time of sorrow. 
Our thoughts and prayers are with you.

OBITUARY

Mr. Saturnino S. Somera

March 21, 1913 – May 8, 2010

Frisbie-Warren & Carroll Mortuary

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